Rene Theophile Hyacinthe Laennec was a French physician who invented Stethoscope in 1816 because he was unwilling to start immediate auscultation (placing the doctor’s ear on the patient’s chest) because of the age, sex, and plumpness of the patient. Laennec recalled his acoustic phenomenon in which he observed children’s wood borne signaling. It was this observation that inspired him with invention of the stethoscope. Laennec spent three years testing various types of materials to make tubes, perfecting his design and listening to the chest findings of patients with pneumonia. Laennec’s wooden tube was the first true stethoscope. Laennec perfected the art of physical examination of the chest and introduced many clinical terms still used today. (source)
12John Shepherd-Barron invented ATM machine. ATM PINs were originally intended to have six digits, but were reduced to four because John’s wife could only remember 4 digits.
John Shepherd-Barron came up with the idea of ATM machine when he was taking a bath. Initially, he thought of keeping 6-digit ATM pin as he could remember his six-figure army number but after discussing with his wife, he changed it to 4 digits as she could only remember 4 digits. Thus, four figures became the world standard. The world’s first ATM was installed in a branch of Barclays in Enfield, north London. The use of ATMs really started to take hold around 1973, when 2,000 machines were sold and installed in the United States. Today, it’s estimated there are around 2 million ATMs around the globe. (source)
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13 Erno Rubik invented Rubik’s Cube (Magic Cube) to build a structure to help explain three-dimensional geometry which became best selling toy of all time.
Erno Rubik invented Magic Cube because he wanted to build a structure with pieces that move independently without falling apart. He had no idea that he was creating the best-selling toy of all time. Magic cube is made up of twenty-six miniature cubes and it won Toy of the Year in 1980 and 1981. It took him over a month to work out the solution to his puzzle. A guide to solving the cube became a best seller. This puzzle even had its own TV show. (source)
14 In 1920, Earle Dickson invented band-aid for his wife, who used to cut or burned herself while cooking.
Band-Aids were discovered by Johnson & Johnson employee Earle Dickson for his wife Josephine, who frequently cut and burned herself while cooking. The original Band-Aids were handmade and not very popular. By 1924, Johnson & Johnson introduced a machine that produced sterilized Band-Aids. In 1951, the first decorative Band-Aids were introduced and sales took off. Moreover, it became a commercial success with some famous themes such as Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Superman, Spider-Man, Hello Kitty, Rocket Power, Rugrats, smiley faces, Barbie, Dora the Explorer, Batman, and Duck Dynasty. (source)
15 Nikola Tesla “cured” Mark Twain of his constipation with an electrical charge.
Nikola Tesla and Mark Twain became friends after Tesla cured Twain of his constipation by passing an electrical current through his body. Telsa’s device was actually a high frequency oscillator. Both of them also loved to use Tesla’s X-ray gun against sheets of undeveloped film to capture the images, including several x-rays of Mark Twain’s skull. (source)
