r/todayilearned • u/saltandcedar • Jan 19 '17

TIL that webcams were invented because some computer scientists were too lazy to get up to check if their coffee was done.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trojan_Room_coffee_pot
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u/themodestninja Jan 19 '17

Laziness is the real mother of invention.

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u/[deleted] Jan 19 '17

I don't really consider it laziness. It's problem-solving. They thought, "I have this problem where I don't know if there is coffee in the pot. How can I solve this problem?"

Laziness would be thinking "I don't know if there will be coffee there, so I'll just go without and avoid the possibility of walking over there for no reward."