On the anniversary of the death of Alexander Bain we take a look at some of the simple everyday objects of modern life that owe their origins to the enquiring minds of Scottish inventors. Who was Alexander Bain? He invented the electric clock which was able to synchronise clocks around the world and made a major contribution to the developing telegraph industry. Yet he died in poverty and relative obscurity - a common theme. We look at how happenchance elevated some names to international recognition while the story of others became a footnote in the history books.