A celebration of the extraordinary people who created the modern world, spiced with anecdotes and wit. Trevor Norton, who has been compared to Gerard Durrell and Bill Bryson, weaves an entertaining history with a seductive mix of eureka moments, disasters and dirty tricks.
Although inventors were often scientists or engineers, many were not: Samuel Morse (Morse code) was a painter, Lazlow Biro (ballpoint) was a sculptor and hypnotist, and Logie Baird (TV) sold boot polish. The inventor of the automatic telephone switchboard was an undertaker who believed the operator was diverting his calls to rival morticians so he decided to make all telephone operators redundant.
Inventors are mavericks indifferent to conventional wisdom so critics were dismissive of even their best ideas: radio had 'no future,' electric light was 'an idiotic idea' and X-rays were 'a hoax.' Even so, the state of New Jersey moved to ban X-ray opera glasses. The head of the General Post Office rejected telephones as unneccesary as there were 'plenty of small boys to run messages.'
Some inventions were almost stillborn; the first vacuum cleaner was horse drawn on a cart. The first zip fasteners didn't zip or fasten. It often took a while for great inventions to be exploited. Transistors languished in hearing aids for ten years before they transformed radios. Twenty years after anaesthetics were invented some hosiptals in Britain were still operating without them, and vaccination ('a giant delusion') had to wait almost a century before it was fully accepted. Even the inventor didn't always know the real use of their discovery. Edison designed the phonograph for dictation not to play music. Nobel thought his dynamite would bring about world peace. Norton answers such burning questions as 'How did embroidery save thousands of lives?' and 'Why did it take a World War to get women to wear bras?'
Inventomania is a magical place where eccentrics are always in season and their stories are usually unbelievable - but rest assured, nothing has been invented.

zlib/no-category/特雷弗·诺顿 & chenjin5.com/九十九种垃圾加一记妙想：一部发明家和发明的古怪历史(幽默的科技发明故事，科学家如何改变、创造生活）_18458054.epub

九十九种垃圾加一记妙想 : 一部发明家和发明的古怪历史 = Imagination and a pile of junks : a droll history of inventors and inventions

(英)特雷弗·诺顿(Trevor Norton)著

诺顿 (Norton, Trevor)

Faber & Faber Classical Music & Dance

Zhejiang University Press

Hodder & Stoughton

John Murray Press

Hodder Paperback

Coronet Books

Faber Finds

杭州:浙江大学出版社

United Kingdom and Ireland, United Kingdom

China, People's Republic, China

London, 2014

PT, 2014

Bookmarks: p1 (p1): 1．发明家产生之前的发明
p2 (p12): 2．追求动力
p3 (p22): 3．蒸汽全开
p4 (p31): 4．仿佛公牛眼前竖红旗
p5 (p45): 5．闲话橡胶
p6 (p52): 6．在船上胡来
p7 (p62): 7．装甲舰、无畏舰和潜水艇
p8 (p78): 8．淹死的种种方法
p9 (p93): 9．一片翅膀加一声祈求
p10 (p111): 10．安全第一
p11 (p134): 11．看见光
p12 (p148): 12．一线牵
p13 (p160): 13．电线传音
p14 (p168): 14．在波峰上
p15 (p181): 15．在时间中留影
p16 (p204): 16．猫须接收器
p17 (p216): 17．大小万物
p18 (p227): 18．一个观念的细菌
p19 (p243): 19．一件肮脏的勾当
p20 (p253): 20．内部消息
p21 (p267): 21．血池地狱
p22 (p275): 22．心头之痛
p23 (p289): 23．基因里的妖精
p24 (p297): 24．晚近的新玩意儿
p25 (p315): 25．数字骚动
p26 (p325): 26．不久以后
p27 (p338): 27．科幻小说？
p28 (p351): 名词英中对照

A Celebration Of The Extraordinary People Who Created The Modern World, Spiced With Anecdotes And Wit. Trevor Norton Weaves An Entertaining History With A Seductive Mix Of Eureka Moments, Disasters And Dirty Tricks. Although Inventors Were Often Scientists Or Engineers, Many Were Not: Samuel Morse (morse Code) Was A Painter, Lazlow Biro (ballpoint) Was A Sculptor And Hypnotist, And Logie Baird (tv) Sold Boot Polish. Machine Generated Contents Note: Inventions Before There Were Inventors -- The Pursuit Of Power -- Full Steam Ahead -- Like A Red Flag To A Bull -- Rubber Dub Dub -- Messing About In Boats -- Ironclads, Dreadnoughts And Submersibles -- More Complicated Ways To Drown -- On A Wing And A Prayer -- Safety First -- Seeing The Light -- On Line -- Wired For Sound -- On The Crest Of A Wave -- Captured In Time -- The Cat's Whiskers -- All Things Great And Small -- The Germ Of An Idea -- A Dirty Business -- Inside Information -- Bloody Hell -- Heartaches -- The Genie In The Gene -- The Latest Things -- Digital Doodah -- Coming Soon -- Science Fictions? Trevor Norton. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 387-425) And Index.

今天的世界由这些伟大的发明组成明日的世界也将如此发明者理应得到书写托马斯爱迪生说过, 一个发明家只需要两样东西:垃圾和想象力. 他没有提到的是, 自己还有两百个助手. 大众心目中的发明者形象是阿基米德式的:洗澡时从浴缸中一跃而起, 赤裸着身子跑到大街上高喊一声"尤里卡----有了!"而现实中的发明者是一群勇敢, 智慧, 偶尔还有些疯癫的怪人. 他们沉浸在对新鲜事物的痴迷追求之中, 可能根本想不到洗澡. 很多发明者并不是科学家或工程师, 他们可能是画家(摩斯电码发明者), 雕刻家(圆珠笔发明者), 卖鞋油的(电视发明者)或者殡葬工作者(自动电话交换机的发明者). 发明家的成就, 应该归功于他们的智慧和顽强, 或者, 是他们的运气, 还有"借鉴"并采纳其他发明家成果的眼光. 请各位打起精神, 来见识各种奇怪而精彩的事物吧----那些都是发明家制作出来的

Ben shu jie shao le yi xie wei da fa ming jia jie shao de yi xie jing cai shi wu, nei rong bao gua : fa ming jia chan sheng zhi qian de fa ming, zhui qiu dong li, zheng qi quan kai, xian hua xiang jiao, zai chuan shang hu lai deng

Geschiedenis van uitvindingen en uitvinders, met anekdotes over eureka-momenten, onbedoelde uitvindingen het waarom het soms lang duurde voordat een uitvinding geaccepteerd werd

本书包括发明家产生之前的发明, 蒸汽全开, 仿佛公牛眼前竖红旗, 闲话橡胶, 在船上胡来, 一片翅膀加一声诉求, 安全第一, 电线传音, 在时间中留影等内容

2021-12-23