Last Post-it for inventor of the adhesive used on memo pads, Spencer Silver dies

The inventor of the glue used on Post-It notes has died.

Spencer Silver, pictured, passed away at his Minnesota home, aged 80, his family said. 

He discovered the adhesive, which allows notes to be easily attached and reattached to various surfaces without leaving residue, in 1968. He called it 'a solution waiting for a problem' until 1974, when Art Fry – a scientific colleague at the US conglomerate 3M – used it to stop paper bookmarks falling out of his hymn book when he sang in church. 

The Press n' Peel memo pad finally took off when it was renamed the Post-It in 1980.