Buckminster Fuller Biography | American Inventor and Scientist

Richard Buckminster (Bucky) Fuller

Born: July 12, 1895
Died: July 1, 1983
Place of Birth: Milton, Massachusetts

Major Notes:

Buckminster Fuller is best known as the inventor of the light but solid structure known as the Geodesic Dome.
Born with a vision handicap, fortunately he came from a successful and wealthy but sometimes eccentric family background.
Fuller tended to very inventive and aggressive as a youngster.
In 1912 Buckminster Fuller was accepted into Harvard University only to be expelled at least twice by the end of 1913.
He was the first Fuller boy in several generations who did not graduate from Harvard.
At age 22, he married and then entered World War II by enlisting in the US Navy.
It was this naval experience that is said to have influenced Buckminster Fuller's later decision to serve mankind.
Following his naval service, he and his wife's father started up a construction business which presented financial problems after a few years.
Fuller was forced out of the business and on the point of suicide when he made an objective to work with some of man's major design problems.
Around the same time, Fuller's youngest daughter died and he felt responsible.
He developed a term "Dymaxion" that would be applied to his scientific and inventive projects.
Buckminster Fuller accepted a position at Black Mountain College in North Carolina.
Here, in 1949, he and a group of students developed his geodesic dome, which was completely self-supportive and requiring few materials.
The US Army contracted Fuller to build more of these structures in large numbers.
He took on other somewhat amazing projects such as the 12-passenger Dymaxion Car which gave twice the gasoline mileage of a standard car.
In addition, Buckminster Fuller received 28 US patents on his various inventions and wrote over 20 books.
Fuller spent much of his later years traveling and lecturing at various universities on how to make more efficient use of earth's resources.
R. Buckminster Fuller was honored with many doctorate degrees and was considered on of the greatest thinkers of the twentieth century.

For detailed research and more information, check out any of the following: Miquel.com Thinking Out Loud Quotations by Author Wikipedia R. Buckminster Fuller FAQ PBS American Masters Design Museum

BACK HOME PAGE

Major Notes:

Buckminster Fuller is best known as the inventor of the light but solid structure known as the Geodesic Dome.

Born with a vision handicap, fortunately he came from a successful and wealthy but sometimes eccentric family background.

Fuller tended to very inventive and aggressive as a youngster.

In 1912 Buckminster Fuller was accepted into Harvard University only to be expelled at least twice by the end of 1913.

He was the first Fuller boy in several generations who did not graduate from Harvard.

At age 22, he married and then entered World War II by enlisting in the US Navy.

It was this naval experience that is said to have influenced Buckminster Fuller's later decision to serve mankind.

Following his naval service, he and his wife's father started up a construction business which presented financial problems after a few years.

Fuller was forced out of the business and on the point of suicide when he made an objective to work with some of man's major design problems.

Around the same time, Fuller's youngest daughter died and he felt responsible.

He developed a term "Dymaxion" that would be applied to his scientific and inventive projects.

Buckminster Fuller accepted a position at Black Mountain College in North Carolina.

Here, in 1949, he and a group of students developed his geodesic dome, which was completely self-supportive and requiring few materials.

The US Army contracted Fuller to build more of these structures in large numbers.

He took on other somewhat amazing projects such as the 12-passenger Dymaxion Car which gave twice the gasoline mileage of a standard car.

In addition, Buckminster Fuller received 28 US patents on his various inventions and wrote over 20 books.

Fuller spent much of his later years traveling and lecturing at various universities on how to make more efficient use of earth's resources.

R. Buckminster Fuller was honored with many doctorate degrees and was considered on of the greatest thinkers of the twentieth century.