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Got An Idea? Get a Patent!
Article
GMEOC-E11 Prep Boot Camp
Article
The Biggest "Pop" Star
SADDLE RIVER, New Jersey. Who doesn't love Bubble Wrap? Walk by a piece of this plastic sheeting, and it's nearly impossible to keep from popping its tiny air-filled pockets. Since its invention years ago, Bubble Wrap has served as a cushion for breakable packages. It has also helped reduce stress. The bubbles make a satisfying popping sound when compressed. Pop a few of them, and somehow, you feel happier.
Like many innovations, Bubble Wrap was originally invented for an entirely different purpose. A New York City designer approached inventors Marc Chavannes and Al Fielding in the late 1950s. He asked them to create textured wallpaper. In a small lab in New Jersey, Chavannes and Fielding developed sheets of bubbles. Somehow, though, their design didn't quite work as wallpaper.
Bubble Wrap changed the world of packaging. But it wasn't intended as a packing item. It was supposed to be a wall covering. The plastic bubbled sheets were first made in the late 1950s. They received a patent in 1964. Click on this link to take a look at the original drawing sent to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
The two men were not sure what to do with their invention. Then nature provided an idea. According to legend, Fielding was on a flight to Newark Airport in New Jersey when he noticed the fluffy clouds in the sky. Fielding imagined that the pillow-like clouds were cushioning the plane's landing. Then, he thought of the bubble sheets back at his lab. He realized that the regularly spaced bubbles on the sheets could cushion breakable items.
Today, about 50 years later, a company called Sealed Air produces Bubble Wrap in a giant, 100,000-square-foot warehouse. Walk inside, and there are rows upon rows of stacked rolls of Bubble Wrap. Some are as large as 7 feet around. The air is stiflingly hot. That's because Bubble Wrap is produced at very high temperatures.
The machines in the warehouse process millions of granules of resin into clear plastic sheets. Temperatures reach 560 degrees. The ingredients for the plastic wrap are melted together. The mixture then gets pressed into clear plastic sheets. The sheets pass over several rollers. One of the rollers creates indentations in the plastic. When one sheet is put over another, air is trapped to make bubbles.
Sealed Air is hugely successful. Worldwide, the company's revenue is more than $4 billion a year. There are two reasons for Bubble Wrap's success. One was the invention of electronics, including the personal computer. All of its parts needed to be cushioned during shipment to stores and homes. The other reason is the Internet. Ardent fans of the plastic sheeting chat online. They talk about why they love the plastic sheets. It's as if Bubble Wrap is a movie star.
Fans have come up with countless uses for Bubble Wrap. It has been used as a wig, a mobile home, a sleeping bag, and a flotation device!
"It seems like every day there's something new," said Rohn Shellenberger. He works for Sealed Air.
Katherine Howard is a Massachusetts artist. She has let her imagination run wild when it comes to Bubble Wrap. In May 2009, she tied Bubble Wrap bows to chairs at her wedding. Then the guests took part in a popping contest. And back in 1996, Howard put a Bubble Wrap Web site on the Internet. Anyone who has an urge to pop Bubble Wrap can go to the site and click on the bubbles to make them pop.
"We tried to find the most useless thing we could put on the Internet. And Bubble Wrap is a completely tactile experience," Howard said with a chuckle. "But it's something that everybody enjoys."
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
End of Article 1. Click Next to proceed.
Question 1
1 / 8
The article "The Biggest 'Pop' Star" states:
According to legend, Fielding was on a flight to Newark Airport in New Jersey when he noticed the fluffy clouds in the sky.
What is suggested by the phrase, "according to legend"?
The Web sites that talk about how to use Bubble Wrap have made it legendary among its fans.
Bubble Wrap fans have come up with a tale about the beginnings of Bubble Wrap.
Al Fielding made up an interesting story to increase excitement about Bubble Wrap.
There is no proof about how Bubble Wrap came to be used as a cushioning for breakables.
Article
GMEOC-E11 Prep Boot Camp
Article
The Biggest "Pop" Star
SADDLE RIVER, New Jersey. Who doesn't love Bubble Wrap? Walk by a piece of this plastic sheeting, and it's nearly impossible to keep from popping its tiny air-filled pockets. Since its invention years ago, Bubble Wrap has served as a cushion for breakable packages. It has also helped reduce stress. The bubbles make a satisfying popping sound when compressed. Pop a few of them, and somehow, you feel happier.
Like many innovations, Bubble Wrap was originally invented for an entirely different purpose. A New York City designer approached inventors Marc Chavannes and Al Fielding in the late 1950s. He asked them to create textured wallpaper. In a small lab in New Jersey, Chavannes and Fielding developed sheets of bubbles. Somehow, though, their design didn't quite work as wallpaper.
Bubble Wrap changed the world of packaging. But it wasn't intended as a packing item. It was supposed to be a wall covering. The plastic bubbled sheets were first made in the late 1950s. They received a patent in 1964. Click on this link to take a look at the original drawing sent to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
The two men were not sure what to do with their invention. Then nature provided an idea. According to legend, Fielding was on a flight to Newark Airport in New Jersey when he noticed the fluffy clouds in the sky. Fielding imagined that the pillow-like clouds were cushioning the plane's landing. Then, he thought of the bubble sheets back at his lab. He realized that the regularly spaced bubbles on the sheets could cushion breakable items.
Today, about 50 years later, a company called Sealed Air produces Bubble Wrap in a giant, 100,000-square-foot warehouse. Walk inside, and there are rows upon rows of stacked rolls of Bubble Wrap. Some are as large as 7 feet around. The air is stiflingly hot. That's because Bubble Wrap is produced at very high temperatures.
The machines in the warehouse process millions of granules of resin into clear plastic sheets. Temperatures reach 560 degrees. The ingredients for the plastic wrap are melted together. The mixture then gets pressed into clear plastic sheets. The sheets pass over several rollers. One of the rollers creates indentations in the plastic. When one sheet is put over another, air is trapped to make bubbles.
Sealed Air is hugely successful. Worldwide, the company's revenue is more than $4 billion a year. There are two reasons for Bubble Wrap's success. One was the invention of electronics, including the personal computer. All of its parts needed to be cushioned during shipment to stores and homes. The other reason is the Internet. Ardent fans of the plastic sheeting chat online. They talk about why they love the plastic sheets. It's as if Bubble Wrap is a movie star.
Fans have come up with countless uses for Bubble Wrap. It has been used as a wig, a mobile home, a sleeping bag, and a flotation device!
"It seems like every day there's something new," said Rohn Shellenberger. He works for Sealed Air.
Katherine Howard is a Massachusetts artist. She has let her imagination run wild when it comes to Bubble Wrap. In May 2009, she tied Bubble Wrap bows to chairs at her wedding. Then the guests took part in a popping contest. And back in 1996, Howard put a Bubble Wrap Web site on the Internet. Anyone who has an urge to pop Bubble Wrap can go to the site and click on the bubbles to make them pop.
"We tried to find the most useless thing we could put on the Internet. And Bubble Wrap is a completely tactile experience," Howard said with a chuckle. "But it's something that everybody enjoys."
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
End of Article 1. Click Next to proceed.
Question 1
1 / 8
The article "The Biggest 'Pop' Star" states:
According to legend, Fielding was on a flight to Newark Airport in New Jersey when he noticed the fluffy clouds in the sky.
What is suggested by the phrase, "according to legend"?
The Web sites that talk about how to use Bubble Wrap have made it legendary among its fans.
Bubble Wrap fans have come up with a tale about the beginnings of Bubble Wrap.
Al Fielding made up an interesting story to increase excitement about Bubble Wrap.
There is no proof about how Bubble Wrap came to be used as a cushioning for breakables.
Answers
Answered by
GPT-4o mini
The phrase "according to legend" suggests that the story being told may not be fully substantiated or verified. Therefore, the most fitting interpretation is:
**There is no proof about how Bubble Wrap came to be used as a cushioning for breakables.**
**There is no proof about how Bubble Wrap came to be used as a cushioning for breakables.**
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