When we hear the word invention, we often think of countries like Japan and the US.

Do you know that the items below, which most of us have seen, or use on a daily basis, were invented by Malaysians?

1) The egg boiler

If you end up getting frustrated in the mornings for getting runny eggs or boiled eggs instead of the half-boiled version you wanted, this device is for you. Many of us may not have this in our homes, but many mamak joints have them - a plastic device to boil your daily fix of half-boiled eggs, just the way you want it.

Hew Ah Kow came up with the idea to invent this device when he worked as a bulldozer operator at a lumber camp in Kelantan in 1973. Since he often ended up with overcooked eggs for breakfast, he punctured the bottoms of Ovaltine cans he placed the eggs in, creating a boiler that would make the perfect half-boiled eggs. The device can be purchased from most shops, or even online, for less than RM10 each.

2) The single-chip USB flash drive

Gone are the days when we used to store our files and assignments in the floppy disk. The days of storing information may have moved to cloud storage nowadays, but the USB drive, also known as flash drive/thumb drive, remain a crucial device in most our lives, be it at work, or school.

This device was invented by Pua Khein Seng in 2001 when he founded Phison Electronics with four partners. Pua reportedly came with the idea when researching flash memory technolody during his third year at a Taiwan university.

3) Flipper toothbrush holder

Face it, storing tootbrushes in the same room as where we do our "other businesses" is not the best hygienic practice. Goo Yock Tee invented toothbrush holders to help keep toothbrushes clean, while protecting them from dust, dirt, and damage.

These plastic containers are mounted on the wall and are user-friendly enough for a child to take and put back a toothbrush without manually prying open the cover. Not surprisingly, this invention has won various local and international awards, and is being used by more than 25 million people, and sold in over 40 countries by world-famous brand Flipper!

4) Face masks

Face masks are a necessity in the era of COVID-19, but how many of you know that surgical gace masks were invented by Penang-born epidemiologist Dr Wu Lien-teh?

Wu invented the world's first ever face mask in 1910 when he was hired to assist in dealing with the Manchurian Plague in China. The medical degree from the University of Cambridge figured out that the disease of airborne, and to prevent its spread, he fashioned out a surgical mask out of cotton, gauze, and layers to filter the air, and naturally, virus particles. The widely-used N95 mask is a direct descendant of this.

5) Sustainable animal feed

The creator of this product called Yam 2.0, is just 11! Maryam Muzamir from Kuantan, Pahang, came up with the idea to invent the livestock feed made out of ground shrimp and sea snail shells after spotting the amount of shells that were being discarded at a seafood restaurant she had gone to with her family, last year.

After researching articles on the benefits of the shells for livestock, Maryam created Yam 2.0, which has since won several local and international awards.

In fact, her invention even earned a mention from popular US TV talk show host James Corden on "The Late Late Show with James Corden" programme, who called Yam 2.0 "absolutely incredible." Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob also took notice of Maryam's invention and congratulated her on social media.

There you, top five inventions by Malaysians that you may not know of. There are many other inventions that were not mentioned in this article for length's purpose.

This goes to show that Malaysians are not lesser than anyone else when it comes to inventing things. Let's hope that the coming generations will spawn more brilliant inventors from the country.


Source: The Smart Local Malaysia
Photo source: Juice, theceo.in, carousell.ph, techtrp, asianinspirations.com.au