facts you likely didn’t know about popular inventions
The Super Soaker was invented by a nuclear engineer out of a PVC pipe and Coke bottle
Lonnie Johnson first sold the idea to Lamari by firing it inside their Philadelphia offices. He was then introduced to Hasbro — awesomeness has ensued ever since.
Bag-pipes were invented in Persia, not Scotland
“It was most likely a rather crude instrument comprised of reeds stuck into a goatskin bag. As civilization spread throughout the Middle East and into the Mediterranean lands, the people brought along their music.”
The guy who voiced Mr. Owl in Tootsie Pop cartoons also invented the artificial heart
“Paul Winchell built the prototype with the advice and input of Henry J. Heimlich, the doctor who invented the most famous method of saving choking victims, and received his patent in 1963. He later donated the patent to the University of Utah.”
The word “hello” was invented because no one knew how to start a telephone call
“Over at the laboratories of Edison’s rival, Bell was insisting on “Ahoy!” as the correct way to answer the telephone. It was trounced by “hello,” which became the standard as the first telephone exchanges, equipped by Edison, were set up across the United States and operating manuals adopted the word.”
The same company that invented aspirin, Bayer, also invented heroin as a cold medicine
Corn Flakes were invented to stop masturbation
“In 1898, John Harvey Kellog introduced another health food known as “Corn Flakes.” Corn Flakes — like Graham Crackers and Granola — were designed to avoid inflaming the sexual appetite. At that time, they were not sweetened with sugar. Kellogg believed that sugar was unhealthy and associated with vice and degeneracy.”
