SlingShot

Dean Kamen fascinates me. I can’t remember when I first was aware of him but it’s maybe 30-years ago. He was like a kid looking even though he was already an adult. This “kid” had done some very impressive things in the medical world. Basically any drip IV machine was from his company or his technology. Then later I remember some kind of amazing gonzo wheelchair that could go up the steepest stairs and could lift up like a horse on its hind legs. This guy then invented a personal transporter called the Segway. Wow. Dean Kamen was a fertile mind that was all over the place. For some reason, outside of an outstanding 60-Minutes profile and the occasional magazine article there really wasn’t that much out there considering he was on par, at least as far as I could tell, Einstein.Kamen is an amazing person. He really is driven in the best way. He doesn’t alienate people even as he constantly brainstorms and does thing on his own. He is an amazingly unique man who is improving the world we live in and our own quality of life. This documentary is the best ever about the m an. I could watch more and gladly go much deeper if it was available. I really think he’s a living Tesla or Einstein and we are so lucky he walks among us. God sends special people to do special things and I know God created this man with all of us in mind.See a man who has saved lives and can joke like he’s a kid. See a man who flies his own personal helicopter and jet aircraft much like it’s a Volvo. See a man who lives in a home that has some of history’s beloved science and technology next to the kitchen and living rooms. There really isn’t another Dean Kamen and I really want everyone to see this. I want kids to use him as a role model so they know science is cool and can be a game changing force for the betterment of mankind. I want to live in a world where there’s more of Dean Kamen’s influence and inventions. Seeing this documentary just makes me want all that more. I mean the man has his own small but self sufficient island home that he can fly to work in less than a half-hour. How cool is that. This is an incredible man among us right now still making our world better. Here’s some food for thought in closing. The international space station has cost north of 150 billion dollars and I’ve never been able to find one breakthrough the science it supposedly carries out has ever benefited mankind. Dean Kamen costs zero and he and his company pay taxes and he has improved and in many cases saved billions of lives. Chew on that while you watch this uplifting and entertaining profile of the man.

The Segway was such a bomb that universities actually teach classes on how inventors like him who are convinced of their own genius often times have such severe myopia and tunnel vision that they rely on wishful thinking instead of real planning and strategy with business experts. He admits that he is overly optimistic, while making himself out to be some kind of savior. However watching him dump responsibility for the ludicrous and herculean plans on his staff is cringe worthy.His water distillation system likewise was a marketplace bomb because he didn't consider how a worldwide distribution company was going to make deliveries, hook them up to a water source, and somehow magically have a reliable electrical source in the middle of rural Honduras. Then he wistfully tells the movie audience that Coca Cola was going to distribute his machines to impoverished areas, and the deal was based "on a handshake".Someone needs to tell Mr. Super Genius that Coca Cola already sells water worldwide: its called Dasani. And there is no way that the largest beverage company in the world is going to help his company give away purified water for free. The one and only thing that props up his whimsical projects are the medical devices he's invented that have made him a billionaire many times over, however he fails to mention how shamefully and astonishingly expensive they are, and only the costliest of hospitals and the wealthiest of patients can afford them.The last hour of the movie is him alone pontificating about how important his work is while being teared up for the camera. If he wanted to really help people, he would start giving away his fortune and his medical devices. If he just gave away the patents, he could save tens of millions of lives in a single breath.

I appreciate the fact that this documentary reveals the real person behind segways. I believed the rumor that the inventor of segways had died while on one of them, but turns out that isn't true. His best accomplishment wasn't the segway, but a water purification system that is used throughout select impoverished communities around the world. It is a shame that he had to partner with a company like cocacola, but I can see how it was necessary. Worth watching, but not one of my favorite documentaries.

I enjoyed this documentary and it was interesting to learn about what Dean Kamen has come up with throughout the years. However, it really seemed like a giant advertisement for him, like one big self-promotion video. It's like, I get it... he's a brilliant, selfless, sweet, mild-tempered genius... at least according to this documentary. Worth a watch to learn more about the guy, but maybe with a grain of salt.

A proper human being.

Great film

Great intro to some of the inventions and projects Dean has worked on (many you may have heard of!). Also has good cautionary takeaway that invention alone doesn’t solve problems humanity or markets face - deployment and accessibility of those inventions is also crucial.

Dean seems impressive. After watching the movie I get the sense there's a heavy dose of PR going on.

Thoroughly enjoy watching this documentary over & over again. Very thought provoking.

Great video reference for team motivation and alternate approach to markets

Excellent documentary