From squirts to hertz [Lonnie Johnson, inventor]

With more than 100 awarded and pending patents-for everything from hair-drying rollers to soil moisture meters-Lonnie Johnson is among a small group of African-American inventors whose work accounts for 6 percent of all US patent applications. the young Johnson was known around his neighborhood as "the professor," a child prodigy who won a statewide high school science competition for turning junkyard scraps into a remote-controlled robot nearly a meter tall that ran on compressed air. His tinkering plus whopping SAT scores won him a math scholarship to Tuskegee Institute, where he earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and a master's in nuclear engineering. During his time as a NASA engineer he invented the SuperSoaker water gun. The success of the SuperSoaker gave Johnson both the financial means and the professional clout to quit his day job and invent full-time. He set up two companies, Johnson Research and Development and Excellatron, both based in Atlanta, Ga., whose combined staffs of 30 now develop new consumer products, toys, and environmentally friendly alternative methods of power. They also invest in technology startups and do community outreach, including setting up an inner-city manufacturing plant and visiting local schools to introduce youngsters to the world of inventing.