Cameron+Thompson

Benjamin Franklin had many inventions. He invented the lighting rod, the fire department, Bifocal glasses and many more things. He was smart and very intellegant. Bifocal glasses are glasses with an upper and lower half. The upper half is for distance and the lower half is for looking near. Like reading for instance. Bifocals are usually worn by people with presbyopia. Presbyopia is a condition that has to do with aging in which the eyes cannot see near objects. Benjamin Franklin was among the first people to wear bifocal glasses. He created bifocals independently. Originally bifocals wear for near viewing until two separate lenses wear cut in half. On a visit to Boston Benjamin Franklin noted people of his brother city wear much more prepared to fight fires than people in Philadelphia. When he returned home he asked the Junto for better ways to fight fires. Franklin also sought to raise public awareness about the city's need of improving to fight fires. In a Pennsylvania article he tells about how fires were being fought. in Philadelphia. Soon after a fire is seen and yelled out the place is surrounded by men of different age. They are men that are there to work hard. The men weren't enough to fight the fire though. So Franklin suggested a group of men assigned at each engine who's job is to attend fires whenever they happen. On February 4, 1735 Franklin sent a letter to his own newspaper called Protection of Towns from Fire. On December 7, 1736 thirty men came together under Franklin's goading to form the Union Fire Company. Their equipment included leather buckets which were to be brought to every fire. The firefighters were to meet every month to talk about fire-fighting methods and how to prevent fires. Other men wanted to join the Union but wanted to form their own companies so the city would be even more protected. In a short period of time there were many fire departments in Philadelphia. Once Benjamin Franklin knew about electricity He set a goal to protect houses from lighting. So he invented the lighting rod. The lightning rod is a rod attached to the top of a building connected to the ground through a wire. The electric charge from the lighting strikes the rod and harmlessly is conducted into the ground. This saves the house from a fire and people from being electrocuted.

Benjamin Franklin made many important things that we use today. Without him we would have no fire department, Bifocal glasses, lighting rod and many more things. He was a founding father of our country and a intelligent scientist.

http://www.ushistory.org/franklin/info/inventions.htm

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bifocals Book- Benjamin Franklin A Photo-Illustrated Biography by T.M Usel