Back in 1961 I had the idea for a home trash compactor. I worked on the design for my undergraduate engineering design course at Tufts University and presented the following chart as part of the sales pitch for my final project presentation:

In the audience for the final class presentations was a jury of engineers from industry. One of them was from Whirlpool. I worked on my idea during summers and in my spare time throughout graduate school and planned to start a company to market my idea once it was ready. Unfortunately, I never got the chance. In 1969 I got the following note from my old undergraduate design professor, Percy Hill:

Attached to the note was the following ad which looked remarkably like the flip chart I had done for my presentation to the jury from industry years earlier!

 

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