What’s in a name?

A Classic Greek Tale of Early Scientific Innovation

True to the typical serendipity which seems to rule innovation, Archimedes, the great Greek Scientist and Inventor, was preparing for a bath as his mind was occupied with a problem of density, specifically, how to detect pure gold from that which was adulterated with silver. In a relaxed state of mind, he lowered his body into the bath and noticed the water that was displace as he submerged his body fully into the bath.

Immediately, his mind conceived the fundamental principle of buoyancy and its application in measuring the purity of gold. Unable to contain his excitement with the discovery, he jumped out of the bath and ran naked through the streets of Syracuse, Greece excitedly shouting, “Eureka!” “Eureka!” “Eureka!” I have found it.

This ancient Greek account has come to symbolize the excitement and imagery of scientific discovery, the spirit of invention and creative genius, which we hope to cultivate and inspire within Eureka Medical’s inventor network.

The passion, dedication and excitement that medical professionals and medical inventors bring to their work are unmatched in other fields. At Eureka Medical we are a resource for busy medical professionals with life enhancing inventions, but limited time and resource to pursue them. By simplifying the commercialization process and synchronizing the risk to the reward, we hope to unleash the pent up supply of medical innovation that exist in the profession.

Archimedes is generally regarded as the greatest mathematician scientist of antiquity and one of the three greatest mathematicians of all time. He, together with Sir Isaac Newton (English 1643-1727) and Carl Friedrich Gauss (German 1777-1855) make up the top three.

“Eureka” is a simple form of the Greek verb heuriskein, meaning, “to find;” it means, “I have found it!”

Continuous Incremental Improvements Lead to Revolutionary Results

The spirit of innovation is contagious. Invention is a process of discovery that has the potential to empower a whole profession as continuous iterations of improvement are conceived, documented, published and commercialized. Each new product improvement builds off the previous body of knowledge to establish a remarkable process of continuous improvement. This process of incremental small changes pursued with determination and consistent discipline and flow of new ideas, can lead to revolutionary progress over a short period of time. Sometimes, a remarkable medical breakthrough is achieved in one simple elegant solution as is illustrated by many of the stories under Great Medical Innovators.

Often great inventions are a product of what seems to be serendipity. In almost every case immense preparation, deep specific knowledge and intense persistence are usually required to recognize the accidental effect when it happens. That is where the genius comes into play. Thousands of people had seen the same effect of bath water being displaced everyday for thousands of years. Yet, Archimedes was able to conceive a remarkable principle of science through preparation and by persisting in seeking a solution to a perplexing issue —his understanding was opened.

With the convergence of so many scientific, medical, engineering and information technologies, we live in a remarkable time when bright, prepared and persistent people are enabled to invent elegant solutions to complex medical problems. With increasing challenges, demands and expectations for our medical and health care systems, innovative solutions are more needed now than ever before. We are seeking inspirational stories of medical discovery to share the passionate spirit that accompanies great innovation and to stir the imagination of medical inventors worldwide.

The Internet Unleashes The Power of The Network Effect

The Internet allows unique access and capability to rapidly connect and share information on medical breakthroughs. The combined creative genius of thousands of bright, educated, inspired medical professionals all connect through a network makes for a powerful source of innovation. Join the Medical Inventor Network to enhance the adventure of medical product discovery.

Submit your story of medical discovery or a story that inspired you. We may publish your story in MedInvent, our eNewsletter for Medical Inventors, or you may get publish under Great Medical Innovators in the Eureka website.

Submit your inspirational medical invention narrative toinvent@eurekamed.com.