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These are the people you will wish you had known. This fourth volume of astonishing people has more amazing inventors: the doctor who invented kidney dialysis. The engineer who came up with the life-saving EpiPen. The writer who thought up the communications satellite — and didn’t make a penny on the idea. The chemist who invented the MRI machine. The man who designed the disposable syringe, the tranquilizer gun, the childproof pill bottle, the silent burglar alarm, and more. The doctor who came up with Gatorade, and why it’s called that. The engineer who came up with the key technology to allow cell phones to work. The doctor who did the first coronary bypass — and came up with the Mobile Army Surgical Hospital concept, and the TV producer who co-created the TV show M*A*S*H. The guy who figured out a new tire material would make great bulletproof vests.
And then there’s the artists, like the man who came up with Bozo the Clown. The founder of Comic-Con. The toymaker who made more than 2 billion toys. The inspiration for Rainman. The designer who created the POW/MIA flag.The public servants, such as the founder of Habitat for Humanity, and what set him on that path.
The woman who suggested to the president that he create a new agency: NASA. The longest-serving police patrol officer known in the history of the United States. Watergate informant “Deep Throat”. The pharmacologist who figured out why it’s so hard to quit smoking — and came up with a way to help. The nurse who brought hospices to the United States.
And Mr. Wizard!
The mainstream media tend to worship celebrities and sports figures, but the real heroes in life are often anonymous to the public.All those stories are in this book, plus more than a hundred more (146 total). The stories are fascinating: you won’t believe the cool people you have missed in your life. These are the people you will wish you had known.
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The Honorary Unsubscribe is a recurring feature in "This is True" — one of the first Internet-based newsletters, created by Randy Cassingham in early 1994. TRUE's mission is to provoke thought through social commentary. But if readers aren't entertained by the stories, they won't read very many. Thus its vehicle: weird-but-true news from legitimate news sources from around the world. The result spans the gamut of the crazy things we humans think we can get away with: jaw-dropping examples of the human thought process, and the realization that we can do better — a LOT better!
The Honorary Unsubscribe is the "balance" to those weird stories of people doing dumb things. The H.U. is, in fact, the opposite: stories of the absolutely coolest people you've ever heard about; the ones who DO live a lot better. This is the first volume collecting those write-ups into book form for the first time.
