--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Nearly all inventions are not recognised…" description: "\"Nearly all inventions are not recognised for their positive side either when they're made. So, for example, scientists didn't go out to design a CD mac..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c83/robert-winston-7323_cds_nearly-all-inventions-are-not-recognised_2351271.jpg" --- # Nearly all inventions are not recognised for their… ![“Nearly all inventions are not recognised for their positive side either when they're made. So, for example, scientists didn't go out to design a CD machine: they designed a laser. But we got all sorts of things from a laser which we never remotely imagined, and we're still finding things for a…” quote by Robert Winston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c83/robert-winston-7323_cds_nearly-all-inventions-are-not-recognised_2351271.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c83/robert-winston-7323_cds_nearly-all-inventions-are-not-recognised_2351271.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c83/robert-winston-7323_cds_nearly-all-inventions-are-not-recognised_2351271.jpg) > “Nearly all inventions are not recognised for their positive side either when they're made. So, for example, scientists didn't go out to design a CD machine: they designed a laser. But we got all sorts of things from a laser which we never remotely imagined, and we're still finding things for a laser to do.” [Robert Winston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-winston/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Inventions are often appreciated only for their unintended benefits, not their original purpose. **In simple terms:** Inventions often have unexpected positive uses. Key Takeaway Embrace flexibility and explore new applications. Themes innovation serendipity technology Mood curious optimistic Type inspirational reflective When to use this quote - product development - research labs - education - policy making Key Concepts unintended consequences creative repurposing Questions to Reflect On - How can we better anticipate secondary benefits? - What structures support exploring unforeseen uses? A Different Perspective Unexpected outcomes may be hard to predict, leading to misallocation of resources. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cds/) [Computers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) [Design](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/design/) [Innovation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/innovation/) [Invention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/invention/) [Inventions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inventions/) [Lasers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lasers/) [Machines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machines/) [Positive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/positive/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Scientist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scientist/) ## Related quotes > [“Well," she said, "how can I be sure there aren't invisible people in the world? 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Rahman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-r-rahman/) > [A lot of people that buy vinyl today don’t realise that they’re listening to CD masters on vinyl and that’s because the record companies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/a-lot-of-people-that-buy-vinyl-today-don-t-realise-that-they-re/) [Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/) > [The situation is so much better for programmers today - a cheap used PC, a linux CD, and an internet account, and you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-carmack/the-situation-is-so-much-better-for-programmers-today-a-cheap-used-pc/) [John Carmack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-carmack/) > [If you don't think drugs have done good things for us, then take all of your records, tapes and CD's and burn them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/if-you-don-t-think-drugs-have-done-good-things-for-us-then-take-all/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [I miss CDs. 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One of my first jobs was the cover of a CD.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/candace-kita/i-was-approached-in-texas-to-be-a-model-a-few-times-one-of-my-first/) [Candace Kita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/candace-kita/) [Browse all 382 Cds quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cds/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Nearly all inventions are not recognised for their positive side either when they're made. So, for example, scientists didn't go out to design a CD machine: they designed a laser. 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