The 50 Worst Inventions

From the zany to the dangerous to the just plain dumb, here is TIME's list (in no particular order) of some of the world's bright ideas that just didn't work out

Venetian-Blind Sunglasses

Worst Inventions

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Between his awful singing, awful telethon moments and awful award-show moments, there's a case for Kanye West's personal inclusion on this list. Instead, we'll simply blame him for repopularizing the most awful sunglasses ever. A trend in the '80s, these slatted sunglasses were dead and buried until West sported them in his 2007 music video for "Stronger," introducing a new generation of style morons to an utterly pointless and functionless accessory.

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