When most people think of Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), they think of a bespectacled, older-looking Founding Father of the United States who also happened to dream up some pretty neat inventions.  I find him to be the most fascinating of the Founding Fathers, alongside Thomas Jefferson. Not only were these guys masters in the art of politics, they each went on to design everything from buildings to stoves. In essence, it could be argued they statesmen as much as they were inventors.  In this post, I'd like to share five interesting facts about Franklin that I recently dug up. If you already knew these or would like to share any others not mentioned here, please feel free to do so in the comments section.  1. Franklin designed a musical instrument used by musical geniuses Mozart and Beethoven. Franklin designed what he dubbed a “glass armonica,” an instrument meant to replicate the distinct sound that a wet finger makes when rubbed along the rim of a glass. ...