Hedy Lamarr, born in Vienna in 1914, was an actress and inventor. In 1937, Lamarr escaped her controlling husband and Nazi Austria and moved around Europe before crossing over to the United States. While flourishing as a Hollywood starlet, Lamarr also exercised her passion for innovation. Working alongside George Antheil, Lamarr created the “Secret Communications System”, which was intended to switch radio frequencies amidst the chaos of World War II so that enemies could not decode messages. This technology was later adopted by the United States Navy and serves as a building block behind the wireless communication of today’s cell phones, GPS navigators, and Wi-Fi.
