The Art of Invention

The art of invention and designEverything is invented and designed, one way or another. Some objects are designed well, while others are not; some are designed pretentiously, others unassumingly; some are designed to optimize materials and techniques, while others are wasteful. While some objects naturally attract our attention for their extraordinary character and desirability - an eccentric and expensive pair of sneakers, for instance, or a gleaming sports car - many others are so apparently ordinary as to go unnoticed. Every day we use dozens of them, from elastic bands to Band-Aids, erasers, and mascara wands. If they work well, chances are we won't pay them much attention. However, in spite of their modest price and demure presence, some of these things are true masterpieces of the art of design and deserve our unconditional admiration. Are all inventions essential or useful?Space has its urban legends of course, and the Million Dollar Space Pen is one of the more enduring ones. It is neither as outlandish nor as unbelievable as the story about faking the Moon landings, and even though it seems more credible than a massive government conspiracy, it is probable that fewer people have heard it. The story goes like this: in the 1960s, NASA astronauts discovered that their pens did not work in zero gravity. So like good engineers, they went to work and designed a wonder, million dollar pen. It worked upside down. It worked in vacuum. It worked in zero gravity. It even worked underwater! And it only cost a million dollars!At the same time, the Russians were ramping up their efforts to conquer space before the Americans, and they also realized that their normal pens did not work in space... So the crafty Russians used a pencil... Every now and then, people have ideas. Some of them are "Eureka" moments, a sudden illumination. A flash of imagination that drives progress forward. And often a patent is needed... A patent is defined as "a government authority or licence conferring a right or title for a set period, especially the sole right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention". Basically, in layman's terms, "I have to protect this before someone else has the idea and steals it from me !!!". Anything, from glasses for chickens, dog umbrellas, breast-shaped pillows to rooster-shaped airplanes can be patented, and has been. Here is a collection of some of the funniest, most ridiculous or even absurd patents deposed since the 31st of July 1790, when Samuel Hopkins was issued the world's first patent for a process of making potash, an ingredient used in fertilizer.