Inventing the 20th Century: 100 Inventions That Shaped the World

Imagine your average day without zippers, airplanes, vacuum cleaners, without your personal stereo, without photocopiers. All of these devices were invented within the last hundred or so years and have since transformed our daily landscape.

Drawing on the British Library's vast and comprehensive collection of patents, this handsomely illustrated book recounts the history of one hundred of the most significant inventions of the century, decade by decade. Many of these inventions changed the world; others radically changed our daily lives. By combining a brief history of each patent with a copy of the original—and often entertaining—patent application (the zipper is a "hookless fastener," the Post-It note and "inherently tacky, elastomeric polymer"), Inventing the 20th Century reveals the ways in which many of the most basic aspects of our material existence—our clothes (nylon, Velcro), our leisure (Monopoly, Scrabble), our homes (Tupperware, Teflon)—have been revolutionized through specific objects.

From the photocopier to the Slinky, from genetic fingerprinting to the Lava Lamp, from the ballpoint pen to the fuel cell, Inventing the 20th Century is an informative, illuminating window onto the technology of the twentieth century.

Nobody can complain that the 1900s were boring. Author Stephen Van Dulken observes the transition away from industrial society and past the information age through the world's patent offices in Inventing the Twentieth Century. This collection of 100 brief glimpses into important or oddball inventions is organized by decade, so the reader can see that while some things have changed dramatically--from the electric washing machine to Dolly the cloned sheep in just 86 years--others remain static, like our still-fervent quest for the perfect teabag.

Each entry consists of a page of text describing the patent and a facing page of diagrams from the application, some of which are perplexing or amusing. From the frivolous (snowboard) to the deadly serious (genetic fingerprinting) and even lifesaving (Viagra--?), Van Dulken collects inventions with the widest interest to a general audience. Each decade's section is introduced with a brief contextual exposition that lays the groundwork for understanding the circumstances that permitted each inventor's inspiration to strike. Inventing the Twentieth Century is great fun to read, but it also challenges its readers and inspires thinking about technology and our collective future. Let's hear it for pleasant surprises! --Rob Lightner