The elaborate records kept by the US Patent Office since 1790 are allowing researchers to study the nature of invention and how it has changed in 200 years.
One way to think about invention is as a process that combines technologies to fulfill some human need or purpose. In other words, inventions never come out of nowhere. They always build on earlier advances to create something new.
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To read the original article: Data Mining 200 Years of Patent Office Records To Reveal The Nature of Invention | MIT Technology Review
