Who has had more than one great idea?
July 24, 2006 9:08 AM Subscribe
Who has had more than one great idea?
Genius is often defined by having a great idea,
but some have had more than one.
For example, I have:
Einstein (e=mc2, AND general relativity).
Newton (F=ma, AND calculus).
Richard Dawkins (selfish gene, AND extended phenotype).
Any others come to mind?
Let me extend this beyond the cognitive genre;
for example, I'll say Miles Davis ('Kind of Blue' AND 'Tutu') could fit the bill.
Genius is often defined by having a great idea,
but some have had more than one.
For example, I have:
Einstein (e=mc2, AND general relativity).
Newton (F=ma, AND calculus).
Richard Dawkins (selfish gene, AND extended phenotype).
Any others come to mind?
Let me extend this beyond the cognitive genre;
for example, I'll say Miles Davis ('Kind of Blue' AND 'Tutu') could fit the bill.
This post was deleted for the following reason: chatfilter.
Edison. The phonograph, the incandescent bulb, and a veritable shitload of others.
posted by timetoevolve at 9:15 AM on July 24, 2006
posted by timetoevolve at 9:15 AM on July 24, 2006
Darwin (natural selection and sexual selection); Denis Ritchie(C and unix)
posted by orthogonality at 9:16 AM on July 24, 2006
posted by orthogonality at 9:16 AM on July 24, 2006
Ben Franklin?
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 9:18 AM on July 24, 2006 [1 favorite]
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 9:18 AM on July 24, 2006 [1 favorite]
Sir Francis Bacon?
posted by boo_radley at 9:20 AM on July 24, 2006
posted by boo_radley at 9:20 AM on July 24, 2006
Inventors are probably the easiest to name in this category...Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Eli Whitney come to mind. Between the three, I'd give the award to Whitney for his dynamic duo of Cotton Gin and Interchangeable Parts.
posted by mcstayinskool at 9:21 AM on July 24, 2006
posted by mcstayinskool at 9:21 AM on July 24, 2006
This is a silly question.
First of all, your inclusion of Miles Davis has turned this into an utterly suggestive and therefore, IMO, pointless exercise. There are dozens of artists who would similarly qualify.
Secondly, very few of the "great" thinkers only had ONE great idea, by your definition. You could just as easily argue, for example, that Einstein's equation is simply a part of his greater idea of relativity.
Thirdly, any inventor of note has had several great ideas.
A better question would be who has REALLY has only ONE great idea.
posted by mkultra at 9:22 AM on July 24, 2006
First of all, your inclusion of Miles Davis has turned this into an utterly suggestive and therefore, IMO, pointless exercise. There are dozens of artists who would similarly qualify.
Secondly, very few of the "great" thinkers only had ONE great idea, by your definition. You could just as easily argue, for example, that Einstein's equation is simply a part of his greater idea of relativity.
Thirdly, any inventor of note has had several great ideas.
A better question would be who has REALLY has only ONE great idea.
posted by mkultra at 9:22 AM on July 24, 2006
Set it and forget it: Ron Popeil! In my book any definition of genius involves spray-on hair.
posted by Robot Johnny at 9:26 AM on July 24, 2006
posted by Robot Johnny at 9:26 AM on July 24, 2006
Edison came up with very few of the ideas he's creditied with. He had an army of lab techs who more or less did all of his thinking, and weren't paid very well for it.
Your Einstein example is bad, because those two things are pretty intimately tied to each other. How about those two (as one thing) and the photoelectric effect and/or the einstein diffusion eqns?
Which brings me to Leon's point. The important scientific ideas are quite commonly attributed not to the person who really had them, but to the person who first applied them to something sexy which popularized them.
posted by overhauser at 9:26 AM on July 24, 2006
Your Einstein example is bad, because those two things are pretty intimately tied to each other. How about those two (as one thing) and the photoelectric effect and/or the einstein diffusion eqns?
Which brings me to Leon's point. The important scientific ideas are quite commonly attributed not to the person who really had them, but to the person who first applied them to something sexy which popularized them.
posted by overhauser at 9:26 AM on July 24, 2006
James Brown:
soul, funk, hip-hop (indirectly), disco (indirectly)
posted by argybarg at 9:29 AM on July 24, 2006
soul, funk, hip-hop (indirectly), disco (indirectly)
posted by argybarg at 9:29 AM on July 24, 2006
Response by poster: Let's take the basic question as looking at those who have been able to communicate a great re-orientation in our perception of the universe.
Shakespeare communicated brilliantly the infatuations of love in his youth; his later darker and deeper works were from a different perspective, presented with different rhythms.
More objectively, Linus Pauling was, objectively, awarded Nobel Prizes for both Chemistry and Peace.
posted by dragonsi55 at 9:34 AM on July 24, 2006
Shakespeare communicated brilliantly the infatuations of love in his youth; his later darker and deeper works were from a different perspective, presented with different rhythms.
More objectively, Linus Pauling was, objectively, awarded Nobel Prizes for both Chemistry and Peace.
posted by dragonsi55 at 9:34 AM on July 24, 2006
this is a bizzarre askme, but what the hell:
davinci
the beatles
led zeppelin
john coltrane
thelonius monk
the yeah yeah yeahs
cLOUDDEAD
Atmosphere
Johnny Cash
Biggie Smalls
Tupac Shakur
Jay Z
Dr Dre
Eminem
Foghat
Scratch that. Foghat only had one good idea.
The Sugarhill Gang
NWA
The Residents
Black Flag
Henry Rollins
Jello Biafra
Duke Ellington
Steven Spielberg
Stanley Kubrick
Jackson Pollock
Kurt Vonnegut
James Joyce
Virginia Woolfe
Tony Robbins
John Waters
Seth McFarlane
Matt Groening
Conan O'Brien
Lorne Michaels
Thomas Lennon
David Wain
Michael Showalter
Michael Ian Black
John Stewart
Ben Stein
Dennis Leary
Bill Hicks
That's Part 1. Parts 2 through 999,999 to follow.
posted by shmegegge at 9:37 AM on July 24, 2006
davinci
the beatles
led zeppelin
john coltrane
thelonius monk
the yeah yeah yeahs
cLOUDDEAD
Atmosphere
Johnny Cash
Biggie Smalls
Tupac Shakur
Jay Z
Dr Dre
Eminem
Foghat
Scratch that. Foghat only had one good idea.
The Sugarhill Gang
NWA
The Residents
Black Flag
Henry Rollins
Jello Biafra
Duke Ellington
Steven Spielberg
Stanley Kubrick
Jackson Pollock
Kurt Vonnegut
James Joyce
Virginia Woolfe
Tony Robbins
John Waters
Seth McFarlane
Matt Groening
Conan O'Brien
Lorne Michaels
Thomas Lennon
David Wain
Michael Showalter
Michael Ian Black
John Stewart
Ben Stein
Dennis Leary
Bill Hicks
That's Part 1. Parts 2 through 999,999 to follow.
posted by shmegegge at 9:37 AM on July 24, 2006
Depending on your personal politics and what ideas you consider "great," Thomas Midgley, Jr. might fit the bill. He invented both unleaded gasoline and chlorofluorocarbons. On the one hand, these are both very useful inventions. On the other hand, Midgley has singlehandedly done more to harm the environment than many entire countries have.
posted by TunnelArmr at 9:44 AM on July 24, 2006
posted by TunnelArmr at 9:44 AM on July 24, 2006
Response by poster: "A better question would be who has REALLY has only ONE great idea."
"Foghat
Scratch that. Foghat only had one good idea."
Thanks to all, for your generous answers.
posted by dragonsi55 at 9:47 AM on July 24, 2006
"Foghat
Scratch that. Foghat only had one good idea."
Thanks to all, for your generous answers.
posted by dragonsi55 at 9:47 AM on July 24, 2006
This thread is closed to new comments.
How about Shakespeare?
posted by Leon at 9:14 AM on July 24, 2006