Today, people know Nobel because of the annual Nobel Prizes awarded for accomplishments in physics, chemistry, economics, science and medicine, literature and the promotion of peace.
But the legacy would not have been possible if it was not for Nobel's inventions, including dynamite, an invention that contributed largely to Nobel's fortune, said Katarina Hinz, an associate at the Swedish Trade Council in Los Angeles.
"When he died, he wanted the money he made from inventing dynamite and other things to go to research and world peace, and the Nobel Prizes were born," she said.
Dynamite revolutionized the mining industry, as it was five times as powerful as gunpowder, relatively easy to produce and reasonably safe to use, according to the book "World of Invention," which lists inventions and the people behind them.
Even though most students at San Jose State University are familiar with Swedish inventions, it is likely they are unaware of who had invented them.
"I have no idea who invented dynamite, but I know it was used during the Gold Rush era," said Benito Guardiola, a freshman graphic design major.
Hinz said though people use Swedish inventions in their day-to-day lives, they are not aware Swedes invented the products.
"For example, Americans might be interested in knowing that a Swede invented the Coke bottle," she said. Hinz said Swedish-American Alex Samuelson designed the Coke bottle and patented it in 1915.
"Samuelson was a plant superintendent and leader of the team that developed the Coke bottle for the Root Glass Company," said Mart Martin, from the office of the director, Coca-Cola North America Communications in Atlanta.
Negar Nasooh, a junior graphic design major, said she had no idea who designed the Coke bottle.
"Anyway, I drink Coke out of a can," she said.
But people would not be able to discount the importance of the zipper, said Karin Andersson, curator of the Swedish American Museum in Chicago.
"Although not initially invented by a Swede," Andersson said, "the design of the zipper was improved upon and patented by two Swedish-Americans, Peter Aronsson and Gideon Sundback."
She said the zipper, though seemingly insignifi cant, is important.
"It is an invention that affects our lives every day," she said.
Swedish inventiveness is present in the industrial sphere through contributions ranging from the blowtorch to the humble monkey wrench, said professor Lars Gustafsson at an international symposium on Swedish inventions held at the University of Texas, according to information provided by the University of Texas.
Most people have used a monkey wrench, said Hinz, the Swedish trade council associate.
"I have certainly used a monkey wrench before," said Guardiola, the graphic design major. "I guess it was invented by some plumber."
Hinz said Swede Johan Petter Johansson developed the wrench, also known as an adjustable spanner, and patented it in 1892.
"He discovered, while working as a mechanic in an industrial plant, that he and his assistants often had to carry around numerous wrenches for different nuts and bolts," according to a fact sheet posted on Sweden's official Web site. "So he came up with the concept of the universal pipe wrench (1888), and in 1892 he designed and patented the adjustable wrench."
Throughout the world, about 40 million monkey wrenches of Johansson's model are produced annually, according to the Web site.
"I have used a monkey wrench but had no idea a Swede invented it," said Brooke Boothe, a senior child development major.
Swedish inventions number too many to list, but the most important Swedish invention was the pacemaker, said Andersson, the Swedish American Museum curator.
"Swedish physician and inventor, Rume Elmqvist, developed the first pacemaker," she said. "It was built on an earlier invention of the electronic heart simulator (by American physician Paul Zoll) by allowing it to actually be inserted during an operation."
A pacemaker is a small, battery-operated electronic device, which is inserted under the skin to help the heart beat regularly and at an appropriate rate, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' National Institutes of Health.
By 1995, there were one million pacemaker patients in the United States, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Web site.
"This invention has benefited and improved the lives of numerous people worldwide," Andersson said.