One of Thomas Edison’s first inventions was a telegraphic vote recording machine. He tried to let Congress use it, however they disliked the device. An official response was given as follows “The chairman of the committee, unimpressed with the speed with which the instrument could record votes, told him that “if there is any invention on earth that we don’t want down here, that is it.” The slow pace of roll call voting in Congress and other legislatures enabled members to filibuster legislation or convince others to change their votes.