Herewith please find another impeccably researched document of historical analysis with which to waste your time.
Inventions must necessarily be judged and rated in accordance with the circumstances of the recipient.
The Internet is of no possible use to a peasant farmer living in the high Andes.
Neither is a bicycle-powered water pump (yes, they do exist) likely to be Mrs GOF's favourite toy as she pedals away for 20 minutes waiting for me to complete a leisurely shower whilst merrily whistling The Mixtures 1970's Pushbike Song.
So, after a couple of minutes deliberation I wish to declare my greatest invention of the 20th century to be;
The original 2-pack epoxy glue
My first introduction to Araldite was in the wilds of the Sepik District in New Guinea, when I stumbled across a land surveyor camping in the jungle. His only companion was a Honda CT90 motor bike.
In a moment of intense nocturnal ardour beneath the soft glow of a Coleman lamp he had once apparently managed to overtighten the spark plug, creating a gaping hole in the engine head where once a neat metric thread existed. He had, for 3 months, been happily motoring around with the spark plug securely Araldited back into the hole.
When I was 30 and a bit, I still possessed remnants of teenagehood when I knew everything there was to know in the world. I convinced myself that I could build a house on the basis of the distant memory of once building a toy boat using balsa wood and icy-pole sticks.
Mrs GOF helped me build this fanciful dream project which now remains a monument (at least it has survived 2 direct hits from severe cyclones) to everything I thought I knew, but in fact did not.
Plumbing with Araldite;
External copper water pipe is normally joined using pre-soldered "Yorkshire fittings".
GOF, of course, possessed legendary skills using a kerosene blowtorch and soldering iron. What more did he need to know?
Well, in hindsight, perhaps knowing that these fittings required a special "flux" application before applying the heat would have avoided the spectacular, multi-sourced water fountain of Trevi proportions that spurted high into the sky after I turned on the supply tap.
We "temporarily" rejoined the pipes with Araldite in 1983, and have had no trouble ever since.
Araldite fixes holes in exhaust pipes and mufflers, and split axe handles bound with glue infused rag last for an additional 10 years.
Who needs quadraphonic sound, polyvinylchloride, ball point pens, jet travel, nuclear fission, Playboy magazine or Benny Hinn when you have the security twins of Araldite Tube A, and Araldite Tube B.
