An inventor is simply a fellow who doesn't take his education too seriously.
-Charles F. Kettering
more about Kettering
The biggest job we have is to teach a newly hired employee how to fail intelligently. We have to train him to experiment over and over and to keep on trying and failing until he learns what will work.
-Charles F. Kettering
more about Kettering
Charles Franklin Kettering (August 29, 1876 - November 25, 1958) was an American inventor and the holder 140 patents. Kettering was born in Loudonville, Ohio, the fourth of five children of Jacob Kettering and Martha Hunter Kettering. Poor eyesight hindered his progress as a student, but he earned an electrical engineering degree from Ohio State University in 1904. One of his first inventions was the electric cash register. In 1910 he co-founded Delco where he invented the engine-driven generator. In 1920 became the head of research for General Motors and held that position until 1947. His most widely used automotive invention is the electrical ignition system and self-starting motor. Under his leadership, General Motors developed, among other things, the lightweight diesel engine, Freon, four-wheel brakes, and safety glass.
The above information was taken from the Kettering article on Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, based on the GNU Free Documentation License.
Links:
Today in Science History - collection of radio talks given by Kettering in 1942-1945 on science and invention, including transportation
Inventor Hall of Fame
The American Experience with links to teacher's guides about the Zephyr
A Kettering patent
Resources:
note: I have carefully chosen the above resources and consider them to be among the best available on the topic. Clicking on an image will take you to Amazon.com where you can read descriptions and reviews. If you choose to buy the title, you will be supporting this site.
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