There are some inventions that are pretty cool precisely because of their simplicity. Others are cool because it seems like it only took one try for the inventor (or inventors) to get things right. These inventions don't seem like they require any updates; they've always worked as intended.
After Redditor Zeldagmr asked the online community, "What invention is so good that it actually can't be improved upon?" people weighed in with their observations.
"Plus the fact..."
The XLR cable. Until they can beam something directly into your head, we kind of hit a dead end for perceived sound. The simplicity of what a cable can do by allowing both AC and DC power to flow through so you can power and draw signal from a microphone. Plus the fact it's so simple to remove the noise you get from outside interference makes it even more genius.
"You can change it up..."
Pizza. You can change it up, you can ruin it, and you can fold it half like a crazy calzone munching madman, but you can't beat perfection.
"It has been made of mud..."
The brick.
It has been made of mud, then mud with straw, then mud with clay, then finally with clay alone. That is as far as progress has taken the brick, in the (guess) 8,000 years since it was invented, and it is still in use today.
Someone, lost in the obscurity of ancient history, realised that you couldn't build really strong stone structures with irregularly-shaped small natural stones, and hewing huge lumps of stone into regular shapes was just ridiculously hard work.
That person also observed that mud that fell into a fire was left hardened when the fire died down. So they figured that if you shaped mud into regular shapes, big enough to carry one in each hand, you would have all the advantages of small irregular stones and large geometrically-carved stones, but with none of the drawbacks of either.
This thought must have taken a second to dawn on the inventor. The practical work to prove the concept must have taken a weekend, at most. Perhaps a week or two to get the shape just right. And here we are, thousands of years later, and the damn thing has barely changed at all.
"It can often sub..."
The spoon is a pretty incredible invention. It can often sub as a fork or a knife, and it has a great name.
"It is such a useful way..."
The steam turbine, it is such a useful way to convert heat into electricity that it would not be surprising to see one strapped to a fusion reactor (if one ever get built).
"It is still used..."
The Schrader Valve used to inflate your bicycle tires, car tires, tractor tires, etc. was patented in 1893. It is still used in virtually every tire on the planet. And now you know its name.
"I was at my cottage..."
A scythe
I was at my cottage over the weekend and I had to cut some grass. I forgot my lawnmower but I had an old scythe in the garage that I inherited a long time ago. I was just keeping it as a decoration and memento and never thought of actually using it.
I was bored and I had some time so I sharpened the blade and went to work.
I don't know the first thing about scythes or even how to properly use them ... I just started swinging it.
I couldn't believe it actually cut grass and weeds. The longer I worked, the more detailed I could get with where I swung it.
Two hours later, I had cut the lawn, cut down some tall grass on the edge of the property and had started cutting down some light brush that I thought I needed a brush cutter for.
This scythe must be decades old but it still works better than my lawnmower, edge clipper and brush cutter ... all without a motorized engine.
"It seems that this shape..."
It seems that this shape of concrete barrier is just about as good as you can get for stopping vehicles. (With some exceptions for variations with slightly better performance).
"That's the little piece..."
The aglet.
That's the little piece of metal or plastic at the end of shoelaces. It's a simple, yet very helpful invention that is perfectly fine just the way it is.
Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
@GregAbbott_TX/X
