Synopsis
We take thousands of inventions for granted, using them daily and enjoying their benefits. But how much do we really know about their origins and development? This absorbing new book tells the stories behind the inventions that have changed the world, with details about--
Convenience items, such as safety pins, toothbrushes, and bifocals Weapons of war, including explosives, gunpowder, and shrapnel shells Industrial advances, such as the steam engine and the power loom for weaving Transportation advances, including the airplane, the diesel engine, the automobile, and the air-inflated rubber tire Electronic marvels, including color television, the microprocessor, the personal computer, the compact disc, and the cell phone Medical advances, from antiseptic surgery to the electron microscope. . . and much more.
Inventors and pioneers of science and technology, including Eli Whitney, James Watt, Benjamin Franklin, Henry Bessemer, Thomas Edison, J.B. Dunlop, the Wright Brothers, Werner von Braun, Jonas Salk, J. Robert Oppenheimer, and many others are also discussed. Fascinating photos and illustrations complement authoritative summaries of each invention, and remarkable quotations from many of the inventors add to this chronicle of human ingenuity that began some 6,000 years ago with the invention of the wheel. Approximately 700 photos and illustrations in color and black and white.
Reviews
This overview of creative thinking and innovation moves chronologically from one advancement to another. Photos, advertisements, and schematics of the locomotive, zoom lens, lie detector, World Wide Web, and Segway enhance history with succinct captioning and color or black-and-white illustrations of the devices in use. Commentary and glosses are succinct and inclusive without dumbing down the material. Beginning with stone tools and fire, coverage veers rapidly away from domestic developments. The list omits knitting, a medieval transformation in clothing design, and subsequent necessities such as the infant nurser, faucet diverter valve, powdered yeast, sheet gelatin, denim, oven thermometer, garment elastic, and food processor. Weaknesses include unusual spelling errors (carburettor, brwmplant) and inadequate cross-referencing. Although there are indexes for inventions and inventors, the absence of a general index is a drawback. Nonetheless, this is a valuable and inexpensive reference text for the school and public library and for the homeschooler. --Mary Ellen Snodgrass
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
