Poor Planning

Napoleon appointed three scientists to create a device that would preserve rations for his troops as they attacked Russia. Their brainchild: canned food. In the French team was Louis Pasteur, the inventor of the pasteurization method. The technique they developed for canning is virtually the same process used today. Unfortunately, the scientists didn’t also invent a can opener. So by relying on knives and bayonets to pierce the thick metal cans, many soldiers severely wounded themselves, some even cutting off a finger or two!