Nevadans don’t get enough credit for their inventions, so check out these nine life-changing creations that put the Silver State on the map like never before.

Nevada is home to some smart cookies, and it has been for generations. Inventors and scholars from the Silver State have long put the state on the map for coming up with genius ideas—hello, blue jeans, which changed the way we dress forever—but that doesn’t mean Nevadans get the credit they deserve for revolutionizing so many facets of everyday life. Heck, even the nickname the Silver State comes from Nevada being home to the country’s first unearthing of silver ore, which helps bring to life everything from batteries to mirrors. With firepower like that right in our backyard, it’s no wonder that Las Vegas is oh-so reflective and bright!

Still, silver isn’t invented—it’s found—and it can’t occupy a precious spot on our list. With that established, let’s take a closer look at nine inventions brought to life by Nevadans and how they went on to change life as we know it.

1. A Nevadan tailor birthed blue jeans alongside Levi Strauss (yes, that Levi)

Blue jeans are about as American as clothing garments get, and there’s a good reason for that: They were invented not only in the U.S. but more specifically in Nevada. The biggest name in denim is undoubtedly Levi’s, and that, too, is a tale as old as time. Levi Strauss was a mid-nineteenth-century businessman operating out of San Francisco, and he began working with a tailor from Reno named Jacob Davis. You see, it was Davis’ idea to take regular work pants and elevate them to be sturdier and last longer. How would he do this? With metalwork, of course. Luckily for him, Strauss had money, and his business worked with imported textiles. It was a match made in heaven.

Together, Strauss and Davis acquired a patent for their idea and set out to bring it to life. By the 1880s, their operation took off, and they were able to dedicate a factory to it. Within a few decades, these reimagined work pants were everywhere, and rest is, quite literally, history. Levi’s still dominates the authentic denim market today, though you can now find blue jeans in a variety of cuts, styles (cuffed jeans are particularly hot at the moment), and qualities.

2. The snow sampler changed the way scientists study snow

The snow sample may be less ubiquitous (and in far fewer homes) than blue jeans, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a noteworthy invention. Invented by University of Nevada, Reno professor James Church, who lectured on art history and literature in the early 1900s, the snow sampler helped break ground in the scientific community because it finally granted curious minds a way to accurately assess how much water was in snow.

You see, Church loved hiking, and the more he hiked in the mountains around Reno, the more he wanted to understand the snow he would encounter. His snow sampler satiated that curiosity by allowing him and others to see how much water was in the snow at any given place, and once you do this in a line of testing spots, you’re left with a median number for the water content.

This changed the way scientists approach snow research, and it gave Church a new lease on life. He was able to travel the world, speaking on snow science and aiding researchers in their quest to understand the beautiful flakes better. That sounds dreamy to us!

3. This Nevadan’s dreams flew high on a Learjet

When it comes to aircraft, Nevada might be better known for the spaceships that may or may not be located at Area 51, but did you know that Learjets were also invented in the Silver State?

Bill Lear spearheaded the Learjet company. Right up to his untimely death in 1978, he put all of his energy into making the Learjet operation fruitful. Though Lear was born in Missouri, he experienced one of his Learjet breakthroughs after moving to Reno, leading to the birth of the Lear Fan jet, which was constructed with lighter materials, making it a sleek option for quick travel.

But let’s back up. Commerce was rapidly growing in the middle of the twentieth century; industrialization had opened the floodgates, and with industries, bank accounts, and credit cards all booming as technology advanced, businessmen and women needed easy and streamlined transportation methods. Military operations also needed sleek jets that were reliable, and being made in the U.S. was always a plus. This is where the Learjet came in, with its first aircraft meant for business use debuting in 1963. Lear’s company went on to invent and manufacture many models of the jet, and operations continued for many years after the founder’s passing before ultimately ending in 2021.

4. Video slot machines originated in Las Vegas (because of course they did)

Slot machines have been around for longer than you might think. They date back to 1891 in New York, and they consisted of a giant hunk of metal that came fitted with playing cards and drums to move them around. If it sounds archaic, that’s because it was. It wasn’t until 1976 that video slot machines debuted in Las Vegas, revolutionizing the way Sin City tourists and citizens alike gambled.

A specific inventor isn’t associated with the video slot machine, but we do know that the idea—and the end result—came from Fortune Coin Co. These machines now featured screens that spanned 19 inches, better immersing players in the world of the slots. The graphics were more enticing, and as everything became more electronic, gamblers were able to pay in new ways, giving them more freedom to play how and when they want.

For better or worse, this marked a significant step in the evolution of gambling, and slot machines have only become more intricate since then.

5. A University of Nevada graduate’s invention created sitcoms as we know them

When you break down a sitcom, what are the essential aspects? You’ve got quirky characters, a small number of set pieces that the characters frequent, and the one-liners that are intended to make people on the set and at home laugh.

And that’s where this invention comes in. A University of Nevada graduate who studied in the engineering department became successful in Hollywood and fixed a huge problem that producers were encountering: a lack of laughs. Sitcoms are notoriously “filmed in front of a live studio audience,” but the audience doesn’t always provide the robust laughter needed to be convincing in a final cut, whether because they’re a bad audience or they’re tired of laughing after multiple takes on a scene.

Working for CBS, Charley Douglass was the first person in the entertainment industry to harness already recorded laughter to make scenes more powerful and circumvent poor audience results. He coined his invention the “laff box” in the 1950s, and in the ‘60s, his technology began bolstering non-sitcom programs, too. It’s safe to say that Douglass truly changed the television landscape after graduating from U of N!

6. The video slot machine wasn’t Nevada’s only gambling-related invention

The video slot machine expanded the gambling scene in big ways, but a few decades before its invention, another advancement in the industry expanded the reach of the casino as a Nevada institution. You see, we know casinos today to be sprawling mega-buildings that contain not only the main casino gaming rooms but also floors of hotel rooms, multiple restaurants, stores to spend your winnings in, and even full-blown attractions, like the gondola rides in The Venetian. But casinos didn’t used to be that way—that is, until 1947.

That year, the Mapes Hotel opened its doors in Reno, and with 12 stories to its name, it became a popular destination for tourists and locals alike. It was a true gathering spot, and it was the first high-rise casino of its kind. The hotel was sadly shuttered in 1982, but by then, it had completely shifted the casino scene statewide. The race had been on to create the best all-in-one experience, leading to the Nevada—and, more specifically, Las Vegas—we know and love today. For example, Caesars Palace didn’t open until 1966, nearly two decades after the Mapes Hotel became a community hub in Reno.

7. Nevadans have helped advance radar technology, too 

While less is known about the specifics compared to other inventions on this list, we find it fascinating that our fellow Nevadans helped create something as complex as ground-penetrating radar technology. This came to fruition in 1986, when Nevada National Security Site scientists had a breakthrough that would lead to the detection of dinosaur bones and hazardous materials that need to be properly disposed of before harming people, animals, or the environment.

Interestingly, tests with this technology are still being completed in Nevada. A Geotech Global Consulting Technical Report from September 2022 details a test conducted at the Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument, with multiple locations in the area being tested using the technology. The study shows that the technology has gotten snappier with time, taking “less than twenty minutes to complete data collection,” and a whopping seven test spots in the area pinged positive for anomalies. How intriguing!

8. This small-town inventor is paving a path toward a better future

Sometimes, small-town minds harbor the keys to the future, and no one from Minden, Nev., is proving that quite like inventor Josh Weber. What’s more, the rest of the team is either from the Silver State or has lived in it for many years, making this invention a true hometown-hero effort. Weber’s company, nZero, has created a tool that accurately and quickly tracks carbon emissions, helping people see the data as it’s happening, rather than retroactively, which can make enacting change seem impossible.

The goal? To aid the companies and organizations that say they want to lower their carbon footprints. If they utilize nZero, these companies can make changes sooner as they see the data roll in, allowing them to hone their strategies and sustainable practices. With technology like this, the world might just have an upper hand at coming out of the climate crisis on top.

9. The Ferris wheel was a full-circle invention for this engineer

Finally, you’ve arrived at the end of the ride—a full-circle moment, literally, because a Nevadan also invented the Ferris wheel. George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. was born in Illinois but raised in Nevada, and he grew into a widely accomplished architect and engineer who worked across the U.S., leaving inspiring and awe-inspiring feats like giant bridges in his path. He also invented, as its name suggests, the Ferris wheel.

By the 1890s, Ferris Jr. was operating out of Pittsburgh, where he’d set up shop with his own engineering firm. That’s not where he brought the first Ferris wheel to life, though. You see, the World’s Columbian Exposition (sometimes known as the Chicago World’s Fair) was coming to Chicago in 1893, and the prior year, Ferris Jr. and some of his peers were tasked with creating the pièce de résistance that would tie the entire experience together. Ferris Jr.’s idea was so compelling that it won out in the end, and so he got to work.

Life came at him fast, however, and he died just three years after the debut of the Ferris wheel at 37 years old—but not before people fell in love with his invention. Nearly 1.5 million people rode the first Ferris wheel when it opened in June 1893, and his legacy lives on in fairs across the world today.