What's so Bunsen about the burner?

I was going over this article about UML and RUP and principles and methodologies and processes (Ok, ok, for non-technocrats with no prior Dilbert exposure: this is supposed to be the tactic by which I impress upon my mundane, 'any damn guy can do' job.. don't tell the any damn guy, I could use lesser competition.. by the way 3 letter acronyms are becoming less popular and less techie, need to invent and use more 4, 5 and 6 lettered ones until they sound like words themselves).

I was presented with a cartoon that shows how different 'stuff' reacting together to produce new 'stuff' (non-technocrats, here is the part where you stand up and appreciate my stepping down the elite geekiness). They used a chemistry lab depiction where this A+B+C -> D happens. And the reaction was sponsored by our own, the one and only Bunsen burner. (I had to squeeze through the nine years of chemistry I forced into myself to remember this Bunsen guy.) This post is not aimed at avenging Bunsen for the two points I lost because I could not remember his stupid name. And no, he was not the only one who contributed to my hatred to Chemistry. He was just one and I have reasons slam him today.

So I ask myself, whats so Bunsen about the burner?

Some guy was creative, insightful and thoughtful enough to prove for the first time that a burner that you use for other everyday essential activities like melting used plastic pens, lighting cigarettes, scaring pets away, heating up the chair before the teacher sits on it, etc. could also find use in a chemistry lab. Good job! Great!! Thanks!!! But people, get over it. That didn't even deserve calling it the Bunsen burner for like an hour. Or all of Bunsen's life. And by no means we should address the burner like that forever into the future. That makes me so wild. Here we are technologically unchallenged, with the invention of CD burner, DVD burner and the Dual DVD burner and still who wins hands down? Bunsen Burner! Damn it! Lucky B#$^@%. I mean, lucky Bunsen!

I would be so damn pissed if I were Edison. Freaking people, after spending the whole of my life inventing light and discovering other things which no can ever see - like the electrons (thats the beauty, met anyone who questions the very existence of electrons?). And you people honor Bunsen. All I get is a city in NJ where Indians spit at my invention in every direction. How are we to convince Edison that we don't mean to tranish his image, all we are trying to do is to preserve our heritage.

Oh Man, thanks to Wikipedia, I found this article that adds fuel to the fire. Or Bunsen fuel to the Bunsen fire.

Robert Wilhelm Bunsen (31 March 1811 – 16 August 1899) was a German chemist. He perfected the burner that was named after him, invented by British chemist/physicist Michael Faraday, and worked on emission spectroscopy of heated elements.

So technically this guy did not even invent the burner in the first place, all he did was "perfect" Faraday's burner. There are no references in the article about the killing of a German chemist by a British chemist) A stitch in time could make history. Faraday Burner could potentially become the Bunsen burner. This Bunsen guy sure had phonetic advantage. May be Faraday should have tried Faraday Funnel or something. Oh, he did do something! He probably got mighty pissed when Bunsen stole the lamp, wiped it clean, painted and wrote the word Bunsen on it (read as "perfected"). In his own capacity, he earnt credit for the unit of capacitance, the Farad.

Well, after all, this Bunsen guy had something. For people like me, who cannot find the time to invent stuff admidst several social and antisocial commitments, this guy is a true inspiration. I am on the look out to find something I could perfect. And the world shall gloriously have its own Sri range of products:

Sri Satellite, Sri Sky, Sri Shoelace.. What's the S word? Any suggestions?

Its so true, necessity is the mother of invention!