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http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/2009/04/curator-finds-murphy-beds-place-in-american-history/ http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/2009/04

http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/2009/04/curator-finds-murphy-beds-place-in-american-history/ http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/2009/04/curato... "Inventor William Lawrence Murphy (1856-1957) began tinkering with hideaway beds while living in a one-room apartment in San Francisco in the late 19th century. He was falling for a young opera singer and courting customs at that time would not permit a lady to enter a gentleman’s bedroom. But according to family legend, Murphy’s limited finances and a strict moral code didn’t spoil his chance at love. His invention allowed him to stow his bed in his closet, transforming his one-room apartment from a bedroom into a parlor. "The couple married in 1900."

gwern 8y ago
On the other hand, consider the fate of https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Midgley_Jr https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Midgley_Jr. , who survived his own inventions of CFCs and leaded gasoline (leading to lead poisoning), only to succumb to his invention of furniture: > In 1940, at the age of 51, Midgley contracted poliomyelitis, which left him severely disabled. He devised an elaborate system of ropes and pulleys to help others lift him from bed. In 1944, he was entangled in the device and died of strangulation.[15][16][17]
mpnordland 8y ago
And they say you can't solve societal problems with technology.