Short answers, pulled from the story.
The Senate of Venice issued the decree establishing the first statutory patent system in 1474. This Venetian Patent Statute granted inventors legal protection for ten years if they communicated their new and inventive devices to the Republic.
The term of protection usually lasts twenty years from the filing date according to Article 33 of the TRIPS Agreement. Maintenance fees are required to keep the patent active throughout this period.
Samuel Hopkins received the first patent under this act on the 31st of July 1790 for producing potash. Between 1790 and 1836 about ten thousand patents were granted before a major revision introduced an examination system.
As of 2015, only eight percent of inventors in the United Kingdom were female. Women remain underrepresented in traditionally patent-intensive sectors particularly within STEM fields.
In 1474, the Senate of Venice issued a decree that established the first statutory patent system. This Venetian Patent Statute granted inventors legal protection for ten years if they communicated their new and inventive devices to the Republic.