'PLANNING IS A BLIGHT ON PROGRESS'

摘要

Britain's most famous engineer is explaining his process of invention. 'Everything starts with a problem,' says James Dyson, leaning back in his chair. The energy-hungry hand drier, for instance, presented Dyson with one such problem, so he invented the Airblade in 2006, which dries hands faster and uses 80 per cent less energy. But last week, Dyson came up against a problem that even he couldn't solve. His plans for a ￡56 million Dyson School of Innovation and Design in Bath were scrapped after the government pulled its funding. Some things, it seems, also end with a problem.