John Cover :: Biography

â€Å"Jack is an unsung hero. He did something great for the world, saved a lot of lives and prevented a lot of injuries,† said retired police captain, Greg Meyer (Jack Cover, page 1 of 3). Rick Smith, the chief executive and founder of Taser International, said in a statement,† Jack was one of the most influential inventors of modern times, who affected the lives of hundreds of thousands of law enforcement officers, citizens, and even criminal suspects,† (Taser Inventor Dead at 88, page 2 of 4). From the quotes of these two men, it is clearly seen that John Cover did something tremendous that would affect the lives of thousands. Many people have never heard of this man, so they do not know what he invented. Well, this man invented the Taser, the non-lethal weapon that uses pulses of electrical current to disrupt the target’s ability to control his or her muscles† (John Cover: Inventor of the Taser, page 1 of 2). The term â€Å"open-minded† mean s, â€Å" Receptive to new ideas or to reason† (The American Heritage Desk Dictionary and Thesaurus, page 520). John Cover was an extremely open-minded inventor who kept an open mind to any new ideas he or his assistants came up with. John Higson Cover was born on April 6, 1920, in New York. Cover was later nick-named â€Å"Jack†, which was what most people came to know him by. Cover grew up in Chicago where his father was the Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago (http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article5791955.ece). No other records of his parents or childhood were found. Cover then went to the University of Chicago, where he earned his PhD in physics ( www.timesonline.co). Cover began to invent things such as cooked food testers and voice activated switches in his spare time, early in his career (http://www.nbcfw.com/news/archive/Taser-Inventor-Dead-at-88.htmlcorder=reverse). Cover was a test pilot in the United Stated Air Force in World War II. In 1952-1964, Cover was employed by the American Aviation. Then, in 1970, Cover set up the Taser Systems Company (www.timesonline.co). No claimed religion was found. â€Å"Cover’s goal was to invent a non-lethal weapon to combat the plane hijackings and riots that were occurring in the 1960s,† said Rick Smith, chief executive and founder of Taser International (www.nbcfw.com). The battery operated Taser projects darts attached to insulated wires to give electric shocks over a range of a few meters (www.timesonline.co). Though it was designed to be a non-lethal weapon, the Taser has caused a few deaths (Jack Cover, Taser Inventor, page 1 of 4).