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On Afghanistan's Thomas Edison

Posted by simoniker on from the eureka dept.

13.7BillionYears writes "The Institute for War and Peace Reporting details on the exploits of Ghulam Sediq Wardak, a 62 year old semi-literate Afghan with 341 clever inventions to his credit. His first was a radio powered by the low voltage produced by the human body. His most recent is a 1980 Volkswagen rigged to run on solar power. A handful of others are mentioned. Like many a Slashdotter, his parents were once very worried and he eschews patents. 'The main purpose of my inventing is not to earn money,' he says. 'I want to render a service to my countrymen and to all people in the world.'"

8 of 445 comments (clear)

  1. Geek, thy name is "Sediq" by SYFer · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This man deserves some kind of geek homage. His picture (which I could not readily google up but would love to see) belongs on a Slashdot category icon. To "wardak" should be the expression to replace "jerry rig." If Futurama were still on, there would need to be a character named "Sediq." If we can invoke Kent Brockman here, we can honor this noble man.

    I for one welcome our new clever, semi-literate Afghan overlord.

    --
    "...all the labours of the ages, all the devotion, all the inspiration, all the noonday brightness..." yada yada
  2. Signs of a true scientist... by GillBates0 · · Score: 5, Insightful
    But fame and riches have never been what motivated him.

    "The main purpose of my inventing is not to earn money," he says. "I want to render a service to my countrymen and to all people in the world."

    Sadly a rapidly diminishing breed nowadays, what with overwhelming patenting and copyright laws and abuse. Hats of to this guy.

    --
    An Indian-American Hindu committed to non-violent thought/speech/action alarmed by the global explosion of radical Islam
  3. Clearly not like Edison by hotspotbloc · · Score: 5, Insightful
    'The main purpose of my inventing is not to earn money,' he says. 'I want to render a service to my countrymen and to all people in the world.'"

    Edison was notorious for jealously guarding his patents and squeezing them for every dollar he could. This man is a much better human being.

    --
    "I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence or insanity but they've always worked for me" - HST
    1. Re:Clearly not like Edison by hotspotbloc · · Score: 5, Insightful
      But edisons invention were very groundbreaking

      I completely agree. He can up with a wide range of inventions that made a very big difference in the world. He also was a shameless self promoter who did things like invent the "electric chair" solely to prove how "dangerous" his competitor's rival electrical standard (Nikola Tesla's AC) was compared to his DC.

      --
      "I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence or insanity but they've always worked for me" - HST
    2. Re:Clearly not like Edison by Snad · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Eiiither way, the main point beeing is edison wasnt all that great of an inventor, more a very shrewd business man. Unless you are in business, and wish to learn more about how a ruthless business man should behave, edison isnt really someone you should be idolizing.

      So what you're saying is that Edison was his generation's Bill Gates?

  4. Edison? Patents? What? by Asprin · · Score: 5, Insightful


    I might be hallucinating, but wasn't Edison (who invented AC generators, the phonograph and the motion picture camera/projector system) a patent hawk who did everything he could to extract money for every little invention he had a hand in creating? In fact, IIRC, that's why the motion picture industry set up shop in the (then) isolated desolation of Hollywood, California -- they wouldn't have to pay his exorbitant licensing fees out there.

    Correct me if I'm wrong, but it sounds like comparing this guy to Edison is like comparing Linus to Bill Gates.... in a comparative sort of way.

    --
    "Lawyers are for sucks."
    - Doug McKenzie
  5. Thomas Edison? Sounds more like Ben Franklin by Entropy2016 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    From what I was taught, Franklin would invent something, then publish the design in his newspaper.
    I'm not sure if Edison did that.

    If Franklin did obtain patents, he obviously did so to ensure that nobody else would patent it first and keep the specs secret.

  6. But which VeeDub? by Buran · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I'm not sure what type of VW he's got, but given that he's in Afghanistan I wouldn't be surprised if it's not an air-cooled Type 1 (Beetle). But it could be a Type 2 (Transporter), too. Could even be a Golf -- it's the best-selling model they've got. We Americans are the only market that shuns it in favor of the Bora (Jetta) -- though I love my lil' white Golf IV!

    I found a few more electric VWs with a little bit of looking:

    Diesel-Electric (1.3L TDI) New Beetle

    Electric 1969 Kharmann Ghia (the Ghia is a Beetle derivative)

    Electric Rabbit (US Mk1 Golf)

    And that's just for starters. VW AG itself considered a hybrid diesel-electric powertrain option for the Concept 1, which later became the New Beetle, but so far only the diesel portion has survived (the TDI is an option in the Golf, Beetle, Jetta, and now the Passat and the Touareg in the US, and in the rest of the model line elsewhere in the world.)

    I'd love to see VW build a Golf-based CR-V competitor with a hybrid diesel-electric powertrain and the race-bred DSG transmission.

    But yeah, this guy gets geek points from me. :)

    --
    i am a soviet space shuttle