Super Humans - Sahibzada Sanwar Azam Sunny

Sahibzada Sanwar Azam Sunny (/ˈsænˈwɔːr ˈəsəm səniː/; Urdu: سنوار اعظم ثانی‎; Bengali: সানওয়ার আজম সানি, born December 17, 1989) is a Bangladeshi-born artist, environmental activist and social entrepreneur. He is a columnist for The Daily Star and a blogger. He became fluent in multiple languages and is one of the youngest artists to have a solo exhibition at the National Art Gallery with work in permanent collection at the Liberation War Museum. He finished four years of American high school in eight months with honors and was a college senior by the age of eighteen, teaching university courses in engineering at the age of 21. A member of the Singranatore family, he is the youngest child and only son of Colonel Muhammad Shahid Sarwar and his wife Kamrun Nahar. One of the founding members of the Sustainable Automotive Energy Infrastructure, he is also the founder of the Sustainable Built Environment Initiative of Bangladesh, later Bangladesh Green Building Council (BGBC), the Bangladesh affiliate of the World Green Building Council. His father was a senior member of the Singranatore family and a military commander of the national Army, United Nations forces and the Border Guards, while his mother, Kamrun Nahar of the Munshibari family of Comilla was an artist and scientist, a student of Iajuddin Ahmed, the thirteenth President of Bangladesh. Both parents were born in erstwhile East Pakistan. He grew up in various places around the country. He has an older sister, named Shahzia Sarwar, an architect. The House of Singra and Natore (Singranatore Zamindari) was a formerly ruling family who were hereditary lords (Zamindars) in the northwestern region of Rajshahi in erstwhile East Bengal in the area of present day Singra, Bangladesh. In 1950, the State Acquisition Act was adopted by the erstwhile democratic Government of East Pakistan, abolishing the rights of the feudal ruling families. The Singranatore family, who served as vassals to the Maharajas of Natore and Dighapatia, also produced many influential members and politicians. In 2005, as a Youth Ambassador to the United States, he was supported by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the United States Department of State. He started high school at Lincoln College Preparatory Academy after completing eighth grade, to study International Baccalaureate and was a senior aged fifteen. His first ever paid job at the age of 16 was to do a MATLAB programming project for Miftahur Rahman at the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at North South University. A child prodigy, he could fluently read, write or speak six languages by the age of eight and by 2006 he completed the four-year American high school program in less than nine months, as a member of the Honor Roll, United States National Honor Society and winning awards with the Science Olympiad. Then he was offered a Merit Scholarship by the School of Engineering at the University of Kansas when he was only sixteen years old. He was a final year university student (college senior) studying engineering by the age of eighteen. At Kansas, he was an active brother of the Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity (PIKE) initiated through the Beta Gamma Chapter. He also holds a Master of Public Administration degree from the Henry W. Bloch School of Management at the University of Missouri-Kansas City where he was a graduate researcher under Jered Carr at the L.P. Cookingham Institute of Urban Affairs. He graduated with Pi Alpha Alpha, Omicron Delta Kappa and Phi Kappa Phi honors in 2013. Nicholas Peroff was his graduate advisor.

Super Humans - Karl Friedrich Benz

Karl Friedrich Benz (German: [kaɐ̯l ˈfʁiːdʁɪç ˈbɛnts] November 25, 1844 – April 4, 1929) was a German engine designer and engineer, generally regarded as the inventor of the first automobile powered by an internal combustion engine, and together with Bertha Benz, pioneering founder of the automobile manufacturer Mercedes-Benz which is now one of the leading car brands. Other German contemporaries, Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach working as partners, also worked on similar types of inventions, without knowledge of the work of the other, but Benz received a patent for his work first, and, subsequently patented all the processes that made the internal combustion engine feasible for use in an automobile. In 1879, his first engine patent was granted to him, and in 1886, Benz was granted a patent for his first automobile. Karl Benz was born Karl Friedrich Michael Vaillant, on November 25, 1844 in Mühlburg, now a borough of Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg, which is part of modern Germany, to Josephine Vaillant and a locomotive driver, Johann George Benz, whom she married a few months later. According to German law, the child acquired the name "Benz" by legal marriage of his parents Benz and Vaillant. When he was two years old, his father died of pneumonia, his name was changed to Karl Friedrich Benz in remembrance of his father. Despite living in near poverty, his mother strove to give him a good education. Benz attended the local Grammar School in Karlsruhe and was a prodigious student. In 1853, at the age of nine he started at the scientifically oriented Lyceum. Next he studied at the Poly-Technical University under the instruction of Ferdinand Redtenbacher. Benz had originally focused his studies on locksmithing, but he eventually followed his father's steps toward locomotive engineering. On September 30, 1860, at age fifteen, he passed the entrance exam for mechanical engineering at the University of Karlsruhe, which he subsequently attended. Benz was graduated July 9, 1864 at nineteen. During these years, while riding his bicycle, he started to envision concepts for a vehicle that would eventually become the horseless carriage. Following his formal education, Benz had seven years of professional training in several companies, but did not fit well in any of them. The training started in Karlsruhe with two years of varied jobs in a mechanical engineering company. He then moved to Mannheim to work as a draftsman and designer in a scales factory. In 1868 he went to Pforzheim to work for a bridge building company Gebrüder Benckiser Eisenwerke und Maschinenfabrik. Finally, he went to Vienna for a short period to work at an iron construction company. In 1871, at the age of twenty-seven, Karl Benz joined August Ritter in launching the Iron Foundry and Mechanical Workshop in Mannheim, later renamed Factory for Machines for Sheet-metal Working. The enterprise's first year went very badly. Ritter turned out to be unreliable, and the business's tools were impounded. The difficulty was overcome when Benz's fiancée, Bertha Ringer, bought out Ritter's share in the company using her dowry. On July 20, 1872, Karl Benz and Bertha Ringer married. They had five children: Eugen (1873), Richard (1874), Clara (1877), Thilde (1882), and Ellen (1890). Despite the business misfortunes, Karl Benz led in the development of new engines in the early factory he and his wife owned. To get more revenues, in 1878 he began to work on new patents. First, he concentrated all his efforts on creating a reliable petrol two-stroke engine. Benz finished his two-stroke engine on December 31, 1878, New Year's Eve, and was granted a patent for it in 1879. Karl Benz showed his real genius, however, through his successive inventions registered while designing what would become the production standard for his two-stroke engine. Benz soon patented the speed regulation system, the ignition using sparks with battery, the spark plug, the carburetor, the clutch, the gear shift, and the water radiator.

Super Humans - Alia Sabur

Alia Sabur (born February 22, 1989) is an American materials scientist and attorney. She holds the record for being the world's youngest professor. Sabur was born in New York City, New York. Her mother, Julie Sabur (born Kessler), worked as a reporter for News12 Long Island until 1995. She married Mohammed Sabur, a Pakistan native, in 1980. Alia, born on February 22, 1989, showed early signs of giftedness. She tested "off the IQ scale," according to an educator who tested her as a first-grader. As a fourth-grader, she left public school and was admitted to State University of New York at Stony Brook at the age of 10, later graduating summa cum laude at 14. She also received a black belt in Tae Kwon Do at the age of 9. After Stony Brook, Sabur attended Drexel University where she received her M.S. in 2006. Alia is recipient of the 2007 Dean fellowship from Drexel University.  In 2007 she took a temporary position at Southern University in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. On 19 February 2008, at 18 years of age (3 days before her 19th birthday), she was appointed to the position of International Professor as Research Liaison with Stony Brook University by the Dept. of Advanced Technology Fusion at Konkuk University in Seoul, South Korea. The position was a temporary, one-year contract which she chose not to renew. The Guinness Book of World Records named Sabur the World's Youngest Professor. She began her position at the Department of Advanced Technology Fusion at Konkuk University in June 2008 and returned to her hometown of New York early 2009, without renewing her contract.

In 2008, Sabur filed a civil suit against Drexel University, claiming that the university engaged in fraud and defamation regarding Sabur's pursuit of a doctoral degree. In the suit, Sabur charges that Yury Gogotsi, her former Ph.D. advisor, improperly used her research to apply for grants, and deliberately obstructed her degree. Trial proceedings began on August 9, 2010. "But that was when I grew disillusioned with the science world. I saw bad conduct and realised that some professors weren’t motivated by a love of science. I fell out with the adviser who was supervising my PhD. I sued Drexel University in a civil lawsuit and the case has now gone into private, binding arbitration. I believe my adviser applied for grants and patents using my ideas, and took credit for them. He denies this and has accused me of stealing his work. Even though the university has cleared me of plagiarism it has still refused to award me my PhD.", says Financial Times article. This is the second lawsuit involving the Sabur family. In the previous one Alia Sabur's "parents brought suit on behalf of their daughter and alleged that defendants board of education, its members, and the school district failed to provide their daughter with appropriate educational services in violation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act". Six of the seven counts were dismissed.

Super Humans - Kelvin Doe

   At the age of 13, a boy living in Sierra Leone created batteries and generators using materials he picked up around the house or from trash bins. Now, he's wowing experts in the U.S. Kelvin Doe, now 16, became the youngest person in history to be invited to the "Visiting Practitioner's Program" at MIT, according to CNN. Doe, a completely self-taught engineer, manages his own fully-staffed community radio station in Sierra Leone where he broadcasts news and plays music under the moniker 'DJ Focus.' The radio station is powered by a generator created from a deteriorating voltage stabilizer, which he found in the trash, while a simple antenna lets his neighborhood listen in. "They call me DJ Focus because I believe if you focus, you can do an invention perfectly," Doe said in a video produced by @radical.media for their THNKR YouTube channel. Among those inventions is a battery that he created to light up homes in his neighborhood. "The lights will come on once in a week, and the rest of the month, dark," Doe told interviewers. It took several attempts before Doe finally had a working prototype for the battery -- a combination of soda, acid and metal, wrapped together by tape. MIT discovered Doe during Innovate Salone, a national high school innovation challenge held in Sierra Leone by an international organization called Global Minimum. Doctoral student David Sengeh recognized his skills right away. "It's very inspirational," Sengeh said in the video. "He created a generator because he needed it." Before attending Innovate Salone this year, Doe had never been more than 10 miles from home. With Sengeh's help, in September he journeyed to New York for the 2012 World Maker Faire, where he sat on a “Meet the Young Makers” panel with four American inventors. Doe's fame only promises to grow from here. Soon he will be a resident practitioner with the International Development Initiative at MIT and a guest presenter at Harvard School of Engineering, where he'll gain even more practical knowledge to help his community. "Whatever things I've learned here, I will share it with my friends, colleagues and loved ones," Doe said.

Super Humans - Praveen Kumar Gorakavi

   Praveen Kumar Gorakavi (born May 24, 1989) is an inventor and former child prodigy. Praveen innovations span multiple scientific fields. He has developed a low-cost artificial limb, products for water purification, food storage, and biofuel synthesis. Praveen has recently designed a low-cost mechanical brailler to increase braille literacy in the developing world. Praveen received the award ‘Outstanding Engineer/Scientist for the year 2009-10’ from FAPCCI and is considered to be the youngest recipient of this award. Earlier to this, Praveen received India’s prestigious award ‘Balshree’ from President of India. He received one of the highest civilian awards of Andhra Pradesh state, Ugadi Gaurav Puraskar, from state government of Andhra Pradesh. Praveen was also awarded the ‘Best technologist – for disabled people empowerment’ by state government of Andhra Pradesh. Currently, Praveen is working on hybrid solar energy encapsulation technology, involving solar spectrum bifurcation and subsequent concentration, as a part of doctoral studies at Indian Institute of Chemical Technology in Hyderabad, India. He is known especially for his efforts in supporting the people with disabilities.

How is he describing himself?

 "I have been doing research since my childhood, that made Indian media call me a 'Child Prodigy'. I have continued the spirit of innovation even after receiving 'Balshree' title from President of India, which is one of the prestigious award for Indian children with creative skills. I have been working on multiple disciplines of engineering & sciences. Though a graduate of Chemical Engineering background, I have been recognized as a polymath for my contributions in various disciplines such as ammunition technology, artificial limb design, food preservation machine, bio-ethanol producing catalyst, nano-fertilizers and others. I am an established professional inventor, recognized by various scientific organisations of importance. I have received few prestigious awards such as AP State's 'Uugadi Gavrav Puraskar' from Chief Minister of AP, 'Best Engineer/Scientist for the state of AP' from Chief Minister of AP, 'Child Scientist title' from DST, 'Best Innovator for helping physically handicapped' from Chief Minister of AP, 'Bal Ratna award', 'Gayatri Putra', etc. I have a very close association with various research organisations, scientists, entrepreneurs, political dignitaries, public servants, NGOs, government bodies, etc., which makes me more thirsty for innovations."

His inventions:

-Designed 40,000 Years Calendar (combination of 32 different calendar models),

a common basis for perpetual calendar calculation that considers design progressions of different calendar varieties for identifying true values of the day variables from all major calendars.

-Developed Ammunition / Propellant Technology,

An ammunition technology, using wax as the primary composite for the propulsion, works for a significantly low cost when compared to the a hydrazine based system.

-Designed Artificial Leg (Above Knee) design,

artificial limb at significantly low cost when compared to the existing instruments, operated mechanically and has ‘Knee’ and ‘Ankle’ joint movement.

-Invented Food Storage Equipment,

Shelf life of food is extended by at least 130% by controlling certain airborne ionization radiations. Also, a natural antioxidant material from grape seeds has been extracted/developed.

-Designed Water-Purification Technology,

Water purification system, at significantly low cost as compared to existing system has been developed, using specially designed filtration sequence at low pressures.

-Developed Theory in High Energy further explaining the uncertainty of particle behavior, with respect to position and orientation in four dimensional aspects

-Developed Catalyst Design for Bio-Ethanol Synthesis,

A non-fermentation way for the synthesis of lignocellulose bioethanol has been developed for rapid reaction rates and higher precision of reaction.

-Designed Advanced Spectral Selective Bragg-Reflector Design,

-Designed Braille Embosser,

This low weight and low priced Braille embosser is intentionally designed to empower the written communication among blind community, disregarding their social or financial backdrop.

-Developed Multi-color Painter,

-Developed Nano-Fertilizers,

-Developed Color Coder Technology.

A color coder has potential to store a lot of data within, by using holographic planar reflection schema.

Super Humans - Norbert Wiener

   Norbert Wiener (November 26, 1894 – March 18, 1964) was an American mathematician and philosopher. He was professor of mathematics at MIT. A famous child prodigy, Wiener later became an early researcher in stochastic and noise processes, contributing work relevant to electronic engineering, electronic communication, and control systems. Wiener is considered the originator of cybernetics, a formalization of the notion of feedback, with implications for engineering, systems control, computer science, biology, neuroscience, philosophy, and the organization of society.

   Wiener was born in Columbia, Missouri, the first child of Leo Wiener and Bertha Kahn, Jews of Polish and German origin, respectively. Leo had educated Norbert at home until 1903, employing teaching methods of his own invention, except for a brief interlude when Norbert was seven years of age. Earning his living teaching German and Slavic languages, Leo read widely and accumulated a personal library from which the young Norbert benefited greatly. Leo also had ample ability in mathematics and tutored his son in the subject until he left home. In his autobiography, Norbert described his father as calm and patient, unless he (Norbert) failed to give a correct answer, at which his father would lose his temper. He became an agnostic. After graduating from Ayer High School in 1906 at 11 years of age, Wiener entered Tufts College. He was awarded a BA in mathematics in 1909 at the age of 14, whereupon he began graduate studies of zoology at Harvard. In 1910 he transferred to Cornell to study philosophy. The next year he returned to Harvard, while still continuing his philosophical studies. Back at Harvard, Wiener became influenced by Edward Vermilye Huntington, whose mathematical interests ranged from axiomatic foundations to engineering problems. Harvard awarded Wiener a Ph.D. in 1912, when he was merely 17 years old, for a dissertation on mathematical logic, supervised by Karl Schmidt, the essential results of which were published as Wiener (1914). In that dissertation, he was the first to state publicly that ordered pairs can be defined in terms of elementary set theory. Hence relations can be defined by set theory, thus the theory of relations does not require any axioms or primitive notions distinct from those of set theory. In 1921, Kazimierz Kuratowski proposed a simplification of Wiener's definition of ordered pairs, and that simplification has been in common use ever since. It is (x, y) = {{x}, {x, y}}. In 1914, Wiener traveled to Europe, to be taught by Bertrand Russell and G. H. Hardy at Cambridge University, and by David Hilbert and Edmund Landau at the University of Göttingen. During 1915–16, he taught philosophy at Harvard, then was an engineer for General Electric and wrote for the Encyclopedia Americana. Wiener was briefly a journalist for the Boston Herald, where he wrote a feature story on the poor labor conditions for mill workers in Lawrence, Massachusetts, but he was fired soon afterwards for his reluctance to write favorable articles about a politician the newspaper's owners sought to promote. Although Wiener eventually became a staunch pacifist, he eagerly contributed to the war effort in World War I. In 1916, with America's entry into the war drawing closer, Wiener attended a training camp for potential military officers, but failed to earn a commission. One year later Wiener again tried to join the military, but the government again rejected him due to his poor eyesight. In the summer of 1918, Oswald Veblen invited Wiener to work on ballistics at the Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland. Living and working with other mathematicians strengthened his interest in mathematics. However, Wiener was still eager to serve in uniform, and decided to make one more attempt to enlist, this time as a common soldier. Wiener wrote in a letter to his parents, "I should consider myself a pretty cheap kind of a swine if I were willing to be an officer but unwilling to be a soldier." This time the army accepted Wiener into its ranks and assigned him, by coincidence, to a unit stationed at Aberdeen, Maryland. World War I ended just days after Wiener's return to Aberdeen and Wiener was discharged from the military in February 1919. Norbert Wiener was regarded as a semi-legendary figure at MIT. Wiener was unable to secure a permanent position at Harvard, a situation he blamed largely on anti-semitism at the university and in particular on the antipathy of Harvard mathematician G. D. Birkhoff. He was also rejected for a position at the University of Melbourne. At W. F. Osgood's suggestion, Wiener became an instructor of mathematics at MIT, where he spent the remainder of his career, becoming promoted eventually to Professor. There is a photograph of him prominently displayed in one of the hallways, often used in giving directions. In 1926, Wiener returned to Europe as a Guggenheim scholar. He spent most of his time at Göttingen and with Hardy at Cambridge, working on Brownian motion, the Fourier integral, Dirichlet's problem, harmonic analysis, and the Tauberian theorems. In 1926, Wiener's parents arranged his marriage to a German immigrant, Margaret Engemann; they had two daughters. His sister, Constance, married Philip Franklin. Their daughter, Janet, Wiener's niece, married Václav E. Beneš. Many tales, perhaps apocryphal, were told of him at MIT, especially concerning his absent-mindedness. It was said that he returned home once to find his house empty. He inquired of a neighborhood girl the reason, and she said that the family had moved elsewhere that day. He thanked her for the information and she replied, "That's why I stayed behind, Daddy!".