O F B E R L I N

INTENTORS AND INVENTIONS

INTRODUCTION

In former times as well as today Berlin was and is a city of sciences and inventions.The scientists of universities like Humboldt University and other instituions of science are mostly well known, e.g. the Nobelists (29) Albert Einstein (1921), Otto Hahn (1944), Robert Koch (1905), Max Planck (1918) or Liese Meitner a female scientist of physics who worked together with Otto Hahn. Less well known are inventors of objects for everyday life. Some inventions and their inventors from Berlin will be introduced now.

TORCH (1896/1906)

OHROPAX (1907)Berlin in 1907: Maximilian Negwer produced the first auditory protection stopper of the world. Most probably he did not calculate at that time that the name OHROPAX would become one day one of the best known brands for the subject "Auditory protection". (oro pax (lat): peace for the ears)During World War One Ohropax was used by German soldiors for protection against the din of artillery fire. Meanwhile Ohropax is used in many different situations: snoring of the partner, traffic noise.

KNIRPS (1928)THE INVENTOR OF THE TELESCOPIC UMBRELLAOn account of a war injury it was difficult for Hans Haupt to carry at the same time a walking stick and an umbrella, hence, he llooked for a solution. The result?The first umbrella with a foldable up frame – he fitted perfectly in his pocket and was always available if it rained!In view of his small format it was only natural that he called him hissmall "tiddler" – as a "small little fellow" – and of it the brand name“Knirps” (tiddler) is derived, because “tiddler” means in German “little guy".

PERLON STOCKINGS (1938)In a rainy winter's day in January, 1938 in Berlin Lichtenberg the mysterious formula H-(NH-CH2) 5 – Con-OH became sythetic fibre Perlon in the lab of the IG Farben concern in Berlin. The inventor was professor Paul Schlack. But first Perlon was processed to parachutes, it found use as an ad-ditive for tyres, uniforms, brushes and gun clutches.Only after World War II the women's world aroused enthusiasm of the Perlonstrumpf (stockings made of this material) in Germany‘s economic rising up time. No lady went more without. Whether businesswoman, shop assistant, stewardess or whore. Everybody knows how to estimate the very delicate butts.The triumphal procession of the Perlons and the nylon stocking (fabricated at the same time in the USA) could begin.

FIRST COMPUTER (1941)Berlin 1941: Konrad Zuse built the Z3, the first freely programmable functional “arithmetic machine” working with binary figures, the first computer of the world - in cooperation with Helmut Schreyer. In 1945 it was destroyed the Z3 with bomb attacks. Zuse and Schreyer worked in the confusion of the war completely in isolation, without exchange with colleagues and without every appropriations. To modern Pcs the Z3 is not to be compared. It weighed more than 1 t, was big like a sitting room cup-board and controlled only the basic arithmetical operations as well as the root drawing.

GRILL WALKER (1998)Because he got no state approval for a grill, without further ado the Berliner Bertram Rohloff buckled it on to himself – consisting of a small grill, gas cylinder and a sunshade, together approx. 20 kg. For it the "New York Times" has already appreciated him: „Grillwalker rocks Berlin“. In the meantime, devices have been also sold to South Korea, Japan and Colombia.After two hours of standing position the puff goes out to the grill walkers . Therefore, they always work as a duet. One buckles on the grill, the other procures supplies or recovers. After two hours comes the change. One is just only half a grill.

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