Spirit Magazine - April 2014 - (Page 74)

It Started with a Question Some of the world's coolest (or just plain indispensable) inventions began with a bold inquiry. "Why is it that when we want to call a person, we have to call a place?" QUESTIONER Martin Cooper, general manager of Motorola's communications systems division THE STORY Inspired by a Star Trek scene where Captain Kirk uses a mobile "communicator" to speak with a crew member, Cooper worked with a team to develop the DynaTAC 8000X, a hand-held phone weighing 28 ounces. On April 3, 1973, Cooper made the first public call from a mobile phone. "Why did my candy bar melt?" QUESTIONER Percy Spencer, self-taught inventor and engineer THE STORY Spencer, an employee of defense contractor Raytheon Company during WWII, worked with magnetron tubes, which were used in radar. One day, he noticed a chocolate bar in his pocket had melted while he stood next to an active set. With popcorn kernels, he confirmed a hunch that the microwaveemitting magnetron had heated the candy. In October 1945, Raytheon patented the microwave oven. It was nearly 6 feet tall and weighed 750 pounds. them of myself? Not so much. I think this is true for many of us: We aren't comfortable asking ourselves questions for which we may not have easy answers. Yet Phillips taught me that when faced with disruption and uncertainty, we need to be willing to question. I began to ask, Why am I feeling dissatisfied with my work? What if I could shift toward something more meaningful and long-term, on an issue that seems relevant in these changing times? How might I find something like that? Of course, it was right under my nose. The questions themselves were the answer. Gradually, through subsequent inquiry, I began to figure out how I might explore and pursue the subject of questioning in a manner that went beyond my usual modus operandi of writing about something and then quickly moving on to the next story. I came up with a beautiful question that I was willing to commit 74 SPIRIT APRIL 2014 "Why can't windshields be cleared without opening the window?" QUESTIONER Mary Anderson, businesswoman THE STORY One winter, while visiting NYC, Anderson saw a trolley operator keeping his windshield open so he could see through the rain and snow. Back home in Alabama, she created a manually powered contraption that a driver could control from within the vehicle to move a rubber blade across the window. Anderson was granted a patent for her windshield wiper in late 1903. "Why do we have to wait for the photo?" QUESTIONER Jennifer Land, 3-year-old daughter of inventor Edwin Land THE STORY Edwin Land was on vacation in Santa Fe, New Mexico, when his impatient child piped up with this question. Land, a self-taught physicist and a Harvard dropout, didn't have an answer, so he went on a walk through town to ponder her query. Within an hour, he'd conceived of the basic mechanics of an instant camera. The Polaroid Land Camera went on the market in 1948. to and spend time with: How might I encourage others to question more? Already, it has led me out of my comfort zone and into new areas. I began to change the way I worked, becoming more collaborative. I enlisted a group of volunteer researchers to help track down stories of beautiful questions. I also joined forces with the Right Question Institute-the small group of fellow pioneers on the frontier of exploring questioning-and together we asked, How might we find ways to bring more and better questioning into schools, businesses, and government organizations? In the grandest sense, we're endeavoring to promote more curiosity and questions in a world that seems to need it more than ever. That's a daunting mission; at times I feel terrifyingly and gloriously in over my head. But the questions I asked myself keep beckoning, and I'll follow where they take me. Meanwhile, my

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Spirit Magazine - April 2014

Spirit Magazine - April 2014
Contents
Gary’s Greeting
Gary’s Greeting en Español
Star of the Month
Freedom Story
From the Editor
Your Words
Your Pictures
Media Center
Eat Drink Sleep
Rustle up ribs
shake up a summer sipper
Wise Guide
Take better snaps
Make finance a family affair
Numbers
Make time for sweets
Learn from the Bard
Business
Zen out with Russell Simmons
Store more on your iPhone
Chasing Beautiful Questions
Connection Error
Get out of your social comfort zone
Your Adventure In Santa Fe
Destination Texas
Calendar
Fun!
Spotlight
Community Outreach
Products & Services
Flight Service
Terminal Maps
Information
Rapid Rewards and A+ Rewards Partners
Route Map
The "If" List
Touch base with Tracy Morgan

Spirit Magazine - April 2014