Scientist and Inventor
The noblest question in the world is What Good may I do in it?
- Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1737
Did you know that Benjamin Franklin wanted everyone to benefit from his inventions? He never patented any of them. From the Franklin Stove to the lightning rod, he always had his fellow citizens in mind. Ben said this of his inventions:
“As we enjoy great advantages from the inventions of others we should be glad of an opportunity to serve others by any invention of ours, and this we should do freely and generously.”
Keep reading to learn about Ben’s inventions, improvements and a little bit of his sense of humor!
Experiments on Electricity
Experiments and Observations on Electricity . . .
Although electricity was not a new phenomenon in the 1700s, Ben Franklin did some new experiments involving electricity – one of them being the kite experiment. The purpose of the kite experiment was to try to find similarities between static electricity and lightning. The artifact shown here documents Ben Franklin’s new found observations about electricity. Once Ben had some friends stand on wax. One held a electrical tube and the other a wire. When they went to kiss they were shocked by the sparks between their lips.
-Lucca P.
The Leyden Jar
Electrical Battery
Even though Benjamin Franklin did not invent the leyden jar, he was the first to understand how it worked. The leyden jar was and is a primitive battery that stores electricity. A charged leyden jar works by holding electricity between two pieces of metal. You charge a leyden jar by creating static electricity near the top of the jar. Benjamin Franklin had a very playful attitude towards electricity. So much so that after killing and cooking a turkey using electricy, he was known to have said, “The birds killed in this manner eat uncommonly tender.”
-Raffaele G-P
Man vs. The Constellations
Human anatomy and astrology, Poor Richards Almanac
This page in Poor Richard’s Almanac details information about a man’s body and the constellations governing its parts. Ben Franklin, using one of his pen names, R. Saunders, wrote it in 1752. It also mentions the Gregorian year, which is an updated calendar for that time.
-Victor F.
The double lens
“Franklin-type” split bifocal spectacles
Scholars disagree on whether or not Ben Franklin invented the bifocals but he certainly did improve on them and developed how they could be used. He combined two types of lenses and put them into one frame. He, himself, used bifocals so that he did not have to use both reading and regular glasses; he just had to look down on the lower lens. In this picture you can see the different kinds of glass. The bifocals in this picture were made in the 1800s.
-Lucca P.
Glass armonica
Glass armonica
The glass armonica is one of Ben Franklin’s many inventions. The glass armonica works like this: wet glass bowls spin around and the bowls vibrate when the player touches them, creating sound. A foot treadle operates the spinning of the bowls.
-Raffaele G-P
Eclipses of that time
Regulation of clocks, Poor Richards Almanac
This artifact documents the differences between the two kinds of eclipses - lunar and solar. According to Franklin and this document, there would be four eclipses over the course of a year. It even details the time and day of each. However, Franklin miscalculated. Although it is possible for more than one partial eclipse to occur throughout a year, only one major eclipse occurs each year.
-Victor F.