We want to take you on a journey today. It seems like a simple day. It also seems like a typical day. But it’s a day that wouldn’t even be possible without inventions that happened right here in the Garden State.

We’ll use a fictitious woman Allison to take us through the day and stop you every time she does something that is only possible because of a New Jersey invention. Here we go.
Allison wakes up early one morning because she has a busy day ahead. Her day starts with her alarm blasting an Eddie Van Halen solo. STOP. Thank you, Les Paul, inventor of the electric guitar.

Photo by James Coleman on Unsplash
Photo by James Coleman on Unsplash
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She turns on the light. STOP. Thank you Thomas Edison (light bulb). Her first move is to go make a cup of coffee, and on the way to the kitchen, she flips on the TV to catch the latest news. STOP. Thank you, Allen DuMont, the creator of the first television network.
Allison knows it’s going to be a busy day, so she packs a quick lunch.

Photo by Dario on Unsplash
Photo by Dario on Unsplash
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She grabs a bottle of water and a can of condensed soup. STOP. Thank you Campbell’s Soup Company, for canned condensed soup. Walking by the dog bowl she realizes Fido knocked it over last night so she reaches for the vacuum cleaner for a quick clean-up. STOP. Thank you David Kenneth for your work on early vacuum cleaners.

Photo by Calle Macarone on Unsplash
Photo by Calle Macarone on Unsplash
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Allison then realizes it's not a very warm day, so she heads over to her window A/C unit to adjust it. STOP. Willis Carrier sold the first 'unit air conditioner to a company in Newark. Yes, it's a bit of a stretch, but we'll take it.

Photo by t Penguin on Unsplash
Photo by t Penguin on Unsplash
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Our fictitious friend almost leaves for work without grabbing her cell phone. STOP. The first cell phone call was from Manhattan to Bell Labs in New Jersey. Don't believe this one? Read more here.

Photo by Jonas Lee on Unsplash
Photo by Jonas Lee on Unsplash
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So, I think we proved Allison's morning would have been an absolute mess without all those great New Jersey inventions, And she might, in fact, not even leave the house without them.

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