Do you remember Slinkys? The coiled metal toy that walks down stairs? Well, I certainly do. I had a lot of fun with them back in the day walking them down steps and springing them down and up like a yo-yo. However, at some point, they would get tangled up and rarely work as well as they once did. But still everyone I knew had one and loved it.Slinkys did not start out as a toy. Engineer, Richard James, was trying to figure out a way to lesson vibrations to sensitive equipment on a Navy ship. He discovered that his "invention" would walk downstairs. (Do you ever wonder what made him think to try that, anyway?)
He took it home and between the neighborhood children's excitement and his wife, it ended up in Gimbels in Philidelphia in 1945. And the rest is history, so they say. (BTW, its Philadelphia beginnings made the Slinky Pennsylvania's State Toy.)
So just as the Slinky came from efforts not related to a toy, it has been used for many other things besides walking down stairs. First thing that comes to my mind is demonstrating compressional waves in science classes. Also, they were used as antennas during the Viet Nam War. And NASA has used them in zero gravity experiments.
However recently, I heard about my favorite use of all time. My mother fell a few months ago and broke her wrist. The recovery from that has been long and hard. One of the people who is doing therapy with her bought a birthday party box of Slinkys. She used one for my mother to manipulate and gave the rest to other nursing home residents. After a while, she looked around and saw a room of smiles as Slinkys were springing everywhere. She said even people she has never been able to get to smile were smiling.
Sometimes it's the little things that put a "spring" in our day. I want to thank to Richard James and the Navy's sensitive instruments for bringing us the Slinky and putting smiles on people of all ages for a long time now.
More about the Slinky:
http://www.kidzsearch.com/wiki/Slinky
http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/slinky.aspx
I had no idea! I loved Slinkys as a kid. Just thinking about them brings their jingle into my head, and now I'll be humming that all day!
ReplyDeleteThe USA Today did a survey in 1990 and 90% of the adults knew the Slinky jingle. I guess they could count us among them. :)
DeleteSo fun that Slinky's brought a smile to your mom and other residents in her facility.
ReplyDeleteI had a rainbow-colored, plastic slink that I kept by my baby's changing table. It was one of the few things that would keep both kids occupied while trying to change diapers. I'm not sure why it worked, but I'm glad it did. :)
oops ... Slinky, not slink. :)
DeleteThat was a brilliant idea to keep a plastic Slinky on the changing table. Wish I had thought of that.
DeleteWhat a delightful post! I remember liking the metal Slinky more but playing with the plastic ones more because I seemed to kink those ones up less! Good times on our stairs, most definitely. Thanks for stirring up some good memories :o)
ReplyDeleteSlinkys going down stairs was my favorite thing to do. If you could start them at the top and get them to go all of the way to the bottom, that was a big accomplishment.
DeleteA Slinky, A Slinky, A Slinky's a Wonderful Toy.
ReplyDeleteA Slinky, A Slinky, it's fun for a girl and a boy!
Well... that song will be running through my head for the rest of the day. I totally love the back story - who'd-a-thunk-it!
Supposedly, the Slinky jingle is the longest running one in history. I guess that's why so many people know it.
DeleteI had a slinky growing up. They were big. Everyone had one.
ReplyDeleteI think everyone had one because they didn't cost much. That was certainly one reason we had one. That and the fact they were fun.
DeleteWe didn't have Slinky in France so I discovered that when I moved here as a college student. But my sons loved them and Middle Son has always been particularly fascinated with them. I give him one in his stocking every year at Christmas (because he's a goof and invariably loses them or breaks them, somehow). I think he would be very disappointed if he didn't find a Slinky in his stocking! We tried the plastic Skinky one year but my kids preferred the silver metallic ones better. I love that they're used to teach physics to kids!
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading about the history of this toy. It's interesting that they were used as antennas in the Vietnam War. How resourceful and it probably was way cheaper and lighter to carry than actual antennas. My brother just sent me an email explaining that today is the anniversary of the Fall of Dien Bien Phu, which was a major battle that France lost during its war in Vietnam, years before the Americans officially entered the conflict. So this is the 2nd time I read something about the Vietnam War today, coincidentally.
I agree with your son that the metal ones work better, but they tangle more easily which messes them up. The plastic ones are better about that but don't have quite as much spring in them. Maybe next year, he should get both.
Delete