Five Great Inventions in the Philippines

1. Bamboo Incubator- Premature babies are typically underdeveloped and low in body fat
percentage inhibiting their ability to maintain their normal body temperature. The modern
medical addresses this; however, not all people who need it have access to such
technology. This is a particularly serious problem in rural areas. Fortunately, a solution
came the first Filipino invention on the list: the bamboo incubator. This makeshift device
is inexpensive and easy to reproduce, making it ideal for use to rural areas.
2. Challenge 21- This board game borrows and incorporates aspects from games such as
tic-tac-toe, scrabble, bingo, chess, and (according to the creator himself) even basketball.
The game which can be played by up to 4 players, was designed to promote and develop
abstract thinking, observation, and impromptu strategizing.
3. Mango flowering- Philippines is the major source of mangoes in the world. Central
Luzon, and Western Visayas are among the country’s biggest producers of this seasonal
fruit. Mangoes only flower during a specific period in the year. For quite some time,
Filipinos relied on smudging- the use of smoke from burning materials to keep up with
the demand for mangoes. National Scientist Ramon Barba however, had a different idea.
He proposed an alternative: the use of a chemical spray called etherel (2-
chloroethylphosphonic acid). In 2008, a documentary from the World Intellectual
Property Office highlighted Barba’s discovery: “The prolific mango production in the
Philippines is due in large measure to the ingenuity of one man (Barba). His invention
widely used today revolutionized the Philippine mango industry making the crop one of
the country’s top export earners.”
4. PC Chipset- Electronics have gone beyond being a simple human “want”: in fact, some
argue that in today’s society, they have become a need. Students, for instance, use their
smartphones to connect with friends, to entertain themselves or to do research on the go.
These device and many more help us build ties, work anywhere, and access information
in just a few clicks. All of these of course are 21 st century necessities. Back in the day,
Diosdado Banatao developed the first single-chip 16-bit microprocessor, based calculator
in the 1970’s. He went on to create the world’s first system logic chip sets in 1981.
Banatao eventually came up with the first Windows Graphics accelerator chip for
 personal computers. Today, Banatao serves as the chairman for Inphi, a company
specializing in advanced semiconductor anfd Silicon photonics solutions.
5. Video Phone- Invented by Gregorio Zara, in 1995. When James Bond was using one in
Dr. No, it had already been in existence a number of years. This is the predecessor of the
camera in your mobile.

Great Filipino Men and Women

1. Fe del Mundo- The first woman to be recognized as National Artist, way back in
1980 she is the one who invented the incubator. An incubator is an apparatus used to
maintain environmental conditions suitable for newborn baby.
2. Lucille Abad- senior science research specialist and the chief of Chemistry Research
Section, Philippines Nuclear Research Institute(PNRI). She developed a plant
vitamin- an effective plant growth promoter using irradiated seaweeds.
3. Alleta Conception Yñiguez- assistant professor at Marine Science Institute, UP
Diliman. Yñiguez studies contributed significantly to improving the Philippine
sardine industry and managing red tide.
4. Gregorio Y. Zara- inventor of videophone. Videophone is a two-way television
patented as a photo signal separator network.
5. Daniel Dingel- inventor of the water-powered car in 1969. His hydrogen reactor uses
electricity to transform ordinary tap water with salt into deuterium or heavy water.
6. Diosdado Banatao- most known for introducing the first single-chip graphical use
interface (GUI) accelerator that made computers work faster and for helping develop
Ethernet controller chip that made internet possible.