List: The world’s best inventions weren’t made for profit.

by **Edward-M** on Mon May 05, 2008 3:44 pm

1. The internet. (The government & Tim Berners-Lee.)

2. Penicillin. “Florey believed it would be inappropriate to patent penicillin, but learned his lesson when some of his American collaborators did just that… Florey took no profit for himself.”
— http://time.com/time/magazine/article/0 ... 00,00.html

3. The computer - “This came from pure scientific thought, and not at all from an economic need for computing. Business and profit-making played no part in it.”
— http://turing.org.uk/turing/scrapbook/machine.html

4. AC power & modern electricity. (Tesla)
“Money does not represent such a value as men have placed upon it. All my money has been invested into experiments with which I have made new discoveries enabling mankind to have a little easier life.”
— http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Nikola_Tesla

“Yet Tesla died destitute.”
—http://inventors.about.com/od/tstartinventions/a/Nikola_Tesla.htm

5. Phone. “Meucci was recognized as the first inventor of the telephone by the US House.” “[He] was unable to raise sufficient funds to pay for the patent application… In 1861 his cottage was auctioned.”
—http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonio_Meucci

6. Lightbulb. “Göbel [invented] the first practical bulb… in 1854, a quarter of a century before Edison’s patent.”
—http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinrich_G%C3%B6bel

Yes he died pennyless too.

7. Radio. “Tesla is now credited with inventing modern radio as well; since the Supreme Court overturned Marconi’s patent in 1943 in favor of Tesla’s earlier patents.”
—http://inventors.about.com/od/tstartinventions/a/Nikola_Tesla.htm

8. Almost everything else - through state funding of science, medicine, & university research.

The point? While we all love for-profit economics, let’s not exaggerate their role either. At best they tend to succeed after government acceleration of new technologies.

from
http://newsrogue.com/list-the-worlds-best-inventions-werent-made-for-profit/

...

No one is denying that profit motive improves products, we're just asking for a little honesty. Yes profit motive leads to cheaper & better products... but creativity, altruism, & government had a big role too.

Ford didn't invent the car, he invented the cheap car. The Wright brothers didn't invent the first airplane, they invented the first good airplane. (the "three axis-control" method.)

In other words, liberals don't "hate markets" or "worship Marx" - we love our laptops - but please don't exaggerate & over-simplify reality.

by **Edward-M** on Wed Jun 04, 2008 11:41 am

bump!

by **Dudley** on Mon Jun 30, 2008 5:57 am

Edward-M wrote:[i]1. The internet. (The government & Tim Berners-Lee.)

2. Penicillin. “Florey believed it would be inappropriate to patent penicillin, but learned his lesson when some of his American collaborators did just that… Florey took no profit for himself.”
— http://time.com/time/magazine/article/0 ... 00,00.html

3. The computer - “This came from pure scientific thought, and not at all from an economic need for computing. Business and profit-making played no part in it.”
— http://turing.org.uk/turing/scrapbook/machine.html

4. AC power & modern electricity. (Tesla)
“Money does not represent such a value as men have placed upon it. All my money has been invested into experiments with which I have made new discoveries enabling mankind to have a little easier life.”
— http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Nikola_Tesla

“Yet Tesla died destitute.”
—http://inventors.about.com/od/tstartinventions/a/Nikola_Tesla.htm

from
http://newsrogue.com/list-the-worlds-best-inventions-werent-made-for-profit/

...

No one is denying that profit motive improves products, we're just asking for a little honesty. Yes profit motive leads to cheaper & better products... but creativity, altruism, & government had a big role too.

Ford didn't invent the car, he invented the cheap car. The Wright brothers didn't invent the first airplane, they invented the first good airplane. (the "three axis-control" method.)

In other words, liberals don't "hate markets" or "worship Marx" - we love our laptops - but please don't exaggerate & over-simplify reality.

But you'll notice that no one benefited from any of these inventions until someone invested in them expecting to make a profit.

by **Rupchuk** on Mon Jun 30, 2008 4:01 pm

Profit doesn't drive invention, it drives implementation.

by **oddmanin** on Mon Jun 30, 2008 4:18 pm

nicely said rup

List: The world’s best inventions weren’t made for profit.

List: The world’s best inventions weren’t made for profit.

bump

Re: List: The world’s best inventions weren’t made for profi

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