The recipe for a quality biscuit is definitely no secret, the internet is riddled with them. However, when it comes to biscuit preparation this is usually the last thing on a cook's mind when preparing an entire meal for guests/family. Many of us, tend to pop a can of premade biscuits open, pop those bad boys in the oven, and call it a day. Not the patrons of Mississippi though. Many Mississippians consider the biscuit just as important as any other food item one chooses to serve. And they may have a point in their devotion to the biscuit as it can make or break an entire meal.
The classic Mississippi biscuit features liberal amounts of buttermilk and butter creating a flaky yet soft melt-in-your-mouth experience that might make you consider ditching your meal altogether and continue reaching for the infamous rolls. Mississippi is considered the biscuit capital of the world and even holds an annual festival known as the Natchez Biscuit Festival that features a cook-off competition, demos, and crowns a Biscuit Queen. The festival curated by Regina Charboneau has been running since 2008 and has seen continual growth since its launch.
When we think of inventors, the image that comes to mind is usually that of a frazzled scientist toiling away in a lab, not celebrities pulled from the pages of Us Weekly. However, a number of well-known public figures hold patents for various innovations. Some are related to the work that made them famous, while others are offshoots of hobbies or just a single great idea.
Part of guitar wizard Eddie Van Halen's signature sound was his two-handed tapping technique, but letting all ten fingers fly while simultaneously holding up the guitar's neck could get a bit tricky. Van Halen came up with a novel way to get around this problem, though; he invented a support (top) that could flip out of the back of his axe's body to raise and stabilize the fretboard so he could tap out searing songs like "Eruption." While Van Halen was obviously interested in improving his guitar work, the patent application he filed in 1985 notes that the device would work with any stringed instrument. Want to tap out a scorching mandolin solo? Find someone selling Eddie's device.
It’s probably not surprising that James Cameron—who designed a submersible to take him to the deepest known part of the ocean—will often invent technology to make his films if what he needs doesn’t exist. He holds a number of patents, including US Patent No. 4996938, “apparatus for propelling a user in an underwater environment,” that he and his brother, Michael, created to film The Abyss and patented in 1989. The device is basically an underwater dolly equipped with propellers that makes it easy for a camera operator to maneuver in the water—and allowed Cameron to capture the shots he wanted for the 1989 film, part of which was filmed in an abandoned nuclear reactor.
In 1987 Jamie Lee Curtis designed and patented a disposable diaper that included a waterproof pocket that held baby wipes. She hasn't profited from her idea yet, though, since she refuses to license the patent until diaper companies make biodegradable products.
You know him as a rock legend, but Neil Young also loves trains—so much that he owns a stake in a model train manufacturing company and has an extensive collection. He also holds seven patents related to model trains, including Patent No. US5441223, "Model train controller using electromagnetic field between track and ground."