The Beauty of Science
The actress Hedy Lamarr was once called the most beautiful woman in the world. In 1933, she made a movie in what is now the Czech Republic. It was a pretty racy film (she appeared completely nude). The film was so hot it was banned by the Pope. It was also banned by Hitler, but that probably had nothing to do with the content of the film; Lamarr was Jewish.
In the late 1930s, she moved to the United States and began starring in more family-friendly movies. She did very well in Hollywood and achieved international recognition for her acting.
Wait! Isn’t this newsletter about science?
Oh, yeah. Well, it turns out that acting wasn’t Lamarr’s only skill set. While Lamarr made a living from acting, her hobby was science. She loved inventing things. Her most important invention, created with co-inventor George Antheil, was spread-spectrum technology, also known as frequency hopping.
With frequency hopping, radio signals hop from frequency to frequency, making it difficult for someone else to jam or intercept the signal. Lamarr got a patent for the invention in 1942. This was smack in the middle of World War II, so she saw a perfect market for her invention. She offered the technology to the United States Navy. However, the Navy said, “No thanks, ma’am,” and suggested that Lamarr would be of better service to her country by using her fame and beauty to sell war bonds. The Navy did end up using the technology during the Cuban Missile Crisis, but by that time the patent had expired. Lamarr didn’t get any money for her invention.
Frequency hopping is still used today—and for more peaceful purposes. Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth are all possible because of frequency hopping. And we owe that, at least in part, to Hedy Lamarr, film star and scientist.
’til next time,
Avery