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European Inventions That Confuse Americans... *send help*
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- Published on Mar 7, 2026
- Some of the greatest inventions come from Europe!
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#british #britain #unitedkingdom #uk #americanreacts #UkvsUS #britishcomedy #london #jtreacts #reaction #europe
Yup, it's summat to do with blood. But not up your nose!!! Hahahaha!
In Europe, we call it "feminine hygiene products".
But wait, don't they have those kind of internal tampons in the US? Really????
@vins1979they’re apparently rare in the US without the applicator
@vins1979 They often have tampons with an applicator, they look more like a marker, than a 308..
@vins1979 they have, but I think only with an applicator. a lot of unnecessary waste
2:20 I refuse to believe he is not trolling
Apparently they only have them with applicators in the US. So they've never seen it like this
Not only did Volvo invent the 3 point seat belt, they made it freely available for all other manufacturers, because "saving lives is more important than making money"
And that there tells you, if you didn't already know , that Volvo isn't an American company 🤔
Typically unAmerican .
@Swivel360 yeah
@Swivel360 An american company would have lobbied governments to mandate the use of their seatbelt, their specific copyrighted and expensive design, even if alternatives were better.
yeah, just a shame they're not as safe for women as they are for men 😢
It's very "American" of you to equal "successful", with "making millions". Volvo invented the 3-point seatbelt and then left the patent open for anybody to use without cost, because it saved lives! It made an impact as a PR stunt, but did not earn them a single crown directly.
Patent not parent. Honest mistake.
@paulocabral-g3i ;-P
6:53 Apparently, Polish inventor Józef Kosacki built the first HANDHELD mine detector in during WW II to detect mines. Great invention, but still kudos to Graham Bell.
That's interesting
Gerhard Fischer has a Patent 1937 for this in Germany.
I think in many countries was inventions to the same year.
Like the „Bike“ 1817 was it in Germany the inventor Karl Drais.
graham bell didn't even succeed in what he wanted, he was one of the failures who led to someone else's later success, but not much to do with actual metal detectors. however what came of that 1881 experiment was double D coil
Someone screwed up. The first metal detector was invented by Briton Robert Were Fox in 1830. The device was improved by Frenchman Gustave Pierre Trouve. Bell, capitalizing on Trouve's discovery, built a metal detector designed to locate a bullet in the president's body. It's difficult to determine whose device became the prototype for the metal detector-Trouve's or Bell's. However, there is no doubt about the device's subsequent development. In 1925, German immigrant Gerhard Fischer obtained a US patent for a metal detector. During World War II, Józef Kosacki developed an improved design, the world's first functional mine detector, which later became the basis for British devices and other similar devices worldwide. The Mark I mine detector was not patented, and Lieutenant Kosacki donated the device to the British Army.
Yeah inventions are kinda wonky, like one Brit made refrigerator and ended at that, some american took that invention and put it into practical use
Yes, to plug your nose. 😏
Now im gonna wipe up all the coffee i squirted out of my nose from laughing from hearing that while drinking.
Sounds like a perfect time to use one of those nose plugs, very absorbent after all
To be fair, they do work for that purpose in an emergency. 🤷🏻
🤣
@diarmuidkuhle8181I work in veterinary practice, and you'd be surprised the amount of orifices you can use them in 😊
If only you had plugged your nose 😁
Them bikes are used today for children learning to ride. Its called a balance bike to get them tearn how to balance before using pedals. Brilliant
100%. I wasn't convinced a balance bike could work like that until seeing my 4 year old nephew ride his new pedal bike. He was able to do it virtually straight away - balance already having been mastered using the balance bike for 18 months or so, he just had to get used to using the pedals. Boom! He rides a bike better than I do 🤣
Seen a lot of little kids on them in Australia. I think they are great
I used to have these when I was little 25 years ago. Still have it on basement after so many years
The balance bicycle is absolutely excellent for children/beginners instead of going with 2 wheels
defintely best way to learn biking. See them a lot here in Finland too. Back in the day sone ppl just took of pedals and cranks.
In Germany we say that we have invented this.
1817 Karl Drais has made it because a famine kills the horses.
The best thing about Sweden (Volvo?) inventing the seatbelt? It was deliberately free-licenced, so all car manufacturers were free to use it.
Except in America where they probably made a slight tweak so it could be patented and they charge a fortune.
@Trebor74 no it was always patented but the patent license was free to use.
@Trebor74 Even in US patent law which is one of the most easily abused in the world from what I know, a 'slight tweak' is not sufficient to escape patent claims, let alone to patent the variation itself.
@kikixchannelI believe they did something similar to insulin.
@Trebor74 Serving the same purpose is not 'similar'. What matters is whether it is similarly produced.
Insulin is made by bacteria if I recall, so it's quite difficult to make something that works like it, is made similar to it but is not it.
The first metal detector was invented by Graham Bell. But the handheld electromagnetic mine detector was invented by a polish guy - Józef Kosacki. He donated the patent to allied forces. These mine detectors were used by allied forces during World War II.
Please tell me a story about a new invention where the inventor did something for the greater good because I lost hope in society
These balance bikes are actually pretty cool, especially for kids. My little brother had one as soon as he could walk safely. After just a few months, he was able to lift his legs and balance on his own. That made him the smallest cyclist I had ever seen back then. He never needed training wheels a single day in his life. He understood how to pedal in less than an hour. It was really impressive.
Exactly, it's useful and kids absolutely love it.
I'm kinda shocked that it's not common everywhere.
I just assumed since you see it everywhere here in my country (Austria)
@noctilucera7585 I'm from Estonia, and these are quite common here. My nephew had it, and leaning to use pedals took him just a few attempts, as he had already mastered the balance bike.
A walking bicycle still exists btw, it's called a balance bike for very small kids ;)
5:36 Poland also invented condoms, fluid foundation and lip gloss
9:10 what's the issue? that is OLDER than the pedal bike... it's kind of part of the "natural evolution" of tech and design..
Also toddlers nowadays use a small version of this to get the hang of balance and operating a bike before going on a bike with pedals.
11:20 That question hurts.
Józef Stanislaw Kosacki, a Polish engineer and signals officer, invented the first "" portable metal detector """ to effectively detect land mines during World War II. "
we need to say " portable metal detector" to Poland, the other was in US
Alexander Graham Bell was Scottish, it wasn't a US invention at all!
lol, they made a mistake with the metal detector. What they meant is the first mass produced portable Metal-Detector (so the thing that you are using on the pictures you showed) which was invented by a Polish Lieutenant named Józef Kosacki during WW2. You may recognize that name, because there are actually quite a few "metal detecting clubs" around the world named after him.
Metal detecting in "laboratory conditions" has been invented much earlier as you were able to google out the information.
Szczepanik's bullet proof vest saved the life of the Spanish King Alfonso XIII from an assassination attempt. That same vest has been also offered to the Austro-Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferdinand, but he declined and later he got assassinated which ended up to be the trigger for the breakout of WW1.
Well that was selfish of him wasn’t it? Imagine if he had taken the vest? Millions of men would have been saved from 4 years of trench warfare.
The 1st moldable plastic was invented by the British in the 1860. The plastic talked about in this was the plastic that became single use.
That's something I've never heard of. It can be, I just don't know. We always learned it was Leo Baekeland - a Belgian - who invented Bakelite (1907) and with that also the first plastic. In any case, we can agree it's not Serbia.
@dieterohler3974bakelite was the first synthetic plastic.
yeh you got it JT, get some nose plugs for anna 🤣🤣
"Are those for a nosebleed" almost cried laughing.
1:40 cuz you have a table mannor like a farmer boy 😂 every pair is for different dishes, so if the dinner is a 7 "dishes" you will have 7 plates and 7 pair of silverware, that's how fancy people eat 😂
09:30 where i'm from these things are still really common for little kids who haven't learned to ride bikes yet.
you can go quite a bit faster and don't get exhausted as quick as when walking.
Yeay it's basically a scooter you can sit on. Seems like a decent idea if the bike drivetrain wasn't invented yet.
@lisamo1013 les premiers vélocipèdes à pédales (sur la roue avant) n'ont été inventé qu'environ un demi siècle plus tard
Sweden did not invent gps. but in 1992 Håkan Lans received a patent on a navigation system that uses satellite navigation (GPS) and radio communication to increase safety so that vehicles do not collide. The system is called STDMA, which stands for “self-organizing time division multiple access”. In 2004, it was adopted as the world standard in aviation.
9:03 that thing before the bicycle was invented, and was faster then just walking.
2:08 my man has no clue, nice.
Giulio Natta,italiano e premio Nobel 1963,ha inventato la plastica come la conosciamo oggi.
In reality, the attribution of the invention of radio is incorrect: in March 1900, Nikola Tesla patented (submitted in 1897) an electrical energy transmission system that could also be used to transmit radio signals. In 1898, he patented a multichannel radio control system that allowed him to control vessels over short distances, and whose basic control system consisted of four circuits tuned to the same frequency. Radio, on the other hand, was invented by the Italian Guglielmo Marconi in the early 1900s.
Exactly!👍😉
Correct .
Tesla literally didn't even believe hertzian waves existed (and wrote a famous article about how it would all be shown to be nonsense), he thought his system was transmitting through the ground.
Interesting
10:36 They are kind of retro as the bike with no gears came first. But it teaches them the basics of keeping balance and interacting with their environment.
The first plastic material, Parkesine, was invented in 1862 by the British scientist Alexander Parkes. However, it was the Belgian Leo Baekeland who developed Bakelite in 1907, the first fully synthetic plastic, i.e. a material that contained no natural raw materials. There is no evidence to suggest that a Serbian invented plastic.
I love my teasmade. The alarm rings and the kettle boils and i've a lovely hot tea to waken me up.
Yeah I’m not sure why they said a failed invention. My grandparents had that set so they could have a cup of tea as soon as they woke up (we are English after all). They always worked well and were absolutely fine being on the bedside cabinet (nightstand or whatever anyone calls it). Who flails around enough to burn themself with it when the alarm went off?
I'm loving all these videos. I've been binging while not feeling well & laughing out loud. Thanks JT!
The radio was not invented by a single person, but through the combined efforts of many pioneers such as Guglielmo Marconi, Nikola Tesla, Heinrich Hertz, and Alexander Popov.
I believe that most inventions have more than one inventor, and over time there are more "designers" or people who add to the invention.
The paperclip was invented by Johan Vaaler, a Norwegian.
4:51 these inventions are born out of frustration.
Some guy was *fed up* with having to go back and fetch the 10mm wrench when it looked like an 8mm nut just to realize that it was in fact not a 10mm one but a 9mm and the 9mm wrench was lost.
So he tossed all the wrenches and went "SHIT! I WISH I could just have ONE wrench and have it work for all nuts! 😡😤"
And there the idea was born
5:00 Yes! And Spotify! And Pirate Bay! 🇸🇪
That guy doing the flags with faces is horribly inaccurate, and clearly somewhat biased against Britain too.
Firstly, Britain didn't invent the velocipede, that was German Karl Drais. However, a much more useful thing that came from Britain was the pedal bicycle, massive improvement over the pedal-less velocipede, which was invented by Kirkpatrick Macmillan, a Scot.
Then GPS was US invention, (Google physicist Roger L. Easton and German-American Friedwardt Winterberg).
Also British chemist Alexander Parkes invented the first plastic known as Parkesine in 1862, though the first fully synthetic plastic was Bakelite invented by Leo Baekeland a US industrial chemist.
The father of radio was Guglielmo Marconi (Italian), though others contributed over many years.
The moustache shield he shows as being British was invented by Virgil A. Gates, a West Virginian. Not British.
Sure enough the Teasmade is indeed British (the one he actually got right) but it isn't a bad invention, they still sell them. You don't have it anywhere near your face, it sits a distance away usually, often on a bedside cabinet, no water spills out of it, the tea tastes absolutely fine (no different than boiling water in a kettle) and a good invention.
This is why you don't get your information from Tik Tok.
Bro quit yapping
As a Swede these TikTokers just spread lies, I don't know why people think a Swede invented the GPS while it takes 2 seconds to research and verify it.
What these dumb people are referring to is Håkan Lans and his STDMA navigation system and the AIS (Automatic Identification System), which integrated GPS with radio communications to prevent collisions and standardize navigation for ships and aircraft globally.
I mean, the velocipede is not a bad invention, it's scooter where you use two legs instead of just one to push yourself;
jogging is bad for your back, because of the continuous violent impacts with the ground, while the velocipede is much healthier than that!
@gonace its the same types who say hedy lemar invented Bluetooth (which is Swedish iirc), whereas she developed some of the foundational elements that Bluetooth and wireless technology couldn't work without.
The brits did not invent those stupid moustache things for drinking - instead they invented the moustache cup (with a built-in moustache guard) which didn't look peculiar (or any different from a normal cup unless you looked inside it).
7:20 i dont know if Poland did invent the metal detector or not, but i do know Americans SAY and WRITE every where CALMING they invented (put in any random invention) and took credit for it.
I googled it either and it looks like the first metal detector alike thing was invented in china using magnetic material in a doorframe or -step to detect weapons. 😂
@janw839 Yes, and the first electric battery was made by the ancient Egyptians and that's why they used torches.🤣 They didn't invent the light bulb, they didn't invent a lot of things powered by electricity.
@tabaaza9884 i just thought it's an interesting fact. 🙄
I guess it wasn't necessary to invent a machine finding landmines back then. 😂
Well, Heinrich Wilhelm Dove(a German) found the Natural Law of Induction. Alexander Bell(British, Later American) built a Prototype and Gerhard Fischer(American) Advanced it with Radio Radiation.
Józef Stanisław Kosacki the Polish "inventor" optimized its usage in power and increased its efficiency greatly. Depending on where each of these people were in History, it's hard to believe it was invented in Poland.
The 'Running' Bicycle was the version invented before the Pedal Bycycle in 1817 (also before Bicycle Brakes) a quicker way to get around than walking, especially downhill! The Pedal Bicycle was first invented in 1853.
12:47 there might be need for some further information on the functionality, cause springlocked handprothesises were around at least since the 15th century (prominent case Götz von Berlichingen)
02:15 100% Correct , yes that is 4 your nose xD
7:27 metal detector where invented by Heinrich Wilhelm Dove in poland
5:56 Funny enough Q-tips are also a Polish invention.
10:35 it trains their sense of balance, so it's easier for them to switch to a normal bike
3:40 ha I still use maps sometimes or plan my route mentally off app maps, I rarely use guided maps.
My mum was terrible at map reading so my dad had me trained by the time I was about 6 😅
If I have to go on a long journey I'll set the sat nav but also crack the map out so I have an idea of what roads I'll have to drive on.
11:25 Windshield wiper: Mary Anderson got it patented in the year 1903 ! (acoording to wikipedia). In 1930 it was already a standard feature in all cars.
Mary Anderson (1903) - invented the first windshield wipers, meaning she created the concept and a simple prototype that allowed drivers to manually clear rain and snow from their windshields. This solved the visibility problem but required manual operation.
Józef Hofmann (around 1910-1915) - invented the mechanism for operating windshield wipers, often using spring-based or clockwork-like mechanisms, which allowed the wiper arm to move automatically and regularly across the windshield. This improvement made wipers more efficient and paved the way for modern automatic versions.
✅ Summary:
Anderson = the idea and first manual wipers.
Hofmann = mechanical operation and improvement, enabling automatic movement and better performance.
This is why I like to come to the comment section i learn so much more.
5:52 well about that, Q-tips where invented by a Pole too, Leo Gerstenzang come up with Q-tip idea after he saw his wife using toothpick with some cotton on it for hard-to-clean areas.
6:35 The origin of vodka is not clearly stated. It is attributed to Poland and Russia, but the exact inventor is unknown. The earliest known mention of the word vodka comes from the Polish document "Acts of Grodzkie" from 1405.
In the case of the detector, it was a mine detector. The first practical constructor of the mine detector is considered to be a Polish officer, Lieutenant Józef Kosacki. In 1941, while in exile in the UK, Kosacki developed an electromagnetic mine detector.
3:07 Not bro! Sweden! 🇸🇪
A British Inventor called Kane Kramer basically invented the first iPod in 1985, called the IXI, which had an LCD screen and navigation arrows, but could only hold about 3.5 minutes of music but couldn't raise the funds to keep the patient from expiring, and then Apple came along and essentially used the patient when the technology had caught up. As of today, Apple has acknowledged Kane for the work on the IXI.
🤣🤣 the “owl’s coming out the barn” when a man’s zip is down!
The kerosene lamp illustrated was actually even cooler. It's a hurricane lantern. The hoops are air passages that equalize ait draft so that the flame doesn't go out no matter the direction or how high the wind speed.
10:29 both my kids learned balance using a no-pedal bike when they were under 3. It then took 5 minutes for them to learn how to use pedals
There are a lot of channels with US citizens reacting to european things, but you are the funniest guy. Love from a gardener from the italian speaking part of Switzerland 🇨🇭
He's not the only reacting videos like this.
Therefore Ive got to agree on that, he's by far the most funniest guy.
Tuning from London, UK 🇬🇧
Love your chocolate bar 🍫
Lindt and Nestle
😊🙂
Lol if I have to go somewhere I just look at a map or google map before taking the road, and eventually take notes on a paper if it is long route. I have a gps in my car, but it is outdated for at least 15 years so I can't use it.
0:08 Yes you did! Very nice! 👏😃🇸🇪
That's the original " balance bike "
Haha JT, ask Anna what those "nosebleed plugs" are actually for!
Funfact! A very early and influential type of metal detector, the first effective portable mine detector, was invented by a Polish engineer, Józef Kosacki, in 1941. He developed the design in Great Britain during World War II and gave it as a gift to the British Army, which used it to significantly aid in clearing German minefields, saving many lives
The concern on Charlie's face when your dancing haha
My parents had a Teasmade !! Loved it. Was brilliant when us kids in the 80's were ill. No running up and down stairs with hot drinks.
Love to see the gears turning.
JT I enjoy your videos so much, your comments are pure gold 😊
The Inventor of the Modern Metal Detector was Lieut. Jozef Stanislaw Kosacki 1909 - 1990 a Polish inventor and soldier.
While serving in the Signals Corps of the exiled Polish Army defending the Fife coast, Kosacki developed the mine detector.
Maybe its not a metal Detector
The bikes without pedals were actually one of my favorite toys on the playground as a kid. It helps train your balance so you won't tip over when you're on a regular bike. They do however wear down the soles of your shoes quickly since they don't have brakes.
The bike is just a early version of the kick scooter
2:13 yup that's for if you have a nosebleed, stops the bleeding
Funnily enough, the balance bike has become extremely popular for toddlers in Germany in the last 10 years. It is almost unbelievable how well the dwarves cope with it, although some of them can hardly walk yet.
As long as you do not dance to *YMCA*.... 😂 "Let's get on up into!!!"
2:03 olive oil and salt
Technically, radio was invented by Guglielmo Marconi, an Italian inventor who discovered the first wireless transmissions.
rockefeller & his ppl learned how to extract gas from oil in poland thanks to Ignacy Łukasiewicz.
Modern oil industry would be very diffrent if not for łukasiewicz.
Also
Czochralski methode of growing
crystals is basis for modern electronics. So poland has some major achievments
& Little trivia Józef Hoffman, the famous pianist made wipers mechanism for early Ford cars
2:40 they are for keeping the cutlery away from the table cloth, protecting both from exposure to one another.
Metal detectors are on of those involunteraly 'joined' inventions where it's hard to tell which one is the actual invention and which one is the predecessor product that is just leading to it.
- It started with a german inventing the induction balance that was used in the first devices to search for metal, but they were HUGE and heavy.
- A brit turned USAsian (Graham Bell) tried to use exactly such a device to find a bullet inside a US president's chest - without success
- A german businessman and scientist moved to the USA and discovered that radiowaves and metal interact and made probably the first actual metal detector - at least he patented it there and got the US citizenship.
- A polish officer stationed in Scottland during WW2 then developed a portable and better version.
And from here the americans took it and commercialized it. So, a polish guy was the last one in the invention chain who pretty much created the type of metal detector we know today, it has just been improved according to modernized standards since then.
The zipper originates from the American inventor Whitcomb L. Judson, who patented the first fastening design in 1892. However, the modern, improved version of the zipper, resembling the one still used today, was patented by the Swedish engineer Gideon Sundback in 1917, after he enhanced Judson’s earlier invention.
And I'm from Poland
The bikes with wings is now a redbull contest 😂😂😂😂
10:45 in fact it did work in second part of 20th century such pedal propeler "plane" existed. Even flied quite well. But needed professional biker to do that.
2:10 - Yup, have seen some people walk around with one of those up their nose - they collect the blood pretty good... but they're a woman's hygiene product... That's why they have a small string at the end...
12:00 - there's one more I know of in 1908 Melitta Bentz from Dresden, Germany invented the coffee filter for your coffee machine... she punched a few holes in a kettle, put a piece of paper in there and then she had clear, filtered coffee because she hated to have cooked, ground coffee in her mouth. There's a coffee based company here in Europe (especialy in Germany and Austria it's well known) called "Melitta" - it's founded by her family n 1908 also - and the filter got a patent on so it's protected and her family earned so much with it.
I live in Salzburg, Austria and here we have a base of this company...
I just looked the history up and well... the company "Melitta" also exists in the USA. Everytime you see this, just remember - it was founded by a german housewife who wanted clear coffee to drink.
2:22 😂🤣
non applicator tampons are also useful for outdoor firestarters, all that compressed cotton wool
Marie Curie à inventer les rayons x, les radios médical
The bike is one of the first bikes ever made and called a bone shaker .
For flying bikes, search out the gossamer albatross.
The kids scooter with small wheels and a platform to stand on is similar to that early bike. You kind of row it with your foot to build up speed then keep rolling. The same with a skateboard.
8:50 Yeah so, sorry but UK didn't invent that. It was invented by Karl Drais (therefore its name in German sometimes : Draisine, or French : la Draisienne) in 1817 in the Grand Duchy of Baden, a sovereign country before WW1, now in Germany. Drais called it Laufmaschine => running machine.
And OBVIOUSLY, it was invented WAY BEFORE bikes (1884).
Denmark invented the loudspeaker Google Maps and Skype (a dane and a Swedish guy invented Skype) Bluetooth was invented by a Swedish guy but named after a danish king Harald Blåtand ....Harold Bluetooth .....Lego is danish
10:30 they are litterly called a balance bike for kids 😅 super common in europe
We love you JT ,you're a legend 😀
The inventor of the first metal detector is Robert Were Fox, who created a simple device in 1830. Later, Gerhard Fischer received a patent for the first commercial detector in 1925, and Józef Kosacki (a Pole) the first practical mine detector in 1941/1942.
It's funny, that walking bike - I see little kids using it, before they learn to ride a bike here in Denmark.
Here's what Google says about metal detectors:
_The first effective electric metal detector was invented in France by Gustave Trouvé in 1874 for medical purposes, and a German inventor, Gerhard Fischer, developed a portable model with a new design in 1925, leading to commercial production. There are also claims of an early detector in China around 200 BC and a Polish inventor, Józef Kosacki, developed the first portable device for landmine detection during World War II._
10:38 u train them the balance, before kids starts to have pedals bikes, this laufrader because this inventions are made by germans are name in english balance bike - like i said u teach them balance so children can teach very fast ride on a bike :)
denmark invenet lego and hama beads
The teasmaid was great I loved it
yeah balance bikes (or just a regular bike but you take off the pedals) are the best way to get beginners on a bike because they are training how to balance and once that's mastered it is easier to adapt to the fact that they need to use the pedals on a regular bike. because they already have a pretty good balance then they just have to adapt to the little shake of getting the feet to the pedals.
Letitia is pronounced Le-tisha.
That running bike is low key awesome, it's like a scooter you can sit on.
We still have this run bike thing now but it's called roller skates
2:19 they’re bullet tampons so they expand when you put them in rather than the whole packaging and a scary ass tampon
It teaches them to balance on two wheels
Would have been nice if they had captions in video explaining what is being shown