The curious history of everyday things

Every day, we use one and the same things are in E, without thinking about the history of their origin and how they all got into our lives. But the creative process of their creation are often more complex and intricate than we can imagine.

Tea bags

In 1908, Thomas Sullivan, a tea merchant in New York, started selling samples of tea to their customers in small silk bags.

But many people think that these bags should be used as the then popular metal strainer for brewing tea.

Rather than pour the contents of the sachet into a teapot, they poured boiling water directly into the cup. So was born the tea bag.

Lipstick

In ancient Greece there was a law which obliged prostitutes paint lipstick, or they could be condemned for what they are disguised as well-bred ladies.

Sunglasses

Points aviators got its name from the test pilots who first used them for protection from the sun.

US Air Force Lieutenant John Macready asked the company that produced glasses, to develop a super dark lenses peculiar shape, which could protect the eyes of pilots from the wind and sunlight.

ATMs

To create inspired inventor of the ATM vending chocolate bars. Initially, the PIN code should consist of 6 digits, but the creator of reduced length of the code up to 4 digits, supposedly so much numbers could remember his wife.

Salt

Salt has been used as money. She dearly prized in the ancient world and was at a premium. Greek slave exchanged slaves salt. Roman soldiers were paid in respect of services partially salt.

Bubblegum

Popular chewing gum was the result of a Mexican dictator attempts to regain power.

After fleeing to the United States, General de Santa Anna planned to raise an army and go back to Mexico, where he had previously headed the government. But for that he needed the money. General urged the inventor Thomas Adams to buy him a large batch of Mexican chicle (viscous milky juice).

First, the inventor wanted to use chicle for the production of rubber for car tires, but the venture failed. Thereafter, Adams wondered how you can still use the chicle and decided to use it as a main component of the chewing gum. This scheme has been highly successful, and two years later, Adams released it commercially.

Wi-Fi

The advent of Wi-Fi is connected with the name of physicist John O'Sullivan. He became interested in the theory of Stephen Hawking that small black holes emit radiation and eventually losing energy, "evaporate", and decided to prove it. The scientist worked hard to make a device for the detection of these waves, but he did not succeed. Later, he got a job in a company that is trying to make a wireless network, where its instruments to detect black holes came in handy.

Pajamas

Popularization of this kind of clothing we have to air strikes during the First World War. At night, taken by surprise, people had run out of the house and hide from the bombing. It is more convenient to be done in a warm, practical and decent clothes to sleep, because the pajamas do not constrain movement, covered the body and can even be quite stylish.

Straw Cocktail

Initially, demand for flex duct was great in hospitals, using them easier to drink was lying sick and wounded. But cafes and restaurants too, did not escape the attention tubes. He invented a straw with a corrugated portion of Joseph Friedman.

Pillow

The earliest pillows were made of stone. They were invented in order to bugs could crawl into nose, ears or mouth sleeping man. They were also used to sleep during the hair remained perfect. Later, for the sake of the whim of the rich they were converted into true works of art. Cover with cloth and fill with down or feathers, they were only after the textile revolution.

Maybelline

Today the trademark Maybelline - a global beauty brand, with more than 20 products.

It was founded in 1915 by a teenager who once saw his sister Mabel (Mabel) prepares its own makeup for the eyes, mixing petroleum jelly (Vaseline) with coal dust.

Its commercial version of this mixture is called Maybelline (Mabel + Vaseline) enjoyed great success and has led to a cosmetic Empire.