Engineering seems to be something wired into the human brain. Many human cultures are quite adept at developing innovative technologies to solve problems they experience. This happened in spades in the Inuit culture in Northern Canada and Greenland. Although no one is sure exactly when the Inuit peoples arrived in the area, it is thought to have occurred sometime before 2000 BCE. The Inuit lived above the arctic tree line, in an extremely harsh climate, and developed at least a dozen unique technologies to deal with the environment and to help in providing food and shelter. One of their key requirements is clothing that can protect against winter temperatures that regularly plunge below 0°F (-17°C). Inuit parkas, boots, and gloves provide that protection. Made of animal hides with the fur on the inside to improve insulation and avoid wetting, Inuit garments are works of art and beautifully engineered. Another area of innovation is the igloo, able to provide shelter in the most extreme arctic conditions. Using a snow saw, Inuit can build igloos in just an hour or two to erect a quick shelter. Given more time, these ice domes can be 13 feet (4 meters) in diameter and 10 feet (3 meters) high. An Inuit technology widely adopted in the West is the kayak. In its original form, a wood frame bound together with sinew is covered in de-haired sealskins. The Inuit perfected the idea of rolling the kayak back over if it capsized Inuit snow goggles carved of wood provide protection against snow blindness on bright days. They consist of an opaque mask with narrow slits to significantly cut down on incoming light. The Inuit are adept at crafting knives, arrowheads, and harpoon heads from materials like bone and stone. The toggling harpoon head is particularly insightful. Once embedded, the head shifts from parallel to perpendicular to make the harpoon's accidental removal nearly impossible. Together this suite of technologies make it possible for the Inuit to thrive in the harsh arctic climate. Each technology embodies unique engineering discoveries polished to a high art and then handed down orally from generation to generation.