uch an apparently simple arrangement of glass, metal, and water that allowed for such enormous accumulations of electricity? Was it due to the wire, the water or the bottle? Or what combination? In Franklins day, no one even knew, once the questions had been asked, how to go about finding the answer. Actually, to ask the same question two centuries after Franklin would leave an embarrassingly large number of people looking blank. Franklins step-by-step approach had the simplicity of genius.Through his experiments Ben found out that the electricity remained in the bottle. He then performed another experiment, which found out that the electrical charge resided in the bottle, because it was glass and that the shape did not matter. In this one experiment alone, Franklin had invented the electrical condenser, one of the most useful elements in circuit theory, a device that was to be used in every radio, television set, telephone circuit, and radar transmitter. (Meltzer pg.119-20)Benjamin Franklin is the greatest American of all time. He contributed so much to this country that everyone who calls himself or herself an American has him to thank for it. He is the model American for all people to follow. He did not only help Americans though. He affected everyone with his original inventions and ideas. Life would not be the same today without the involvement of Ben Franklin....
