WHAT GADGET NEVER BECAME SUCCESSFUL?

It was the invention of the future - a tiny machine complete with its own map that would tell motorists which way to go.
But this was no satnav - after all, the communications satellites that help modern cars locate themselves were still decades away.
Instead, the route-finder for the well-equipped 1920s driver was a wristwatch-style device equipped with minuscule maps.

Miniature scrolls bearing the directions were loaded onto the watch and revolved as the wearer continued his journey.
The 1920s TomTom never took off - perhaps because there were too few motorists to buy them.
It is one of the labour and face-saving devices to go on display from a private collection of weird and wonderful gadgets from the past.

WHO INVENTED THE FIRST CAMERA?

Many inventors tried to make the camera after the camera obscure, a machine that only takes pictures in the dark. But Joseph Nicephore Nicepiece invented the first camera . He took the first picture of the rooftops near his house.

The first camera was invented in 1841. But the easier camera was invented in March 1885 by George Eastman. That's 44 years after the earlier camera!

WHO INVENTED THE CREDIT CARD?

While we suspected that credit cards were first invented in the mid-1980s to exploit the growing number of late-night infomercials and our own unquenchable thirst for instant gratification, it turns out that the practice of splashing plastic was pioneered a good deal earlier.
Running the phrase "credit card history" through the new-fangled Yahoo! Search, we crossed our fingers and prayed we wouldn't be inundated with a long list of online credit-repair schemes. Happily, we met with the sweet beep of instant approval in the form of a snappy overview of credit through the ages.
It turns out that credit cards as we know them, good at multiple businesses, were first thrown down in 1951. That's when 200 brave, pre-approved souls were able to present their Diners Club cards at 27 different New York City restaurants and leave with the same amount of cash they walked in with.
According to credit card lore, in 1949, Frank McNamara went to dinner at Major's Cabin Grill and forgot his wallet. After talking his way out of doing the dishes to cover his tab, McNamara thought, "Never again!" In February of 1950, he and a partner founded Diners Club and returned to Major's with a small cardboard card. Frank signed for dinner, without a hassle, and the event was eventually dubbed "the First Supper."
A quick Yahoo! Image Search led us to a nice reproduction of an early Diners Club card and an explanation from the Smithsonian Institution about how money has evolved over the past 100 years. They report that credit cards added the now ubiquitous magnetic stripe in the 1970s and that the rise of plastic ended the production of all banknotes larger than $100.

WHO INVENTED THE HOT COMB?

Madame Walker fashioned an empire by Sherri Winston, published March 28, 2001 in the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel.Madame C.J. Walker. Do you know who she is?For the casual history buff, the answer may spring easily. "She's the first black woman millionaire in America."Many may even know that she made her million selling hair-care products for black women. Born Sarah Breedlove in 1867, the Southern washerwoman-turned-inventor went from the abject poverty of America's Reconstruction Era, to building herself an empire.Madame Walker invented the hot comb, which could straighten black women's hair and revolutionize how we tended to our appearance.Since childhood, I've been fascinated with Madame Walker. Although books on her were rare, most illustrations showed a woman with a sturdy frame and an elegant stature. A woman with full features and a face round like mine.Over the years, attempts to find out more about the entrepreneur proved frustrating. The most I could find were histories written for juveniles.Recently, I came across The Black Rose (Ballentine, $14), a fictionalized history about the life of Madame Walker that came out in paperback in January. Author Tananarive Due, a former South Florida resident, offers a vivid, memorable journey through Walker's fields of poverty to the industry of hope.What elevates Due's novel, however, is the source of her information. Roots author and historical legend Alex Haley began researching the life and times of Sarah Breedlove Walker before his death but never had the opportunity to use his findings."I got a call from my agent saying the Haley estate would like to talk to me about doing a book based on Alex Haley's research. When the Haley estate calls, you take note," Due says during a phone interview from her home in Long View, Wash."The Haley name was magical to me. I read Roots when I was a kid. I was really captivated by Roots. Not only his story so much as the hunger it awakened in me. It was inspirational how Alex Haley was able to trace himself back to the motherland," Due says.Due, whose previous fiction, including My Soul To Keep, dealt with the supernatural, says historical fiction was a departure. Like any good journalist, she began to research Madame Walker. "Like you, all I found were juvenile books," she says.Even so, she read enough to know the basics. And the basics intrigued her.Me, too.Madame Walker's is the ultimate story of survival and beating the odds. She was born into the first generation of post-slavery blacks and her parents, Minerva and Owen Breedlove, were poor and poorer. She was uneducated and socially unacceptable. She had every reason in the world to fail. Sarah would go on to marry, first at 14, only to lose that husband to racial violence. But her marriage to C.J. Walker, a man who owned a newspaper and had business savvy, proved pivotal to her success.

"Life was hard for a lot of folks back then," Due says. "The stories are all basically the same -- heartache and poverty. Still, I was most surprised by how much she overcame. She didn't even start with nothing. She started with less than nothing. Starting with nothing would be to at least have one parent. She had no money. Her parents died when she was young. What's amazing about her was that she was so determined."

Sarah Walker was the first American woman to sell products through the mail, the first to organize door-to-door sellers. At a time when the Klan was instrumental in spreading hate propaganda and lynching was as common as dandruff, Walker managed to educate laundresses and domestics on how to use her products, sell her products and liberate themselves from an economic system designed to keep them down. Although Due's latest book, The Living Blood (My Soul To Keep's sequel), arrives in stores April 3, she says completing The Black Rose will always remain as a highlight in her career.

"I learned that my father's mother was trained by the Walker school," she says. "I'd known she was a beautician, but I didn't know she was trained with the Madame Walker products."I've always loved the hope, the promise that lies beneath Madame C.J. Walker's history. The Black Rose delivers her story with freshness and vitality."She decided to fashion this life for herself out of dust," Due says.For women, Madame Walker represents the promise in us all.Sherri Winston's column appears on Wednesdays in Lifestyle. She can be reached at 954-356-4108 or swinston@sun-sentinel.com.
Copyright © 2001, South Florida Sun-Sentinel

WHO INVENTED THE FIRST TRAFFIC LIGHTS?

We'd often heard Ohio boast of being home to the first traffic light (as well as numerous U.S. presidents), but we drew a blank when it came to the name of the inventor. Luckily, a search on "traffic light inventor" provided the details. As it turns out, Ohio's claim is only partially true.
The very first traffic light was a revolving gas lantern with red and green lights installed in a London intersection in 1868, before the advent of automobiles. A later version of the traffic light based on railroad signals was installed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1920. But we have Garrett Augustus Morgan to thank for the modern version and first patent of this traffic-stopping invention.
The son of former slaves, Morgan was born in 1877 in Kentucky. He later moved to Cincinnati and then Cleveland, where he owned and operated a sewing-machine repair business and earned quite a reputation as a technician. A multi-talented businessman, Morgan went on to establish the newspaper The Cleveland Call.
In early 20th century Cleveland, as in other major U.S. cities, the roads were clogged with pedestrians, bicycles, animal-drawn wagons, and those newfangled automobiles. There were no traffic laws to speak of, and chaos ruled the streets. Accidents were frequent. After witnessing one such traffic accident, Morgan felt compelled to improve the situation. The result? The precursor to the modern traffic signal, patented on November 23, 1923.
Not quite your contemporary street light, "The Morgan traffic signal was a T-shaped pole unit that featured three positions: Stop, Go and an all-directional stop position. This 'third position' halted traffic in all directions to allow pedestrians to cross streets more safely." His light was used throughout North America before being replaced by today's familiar red/yellow/green traffic lights. Morgan eventually sold the rights to his invention to General Electric. He also received a government citation for his invaluable invention.
Morgan's genius was not limited to the world of traffic control; later inventions included a zigzag device for sewing machines, the first chemical human hair straightener, and a gas mask (which he used to rescue several men trapped in an underground tunnel after an explosion).

WHO INVENTED THE SUPER SOAKER?

Super Soaker - Lonnie Johnson
By Mary Bellis
The Super Soaker ® was invented in 1988 under the original name of the "Power Drencher" and a whole new era of power water squirters began. Invented by Lonnie Johnson, an Aerospace Engineer from Los Angeles, California, the Power Drencher was the first water blaster to incorporate air pressure into its design. Three years later in 1991 when Johnson received his patent, the Power Drencher was renamed "Super Soaker" and a nation-wide advertising campaign was launched.
Patents Issued To Lonnie JohnsonA complete list of patent issued to Lonnie Johnson.
Lonnie JohnsonInvented the Super Soaker® a squirt gun, also invented thermodynamics systems on the side - Invention Dimension.
Johnson Research and Development

WHO INVENTED THE HACKY SACK?

Hacky Sack
By Mary Bellis
The co-operative kicking sport has ancient origins from China, Thailand, Native America and nearly every country. Hacky Sack or Footbag, as we know it today, is a modern American sport invented in 1972, by John Stalberger and Mike Marshall of Oregon City, Oregon. Marshall had created a hand-made bean bag, that he was kicking around. Stalberger was recovering from knee surgery and was looking for a fun way to exercise his knees. Together, they called the new game "Hackin' the Sack." The two decided to collaborate and market their new game under the trademark of "Hacky Sack®".
Mike Marshall died of a heart attack in 1975, at the age of twenty-eight. Stalberger continued with the "Hacky Sack" cause and formed the National Hacky Sack Association. He later sold the rights for the Hacky Sack® Footbag to Kransco (operating under the Wham-O label), which also manufactured the Frisbee flying disc.
Following the invention of Hacky Sack (aka Footbag), different varieties of the sport have evolved including "Footbag Net" where players volley a Hacky Sack over a 5-foot-high net and "Freestyle Footbag" where players stand in a circle and do tricks with the Hacky Sack while passing it around the circle.

Copyright 2008 by United Press International

WHO INVENTED THE O.G. GUSS WRENCH?

O.G. Guss invented and manufactured a quick adjustment wrench. Each one of his wrenches that was made has a different number stamped on it.

WHO INVENTED THE PERFORATING STAMP?

In the list of patents for the week ending Apr. 14, 1877, George F. Almy, Superintendent of the Ohio Wheel Company, is granted letters patent for a perforating stamp.

WHO INVENTED THE McCORMICK HARVESTER AND TWINE BINDER IN 1881?

The McCormick harvester and twine binder, manufactured in 1881, was the first binder which tied the bundles with twine. After the development of this machine only minor developments, tending to give greater durability and lighter draft, were added.

Cyrus Hall McCormick, a 22-year-old Virginian, gave America its first step toward farm mechanization when he invented the reaper 150 years ago this spring.
He first showed it publicly in July 1831, in a field near Steele's Tavern, not far from the valley of Walnut Grove, where the family farm lay.

WHO INVENTED THE FIRST SHIP?

THE FIRST SHIP WAS INVENTED BY THE EGYPTIANS

Ancient Egypt was a civilization in eastern North Africa, concentrated along the middle to lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern nation of Egypt. The civilization began around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh, and it developed over the next three millennia. Its history occurred in a series of stable periods, known as kingdoms, separated by periods of relative instability known as Intermediate Periods. After the end of the last kingdom, known as the New Kingdom, the civilization of ancient Egypt entered a period of slow, steady decline, during which Egypt was conquered by a succession of foreign powers. The rule of the pharaohs officially ended in 31 BC when the early Roman Empire conquered Egypt and made it a province.
The civilization of ancient Egypt thrived from its adaptation to the conditions of the Nile River Valley. Controlled irrigation of the fertile valley produced surplus crops, which fueled social development and culture. With resources to spare, the administration sponsored mineral exploitation of the valley and surrounding desert regions, the early development of an independent writing system, the organization of collective construction and agricultural projects, trade with surrounding regions, and a military that defeated foreign enemies and asserted Egyptian dominance. Motivating and organizing these activities was a bureaucracy of elite scribes, religious leaders, and administrators under the control of a divine pharaoh who ensured the cooperation and unity of the Egyptian people through an elaborate system of religious beliefs.

The many achievements of the ancient Egyptians included a system of mathematics, quarrying, surveying and construction techniques that facilitated the building of monumental pyramids, ships, temples, obelisks, faience and glass technology, a practical and effective system of medicine, new forms of literature, irrigation systems and agricultural production techniques, and the earliest known peace treaty. Egypt left a lasting legacy: art and architecture were copied and antiquities paraded around the world, and monumental ruins have inspired the imaginations of tourists and writers for centuries. A newfound respect for antiquities and excavations in the early modern period led to the scientific investigation of Egyptian civilization and a greater appreciation of its cultural legacy for Egypt and the world.

WHO INVENTED THE KEVLAR AND BULLET PROOF VEST FIBER

In 1965 Stephanie Kwolek (1923– ) succeeded in creating the first of a family of synthetic fibers of exceptional strength and stiffness. The best known member is Kevlar, a material used in fragmentation-resistant vests as well as in boats, airplanes, ropes, cables, tires, tennis racquets, skis, and so forth—in total about 200 applications.

Kwolek was born in New Kensington, Pennsylvania. Her father, who died when she was 10 years old, was a naturalist by avocation. She spent many hours with him exploring the woods and fields near her home and filling scrapbooks with leaves, wildflowers, seeds, grasses, and pertinent descriptions. From her mother, first a homemaker and then by necessity a career woman, Kwolek inherited a love of fabrics and sewing. At one time she thought she might become a fashion designer, but her mother warned her that she would probably starve in that business because she was such a perfectionist. Later Kwolek became interested in teaching and then in chemistry and medicine.

When she graduated from the women's college (Margaret Morrison Carnegie College) of Carnegie-Mellon University, she applied for a position as a chemist with the DuPont Company, among other places. Her job interview with W. Hale Charch, who had invented the process to make cellophane waterproof and who was by then a research director, was a memorable one. After Charch indicated that he would let her know in about two weeks whether she would be offered a job, Kwolek asked him if he could possibly make a decision sooner since she had to reply shortly to another offer. Charch called in his secretary and in Kwolek's presence dictated a job offer letter. In later years, reflecting upon this bold request for a woman to make in 1946, she suspected that her assertiveness influenced his decision in her favor. At DuPont the polymer research she worked on was so interesting and challenging that she decided to drop her plans for medical school and make chemistry a lifetime career.

She was engaged in several projects, including a search for new polymers as well as a new condensation process that takes place at lower temperatures—about 0˚ to 40˚C. The familiar melt condensation polymerization process used in preparing nylon, for example, was instead done at more than 200˚C. The lower-temperature polycondensation processes, which employ very fast-reacting intermediates, make it possible to prepare polymers that are thermally unstable or cannot be melted.

Kwolek was in her 40s when she was asked to scout for the next generation of high-performance fibers. This assignment involved preparing intermediates, synthesizing paraoriented aromatic polyamides of high molecular weight, dissolving the polyamides in solvents, and spinning these solutions into fibers. She unexpectedly discovered that under certain conditions large numbers of the molecules of these rod-like polyamides become lined up in parallel, that is, form liquid crystalline solutions, and that these solutions can be spun directly into oriented fibers of very high strength and stiffness. These polyamide solutions were unlike any polymer solutions previously prepared in the laboratory. They were unusually fluid, turbid, and buttermilk-like in appearance, and became opalescent when stirred. The person in charge of the spinning equipment initially refused to spin the first such solution because he feared that the turbidity was caused by the presence of particles that would plug the tiny holes (0.001 inch in diameter) in the spinneret. He was finally persuaded to spin, and much to his surprise, strong, stiff fibers were obtained with no difficulty. Following this breakthrough many fibers were spun from liquid crystalline solutions, including the yellow Kevlar fiber.

Kwolek has received many awards for her invention of the technology behind Kevlar fiber, including induction into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 1994 as only the fourth woman member of 113. In 1996 she received the National Medal of Technology, and in 1997 the Perkin Medal, presented by the American Section of the Society of Chemical Industry—both honors rarely awarded to women. She has served as a mentor for other women scientists and participated in programs that introduce young children to science. One of Kwolek's most cited papers, written with Paul W. Morgan, is "The Nylon Rope Trick" (Journal of Chemical Education, April 1959, 36:182–184). It describes how to demonstrate condensation polymerization in a beaker at atmospheric pressure and room temperature—a demonstration now common in classrooms across the nation.

WHO INVENTED THE ELECTRO-MAGNET?

Science Report #1: Joseph Henry: An American Physicist

By Stevie Liu/Aug.16, 1999

I. A time line of Joseph Henry
1. In 1797, Joseph Henry was born to Scottish immigrants in Albany, New York. 2. In 1805, when young Henry was eight, his father died, and financial circumstances forced his mother send Henry to live with his grandmother in Galway, New York. 3. In 1811, Joseph Henry was fourteen, he moved back to work a day job and attend night school at the Albany Academy, a boys’ school. 4. In 1815, after graduating from Albany Academy, Henry spent several years working as a tutor, then a canal surveyor, and eventually as an engineer for canal construction. 5. In the summer of 1815, Henry invented his own Electro-magnetic. 6. In the early 1830s Princeton University offered Henry the chair of natural philosophy, which Henry accepted. 7. In 1833, Henry met Benjamin Franklin, the man who surpassed him, and they became good friends. 8. In the late 1840s, he accepted the position of Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, where he continued to promote what he called basic research. 9. In 1846, he was professor of natural philosophy (physics) at the College of New Jersey (now known as Princeton University). 10. At the December 3, 1846, meeting of the Board of Regents, Henry was Elected Secretary, with seven of the twelve votes cast. 11. In 1878, Joseph Henry died.
II. Some interesting things about Joseph Henry's life and work
When Henry was inventing the Electro-magnet, he claimed that he did not pursue practical applications for the Electro-magnet because:
"I freely renounced all right to the invention as I consider the machine in the present state of the science a philosophical toy.”
Later in his life, when ask why he didn't patent the Electro-magnet, Henry replied:
"I did not then consider it compatible with the dignity of science to confine the benefits which might be derived from it to the exclusive use of many individual.”
At the December 3, 1846, meeting of the Board of Regents, Henry was elected Secretary, with seven of the twelve votes cast. Just prior to the vote, the regents had made it clear what sort of person they wanted by passing the following resolution:
...that the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution be a man possessing weight of character, and a high grade of talent; and that it is further desirable that he possess eminent scientific and general acquirements; that he be a man capable of advancing science and promoting letters by original research and effort, well qualified to act as a respected channel of communication between the institution and scientific and literary individuals and societies in this foreign countries; and, in a word, a man worthy to represent before the world of science and of letters the institution over with this Board presides.

In 1769, the Scotsman James Watt patented an improved version of the steam engine that ushered in the Industrial Revolution. The idea of using steam power to propel boats occurred to inventors soon after the potential of Watt's new engine became known.
The era of the steamboat began in America in 1787 when John Fitch (1743-1798) made the first successful trial of a forty-five-foot steamboat on the Delaware River on August 22, 1787, in the presence of members of the Constitutional Convention. Fitch later built a larger vessel that carried passengers and freight between Philadelphia and Burlington, New Jersey.
John Fitch was granted his first United States patent for a steamboat on August 26, 1791. However, he was granted his patent only after a battle with James Rumsey over claims to the same invention. Both men had similar designs.

(It should be noted that on February 1, 1788 the very first United States patent for a steamboat patent was issued to Briggs & Longstreet.)

John Fitch constructed four different steamboats between 1785 and 1796 that successfully plied rivers and lakes and demonstrated, in part, the feasibility of using steam for water locomotion. His models utilized various combinations of propulsive force, including ranked paddles (patterned after Indian war canoes), paddle wheels, and screw propellers. While his boats were mechanically successful, Fitch failed to pay sufficient attention to construction and operating costs and was unable to justify the economic benefits of steam navigation. Robert Fulton (1765-1815) built his first boat after Fitch's death, and it was Fulton who became known as the "father of steam navigation."

WHO INVENTED THE COTTON GIN?

The cotton gin is a device for removing the seeds from cotton fiber. Simple devices for that purpose have been around for centuries, an East Indian machine called a charka was used to separate the seeds from the lint when the fiber was pulled through a set of rollers. The charka was designed to work with long-staple cotton, but American cotton is a short-staple cotton. The cottonseed in Colonial America was removed by hand, usually the work of slaves.

Eli Whitney's Cotton Gin

Eli Whitney's machine was the first to clean short-staple cotton. His cotton engine consisted of spiked teeth mounted on a boxed revolving cylinder which, when turned by a crank, pulled the cotton fiber through small slotted openings so as to separate the seeds from the lint -- a rotating brush, operated via a belt and pulleys, removed the fibrous lint from the projecting spikes.
The gins later became horse-drawn and water-powered gins and cotton production increased, along with lowered costs. Cotton soon became the number one selling textile.
Demand For Cotton GrowsAfter the invention of the cotton gin, the yield of raw cotton doubled each decade after 1800. Demand was fueled by other inventions of the Industrial Revolution, such as the machines to spin and weave it and the steamboat to transport it. By mid-century America was growing three-quarters of the world's supply of cotton, most of it shipped to England or New England where it was manufactured into cloth. During this time tobacco fell in value, rice exports at best stayed steady, and sugar began to thrive, but only in Louisiana. At mid-century the South provided three-fifths of America's exports, most of it in cotton.
Modern Cotton GinsMore recently devices for removing trash, drying, moisturizing, fractioning fiber, sorting, cleaning, and baling in 218-kg (480-lb) bundles have been added to modern cotton gins. Using electric power and air-blast or suction techniques, highly automated gins can produce 14 metric tons (15 U.S. tons) of cleaned cotton an hour.

Q-Who invented the locomotive?

A-The person who invented the locomotive was Richard Trevithick, born in England.

Q-Where was the first locomotive made?

A-The first locomotive was made in England, by R. Trevithick.

Q-When was the locomotive invented?

A-The first locomotive was invented in 1804.

WHO INVENTED THE PLOW?

John Deere was an Illinois blacksmith and manufacturer. Early in his career, Deere and an associate designed a series of farm plows. In 1837, on his own, John Deere designed the first cast steel plow that greatly assisted the Great Plains farmers. The large plows made for cutting the tough prairie ground were called "grasshopper plows." The plow was made of wrought iron and had a steel share that could cut through sticky soil without clogging. By 1855, John Deere's factory was selling over 10,000 steel plows a year.
In 1868, John Deere's business was incorporated as Deere & Company, which is still in existence today.
John Deere became a millionaire selling his steel plows.
History of Plows - PloughsExtracts from The Age of Invention by Holland Thompson - Chapter 5: The Agricultural Revolution
The first real inventor of a practicable plow was Charles Newbold, of Burlington County, New Jersey, to whom a patent for a cast-iron plow was issued in June, 1797. But the farmers would have none of it. They said it "poisoned the soil" and fostered the growth of weeds. One David Peacock received a patent in 1807, and two others later. Newbold sued Peacock for infringement and recovered damages. Pieces of Newbold's original plow are in the museum of the New York Agricultural Society at Albany.
Another inventor of ploughs was Jethro Wood, a blacksmith of Scipio, New York, who received two patents, one in 1814 and the other in 1819. His plow was of cast iron, but in three parts, so that a broken part might be renewed without purchasing an entire plow. This principle of standardization marked a great advance. The farmers by this time were forgetting their former prejudices, and many plow were sold. Though Wood's original patent was extended, infringements were frequent, and he is said to have spent his entire property in prosecuting them.
Another skilled blacksmith, William Parlin, at Canton, Illinois, began making plows about 1842, which he loaded upon a wagon and peddled through the country. Later his establishment grew large. Another John Lane, a son of the first, patented in 1868 a "soft-center" steel plow. The hard but brittle surface was backed by softer and more tenacious metal, to reduce the breakage. The same year James Oliver, a Scotch immigrant who had settled at South Bend, Indiana, received a patent for the "chilled plough." By an ingenious method the wearing surfaces of the casting were cooled more quickly than the back. The surfaces which came in contact with the soil had a hard, glassy surface, while the body of the plough was of tough iron. From small beginnings Oliver's establishment grew great, and the Oliver Chilled Plow Works at South Bend is today [1921] one of the largest and most favorably known privately owned
From the single plough it was only a step to two or more plows fastened together, doing more work with approximately the same man power. The sulky plow, on which the plowman rode, made his work easier, and gave him great control. Such plows were certainly in use as early as 1844, perhaps earlier. The next step forward was to substitute for horses a traction engine.

WHO INVENTED THE VINYL RECORD?

In 1888 a gentlemen named Emile Berliner invented the flat disc record. These very first discs were produced of a vulcanised rubber and were between 12.5cm and 18cm in diameter.

Later he discovered that a mixture of shellac (a secretion from the lac beetle) and slate dust produced an extremely hard wearing but very brittle surface and from this the 78rpm disc was developed. The slate dust was used because the older acoustic gramophones used steel needles with a pick-up weight of up to 200 grams and the slate helped grind the needle to fit the groove more closely. A modern record pick-up tracks at a recommended maximum of 7 grams. Most record players today can pick up a track at under 1 gram.

Between 1900 and 1960 the discs were usually 25 or 30cm across & gave between 2 and 5 minutes playing time each side. In the beginning sound was recorded with a horn attached to a diaphragm and stylus, which scratched out a trace in a rotating wax disc. This method lasted until 1925, when microphones became sufficiently developed to allow the recording of music. uring the Second World War records were sent from the USA to overseas POW camps to keep up prisoner morale. Due to their brittleness these were frequently broken in transit, so a new compound, vinyl, was born to give greater flexibility and reduce the likelihood of breakages.

During the war years vinyl was a very expensive material but the special circumstances of war justified it's use.

By 1948, Columbia Records had developed its 30cm Long Playing record, rotating at 33rpm and giving about 20-30 minutes a side which saw the downfall of shellac and vinyl was used from then on. Long-playing phonograph records may look the same now as when they were introduced in 1948, but countless refinements and developments within the industry have been made to perfect the long-playing record's technical excellence and insure the best in sound reproduction and quality available in recorded form.

A year later the first 45rpm disc was produced by RCA, 18cm in diameter and giving about 3 minutes a side. No better than the 78 for playing time, but ideal for pop record companies and juke box manufacturers! The 45 was light, compact, sounded much better than the 78 and was less prone to getting broken. 1958 saw the arrival of stereo records although unsuccesful experiments with two channel sound had been going on since before the First World War. This pleased those first "collectors" but irritated the retailers who had to keep dual stocks of LPs in mono and stereo and of course, the record companies had to prepare separate mono and stereo mixed versions of the LPs to start with. Stereo was generally only used for LPs up until about 1970, when pop singles began to appear in stereo versions so by this time the mono LP became a thing of the past.

In the late 1950s some companies experimented with a 16rpm speed originally intended for 'talking books' but was also used for music LPs in Eastern Europe and Africa. An American company also produced an 8rpm discs in the early 1970s for talking books for the blind. The 30cm disc rotating at 45rpm made it's first appearance in 1975 and makes the most of the best features of the 33 and 45rpm formats by offering a reasonable playing time (up to 12 mins/side) at a greatly enhanced volume and frequency response. EMI produceed a short run of classical LPs on this format in the early 1980s.

Despite the devastation caused to vinyl sales by the rapid rise in popularity of the CD, the format still thrives among keen record collectors and club disc jockeys.

WHO INVENTED THE STUPID FILTER?

The filter against stupidity is already available!

Stupid Filter, a program that detects and filters stupid or impertinent remarks on websites, is now available. The creators, who have managed to mount a finance company, on July 29 launched the first version in evidence. Announced months ago, the project got hundreds of volunteers who collaborate to collect feedback from the formal point of view, might be regarded as stupid. In the absence of a semantic analysis technology, Stupid Filter analyzes the shape of the message, its extension, the use of capital or the keyword to decide what is stupid. Volunteer work has allowed Paul Starr and Gabriel Ortiz developing a huge database with which the programme collates each new post before deciding whether or not it is impertinent. Apart from an improved mathematical algorithm that analyzes the messages, the main novelty regarding the initial design of the program is increasing the speed and reliability of the system. As Ortiz said, "the new search engine is much faster." The application allows those responsible for websites to automate the filtering comments. Free software Stupid Filter, created with free software, has become the first company product Rarefied Technologies. The firm, a company backed by venture capital, wants to tap into the mathematical algorithm behind Stupid Filter to design other programs aimed at mathematical field of natural language processing. For now, the program only works in English, but is already collecting stupid comments in other languages, including Spanish, to develop a comprehensive database multilingual.

WHO INVENTED A FORM OF DEFERRED PAYCHECKS USED IN THE STOCK EXCHANGE?

Argentina invents something unique in the world!

The form of financing through the Stock Exchange trading on the paychecks deferred is a creation of Argentina which emerged in the crisis of 2001 and it is unique in the world.

"Globally it does not exist, is something that only operates in Argentina, and we saw at a meeting of the Inter-American Federation of Stock Exchanges in which we participated," said the director of the Argentine Institute of Capital Market (BFMI), Monica Erpen. "Nowhere surges this type of instrument, because it is not a negotiable value, but is authorized to be quoted on the stock exchange," he explained .. It was further considered that it "is a typical element emerged from the crisis of 2001-2002 in Argentina, as the "patacón" but much more successfully."

Checks in deferred payments allow speedy access to capital to entrepreneurs through a discount rate to the value of the check. This system was to be quoted on the stock exchange regulated by the government of former president Néstor Kirchner from 2003, and since then was a "key tool" to help SMEs to finance, especially working capital.

WHO INVENTED THE TERM "BLACK HOLE?"

It was the physicist John Archibald Wheeler (1911-2008), who also coined the term 'wormhole'. This scientist became one of the essential figures, was among the last employees of Albert Einstein in his youth and worked with the young Danish Niel Bohr, that made him one of the pioneers of nuclear fission, also collaborated on Project Maniatan , In building the reactors that produced plutonium to fuel the first atomic bombs.

In 1957, to deepen the general theory of relativity Einstein, created the concept 'wormhole' to refer to the hypothetical tunnels in space-time. The term 'black hole' as coined in 1967 during a conference at the Goddard Institute for Space Studies of NASA at Columbia University, USA

WHO INVENTED THEDIFFERENT TYPES OF EAR PLUGS?

The inventors below made landmark improvements to earplugs, however, it is impossible to determine who invented the very first ear plug. Many ancient peoples created homemade ear plugs from clay, or cotton and wax to reduce noise or protect the ears from the environment i.e. water.

Moldable Pure Silicone Ear Plugs

Ray and Cecilia Benner invented the first moldable pure silicone ear plugs in 1962. The ear plugs were valued by swimmers, as well as those avoiding noise, for their waterproof qualities. McKeon Products marketed the new ear plugs known as Mack's Pillow Soft Earplugs.

Classical musician, Ray Benner bought McKeon Products in 1962. At that time the company's sole product was Mack's Earplugs (named after the original owner). Mack's Earplugs were moldable clay ear plugs. The Benners designed new ear plugs made from silicone, a waterproof material, to help prevent swimmer's ear, an infection of the ear caused by exposure to water.

Mack's Pillow Soft Earplugs are also great noise stoppers.

Foam Ear Plugs

Ross Gardner invented foam ear plugs in 1972. They were first marketed by the Cabot Safety Company as the E-A-R Classic. Gardner got his idea from the soft padding used in headphones. Disposable foam ear plugs found in drugstores can reduce noise levels by 25 decibels. Foam ear plugs are made from either polyvinyl chloride (PVC) or polyurethane.
Rating Ear PlugsEarplugs are rated with an NRR (the acronym for Noise Reduction Rating). An NRR tells you how much noise reduction in decibels a set of ear plugs provides. Most ear plugs offer between a 26 to 33 reduction in decibels.

WHO INVENTED THE HEARING AID?

It is uncertain who invented the first electric hearing aid, it may have been the Akoulathon, invented in 1898 by Miller Reese Hutchinson and made and sold (1901) by the Akouphone Company of Alabama for $400.

A device called the carbon transmitter was needed in both the early telephone and the early electric hearing aid. This transmitter was first commercially available in 1898 and was used to electrically amplify sound. In the 1920's, the carbon transmitter was replaced by the vacuum tube, and later by a transistor. Transistors allowed electric hearing aids to become small and efficient.

In 1888 a gentlemen named Emile Berliner invented the flat disc record. These very first discs were produced of a vulcanised rubber and were between 12.5cm and 18cm in diameter. ater he discovered that a mixture of shellac (a secretion from the lac beetle) and slate dust produced an extremely hard wearing but very brittle surface and from this the 78rpm disc was developed. The slate dust was used because the older acoustic gramophones used steel needles with a pick-up weight of up to 200 grams and the slate helped grind the needle to fit the groove more closely. A modern record pick-up tracks at a recommended maximum of 7 grams. Most record players today can pick up a track at under 1 gram.

Between 1900 and 1960 the discs were usually 25 or 30cm across & gave between 2 and 5 minutes playing time each side. In the beginning sound was recorded with a horn attached to a diaphragm and stylus, which scratched out a trace in a rotating wax disc. This method lasted until 1925, when microphones became sufficiently developed to allow the recording of music.

During the Second World War records were sent from the USA to overseas POW camps to keep up prisoner morale. Due to their brittleness these were frequently broken in transit, so a new compound, vinyl, was born to give greater flexibility and reduce the likelihood of breakages. During the war years vinyl was a very expensive material but the special circumstances of war justified it's use.

By 1948, Columbia Records had developed its 30cm Long Playing record, rotating at 33rpm and giving about 20-30 minutes a side which saw the downfall of shellac and vinyl was used from then on. Long-playing phonograph records may look the same now as when they were introduced in 1948, but countless refinements and developments within the industry have been made to perfect the long-playing record's technical excellence and insure the best in sound reproduction and quality available in recorded form.

A year later the first 45rpm disc was produced by RCA, 18cm in diameter and giving about 3 minutes a side. No better than the 78 for playing time, but ideal for pop record companies and juke box manufacturers! The 45 was light, compact, sounded much better than the 78 and was less prone to getting broken. 1958 saw the arrival of stereo records although unsuccesful experiments with two channel sound had been going on since before the First World War. This pleased those first "collectors" but irritated the retailers who had to keep dual stocks of LPs in mono and stereo and of course, the record companies had to prepare separate mono and stereo mixed versions of the LPs to start with. Stereo was generally only used for LPs up until about 1970, when pop singles began to appear in stereo versions so by this time the mono LP became a thing of the past.

In the late 1950s some companies experimented with a 16rpm speed originally intended for 'talking books' but was also used for music LPs in Eastern Europe and Africa. An American company also produced an 8rpm discs in the early 1970s for talking books for the blind. The 30cm disc rotating at 45rpm made it's first appearance in 1975 and makes the most of the best features of the 33 and 45rpm formats by offering a reasonable playing time (up to 12 mins/side) at a greatly enhanced volume and frequency response. EMI produceed a short run of classical LPs on this format in the early 1980s.

Despite the devastation caused to vinyl sales by the rapid rise in popularity of the CD, the format still thrives among keen record collectors and club disc jockeys.

WHO INVENTED THE POPSICLE IN 1905?

The Popsicle was invented by 11-year-old Frank Epperson in 1905. He left a container of soda and a stirrer outside overnight, and in the morning discovered them frozen together.