On Sep 20, 2006, at 4:10 PM, Jinx wrote:
>
> "discovered" is parochial term of the "discoverer's" culture
>
> In recorded history there are probably very few, naturally
> uninhabited, places actually discovered for the first time
>
Very good point.  I would say that "invented" is (or should be)
subject to the same sort of scrutiny for exact meaning.

No one needed to "invent" the lightbulb; it was "obvious" - put
electricity through a wire and it gets hot.  If it gets hot enough
it glows.  Big deal.  Of course, there was a hell of a lot of
engineering involved in turning the obvious idea into a filament
and bulb configuration that was bright enough, long-lasting enough,
usable enough, and manufacturable enough to make for PRACTICAL
electrical lighting, but those are usually "details" that one
either over-weights or under-weights when talking about
"invention."  I am impressed that Edison bought out the Canadian
patent; that seems unusually careful for that day and age.

BillW
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