In 1886, Waterloo's Jacob Ball submitted a patent for an attachment to a privy (outhouse) seat which would close the hole of the seat until the user was seated there. It would thereby keep smell and gas from escaping when it was not in use.
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Scientists create 'artificial leaf' that turns carbon dioxide into fuel
The new technology, outlined in a paper published last week in the journal Nature Energy, was inspired by the way plants use energy from sunlight to turn carbon dioxide into food.