Introduction
The wheel is, without a doubt, the most significant mechanical invention of all time. Ever since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution the wheel has been at the heart of nearly every machine built. It’s hard to imagine any mechanized system that would be possible without the wheel or the idea of a symmetrical component moving in a circular motion on an axis. From tiny watch gears to automobiles, jet engines and computer disk drives, the principle is the same.
Early research & developments
One may be tempted to think that the wheel is just a humble or even primitive invention compared to some of the fancy gadgets that we have today. Nevertheless, the wheel (specifically as a means of transportation) was actually invented at a relatively late point of human history. The oldest known wheel found in an archaeological excavation is from Mesopotamia (part of Iraq), and dates back to around 3500 BC.
The first use of the wheel for transportation was probably on Mesopotamian chariots in 3200 BC. To be completely historic, the very beginning of the wheel goes back to the Paleolithic era (15,000 to 750,000 years ago). However, given the complexity of the wheel-axle combination, it may be unsurprising that the wheel was not initially invented for transportation purposes. Instead, it has been claimed that wheels were first used by potters. Remember the 5,500-year-old wheel for Mesopotamia? It seems that it was a potters’ wheel (the use of wheels for pottery making may date even further back into the Neolithic). It seems that the use of wheels for transportation only happened 300 years later.
Although the world’s oldest wheel has been found in Mesopotamia, the earliest images of wheeled carts were found in Poland and elsewhere in the Eurasian steppes. Some have suggested that due to the immense challenge that the invention of the wheel posed to mankind, it probably happened only once, and spread from its place of origin to other parts of the world. However, others believe it developed independently in separate parts of the world at around the same time. For example, The Ljubljana Marshes Wheel is a wooden wheel that was found in the capital of Slovenia in 2002 and was dated to 3150 BC.
A wheel with spokes first appeared on Egyptian chariots around 2000 BC, and wheels seem to have developed in Europe by 1400 BC without any influence from the Middle East. Because the idea of the wheel appears so simple, it’s easy to assume that the wheel would have simply "happened" in every culture when it reached a particular level of sophistication. However, this is not the case. The great Inca, Aztec and Maya civilizations reached an extremely high level of development, yet they never used the wheel. In fact, there is no evidence that the use of the wheel existed among native people anywhere in the Western Hemisphere until well after contact with Europeans.
Even in Europe, the wheel evolved little until the beginning of the nineteenth century. However, with the coming of the Industrial Revolution the wheel became the central component of technology, and came to be used in thousands of ways in countless different mechanisms.
Conclusion
Tens of thousands of other inventions require wheels to function, from water wheels that power mills to gears and cogs that allowed even ancient cultures to create complex machines. Cranks and pulleys need wheels to work. A huge amount of modern technology still depends on the wheel, like centrifuges used in chemistry and medical research, electric motors and combustion engines, jet engines, power plants and countless others.
Wednesday 7 January 2015
The Telephone
Introduction
There is a lot of controversy and intrigue surrounding the invention of the telephone. There have been court cases, books, and articles generated about the subject. Of course, Alexander Graham Bell is the father of the telephone. After all it was his design that was first patented, however, he was not the first inventor to come up with the idea of a telephone.
Early research & developments
The initial inventor of the Telephone was Antonio Meucci, an Italian immigrant. He began developing the design of a talking telegraph or telephone in 1849. In 1871, he filed a caveat (an announcement of an invention) for his design of a talking telegraph. Due to a lack of finances, however, Meucci could not renew his caveat. Two years later Bell, who shared a laboratory with Meucci, filed a patent for a telephone, and made a fortune on the revolutionary device.
To make matters even more interesting Elisha Gray, a professor at Oberlin College, applied for a caveat of the telephone on the same day Bell applied for his patent of the telephone. The date was February 14, 1876. Alexander Graham Bell was the fifth entry of that day, while Gray was 39th. Therefore, the U.S. Patent Office awarded Bell with the first patent for a telephone, US Patent Number 174,465 rather than honour Gray's caveat.
Alexander Graham Bell and “his” Telephone
The telephone was actually discovered by Alexander Graham Bell accidentally in his attempts to improve the telegraph. The telegraph was a highly successful system with its dot-and-dash Morse code, but it was basically limited to receiving and sending one message at a time. Bell's extensive knowledge of the nature of sound and his understanding of music enabled him to conjecture the possibility of transmitting multiple messages over the same wire at the same time. Although the idea of a multiple telegraph had been in existence for some time, Bell offered his own harmonic approach as a possible practical solution. His "harmonic telegraph" was based on the principle that several notes could be sent simultaneously along the same wire if the notes or signals differed in pitch
However, lacking the time and skill to make the equipment for these experiments he enlisted the help of Thomas A. Watson from a nearby electrical shop. The two became good friends and worked together on the tedious experimentation to produce sounds over the "harmonic telegraph." It was on June 2, 1875, while Bell was at one end of the line and Watson worked on the reeds of the telegraph in another room that he heard the sound of a plucked reed coming to him over the wire.
By March 1876 they had managed to make a transmission, but the sound was very faint. However, by March 7, 1876 Bell had successfully obtained an Official Patent for his telephone. Three days later this revolutionary device carried its first intelligible sentence in the rented top floor of a Boston boarding house at 109 Court Street, Boston. Speaking through the instrument to his assistant, Thomas A. Watson, in the next room, Bell utters these famous first words, "Mr. Watson -- come here -- I want to see you."
By July 9, 1877, however, the telephone had become a business, named The Bell Telephone Company. It was organized in Boston, Massachusetts by Alexander Graham Bell's father-in-law Gardiner Greene Hubbard. However, on March 20, 1880 after merging with other companies and receiving the financial backing from Thomas Sanders, The Bell Telephone Company changed to form the American Bell Telephone Company. Subsequently, this business would later evolve into the American Telephone & Telegraph Company (AT&T), at times the world's largest telephone company.
Did You Know?
Though he is credited with its invention, Alexander Graham Bell refused to have a telephone in his study, fearing it would distract him from his scientific work.
There is a lot of controversy and intrigue surrounding the invention of the telephone. There have been court cases, books, and articles generated about the subject. Of course, Alexander Graham Bell is the father of the telephone. After all it was his design that was first patented, however, he was not the first inventor to come up with the idea of a telephone.
Early research & developments
The initial inventor of the Telephone was Antonio Meucci, an Italian immigrant. He began developing the design of a talking telegraph or telephone in 1849. In 1871, he filed a caveat (an announcement of an invention) for his design of a talking telegraph. Due to a lack of finances, however, Meucci could not renew his caveat. Two years later Bell, who shared a laboratory with Meucci, filed a patent for a telephone, and made a fortune on the revolutionary device.
To make matters even more interesting Elisha Gray, a professor at Oberlin College, applied for a caveat of the telephone on the same day Bell applied for his patent of the telephone. The date was February 14, 1876. Alexander Graham Bell was the fifth entry of that day, while Gray was 39th. Therefore, the U.S. Patent Office awarded Bell with the first patent for a telephone, US Patent Number 174,465 rather than honour Gray's caveat.
Alexander Graham Bell and “his” Telephone
The telephone was actually discovered by Alexander Graham Bell accidentally in his attempts to improve the telegraph. The telegraph was a highly successful system with its dot-and-dash Morse code, but it was basically limited to receiving and sending one message at a time. Bell's extensive knowledge of the nature of sound and his understanding of music enabled him to conjecture the possibility of transmitting multiple messages over the same wire at the same time. Although the idea of a multiple telegraph had been in existence for some time, Bell offered his own harmonic approach as a possible practical solution. His "harmonic telegraph" was based on the principle that several notes could be sent simultaneously along the same wire if the notes or signals differed in pitch
However, lacking the time and skill to make the equipment for these experiments he enlisted the help of Thomas A. Watson from a nearby electrical shop. The two became good friends and worked together on the tedious experimentation to produce sounds over the "harmonic telegraph." It was on June 2, 1875, while Bell was at one end of the line and Watson worked on the reeds of the telegraph in another room that he heard the sound of a plucked reed coming to him over the wire.
By March 1876 they had managed to make a transmission, but the sound was very faint. However, by March 7, 1876 Bell had successfully obtained an Official Patent for his telephone. Three days later this revolutionary device carried its first intelligible sentence in the rented top floor of a Boston boarding house at 109 Court Street, Boston. Speaking through the instrument to his assistant, Thomas A. Watson, in the next room, Bell utters these famous first words, "Mr. Watson -- come here -- I want to see you."
By July 9, 1877, however, the telephone had become a business, named The Bell Telephone Company. It was organized in Boston, Massachusetts by Alexander Graham Bell's father-in-law Gardiner Greene Hubbard. However, on March 20, 1880 after merging with other companies and receiving the financial backing from Thomas Sanders, The Bell Telephone Company changed to form the American Bell Telephone Company. Subsequently, this business would later evolve into the American Telephone & Telegraph Company (AT&T), at times the world's largest telephone company.
Did You Know?
Though he is credited with its invention, Alexander Graham Bell refused to have a telephone in his study, fearing it would distract him from his scientific work.
Monday 5 January 2015
The Printing Press
Introduction
The printing press is considered one of the most important inventions in history. This device has made it possible for books, newspapers, magazines, and other reading materials to be produced in great numbers, and it plays an important role in promoting literacy among the masses. It was developed based on early principles of printing, and it has undergone many modifications over the years to meet the needs of people in different eras.
Johannes Gutenberg is usually credited as the inventor of the printing press. Indeed, the German goldsmith's 15th-century contribution to the technology was revolutionary — enabling the mass production of books and the rapid dissemination of knowledge throughout Europe. However, the history of printing begins long before Gutenberg's time.
The Invention of the Printing Press
The earliest documented evidence of printing dates back to the 2nd century when the ancient Chinese started using wooden blocks to transfer images of flowers on silk. Around the 4th century, woodblock printing on cloth was practiced in Roman Egypt. The Chinese began printing on paper in the 7th century, and they created the Diamond Sutra, the first complete printed book, in 868. The first movable type printing system was invented by Pi Sheng in China around 1040. This printing device used movable metal type pieces to produce prints, and it made the process of printing more efficient and flexible. Nonetheless, since it was made of clay, it broke easily. In the 13thcentury, the Koreans created a metal type movable printing device, which applied the typecasting method that was used in coin casting.
By mid-15th century, a number of print masters in Europe were getting closer to perfecting movable metal type printing techniques. One of these men was Johannes Gutenberg, a former goldsmith and stone cutter from Mainz, Germany. Gutenberg created an alloy that was made up of tin, lead, and antimony. This alloy melted at low temperature, and it was excellent for die casting and durable in the printing press. It made it possible for separate type pieces to be used and reused. Instead of carving entire words and phrases, Gutenberg carved the mirror images of individual letters on a small block. The letters could be moved easily and arranged to form words. This device was the printing press, and it revolutionized the printing industry. In 1452, Gutenberg started printing his most famous project, the Gutenberg Bible. He managed to produce a total of two hundred copies of the bible, and he offered them for sale at the Frankfurt Book Fair in 1455.
Gutenberg’s printing press led to a dramatic increase in the number of print shops throughout Europe. Nonetheless, as the demand for printed materials increased over time, there was a need for a printing press that could produce higher quality prints at a faster rate. In the year 1800, Earl Stanhope from England invented a cast-iron printing press that was capable of producing cleaner and more vivid impressions. Other inventions that followed included the Columbian press, bed-and-platen press, cylinder press, rotary press, Bullock press, linotype machine, and monotype machine. Today, printing is mostly done with the use of computers, and modern printing devices can produce prints at a much faster rate than those that were used in the past.
Did you know?
More printing is done in one second today than in a year during the 15th and 16th centuries. In fact, modern technology has made it possible to print and deliver the printed material in less than twenty four hours.
The printing press is considered one of the most important inventions in history. This device has made it possible for books, newspapers, magazines, and other reading materials to be produced in great numbers, and it plays an important role in promoting literacy among the masses. It was developed based on early principles of printing, and it has undergone many modifications over the years to meet the needs of people in different eras.
Johannes Gutenberg is usually credited as the inventor of the printing press. Indeed, the German goldsmith's 15th-century contribution to the technology was revolutionary — enabling the mass production of books and the rapid dissemination of knowledge throughout Europe. However, the history of printing begins long before Gutenberg's time.
The Invention of the Printing Press
The earliest documented evidence of printing dates back to the 2nd century when the ancient Chinese started using wooden blocks to transfer images of flowers on silk. Around the 4th century, woodblock printing on cloth was practiced in Roman Egypt. The Chinese began printing on paper in the 7th century, and they created the Diamond Sutra, the first complete printed book, in 868. The first movable type printing system was invented by Pi Sheng in China around 1040. This printing device used movable metal type pieces to produce prints, and it made the process of printing more efficient and flexible. Nonetheless, since it was made of clay, it broke easily. In the 13thcentury, the Koreans created a metal type movable printing device, which applied the typecasting method that was used in coin casting.
By mid-15th century, a number of print masters in Europe were getting closer to perfecting movable metal type printing techniques. One of these men was Johannes Gutenberg, a former goldsmith and stone cutter from Mainz, Germany. Gutenberg created an alloy that was made up of tin, lead, and antimony. This alloy melted at low temperature, and it was excellent for die casting and durable in the printing press. It made it possible for separate type pieces to be used and reused. Instead of carving entire words and phrases, Gutenberg carved the mirror images of individual letters on a small block. The letters could be moved easily and arranged to form words. This device was the printing press, and it revolutionized the printing industry. In 1452, Gutenberg started printing his most famous project, the Gutenberg Bible. He managed to produce a total of two hundred copies of the bible, and he offered them for sale at the Frankfurt Book Fair in 1455.
Gutenberg’s printing press led to a dramatic increase in the number of print shops throughout Europe. Nonetheless, as the demand for printed materials increased over time, there was a need for a printing press that could produce higher quality prints at a faster rate. In the year 1800, Earl Stanhope from England invented a cast-iron printing press that was capable of producing cleaner and more vivid impressions. Other inventions that followed included the Columbian press, bed-and-platen press, cylinder press, rotary press, Bullock press, linotype machine, and monotype machine. Today, printing is mostly done with the use of computers, and modern printing devices can produce prints at a much faster rate than those that were used in the past.
Did you know?
More printing is done in one second today than in a year during the 15th and 16th centuries. In fact, modern technology has made it possible to print and deliver the printed material in less than twenty four hours.
The Light Bulb
Introduction
Thomas Edison is usually credited as the inventor of the light bulb. Indeed, the famous American inventor’s contribution to this revolutionary technology was hugely important, however we must realise that he was not the sole inventor of the light bulb. Many notable figures are also remembered for their work with electric batteries, lamps and the creation of the first incandescent bulbs.
Thomas Edison is usually credited as the inventor of the light bulb. Indeed, the famous American inventor’s contribution to this revolutionary technology was hugely important, however we must realise that he was not the sole inventor of the light bulb. Many notable figures are also remembered for their work with electric batteries, lamps and the creation of the first incandescent bulbs.
Early research & developments
In 1802, an Englishman named Humphry Davy invented the first electric light. He experimented with electricity and invented an electric battery. When he connected wires to his battery and a piece of carbon, the carbon glowed, producing light. His invention was known as the Electric Arc lamp. However, while it produced light, it didn’t produce it for long and was much too bright for practical use.
In 1840, British scientist Warren de la Rue developed an efficiently designed light bulb using a coiled platinum filament in place of copper, but the high cost of platinum kept the bulb from becoming a commercial success. And in 1848, Englishman William Staite improved the longevity of conventional arc lamps by developing a clockwork mechanism that regulated the movement of the lamps' quick-to-erode carbon rods. But the cost of the batteries used to power Staite's lamps put a damper on the inventor's commercial ventures.
In 1850 an English physicist named Joseph Wilson Swan created a “light bulb” by enclosing carbonized paper filaments in an evacuated glass bulb. And by 1860 he had a working prototype, but the lack of a good vacuum and an adequate supply of electricity resulted in a bulb whose lifetime was much too short to be considered an effective producer of light. However, in the 1870’s better vacuum pumps became available and Swan continued experiments on light bulbs. In 1878, Swan developed a longer lasting light bulb using a treated cotton thread that also removed the problem of early bulb blackening.
In 1874, Canadian inventors Henry Woodward and Matthew Evans filed a patent for an electric lamp with different-sized carbon rods held between electrodes in a glass cylinder filled with nitrogen. The pair tried, unsuccessfully, to commercialize their lamps but eventually sold their patent to Edison in 1879.
Thomas Edison and the “first” light bulb
Edison and his team of researchers in Edison's laboratory in Menlo Park, N.J., tested more than 3,000 designs for bulbs between 1878 and 1880. However, he continued to test several types of material for metal filaments to improve upon his original design and by Nov 4, 1879, he filed a patent for an electric lamp with "a carbon filament or strip coiled and connected ... to platina contact wires." The patent listed several materials that might be used for the filament, including cotton, linen and wood. It was not until several months after the patent was granted that Edison and his team discovered that a carbonized bamboo filament could last over 1200 hours. This discovery marked the beginning of commercially manufactured light bulbs and in 1880, Thomas Edison’s company, Edison Electric Light Company began marketing its new product.
Changing technology
Nowadays, lighting choices have expanded and people can now choose between many different types of light bulbs. These include compact fluorescent (CFL) bulbs which work by heating a gas that produces ultraviolet light, as well as LED bulbs that use solid-state light-emitting diodes.
Thursday 18 December 2014
The Internet
Introduction
The Internet, a network of computers covering the entire planet, allows people to access almost any information located anywhere in the world at any time. Its effects on business, communication, economy, entertainment and even politics are profound.
Like many other revolutionary inventions I will be talking about in this blog, the Internet has no one single inventor, but rather it has evolved over time. The Internet was first created in the United States more than 50 years ago as a government weapon in the Cold War. For years, scientists and researchers used it to communicate and share data with one another. Today, we use the Internet for almost everything, and for many people it would be impossible to imagine life without it.
Invention of The Internet
DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), the research and development arm of the U.S. military, created ARPANET in the late 1960s. This network of computer-to-computer connections was intended for military and academic research. The objective was to develop communication protocols which would allow networked computers to communicate transparently across multiple, linked packet networks.
The first name given to this project was the “Internetting” and the networks that resulted became known by the shortened form, the “Internet”. The system of protocols which was developed over the course of this research effort became known as the TCP/IP Protocol Suite, after the two initial protocols developed: Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and Internet Protocol (IP). These are terms that are still in use today in the computer world.
Originally, the idea for this type of networking by computers was thought of in 1962 by JCR Licklider at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He truly was the first person to envision and describe a world that was linked by computers for the express purpose of sharing information. In the US, the first Internet attempts were begun for universities and research departments at the government level. This was considered to be a great way to share ideas, information, and resources.
Initially the engineering challenges involved with creating the Internet were very complex. The first, and main, challenge they had to overcome was inventing the design of a packet switching network. They were faced with the task of creating a system that could make computers communicate with each other without the need for a traditional central system. Other challenges included the design of the machines, data exchange protocols, and software to run it. What eventually grew out of this endeavor is a miraculous low-cost technology that is swiftly and dramatically changing the world. It is available to people at home, in schools and universities, and in public libraries and "cyber cafes."
Conclusion
The Internet is not owned or controlled by any company, corporation, or nation. It connects people in 65 countries instantaneously through computers, fiber optics, satellites, and phone lines. The Internet lets people from around the world change ideas, and share information at any hour of the day or night. Today the Internet provides a person with a way to study, read and learn about anything that is of interest to them.
Did You Know?
Today, almost one-third of the world’s 6.8 billion people use the Internet regularly.
Sources of information
http://www.livescience.com/33749-top-10-inventions-changed-world.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet
http://education.illinois.edu/wp/commercialism/history-of-the-internet.htm
http://www.computerhistory.org/internet_history/
http://transition.fcc.gov/cgb/kidszone/history_internet.html
The Internet, a network of computers covering the entire planet, allows people to access almost any information located anywhere in the world at any time. Its effects on business, communication, economy, entertainment and even politics are profound.
Like many other revolutionary inventions I will be talking about in this blog, the Internet has no one single inventor, but rather it has evolved over time. The Internet was first created in the United States more than 50 years ago as a government weapon in the Cold War. For years, scientists and researchers used it to communicate and share data with one another. Today, we use the Internet for almost everything, and for many people it would be impossible to imagine life without it.
Invention of The Internet
DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), the research and development arm of the U.S. military, created ARPANET in the late 1960s. This network of computer-to-computer connections was intended for military and academic research. The objective was to develop communication protocols which would allow networked computers to communicate transparently across multiple, linked packet networks.
The first name given to this project was the “Internetting” and the networks that resulted became known by the shortened form, the “Internet”. The system of protocols which was developed over the course of this research effort became known as the TCP/IP Protocol Suite, after the two initial protocols developed: Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and Internet Protocol (IP). These are terms that are still in use today in the computer world.
Originally, the idea for this type of networking by computers was thought of in 1962 by JCR Licklider at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He truly was the first person to envision and describe a world that was linked by computers for the express purpose of sharing information. In the US, the first Internet attempts were begun for universities and research departments at the government level. This was considered to be a great way to share ideas, information, and resources.
Initially the engineering challenges involved with creating the Internet were very complex. The first, and main, challenge they had to overcome was inventing the design of a packet switching network. They were faced with the task of creating a system that could make computers communicate with each other without the need for a traditional central system. Other challenges included the design of the machines, data exchange protocols, and software to run it. What eventually grew out of this endeavor is a miraculous low-cost technology that is swiftly and dramatically changing the world. It is available to people at home, in schools and universities, and in public libraries and "cyber cafes."
Conclusion
The Internet is not owned or controlled by any company, corporation, or nation. It connects people in 65 countries instantaneously through computers, fiber optics, satellites, and phone lines. The Internet lets people from around the world change ideas, and share information at any hour of the day or night. Today the Internet provides a person with a way to study, read and learn about anything that is of interest to them.
Did You Know?
Today, almost one-third of the world’s 6.8 billion people use the Internet regularly.
Sources of information
http://www.livescience.com/33749-top-10-inventions-changed-world.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet
http://education.illinois.edu/wp/commercialism/history-of-the-internet.htm
http://www.computerhistory.org/internet_history/
http://transition.fcc.gov/cgb/kidszone/history_internet.html
Monday 24 November 2014
Introduction
My name is Ben and and I am currently a Transition Year pupil in Wesley College, Dublin. As part of our Environmental Studies module we have been instructed to create and publish our own blog, with the title headed "The Geography of...". It is then up to us to decide what to base our blog on. As you may have already guessed, I have decided to create a blog based on "The Geography of Life Changing Inventions".
I have decided to base my blog on this topic as it is an area that really interests me. I love learning about inventions that were made tens, or even thousands, of years ago that still have such a huge impact on our day to day life today. What may have started off as a humble idea a couple of hundred years ago, may now be one of the most important products in the world at present.
In my blog I will write about inventions such as The Internet, The Wheel and The Printing press to name but a few. I think that nowadays we take inventions such as these for granted, without ever stopping to think where they all came from. This is why I chose to write about this topic; to give you, and me, an insight into the background and geography of these great inventions.
I hope that you all enjoy reading my blogs, and that you may even learn a thing or two from them! Enjoy!
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