An invention is a new product or process that solves a technical problem. A discovery is something that already existed but had not been found. Inventions can lead to discoveries and discoveries can also lead to inventions. Ben Franklin's discovery of lightning prompted him to invent the lightning rod in 1752.
Many inventions were invented thousands of years ago and sometimes the origins are lost to time. Sometimes scientists discover a model of an early invention where they can tell how old it is and where it came from.
Patents tell us when, where and by whom an invention was invented. But people who don't apply for patents, like Ben Franklin for example, leave the door open for anyone to claim they were the inventor of one of his discoveries.
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