Hedy Lamarr the Goddess of Wireless

Although better known for her Silver Screen exploits, Austrian actress Hedy Lamarr (born Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler) also became a pioneer in the field of wireless communications following her emigration to the United States. The international beauty icon, along with co-inventor George Anthiel, developed a "Secret Communications System" to help combat the Nazis in World War II. By manipulating radio frequencies at irregular intervals between transmission and reception, the invention formed an unbreakable code to prevent classified messages from being intercepted by enemy personnel. Those inventions have more recently been incorporated into Wi-Fi, CDMA and Bluetooth technology and led to her being inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2014. Lamarr and Anthiel received a patent in 1941, but the enormous significance of their invention was not realized until decades later.

Proving she was much more than just another pretty face, Lamarr shattered stereotypes and earned a place among the 20th century's most important women inventors. She truly was a visionary whose technological acumen was far ahead of its time.