Governor Sean Parnell issued an executive proclamation stating Feb. 11, 2012 as Alaska Inventors Day.

In celebration of the proclamation, the Alaska Inventors Alliance and the Alaska Patent & Trademark Resource Center will host a daylong event on Saturday, Feb. 11 at the Geophysical Institute where the public can learn about resources available to local inventors, tour the GI Machine and Electronics Shops and meet with Interior mayors and local inventors.

The Alaska Inventors Day Seminar will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, with activities in the Globe Room and Auditorium located at the Geophysical Institute at 903 Koyukuk Drive on the University of Alaska Fairbanks campus. This is a free event open to the public.

Alaskans are a resourceful lot. Since 1976, more than 1,600 patents were awarded to innovative Alaskans. From a pin bone removal apparatus, pioneered by machinists at the GI, to an ocean spill and contaminated sea ice containment, separation and removal system –many ideas have been awarded patents over the last three decades. Currently, more than 500 new patent applications from Alaskans have been submitted for processing.

February 11 was selected for the occasion, as it is the anniversary of the birth of Thomas Alva Edison, a world-renowned American inventor and holder of more than 1,000 patents.

Source: Geophysical Institute