April 6, 2012 - 18:01 AMT
10-year-old patents own printmaking method in Russia

A ten-year-old Moscow girl has become Russia’s youngest inventor after she patented her own printmaking method, RIA Novosti reported citing Moskovsky Komsomolets daily.

Anastasia Rodimina patented her own method of monotyping - a printmaking technique when a smooth surface is covered by paint and a piece of paper then pressed to it to make a single print.

Under Rodimina’s patented method, which she named “energoinformation monotyping,” a monotype is covered by a paper application and put in direct sunlight to let the unprotected ink fade.

The discovery was made accidentally when the girl forgot one of her monotypes, partially covered by a piece of paper, on a windowsill. She eventually discovered that though ink on most of the picture has faded, colors remained unaffected under the piece of paper, creating a unique pattern.

Relatives said that a neurology hospital already expressed its interest in the invention, which it plans to use as a part of art therapy. A “major advertising agency” said it was also interested in using Rodimina’s monotyping technology.

The girl said she wanted to use her invention to create a game “helping children to develop their imagination.”

Until recently, Russia’s youngest inventor was 11-year-old Vladislav Koren from the town of Angarsk in Siberia’s Irkutsk Region. Last year he successfully patented his own version of a slot car racetrack.