From names to fame

Nachos were named after their inventor, and so were these 9 other items

Image: tarheelgarden

No, Jacuzzis weren’t invented in a northern Italian town named Iacuzzi. Some everyday words like "Pilates" or "leotard" might sound like far-off places in European countries, but these labels don’t have geographical origins. Some creations and concepts were taken up so quickly, that society ignored the monickers their inventors had assigned to them, and named them after the person instead. So, who were Nacho, Theremin, and Mausolus? Let’s dive into these 10 stories to find out.

Image: Ahmet Kurt

Have you noticed that the word "Pilates" is often capitalized? It should be, because it’s a proper noun: the famous exercise was developed by the German physical trainer Joseph Pilates.

The son of a gymnast and a naturopath, Pilates spent four years at the Knockaloe internment camp on the Isle of Man during World War I. There, he developed a series of exercises to train the mind as well as the body, which he practiced and taught to his fellow internees.

The workout –which, its creator made clear, is not a therapy– focuses on breathwork and training flexibility and strength, not unlike modern yoga. In his time, Joseph Pilates named it Contrology, because he referred to it as "the art of controlled movement."

Image: Jonathan Borba

The Jacuzzis were an immigrant Italian family of inventors before the name became the trademarked label for hot tubs. The company was founded in America in 1915 and named after the surname of the seven brothers who ran it. Back in northern Italy, their official name was Iacuzzi, but it was misspelled in immigration.

Originally, Jacuzzi developed aviation products, mainly cabins for transporting mail in planes. They decided to abandon the industry, however, after one of the brothers was tragically killed in a plane crash. They diversified into water pumps, which became the most famous of their inventions: a hot tub for hydrotherapy. Candido Jacuzzi developed it as a therapeutic aid to treat his son’s rheumatic arthritis and patented it in 1952.

Image: Coffeefy Workafe

Have you ever met someone called "Nacho"? It’s the short nickname for "Ignacio," a very popular name in Spanish-speaking countries. That’s what’s at the core of the story behind the famous snack.

In 1943, the Mexican maître d’ Ignacio Anaya worked at a restaurant on the border between Piedras Negras, Mexico, and Eagle Pass, Texas. Legend has it that, one day, unable to find the cook, he improvised a dish with fried corn tortilla pieces, shredded cheese, and jalapeño pepper, which he served to American diners.

The dish was a success and, when asked what it was called, Anaya joked that they could call it "Nacho’s Special" after himself. In a few years, he had opened a restaurant and the popularity of the simple dish had spread throughout Texas and the southern US.

Image: Pawel Czerwinski

You may not know what a Theremin looks like, but you certainly have heard of it. This electronic musical instrument has a synthesized whistling sound that we now all associate with eerie scenes in science fiction and horror movies.

Léon Theremin was a Russian physicist who stumbled upon this invention while trying to craft a proximity sensor for the Soviet government in 1920. He eventually discovered that the movement of his hands could manipulate sound waves, and so the strange instrument was born. Another name given to it was "etherphone."

Famous musicians, from Dmitri Shostakovich to Frank Zappa and even the Rolling Stones, have used this instrument, which lends itself to an interesting stage performance and other-worldly sound.

Image: Roney John

Yes, mausolea are an ancient concept. But that doesn’t mean we have forgotten the man who commissioned the first one.

Mausolus was a Persian governor of the region of Caria around 350 B.C. While he still lived, he began the construction of the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, a monumental above-ground chamber where he and his wife Artemisia would be buried. Greek architects and sculptors of the time were summoned to work on the project. The resulting structure was so impressive that the term "mausoleum" came to name similar fastous burial monuments.

Nothing but ruins remain of Mausolus’ original resting place, but the type of tomb stuck with humanity. One of the most famous and emblematic mausoleums in the world is the Taj Mahal in Agra, India.

Image: Andrea Piacquadio

The one-piece thighs were invented by the French acrobat Jules Léotard in the 19th century. He notably used to wear a close-fitting outfit from his upper legs to his shoulders while performing daring trapeze acts. This suit he had designed, stretchy and snug, allowed for flexibility and movement. Jules called them maillots as was custom back then in France, but the look had become so iconic that, following his death in 1870, people started referring to them as "leotards."

Many sporting activities use a variation of leotards, like gymnastics, ballet, yoga, or figure skating. In fact, the one-piece swimsuits we know today, which were introduced in the 1920s, derive from this piece of clothing.

Image: charlemagne

The gruesome device that became associated with the French Revolution was not designed, as you might think, by Dr. Joseph-Ignace Guillotin. In fact, Guillotin was a French physician who was opposed to the death penalty and so, in 1789, proposed introducing a more humane way of execution than the ones carried out in the late 18th century.

There are records of the device going as far back as 1210, but for some reason, Guillotin’s name remained unfortunately linked to it. The descendants of Dr. Joseph-Ignace petitioned to have the name of the artifact officially changed, but this proved difficult and the label persists.

Image: cottonbro studio

Adolphe Sax was a Belgian musician and instrument maker trying to come up with a family of instruments that would bridge the gap between the woodwind and brass sections. He first started fiddling with a bass clarinet, experimenting with its acoustics and keys, and eventually, in the 1840s, introduced a new instrument which would be known as "saxophone."

Its first incorporation was in French and British military bands, and the rich, powerful tone of the instrument caught people’s attention. Slowly, the instrument was introduced in conservatories and incorporated experimentally in orchestral compositions, eventually reaching the United States, where its popularity never waned.

Image: Nejc Soklič

An ax on one side, an adze on the other. Both tools had been used by humans for millennia, but no one had combined them in one until 1911.

Edward "Ed" Pulaski was a U.S. Forest Service ranger in the early 20th century. In 1910, leading a crew of firefighters, he was trapped in the Great Fire of Idaho which he barely escaped by leading the men to an abandoned mine. After this heroic but harrowing experience, Pulaski set himself to develop a device that would help confront wildfires.

Today we know that Pulaskis can cut wood and roots and dig soil, which means we can easily carve a firebreak with one. Despite this life-saving invention, Pulaski never profited from it and lived modestly. The mine where he saved the firefighting crew is now remembered as a historic site, the Pulaski Tunnel Trail.

Image: Andreas Weilguny

Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin was responsible for designing this type of rigid airship. The engineer had spent years toward the end of the 19th century laying out and perfecting the model, which was launched in the year 1900.

The airships were seen as futuristic and luxurious, though they quickly became used for ​​civilian travel and military operations. Owing to the success of this design, many rigid airships came to be known as "zeppelins" by extension.

Popular beliefs

The myth behind carrots that started with WWII radar technology

You’ve heard it before: Don’t swim after eating. You’ll lose most of your body heat through your head. Swallow a piece of gum, and it’ll stay in your body for years. Many of these common beliefs that parents or teachers have told you repeatedly over the decades are simply not true. Here are 10 everyday myths that science has set straight, and the real stories behind them.

The myth of carrots providing a better sense of vision in the dark became especially popular during World War II, when the British government promoted this idea to help explain the success of its pilots while keeping its new airborne radar technology a secret. It was just a myth, although there was a scientific explanation to back it up.

Carrots are rich in beta-carotene, which your body converts into vitamin A, an important nutrient for healthy vision. If someone is deficient in vitamin A, eating more of it can improve their eyesight. But for people who already get enough of the vitamin, extra carrots won't suddenly make it easier to see at night.

You hear footsteps in the middle of the night and find a family member quietly wandering through the house while asleep. Your first instinct is to wake them up, but remember you’ve been told it’s dangerous. That’s just a myth, so go ahead and wake them.

The person may be startled, confused, or briefly disoriented, but there’s no evidence that being awakened causes physical injury. The bigger concern is that someone suddenly pulled from sleep may react unpredictably or accidentally lash out because they don’t understand what’s happening. For that reason, sleep specialists usually recommend gently guiding the person back to bed if it’s safe to do so, rather than abruptly shaking them awake, but there’s no intricate danger to waking a sleepwalker.

Almost everyone has heard the sharp popping sound of someone cracking their knuckles, followed by another person saying, "Keep doing that, and you’ll get arthritis."

Researchers have been looking into that claim for decades, and the evidence simply doesn’t support it. The popping sound comes from tiny gas bubbles forming and collapsing inside the fluid that lubricates your joints, not from bones grinding together. Multiple studies comparing habitual knuckle crackers with people who never crack their knuckles have found no higher risk of developing arthritis. Some research has suggested that frequent knuckle cracking may slightly reduce grip strength or cause temporary swelling in a few people, but it has not been shown to damage the joints. So while the sound may bother the people around you, it isn’t likely to lead to arthritis.

Most of us have heard someone say, "Imagine what you could do if you used the other 90 percent of your brain." The truth is that modern brain imaging has shown that virtually every part of the brain has a purpose.

Even when you’re resting, different regions are constantly working together to control movement, memory, breathing, emotions, vision, and countless other functions. While not every area is active at the same moment, there is no large section of the brain sitting permanently unused. Scientists aren’t exactly sure where or how this myth started, but your brain is one of the busiest organs in your body. Even while you’re asleep, it’s hard at work keeping you alive and processing the day’s experiences.

If a child accidentally swallowed a piece of gum, some adult would inevitably claim it would sit in the stomach for the next seven years.

The warning, even if a myth, contains a small grain of truth. The gum base isn’t fully broken down by the digestive system the way other foods are. But that doesn’t mean it stays behind. Instead, it moves through your digestive tract along with everything else you eat and is naturally eliminated within a few days. So while swallowing pieces of gum isn’t something doctors recommend making a habit of, there’s no need to worry if it happens by accident.

After lunch at the lake or a backyard barbecue, the adults would insist everyone, especially the kids, stay out of the water for at least an hour. The idea was that digestion would pull blood away from your arms and legs, causing severe muscle cramps that could make you drown.

Medical research, however, has found no evidence that eating before swimming creates that kind of danger. While vigorous exercise immediately after a very large meal might make some people feel uncomfortable or sluggish, a normal swim after eating is generally considered safe for healthy individuals. The "wait an hour" rule probably prevented plenty of cannonballs during nap time over the years, but it wasn’t based on scientific evidence.

If you ever left the house on a cold winter morning without a hat, chances are someone reminded you to wear one since "most of your body heat escapes through your head." The belief became widespread after military studies conducted in the 1950s observed significant heat loss from uncovered heads. What they didn’t notice was that the subjects were bundled up everywhere else. Naturally, their only exposed body part lost the most heat.

In reality, your head loses heat at about the same rate as any other uncovered area of skin, depending on its size. A warm hat is still a smart idea on a cold day, but only because it covers exposed skin, not because your head has some special ability to leak away most of your body heat.

Many tongue illustrations show the tongue divided into neat sections, with one area for sweet foods, another for salty flavors, and others for sour and bitter. The famous "taste map" came from a misunderstanding of research published in the early 1900s.

While some parts of the tongue may be slightly more sensitive to certain flavors than others, taste buds across nearly the entire tongue can detect sweet, salty, sour, bitter, and umami, the savory taste found in foods like mushrooms, cheese, and broth. The old diagram appeared in textbooks for decades, making it one of the most successful scientific misconceptions ever taught in classrooms. Today, we know the tongue is much more versatile than that simple map suggested.

If you grew up in the age of bulky television sets, you may remember a parent telling you to back away from the screen before you damaged your eyes. That warning became especially common in the 1960s when early television models were found to emit unusually high levels of radiation because of a manufacturing defect. Those sets were quickly recalled, but the myth lingered long after the problem disappeared.

Modern televisions don’t pose that risk. Sitting very close to the screen may leave your eyes feeling tired or dry after a while, but it doesn’t cause permanent damage to your vision. Even if screen time is not recommended for children up until 7 years old, the screen itself isn’t likely to be the cause of poor eyesight.

Everyone learned about the five senses at some point: sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. That lesson dates back more than 2,000 years to the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle.

However, modern science paints a much more intricate picture. In addition to the five traditional senses, your body constantly relies on other senses that work without you even noticing them. These include your sense of balance, your awareness of where your arms and legs are without looking, your ability to feel pain, temperature, and more. Depending on how they’re classified, scientists recognize anywhere between 10 and 20 different senses.