Close, But Not Quite Knight’s paper bag machine filled a need. Yet filling a need doesn’t always mean an invention will be used. In 1903, Andrew Jackson, Jr., saw a need,


too. He invented eyeglasses for chickens. T e glasses weren’t made to improve the


chickens’ eyesight. T ey were safety goggles. Chickens tend to peck at anything that


annoys them or gets in the way of their feeding. In a crowded chicken coop, there’s bound to be fights. Jackson thought his glasses would protect chickens from being poked in the eyes by other chickens. Nobody asked the chickens, though. T ey


had no interest in wearing glasses. Farmers had a hard time keeping them on the chickens. As an inventor, Jackson isn’t alone. T ere are


a lot of strange inventions that never quite took off . T ere’s the parakeet diaper and the vacuum haircutting helmet. T ere’s even an alarm clock that squirts the sleeper in the face.


Try, Try Again Being an inventor takes a lot of patience. Few inventors get things right the first time. No one understood this better than T omas Alva Edison. For nearly three years, Edison and his team worked on creating the light bulb. It was frustrating work. T e team made


many prototypes, or early versions, of the bulb. T ey always failed. T e bulb got too hot. T e bulb burned out too quickly. T e bulb didn’t shine brightly enough. Some team members got discouraged.


Not Edison. Aſt er each test, he was more determined. “T at’s one more way it won’t work, so we’re closer to a solution,” he would say to his team. At last, Edison found the right combination of materials. T e bulb was cool enough, long lasting, and bright enough.


Chickens didn’t want to wear Jackson’s invention.


Room for Improvement Some inventions are improved over time. People think up diff erent ways to make them, or they use better materials. T e toothbrush is a good example. T roughout history, people have used all


sorts of tools to brush their teeth. T ey’ve used frayed twigs and bird feathers. T ey’ve even used porcupine quills. T e Chinese were the first to use stiff pigs’


hairs for bristles. T ey used bamboo or bone for a handle. T e invention of a material called nylon in the 1930s helped create the toothbrushes we use today.


14 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXPLORER


Thomas Edison worked for years to invent a light bulb.


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