Inventions through generations

Do you dream of making a big discovery? Curing cancer or ending world hunger? We all want to have a positive impact. Unfortunately, for some inventors, their creations turned deadly. Let's look at inventors who were killed by their own inventions.

The inventors are highly intelligent individuals, considered geniuses of their time. Abu Nasar Al-Jawhari, a Persian scholar born in Kazakhstan during the 10th century, is one such example. He worked as a lexicographer and wrote a book called "The Dictionary." It must be noted that this was not the same type of dictionary we use today as it was entirely in Arabic. Al-Jawhari traveled extensively in the Middle East before eventually settling in Nishapur, which is now part of Iran. However, unfortunately, it seems that Al-Jawhari faced some mental challenges during this time. Some scholars suggest that he started experiencing strong delusions, believing himself to be a bird. In the early 11th century, he climbed onto the roof of the Nishapur mosque with wings he had carefully crafted over several months. Al-Jawhari had a fervent belief that these wings would allow him to fulfill his dream of flying.

However, things didn't go according to plan. Upon leaping from the mosque roof, the bird boy flapped frantically but ended up crashing beak-first into the ground. Poor guy hadn't yet added "dum-dum" to his dictionary. Being an inventor requires coping with numerous failures in pursuit of success. Take Jean-Francois Pilate de Roziers, the French aviation pioneer. He gained fame for the first manned hot air balloon flight in November 1783 but faced a significant setback two years later during an attempted trip across the English Channel. His initial balloon lacked the power to make the journey, so he designed a new one using both hot air and hydrogen gas for extra thrust. Despite several attempts, he didn't launch successfully until June 15th, 1785, with his companion Pierre Romain. However, a sudden wind change pushed them back three miles after takeoff. Despite realigning, the balloon burst into flames after traveling only seven miles, leading to their tragic demise from 1,500 feet. The use of hydrogen, highly flammable, may have contributed to the balloon's destruction. Thus, de Roziers and Romain met their end in a blaze of glory.

In 2023, unless you lived under a rock, you likely heard about the Titanic submarine saga. Here's a quick recap: Stockton Rush, the CEO of Oceangate, designed a submersible to explore the Titanic wreckage. Despite safety concerns, Rush proceeded with the expedition. Unfortunately, the sub lost contact on June 18th, triggering a multinational rescue effort. Debris found days later indicated a catastrophic internal pressure drop, leading to the presumed loss of Rush and his companions. This incident underscores the importance of prioritizing safety, especially when others' lives are at stake. In another ill-fated venture, Franz Reichelt, an Austro-Hungarian tailor, aimed to create a parachute suit for aviators. Despite successful tests, his fatal jump from the Eiffel Tower in 1912 highlighted the consequences of prioritizing style over functionality.

In the world of social media, hustlers garner admiration for their resilience and self-made success stories. Henry Winstanley, a 17th-century English painter, engineer, and merchant, exemplified this ethos. Despite setbacks, such as the loss of two merchant vessels to Eddystone Rocks, Winstanley took action to prevent further tragedies. He spearheaded the construction of the first Eddystone Lighthouse in 1696, completing it by 1698. However, Winstanley's confidence in the lighthouse's durability proved fatal during the great storm of 1703. Subsequent rebuilds have resulted in the current sturdy structure, standing since 1881—an enduring testament to perseverance and lessons learned from past failures.

In my youth, I longed for a cooler name like "Snakevenom Panther-Strike," but it never stuck. Then I heard about Mad Mike Hughes, a limousine driver turned flat-earth conspiracy theorist and daredevil. Despite lacking funds, he crowdfunded $7,875 to launch multiple rockets into space to prove his theory. His first successful test flight reached 350 mph and 1,800 feet high. However, a subsequent launch in February 2020 ended tragically in a crash captured by a TV crew. Despite the risks, his homemade rocket was impressive. Otto Lilienthal, an aeronautical innovator, pioneered heavier-than-air flight with his glider designs, though his final flight in 1896 resulted in a fatal crash. Sylvester H. Roper, known for his steam carriage, introduced the first motorbike, the Velocipede, in 1867, contributing to the enduring coolness of motorbikes.

In Roper's heyday, riding one of these Velocipede models might have turned heads, but even coolness comes at a price. On June 1st, 1896, Roper's high-speed ride ended tragically at the Charles River bike track in Cambridge, Massachusetts, sparking debate over whether the crash or a heart attack caused his demise. Regardless, wearing a helmet is cooler than crashing. Moving on, Thomas Midgley Jr., known for leaded gasoline, met a grim fate, not from his invention, but from contracting polio and getting entangled in ropes in 1944. Similarly, Henry Smolinski's flying car dream crashed along with him and his partner in 1973. William Bullock, the rotary press innovator, met his end in 1867 due to a machine accident leading to gangrene and surgery complications. Meanwhile, Alexander Bogdanov, a multifaceted figure in politics and medical science, gained notoriety for his blood transfusion experiments in 1924.

He aimed for eternal youth or partial rejuvenation through transfusing himself with the blood of younger individuals.

With their consent, I might add, and according to dubious peer reviews, he claimed success. His purported benefits included improved eyesight, halted balding, and an appearance seven to 10 years younger. However, skepticism arises. In 1928, his experiment took a tragic turn when he exchanged blood with a student afflicted with malaria and tuberculosis. Bogdanov, unfortunately, contracted both diseases and passed away. In a peculiar turn of events, Wan Hu, a legendary Chinese official, is speculated to be the world's first astronaut. Despite conflicting accounts of his existence, the tale describes him constructing a chair outfitted with 47 rockets. On the day of liftoff, the chair, along with Wan Hu, vanished in a massive explosion. Whether Wan Hu's endeavor was a triumph or a failure remains debatable. Similarly, Robert Cocking, a British watercolor artist, embarked on a reckless scientific pursuit. Despite lacking qualifications, he endeavored to redesign a parachute, which tragically failed during a test in 1802.

Despite lacking formal science qualifications, Cocking ascended suspended beneath the balloon. At 5,000 feet, he deployed the cone-shaped parachute, which unfortunately inverted, causing him to plummet. The parachute failed completely 200 to 300 feet above the ground, leading to his fatal impact. Cocking's oversight of the parachute's weight in his calculations proved fatal. In a tragic turn of events, young inventor William Nelson's promising career was cut short at 24. While testing his motorized bicycle prototype on October 3rd, 1903, he met his demise, possibly due to losing control or colliding with a tree. Phalaras the Tyrant, infamous for his cruel punishments, met his own demise when overthrown by Telemachus in 554 BC. Phalaras, who implemented the brazen bull punishment, experienced a fitting end when Telemachus subjected him to the same fate. Karma, indeed, had its reckoning. And with that, we conclude this journey through history's catastrophic calamities. Which tale resonated most with you?