密歇根新闻广播 著名的发明家麦考伊利亚

 

The U.S. Patent and Trademark¹ office in Detroit bears the name of Elijah McCoy, a pioneering African-American inventor. McCoy was born in the mid-1840s, nearly 170 years before the office opened. McCoy had more than 50 patents to his name.

He’s best known for inventing an automatic lubricator that was used on trains.

“We describe his inventions as assisting in lubrication,” says Damian Porcari, the director of the patent office. “If you were an oiler crawling over steam engines at the time, you would describe his inventions as life-saving, or arm-saving.”

McCoy's creation became a necessity on trains, but it never would have happened without an entirely² different kind of railroad.

The journey to invention

McCoy’s parents escaped from slavery in Kentucky on the Underground Railroad. They went to Canada, where McCoy was born, and eventually settled in Ypsilanti, Michigan, according to Herb Boyd, the author of Black Detroit: A People’s History of Self-Determination.

Boyd says racism³ limited McCoy’s opportunities as a young professional.

"After going to Scotland as a teenager to become a mechanical engineer, he came back to this country, and was unable to get a job employed in his particular craft," Boyd said. "The Michigan Central Railroad hired him as an oiler and as a fire person. So, he's kind of forced to taking something that is kind of an inferior job."

A prolific⁴ innovator⁵

Boyd calls McCoy "absolutely prolific," noting that his work went beyond train lubrication, including one patent for a folding ironing board.

But the self-lubricating device for locomotives would turn out to be the most significant.

"Because it was such an interesting development and innovation, many engineers and conductors began to ask, 'Is this a real McCoy?' And so, many people feel that that's the origin of that particular term. However, there is a lot of controversy⁶ on that," Boyd said, noting that there are several competing theories about the origins of the phrase.

"Manufacturing companies made careers off of Elijah McCoy's innovations," Boyd said. "Only later in his life was he able to really take advantage of ... some of his inventions."

Just nine years before he died, McCoy took more control over his own inventions and founded Elijah McCoy Manufacturing Company, according to Boyd.

The search for other McCoys

"Before his death I think he was highly respected among people who were in the industry," Boyd said. "However, he’s like a number of pioneers who have to overcome a number of obstacles and barriers to take their place in history. There’s always the question of bigotry⁷, and prejudice and racism, discrimination African-Americans had during that time. So some of those people are lost in history.

"We can talk about Elijah McCoy, but he was hardly singular in what he was doing. There were a number of others that we’re still discovering in terms of the breakthroughs and the pioneering efforts that they made."

1 trademark   

n.商标；特征；vt.注册的…商标

参考例句：

• The trademark is registered on the book of the Patent Office.该商标已在专利局登记注册。
• The trademark of the pen was changed.这钢笔的商标改了。

2 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

3 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。

4 prolific   

adj.丰富的，大量的；多产的，富有创造力的

参考例句：

• She is a prolific writer of novels and short stories.她是一位多产的作家，写了很多小说和短篇故事。
• The last few pages of the document are prolific of mistakes.这个文件的最后几页错误很多。

5 innovator   

n.改革者；创新者

参考例句：

• The young technical innovator didn't lose heart though the new system was not yet brought into a workable condition. 尽管这种新方法尚未达到切实可行的状况，这位青年技术革新者也没有泄气。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Caesar planned vast projects and emerged as a great innovator. 恺撒制定了庞大的革新计划。 来自英汉非文学 - 文明史

6 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

7 bigotry   

n.偏见，偏执，持偏见的行为[态度]等

参考例句：

• She tried to dissociate herself from the bigotry in her past.她力图使自己摆脱她以前的偏见。
• At least we can proceed in this matter without bigotry.目前这件事咱们至少可以毫无偏见地进行下去。