Who Becomes an Inventor in America?

Summary:   A study by Harvard-based Opportunity Insights on the factors that determine who becomes an inventor in the United States, focusing on the role of inventive ability (“nature”) vs. environment (“nurture”). Based on data from 1.2 million inventors, research shows that children’s chances of becoming inventors vary sharply with characteristics at birth, such as their race, gender, and parents’ socioeconomic class.