Colin Murdoch

Colin Albert Murdoch ONZM (born February 6, 1929 in Christchurch , New Zealand , † May 4, 2008 in Timaru ) was a New Zealand pharmacist , veterinarian and inventor . He is u. a. the inventor of the stun gun and the disposable syringe and was awarded the New Zealand Order of Merit.

Life

Due to his dyslexia, Murdoch was not very successful in school, but showed strong mechanical and technical skills and a talent for chemistry from an early age. At the age of 10, he mixed gunpowder himself and assembled a firearm. He studied at the College of Pharmacy in Wellington and, like his father before him, became a pharmacist. Another study followed, which he completed as a veterinarian. As an inventor, he developed, among other things, a childproof bottle cap and a noiseless burglar alarm.

Despite his numerous inventions, Murdoch did not become a rich man; he avoided filing patent lawsuits against copies of his ideas, as he said he was happy if they would help people.

Disposable syringe

As a pharmacist and veterinarian, Murdoch was well aware of the dangers of reusing a glass syringe, there is a high risk of transmission of infections from one patient to another (in both humans and animals) if the syringe is not carefully sterilized . In order to avoid this risk and because he was looking for a more effective stunning method for wild animals, he developed the disposable syringe made of plastic. Murdoch presented his invention to the health department, where it was classified as "too futuristic". Due to a lack of financial support, the further development of his idea was not possible for several years. When he was later awarded the patent , the disposable syringe became a worldwide success that is now used millions of times a day.

Tranquilizer gun

While working on a study of the wildlife population, Murdoch came up with the idea that the animals would be much easier to capture and examine if the stunning could be done remotely. Murdoch was already very familiar with firearms, having repaired and modified weapons during World War II. He then developed various rifles, pistols and tranquilizers under the company name Paxarms Limited (The abbreviation Paxarms stands for peace and weapons ).

Awards

In 1976 he won three gold medals and one bronze medal at the World Inventions Fair in Brussels. In 2000 he was awarded the New Zealand Order of Merit.

Web links

• Biography of Colin Murdoch, New Zealand Edge (English)
• The history of the disposable syringe (English)