THE NATIONAL MEDAL OF TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION

By Daniel Davidson

I remember the day i won an award from the President.  Yes, it included a shuttle run and various other physical activities, and was presented to me by my PE teacher, but I still won an award from him!  Albeit, the Presidential Physical Fitness Award is not quite the award that is presented annually to the leading innovator of our country, however, it is an award from the POTUS.

All kidding aside, it has come time for nominations to be submitted for the National Medal of Technology and Innovation.  This medal is given to the individual, company, or group that has made the biggest contributions to America’s economic, environmental and social well-being through their inventions and/or innovations.

Currently, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is accepting nominations for the award, and information on the nomination process and a nomination form can be found here.  Some of the guidelines include:

• No self nominations.  They will be rejected.
• You can nominate an individual, a group (up to 4 people), a company, or a division of a company.
• Governmental agencies and laboratories are eligible.
• Finalists are subject to FBI background checks (I would only be worried if the Florida Bar was conducting the background check).

Now that you are up to speed on how to go about nominating someone, or “something,” here are some notable winners:

• 1985 – AT&T Bell Laboratories – For contribution over decades to modern communication systems.
• 1985 – Apple Computer, Inc. – For their development and introduction of the personal computer which has sparked the birth of a new industry extending the power of the computer to individual users.

Here is to the next recipient of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation.  Cheers!