U.S. Census Bureau Black History Month Feature for February 13

WASHINGTON, Feb. 13, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Following is the daily Black History Month feature from the U.S. Census Bureau:

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SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 13: OTIS BOYKIN

Profile America for the 13th day of Black History Month.  Otis Boykin was one of the great inventors of the 20th century.  After attending Fisk University and the Illinois Institute of Technology he began developing a string of inventions.  One of them was an improved electrical resistor used in computers and radio and television sets.  His innovative design reduced the cost of electronics both for commercial and military applications.  Otis Boykin's variable resistor has been used in guided missiles, a burglarproof cash register, a chemical air filter and a control unit for heart stimulators.  There are 350,000 electric and electronics engineers in the U.S., 3 percent of them African- American.  This special edition of Profile America is a public service of the U.S. Census Bureau.

Sources: web.mit.edu/invent/iow/boykin.html

Statistical Abstract of the United States 2010, t. 603

Profile America is produced by the Public Information Office of the U.S. Census Bureau. These daily features are available as produced segments, ready to air, on a monthly CD or on the Internet at http://www.census.gov (look for "Multimedia Gallery" by the "Newsroom" button).  For further information, contact Rick Reed:  301-763-2812; fax: 301-763-3762; or e-mail: rreed-at-census.gov.

SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau