There are many smart people in the world, and those who are beyond smart are called geniuses. Not only can they answer many scientific questions that humans do not know, but they can also invent some things that are beneficial to social and industrial progress and promote the development of the entire society. From the ancient traditional era, it is difficult for people to imagine how far the current Internet era has progressed. However, everything has advantages and disadvantages. If the things invented by scientists are good, they can promote the development and progress of society and science and technology, but if they are not good, they will destroy many people.
One of the most famous American genius scientists "Thomas Mickey" is a good case; he held more than 100 inventions in his life. His father was also an inventor. He is responsible for two of his most famous inventions, which are used all over the world. The first is tetraethyl lead. Many people may not be familiar with this scientific name. It is actually a gasoline antiknock agent. Tetraethyl lead is easy to synthesize and cheap, and as long as a small amount of tetraethyl lead is added to gasoline, the antiknock performance of gasoline can be greatly improved. But the bad thing is that the engine will vibrate violently during this process, and the lead produced by tetraethyl lead when gasoline is burned seriously pollutes the atmosphere, causing a sharp increase in the number of people suffering from lead poisoning around the world, and people are concerned about leaded gasoline. doubts are also gradually increasing.
In order to solve this problem, Thomas Midgley began to study the "bromide method" used in tetraethyl lead, and switched to the "chloroethane method" which required high temperature and was more dangerous. Production of tetraethyl lead. However, just two months after the factory started, five workers died of lead poisoning, deepening public doubts about the safety of tetraethyl lead. In order to prove tetraethyl lead, Midgley held a press conference at which he used himself as the experimental subject. He first sprinkled tetraethyl lead on his hands, then opened a bottle of tetraethyl lead and put it to his nose. I smelled it for 60 seconds. After the test, he was fine, so he told the media that he was exposed to such an environment every day and never had any problems, so tetraethyl lead was safe. Ironically, just days after the launch, the factory was forced to close by the state government of New Jersey. Afterwards, it took Midgley nearly a year to recover from the 60 seconds of tetraethyl lead.
A few years later, Midgley developed a non-toxic and safe refrigerant that can be used in household appliances. So he and Charles Kettering discovered a refrigerant with excellent performance-dichlorodifluoromethane. Dichlorodifluoromethane is a member of the chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which Midgley calls "Freon". They are a class of non-toxic, non-flammable and easily liquefied gases. After that, CFC quickly replaced some toxic or explosive refrigerants at that time and became the most important refrigeration substance. In 1937, Midgley was awarded the Perkin Medal. But later, scientists discovered the destructive effect of Freon on the ozone layer, and in 1996, the application of Freon was completely banned.
It can be said that the two most famous inventions in Midgley's life have benefited society and the development of industrialization on the good side, but at the same time, they have great side effects and caused damage to the global human environment. In the end, Midgley's ending was very tragic. In 1940, after the 51-year-old Midgley contracted polio and became crippled, he designed a rope pulley system to help him lift or turn over in bed. In 1944, he became entangled in the pulley ropes of the device and suffocated to death at the age of 55. What do you think of such a genius inventor?