View Poll Results: If someone invents something while working inother country, whose invention is it?

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  • The nationality of the invention depends on the nationality of the person who invented it

    2 50.00%
  • The nationality of the invention depends on the country where it was invented

    2 50.00%

Origin of invention?

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  1. #11

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    Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone; he wasn't American.

    Like I said: "in recent times" - for old inventions (gunpowder, the wheel, etc) the country tends to get credited, but I can't think of anything invented in the last two hundred years or so which is attributed to a country.

  2. #12

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    As you are so hung up on the nationality thing and the answers seem stuck on a closed loop about personal attribution, perhaps you might explain the purpose of the question ?

    The reason some countries are quoted as inventing and now persons are is all down to the enacting of patent law. A good explanation of how it changed for the USA is described thus -

    "The first U.S. patent laws were enacted by Congress in 1790 as part of the Constitution. Before then, the King of England officially owned all the intellectual property created by the colonists. Prior to 1790, it was necessary for an inventor to make a special appeal to the governing body of the Colony or State to protect an invention. The first such patent on this continent was granted by the Massachusetts General Court to Samuel Winslow in 1641 for a novel method of making salt. George Washington signed the First United States Patent Grant on July 31, 1790, and the patent examiner was Thomas Jefferson. The first U.S. patent went to Samuel Hopkins of Pittsford, Vermont for a new method of making Potash, an industrial chemical used in making soap, glass, fertilizers and gunpowder. In 1790, the fee for a Patent was four dollars. "

    So perhaps if we understood the thinking behind the question, we could better answer it.


  3. #13

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    timklip, that's what I meant. Thank you.
    Like the threat "Curry, a British Invention". It doesn't seem to be that rare...

    Quote Originally Posted by PDLM:
    Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone; he wasn't American.
    Well, no. Antonio Meucci invented the telephone; he wasn't American either.

    Quote Originally Posted by Boris:
    As you are so hung up on the nationality thing and the answers seem stuck on a closed loop about personal attribution, perhaps you might explain the purpose of the question ?
    If you don't mind I will explain it when more people have voted. This might end up being an interesting discussion (or at least I hope so) if we can minimise personal attacks.
    Last edited by Safran; 26-01-2009 at 11:14 PM.

  4. #14

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    The questions on the poll can never have the correct answer, so what is the point about asking people how uniformed they are ?

    Are you wearing the red dots as a badge of honour instead of wanting to get accurate information?


  5. #15

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    Quote Originally Posted by Boris:
    The questions on the poll can never have the correct answer, so what is the point about asking people how uniformed they are ?
    But a poll is about opinions, not about the correct answer...

    Quote Originally Posted by Boris:
    Are you wearing the red dots as a badge of honour instead of wanting to get accurate information?
    What do the dots have to do with getting accurate information? (again...i think he's looking for opinion and subsequent discussion, not the correct or accurate information...)

    FWIW, I'd have to agree with PDLM tho...in the distant past, inventions may have been attributed to countries/civilizations/empires, but once records of each invention have been made and kept (Boris' patent law), individuals have been more commonly given credit...so the wording of the poll is somewhat lacking...
    Last edited by timklip; 27-01-2009 at 12:53 AM.

  6. #16

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    Quote Originally Posted by timklip:
    But a poll is about opinions, not about the correct answer...
    So ....... you go to the trouble of asking questions but have no interest in the correct answer. An ideal candidate for Lehman Bros Bond Sales ?

  7. #17

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    Quote Originally Posted by PDLM:
    Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone; he wasn't American.

    Like I said: "in recent times" - for old inventions (gunpowder, the wheel, etc) the country tends to get credited, but I can't think of anything invented in the last two hundred years or so which is attributed to a country.
    I think if MOST people were asked, they might say the US 'invented' the atomic bomb, the Internet was 'created' by the US Defense Dept, maglev trains by the Germans, IMAX technology by Canadians...these are just a few that come to mind without wiki-ing...and may well be incorrect...the point being, there are inventions that many people associate with certain countries and not with specific people...

  8. #18

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    Quote Originally Posted by Boris:
    So ....... you go to the trouble of asking questions but have no interest in the correct answer. An ideal candidate for Lehman Bros Bond Sales ?
    clearly Boris you fail to grasp the concept of an opinion poll...and how and why would Lehmans have anything whatsoever to do with this? IF you're attempting to dazzle us with your wit, you might want to practice in front of a mirror first...

  9. #19

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    Quote Originally Posted by timklip:
    clearly Boris you fail to grasp the concept of an opinion poll...and how and why would Lehmans have anything whatsoever to do with this? IF you're attempting to dazzle us with your wit, you might want to practice in front of a mirror first...
    Exactly. For this particular question, THERE IS NO CORRECT ANSWER!! It's just a matter of opinion, and people might have different opinions. So chill out and stop being so competitive, my next poll is going to be "who is the only real god"?

  10. #20

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    Quote Originally Posted by Safran:
    My next poll is going to be "who is the only real god"?
    And why would you want to regurgitate that debate ? A topic, in various forms, that got flogged to death on this forum about 12 months ago !

    A couple of Links below, to refresh the experience...

    http://www.geoexpat.com/forum/thread23582.html
    http://www.geoexpat.com/forum/thread26355-3.html

    You will also discover, that there are quiet a few Dr Richard Dawkins & Dr Carl Sagan fans on this forum, including its admin....

    Safran, as Confucius once said, "Is it not so, that a one legged duck, will swim in circles ? "

    [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JP1Y-tIJ370"]YouTube - Fast Forward - Kung Fu Parody[/ame]

    You are that duck, Grasshopper........
    Last edited by Skyhook; 27-01-2009 at 01:20 PM.