# Daft Inventions - llms.txt (th) # AI-optimized summaries of trivia cards # Language: TH # Learn more: https://llmstxt.org/ > Available languages: > - [English](https://gamifeye.com/trivia/daft-inventions/llms.txt) > - [ไทย (Thai)](https://gamifeye.com/trivia/daft-inventions/llms.txt?lang=th) ## ภาพรวม # Daft Inventions Type: Trivia Deck | Cards: 10 This deck chronicles peculiar inventions spanning novelty items, toys, and impractical gadgets from the 20th-21st centuries. Featured inventions range from unexpected commercial successes (products that became cultural phenomena despite questionable utility) to engineering curiosities that prioritized novelty over practicality. Items represent various categories including gag gifts, fad toys, thermodynamic demonstrations, and alternative transportation devices. Key facts: - Includes both commercial failures and surprise successes that defied market expectations - Covers inventions solving non-existent problems or creating entertainment through absurdity - Spans multiple decades of consumer product history and toy industry evolution - Features combination products (umbrella hats), motion-based toys (Slinky), and collectible crazes (Beanie Babies) - Represents intersection of physics novelties (Drinking Bird), impractical vehicles (Dynasphere), and comedy props (Whoopee Cushion, Rubber Chicken) Notable cards: Pet Rock, Big Mouth Billy Bass, Dynasphere, Heelys, Whoopee Cushion --- ## การ์ด (6) ### Beanie Babies ความหายาก: Common | [ดูการ์ด](/trivia/daft-inventions/beanie-babies) # Beanie Babies Type: Trivia Card | Deck: Daft Inventions | Rarity: Common Beanie Babies were plush toys created by Ty Warner that sparked a major speculative bubble in the mid-1990s. Warner manufactured artificial scarcity by unexpectedly "retiring" designs, driving collector panic and secondary market speculation. The bubble collapsed around 2000, leaving most collections worthless. Key facts: - Peak 1999: Beanie Babies represented 10% of eBay's total sales volume - Marketing strategy relied on artificial scarcity through unannounced product retirements - Retail price ~$5; speculative prices reached thousands (e.g., "Peanut the Royal Blue Elephant" at $5,000) - Ty Warner became billionaire from craze; later served jail time for tax evasion ($100M hidden in Swiss banks) - Post-crash value: most specimens worth approximately original retail price ($5) - Notable examples: Princess Diana commemorative bear among most sought-after designs --- ### Big Mouth Billy Bass ความหายาก: Rare | [ดูการ์ด](/trivia/daft-inventions/big-mouth-billy-bass) # Big Mouth Billy Bass Type: Trivia Card | Deck: Daft Inventions | Rarity: Rare Animatronic novelty toy invented by Joe Pellettieri in 1998, manufactured by Gemmy Industries. Motion-activated singing fish mounted on plaque that performed "Take Me to the River" and "Don't Worry, Be Happy" with moving mouth, head, and tail mechanisms. Key facts: - Debuted at toy fair 1999; initially met with retailer skepticism before becoming phenomenon - Sold approximately 20 million units in first few years, generating over $100 million revenue - Appeared in notable "The Sopranos" scene; became cultural symbol of early 2000s American kitsch - Later reprogrammable with Amazon Alexa technology, creating smart home integration - Spawned numerous imitator products (singing lobsters, caroling reindeer) - Original songs licensed from Al Green and Bobby McFerrin recordings --- ### Drinking Bird ความหายาก: Common | [ดูการ์ด](/trivia/daft-inventions/drinking-bird) # Drinking Bird Type: Trivia Card | Deck: Daft Inventions | Rarity: Common Novelty desk toy invented by Miles V. Sullivan in 1945 that repeatedly dips its beak into water through thermodynamic principles. Operates via evaporative cooling without batteries or external power, creating a continuous bobbing motion that mimics perpetual motion. Key facts: - Mechanism uses evaporative cooling: water on felt-covered head evaporates, cooling methylene chloride vapor inside, creating pressure differential that pulls liquid upward - Liquid redistribution makes bird top-heavy, causing forward tipping; dipping restarts cycle indefinitely as long as water remains - Functions as educational thermodynamics demonstration device; popularized in culture (featured in The Simpsons episode) - Appears to demonstrate perpetual motion but actually draws energy from ambient heat and evaporation --- ### Heelys ความหายาก: Common | [ดูการ์ด](/trivia/daft-inventions/heelys) # Heelys Type: Trivia Card | Deck: Daft Inventions | Rarity: Common Heelys are wheeled shoes with embedded heel wheels that allow wearers to transition between walking and rolling. Invented by Roger Adams in 2000, inspired by watching skateboarders while pushing his son in a stroller. The product became a cultural phenomenon in the mid-2000s before facing widespread commercial challenges. Key facts: - Company went public in 2006 during peak popularity, selling millions of pairs annually - Widely banned in malls, schools, and airports due to liability concerns; emergency rooms reported thousands of injuries, primarily broken wrists - Company filed for bankruptcy in 2009 after initial craze declined but product remains available today - Sparked debates about classification as footwear versus vehicles - Maintains cult following among nostalgic millennials and Gen Z users --- ### Pet Rock ความหายาก: Common | [ดูการ์ด](/trivia/daft-inventions/pet-rock) # Pet Rock Type: Trivia Card | Deck: Daft Inventions | Rarity: Common Novelty product created by advertising executive Gary Dahl in 1975 as a joke about low-maintenance pets. Ordinary rocks sold in pet carrier packaging with humorous 32-page training manual. Became massive six-month fad during 1975 Christmas season before market saturation ended sales by February 1976. Key facts: - Rocks purchased from Mexican builder's supply for ~$0.01 each, sold at $3.95 retail - Sold over 1.5 million units in six months, making Dahl a millionaire - Packaging included cardboard pet carrier with breathing holes, straw bedding - Training manual featured deadpan humor with commands like "sit," "stay," "attack," and housebreaking instructions - Dahl never trademarked the concept; knockoffs proliferated - Featured on "The Tonight Show," accelerating national popularity --- ### Slinky ความหายาก: Common | [ดูการ์ด](/trivia/daft-inventions/slinky) # Slinky Type: Trivia Card | Deck: Daft Inventions | Rarity: Common The Slinky toy was accidentally invented in 1943 by naval engineer Richard James when a torsion spring fell off a shelf and "walked" instead of falling. He spent two years perfecting the metal coil tension before commercializing it in 1945. The toy became a cultural phenomenon under the management of his wife Betty James after Richard abandoned the company in 1960 to join a Bolivian religious cult. Key facts: - Origin: Spring designed to stabilize ship equipment during WWII; accidentally knocked off shelf in 1943 - First sale: 400 units sold out in 90 minutes at Gimbels department store, Philadelphia, 1945 - Name: Coined by Betty James from dictionary definition meaning "sleek and graceful" - Production: Over 300 million units sold worldwide; stretched end-to-end would wrap Earth 150+ times - Business: Betty James ran company for nearly 40 years (1960-1998), simplified production and reduced prices ---