Who developed the Abacus?

The abacus was probably invented by the Babylonians. It was refined and used by the Romans, Chinese, Arabs, Europeans, and Asians as late as the seventeenth century. It is still used, in various forms, in the Middle East and Japan.

What does Frusen Gladje mean and who created it?

what does frusen gladje mean and who created it

Frusen Gladje means “frozen delight” in Swedish. Founded in 1980 by Richard Smith, Frusen Glädjé was a company that made ice cream in the United States. The name was intentionally Swedish sounding. As of this writing, Frusen Gladje does not exist anymore and has disappeared.

How did the Piggy Bank get its name?

how did the piggy bank get its name

In the Middle Ages, people stored money in a “pygg jar,” made of a clay called pygg. By the eighteenth century in England, the name and shape of the receptacle had evolved to “pig bank”, and from there to piggy bank.

How did Shell Oil get its name?

how did shell oil get its name

The company that eventually bore the name Shell Oil Company was originally a novelty shop in London called The Shell Shop. In the mid-1800s, shop owner Marcus Samuel became successful selling boxes of pretty seashells. Imported shells also brought in money, and his international trade business really expanded when he found he could also export … Read more

Who invented the rubber band?

who invented the rubber band

Stephen Perry, of the rubber manufacturing firm of Messrs. Perry & Co., patented his design for vulcanized rubber bands on March 17, 1845. Then, as now, the bands were designed to secure “papers, letters, etc.”

What does the K in K rations stand for?

what does the k in k rations stand for

Most likely, the K in K rations represents the first letter of the last name of the product’s developer, Ancel Keys (b. 1904). Keys, a physiologist from Minnesota, developed the portions of food for soldiers in World War II.

What was the first manmade plastic?

what was the first manmade plastic

Called celluloid, it was invented in 1869 by American John Wesley Hyatt. This cellulose nitrate and camphor mixture, though flammable, was strong and pliable enough for use in a variety of common household items. Eventually it was replaced by less flammable synthetic polymers.

What does Haagen-Dazs mean and who was the ice cream named after?

what does haagen dazs mean and who was the ice cream named after

Haagen-Dazs has no particular meaning, and is two made-up words meant to look and sound Scandinavian. It is a name created by its developer, Reuben Mattus, a Polish emigre living in the United States, to convey a European sensibility. Haagen-Dazs ice cream started in the Bronx, New York, in 1961, and had only three flavors: … Read more

Did Dr. Scholl really exist and was he really a doctor?

did dr scholl really exist and was he really a doctor

Yes, there was really a Dr. Scholl. In the late nineteenth century, William (“Billy”) Scholl left farm life in La Porte, Indiana, for life as a shoemaker in Chicago. After noticing how much abuse the average foot takes, he decided to become a podiatrist and treat the problems he saw. Once established as a medical … Read more

Who invented the brassiere?

who invented the brassiere

New York socialite Mary Phelps Jacobs patented the first brassiere in 1914. She had devised it for her own use as an alternative to the corset, which showed under her sheer gown. The first bra was made from ribbon and handkerchiefs.

Who was the Tootsie Roll named after?

who was the tootsie roll named after

The Tootsie Roll was named after Clara Hirschfield, the daughter of the candy’s creator. Leo Hirschfield who invented the Tootsie Roll had given her this pet name. He gave the name to the candy as well, which entered the American market in 1896.

What is chamois?

what is chamois

Chamois is a soft, warm leather and is the skin of the Alpine animal of the same name. More often, however, it is specially treated sheepskin.

How did the purfume Chanel Number 5 get its name?

how did the purfume chanel number 5 get its name

Chanel Number 5 got its name not because it was the fifth formulation of the perfume mixture. Coco Chanel considered five a lucky number, and when she introduced the perfume in 1921, she did so on the fifth day of May, the fifth month. She called the fragrance Chanel N°5.

Who invented the Dixie Cup and when?

who invented the dixie cup and when

Developed between 1908 and 1912 by Hugh Moore as the healthful “individual drinking cup” for public water sources, the Dixie Cup was originally called the Health Kup. It did not catch on until inventor Moore gave it a new name. The producer of the cups was the Dixie Doll Company, which reminded Moore of a … Read more

What was the first Supermarket?

what was the first supermarket

Two self-service stores, precursors to supermarkets, opened in California in 1912. The Alpha Beta Food Market in Pomona and Ward’s Grocetaria in Ocean Park. The Piggly-Wiggly stores, which opened in 1916 in Memphis, Tennessee, had self-service and checkout counters but did not call themselves supermarkets. The word supermarket was not part of a store name … Read more

Why does Ivory soap float?

why does ivory soap float

Too much air caused Ivory soap to float. It was originally an error in production. In 1878, Harley Procter and cousin James Gamble decided to create for their company a white soap that would rival the popular castile soaps of their competitors. The product was successful. Then, in 1879, a worker mistakenly allowed the soap … Read more

Why are manholes round?

why are manholes round

Manholes are round so that their covers cannot be dropped through the manhole itself. Squares, rectangles, ovals, and other shapes could be so positioned that they would slip into the manhole. The circular manhole cover rests on a lip that is smaller than the cover. Thus, the size and shape keep the manhole cover from … Read more

How was the car company known as the Fiat named?

how was the car company known as the fiat named

The word fiat means an authoritative decree, from the Latin for “let it be done”. But the Italian car company founded in Turin in 1899 adopted its name as an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino (Italian Motorcar Works, Turin).

What does the name Kodak stand for?

what does the name kodak stand for

According to George Eastman, founder of Eastman Kodak, the name is his invention: “I knew a trade name must be short, vigorous, incapable of being misspelled . . . and in order to satisfy trademark laws, it must mean nothing. . . . The letter k had been a favorite with me, it seemed a … Read more

Where was the first elevator?

where was the first elevator

The first elevator, called the Flying Chair, was erected in King Louis XV’s private apartments in the Palace of Versailles in 1743. It gave him ready access to his mistress, Madame de Chateauroux, on the floor above. The Flying Chair was operated by weights.

Who was the first Fuller Brush man?

who was the first fuller brush man

Alfred Carl Fuller came to the United States from Norway in 1903, and after working at a variety of jobs, he began selling brushes door-to-door in 1905. By 1910, he had a staff of 25 salesmen. Over the years, Fuller adapted by expanding his line to include a variety of household cleaning products. When he … Read more

Who invented the air conditioner?

who invented the air conditioner

New Yorker Willis Carrier became interested in ventilation systems while he was still an engineering student at Cornell at the turn of the century. Shortly after his graduation, he developed his first air-cooling system for a Brooklyn printer and lithographer. The first air-conditioned movie house opened in Chicago in 1919. By the end of the … Read more

What does the name Sanka stand for?

what does the name sanka stand for

This 1903 creation Sanka is a contraction of the French phrase sans cafeine. The first decaffeinated coffee arrived in America by accident that year: A shipload of coffee coming from Europe to coffee importer Dr. Ludwig Roselius became waterlogged, and thus decaffeinated.

Was there really an Aunt Jemima?

was there really an aunt jemima

There was a woman who acted as Aunt Jemima Nancy Green, of Montgomery County, Kentucky. This cook for a judge’s family in Chicago was lured by executives of the Davis Milling Company to promote the pancake mix at Chicago’s World’s Columbian Exposition in 1893. She had served 1 million pancakes by the time the fair … Read more

What was the first chewing gum?

what was the first chewing gum

The first chewing gum was the flavorless Adams New York Chewing Gum. Snapping and Stretching was developed by New York inventor Thomas Adams and introduced in 1871. Flavored gum followed in 1875, and bubble gum a decade after that.

Who invented the peace symbol?

who invented the peace symbol

The peace symbol was created in 1958 as a nuclear disarmament symbol by the Direct Action Committee. It was first shown that year at peace marches in England. The forked symbol is actually a composite of the semaphore signals N and D, representing nuclear disarmament.

Who invented Pac-Man and when?

who invented pac man and when

PacMan was invented by twenty-seven-year-old Turn Iwatani in 1980. Iwatani worked for Namco Limited of Japan, a producer of video games and computer software. Pac-Man is an icon of 1980s pop culture, and is considered universally as a classic video game.

How did Maxwell House coffee get to be “good to the last drop”?

how did maxwell house coffee get to be good to the last drop

The phrase belongs to President Theodore Roosevelt, who, while visiting Andrew Jackson’s home, the Hermitage, in Nashville, Tennessee, drank a cup of Maxwell House coffee and was offered a refill. He is said to have replied, “Will I have another? Delighted! It’s good to the last drop!” By the way, there actually was a Maxwell … Read more

How old is the Hula-Hoop?

how old is the hula hoop

The practice of gyrating with hoops made of grapevines originated in ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome. The name hula, however, was not used until the 1700s, when British and American missionaries returned home with tales of island hoop-dancers. The modern plastic Hula-Hoop was developed in the 1950s by Richard P. Knerr and Arthur K. (“Spud”) … Read more

What does L.S.M.F.T. mean and who created it?

what does l s m f t mean and who created it

LSMFT means Lucky Strike Means Fine Tobacco. It was the creation of George Washington Hill, son of Buck Duke, founder of the American Tobacco Company. The slogan, introduced in the early 1940s, became so popular that by 1944 its acronym, L.S.M.F.T., was printed on the bottom of every Lucky Strike package.

Who introduced assembly-line production?

who introduced assembly line production

Henry Ford did not invent assembly-line production. Ransom E. Olds, father of the Oldsmobile, introduced the assembly-line technique to the United States in 1901. In doing so, he increased automobile production from 425 vehicles in 1901 to over 2,500 in 1902. Ford contributed modifications, including the conveyor belt system, which reduced the time it took … Read more

How was the inch developed?

how was the inch developed

What we now know as the inch (from Latin uncia, or “12th part”) was defined as 112 foot by the Romans. It was roughly a thumb’s breadth, while a foot was roughly the length of a human foot. The Romans introduced the inch to Britain, where it was incorporated into the English system of weights … Read more

When were eyeglasses first worn in Europe?

when were eyeglasses first worn in europe

Eyeglasses first appeared in Italy in the fourteenth century. They were supposedly introduced by Alessandro di Spina of Florence. Eyeglasses also appeared in China about this time; it is not clear who got the idea first.

How does a fan cool a room?

how does a fan cool a room

Unlike an air conditioner, it does not cool the air. It actually increases the air temperature because of the heat released by the motor. What makes the room seem cooler is increased air circulation over the skin, which speeds evaporation of moisture.

Who invented shrapnel?

who invented shrapnel

Henry Shrapnel of England (1761-1842), an artillery officer, invented the so-called shrapnel. It was a round projectile filled with bullets and equipped with an explosive charge to scatter the shot. In later versions, fragments of the shell casing itself were found to be more deadly than the enclosed bullets. Shrapnel today refers to those fragments.

How did 7UP get its name and who invented the drink?

how did 7up get its name and who invented the drink

The 7 in 7UP stands for the soft drink’s original 7-ounce bottle, the UP for the bubbles from its carbonation. In 1929, when the drink was first introduced by Saint Louis businessman Charles L. Grigg, it was called Bib-Label Lithiated Lemon-Lime Soda. The name was derived from one of its original ingredients, lithium salts.

Who invented Alka-Seltzer?

who invented alka seltzer

The idea for Alka-Seltzer came from a newspaper editor in Elkhart, Indiana, in the 1920s. It was brought to the public by Hub Beardsley, president of the Dr. Miles Laboratories (now Miles Laboratories). Beardsley learned that an entire newspaper staff had remained free of influenza during an epidemic when they took the editor’s prescription of … Read more

How did aspirin get its name?

how did aspirin get its name

Aspirin got its name in parts. The a came from the first letter of the product’s scientific name, acetylsalicylic acid. The spir came from Spiraea ulmaria, the meadowsweet plant, which was the original source of the compound. The in was a common suffix for medications in the late nineteenth century, when aspirin was first marketed.

Who invented Tupperware?

who invented tupperware

An inventor from Massachusetts named Earl D. Tupper invented Tupperware in 1942. In the 1930s, Tupper, a chemist at Du Pont, experimented with a new durable plastic called polyethylene. Tupper thought it could be used for all types of housewares, and he developed some test products. The first piece of Tupperware, a bathroom cup, was … Read more

How does a log cabin factor in the naming of Log Cabin syrup?

how does a log cabin factor in the naming of log cabin syrup

At the time, in 1887, the lowly cabin was meant to evoke thoughts of an all-American hero, Abraham Lincoln, and thus increase sales. Grocer P. J. Towle, creator of the syrup, a blend of sugar cane with Vermont and Canadian maple sugars, had rejected the idea of naming his creation Abraham Lincoln syrup. But the … Read more

When was denim first used to make Levi’s jeans?

when was denim first used to make levis jeans

Originally San Francisco tailor Levi Strauss made jeans from canvas. But in the early 1860s, he started using a softer fabric imported from Nimes, France. Known in French as serge de Nimes, the material was called denim in the United States.

How much beef does McDonald’s use each year?

how much beef does mcdonalds use each year

McDonald’s uses about 560 million pounds of hamburger beef each year. This is assuming that the average hamburger weighs 3 ounces. Actually 1.6 ounces for the hamburger, 4 ounces for the quarter-pounder, and that the average quantity sold annually is 3 billion burgers.

Is an airplane’s black box actually black?

is an airplanes black box actually black

No, an airplane’s black box is not black, it is orange. Inside the box, a stainless-steel tape contains information on the airspeed, altitude, and vertical acceleration. A second orange box contains a tape of the last half-hour of conversation in the cockpit.

Who invented the Band-Aid?

who invented the band aid

Robert Johnson, a pharmacist from Brooklyn, New York, and partner in a Brooklyn pharmaceutical supply firm invented the Band-Aid. They believed that individually sealed sterile bandages could drastically reduce the rate of hospital infections, which in some cases ran to 90 percent. By the mid-1800s, he and his brothers formed a pharmaceutical company that produced … Read more

Who invented the toothbrush?

who invented the toothbrush

The first toothbrush with bristles was developed in China in 1498. Bristles were taken from hogs at first, and later from horses and even badgers. Not until 1938 were nylon bristles, more sanitary and less dangerous, developed by Du Pont.

When did pockets come into fashion?

when did pockets come into fashion

Pockets did not come into fashion until the end of the sixteenth century. Before that time, men carried their keys and money in pieces of cloth attached to their clothing. The first pocket was an open-side seam in which men placed their pouch of personal items. Eventually the pocket became a permanent part of the … Read more

What is Silly Putty made of and who invented it?

what is silly putty made of and who invented it

The rubber-like compound Silly Putty is composed, in part, of boric acid and silicone oil. Silly Putty was invented at the General Electric laboratories in the 1940s as an inexpensive synthetic rubber for use during World War II. It gained its greatest popularity when New Haven, Connecticut, store owner Paul Hodgson bought a large quantity … Read more

How many candies of each color go into the average bag of M&M’s?

how many candies of each color go into the average bag of mms

Following consumer testing, M&M/Mars decided upon the following breakdown for plain M&M’s in each bag: Brown. 30 percent Red. 20 percent Yellow. 20 percent Green. 10 percent Orange. 10 percent Tan. 10 percent For peanut M&M’s, it is: Brown. 30 percent Red. 20 percent Yellow. 20 percent Green. 20 percent Orange. 10 percent

When was color television invented?

when was color television invented

Scottish engineer John Baird built a working color television in 1928. But it was Hungarian-American inventor Peter Carl Goldmark who, in 1940, developed the first color-television system to be used commercially. Goldmark is also remembered for inventing the 33 1/3 RPM long-playing record in 1948.

How did the safety pin originate?

how did the safety pin originate

The safety pin as we know it today was not produced until 1849, when American inventor Walter Hunt patented the first modern design. Precursors were developed in Europe about 3,000 years ago and became the standard device for fastening clothes. In the sixth century B.c., Greek and Roman women used a fibula, a pin with … Read more

How was Noxzema named?

how was noxzema named

Developed in 1914 by George Bunting, a Baltimore pharmacist, the skin cream Noxzema was originally called Dr. Bunting’s Sunburn Remedy. He searched in vain for a better name until one day a customer entered his drugstore and told him, “Your sunburn cream sure knocked out my eczema.” The concoction that “knocks eczema” became Noxzema.

Who built the first modern computer?

who built the first modern computer

In 1942, the theoretical physicist John V. Atanasoff and his assistant Clifford Berry built the first computer that successfully used vacuum tubes to do mathematical calculations. The machine was called the Atanasoff Berry Computer, or ABC.

Who invented the Bic pen and who was it named after?

who invented the bic pen and who was it named after

The Bic pen is named for Baron Biche. But Biche did not invent the ballpoint pen, Hungarian Laszlo Biro did, in 1938. Biche’s French firm, Bic, took over the English company that had agreed to produce the pens. In England the pen is still known as a “biro,” in France as a “bic.”

Why does MGM have a lion for a trademark animal?

why does mgm have a lion for a trademark animal

The lion, developed before the formation of MGM, was the original trademark for the newly formed (Samuel) Goldwyn Pictures Corporation. It was the creation of a young advertising man named Howard Dietz, who was inspired by his alma mater Columbia University’s football song, “Roar, Lion, Roar!” Later on, Dietz also came up with the motto … Read more