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Human innovation sure is amazing. We’ve managed to figure out how to count, tell time, use (and abuse) nature’s resources to our advantage, and develop complex social structures… so complex that it boggles the mind to look back and try to imagine how we did it. Much like the way looking at your nose in the mirror for too long will make you feel like a surreal assortment of fleshy blobs, thinking about our longest-unquestioned customs will make you wonder just how our ancestors decided on that over the generations.

But who has the patience to think about such existential questions? Not you, you may think as you get up to get a snack, contemplating the impressive variety of salad toppings, sandwich fillings and sweets we’ve also managed to come up with as a civilization.

Here are some tweets cursing and praising the ingenuity of the "inventors" of the simplest concepts we take for granted. There may not be much historical accuracy to be found here, but sometimes it’s easier to blame some hypothetical guy.

#1

Guy-Who-Invented-Things

Dannmace Report

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chi-wei shen
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Autocorrect is always ducking around with us, may it's inventor rust in peas.

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    There are a lot of funny stories throughout history of how these old inventions came about, but it’s hard to tell which ones are rumors and which ones are true sometimes. While there’s a widespread legend that potato chips were accidentally invented in 1853 by a cook who felt like he couldn’t please a customer who demanded improbably thin fries and sent out what he thought were ruined crisps in frustration, investigation of the historic restaurant that claims this legend turns up some inconsistencies.

    Historians did manage to find a New York Herald article praising an unidentified woman who worked at the restaurant and had a knack for frying potatoes a few years earlier than that, so it may be more likely that this great idea came to a potato pioneer who knew exactly what she was doing.

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    #13

    Guy-Who-Invented-Things

    KrangTNelson Report

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    Non-New-Toni-An
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Mmmmm a bloody Mary with some salt, Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco is soooooo good

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    #15

    Guy-Who-Invented-Things

    ColdHeart_Prj Report

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    Ilona
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    At least in Dutch the name makes sense. Paraplu - derived from the French 'para pluie' which means 'against rain'. Which is exactly what an umbrella is used for.

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    #17

    Guy-Who-Invented-Things

    mattbooshell Report

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    #20

    Guy-Who-Invented-Things

    llcoolstain Report

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    Nicola Roberts
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Thomas Midgley Jr. Invented leaded petrol and CFCs in fridges/aerosols. It would be interesting if you could quantify his impact on our world.

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    #22

    Guy-Who-Invented-Things

    HammerFist3 Report

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    Kim Mahood
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    With cooking i always imagine someone accidentally dropped something in the fire/water/stood on some grains, tasted it and was like mmm!

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    #26

    Guy-Who-Invented-Things

    msgwenl Report

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    Samantha Lomb
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Its called I wish this really tough meat was edible, lets boil it to death and try to make it palatable by adding potatoes and other veg

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    #29

    Guy-Who-Invented-Things

    KylePlantEmoji Report

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    bryguy
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Hmm the tree just isn't enough. What else do we have? Tinsel? Yup throw that on, what else? Pine cones? Yup.

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    #30

    Guy-Who-Invented-Things

    goodbeanalt Report

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    Narunaru
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Knowledge is power: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindu%E2%80%93Arabic_numeral_system

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    #33

    Guy-Who-Invented-Things

    oldfriend99 Report

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    chi-wei shen
    Community Member
    4 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The inventor of the wheel is still alive. His name is John Micheal Keogh, from Hawthorn in Australia. On 24 May 2001 he had the audacity to file for a provisional patent for a wheel with the Australian Patent Office. It was published on 2 August 2001 under the name "Circular transportation facilitation device". For this application the 'inventor' received the IG Noble prize of 2001 (together with the patent office).

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    #35

    Guy-Who-Invented-Things

    LlamaInaTux Report

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    #36

    Guy-Who-Invented-Things

    AcaciaBrinley Report

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    KatHat
    Community Member
    4 years ago

    This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

    Well, part of this is because people have changed it to a day of pranking. That was NOT its original intent. You're not "fooling" anyone by pranking them because there's no wit to most pranks and there's nothing to "fall for", you're just doing something mean to them.

    #39

    Guy-Who-Invented-Things

    ShootyDoody Report

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    Kim Mahood
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Ew.. Living in britain i had to look these up. They look like they taste mostly of food colouring...

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    #43

    Guy-Who-Invented-Things

    merrittk Report

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    #46

    Guy-Who-Invented-Things

    sweatyhairy Report

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    Lara Verne
    Community Member
    4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It was lady. Guy copied it, because he thought it would look good at him :D

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