A History of Great Inventions

A History of Great Inventions
Author: James Dyson
Publisher: Carroll & Graf Pub
Total Pages: 188
Release: 2001
Genre: Science
ISBN: 9780786709038

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A handsome, lavishly illustrated volume celebrates the human genius for invention from the dawn of civilization to the beginning of the new millennium.

Ancient Inventions

Ancient Inventions
Author: Peter J. James
Publisher: Random House Digital, Inc.
Total Pages: 702
Release: 1995
Genre: Reference
ISBN: 0345401026

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A guide to ancient accomplishments and inventions unearths the origins of modern creations, including computers in ancient Greece, plastic surgery in India in the first century B.C., and a postal service in medieval Baghdad

100 Inventions That Made History

100 Inventions That Made History
Author: DK
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 130
Release: 2014-02-03
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN: 1465426868

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Incredible inventions and inspiring innovations have transformed the world today, so you can't imagine life without them! This tour through time tracks the brilliant breakthroughs of great geniuses starting with ancient times and ending in the modern era. Packed full of awesome ideas, from airplanes, batteries, and chocolate, to video games, wheels, and X-rays, you'll hear the inside story on the brainwaves behind them all. You'll meet the masters of invention who dreamed up the greatest gadgets and gizmos ever. From the everyday essentials we take for granted to fabulous firsts like the car and the television, this roll call of history's most groundbreaking inventions is guaranteed to educate, engage, and entertain the whole family. Part of DK's best-selling top 100 in History series, 100 Inventions That Made History presents an in-depth exploration of each important invention in unprecedented detail with eye-catching visuals and informative text, while stunning galleries reveal a selection of mind-blowing inventions on a shared theme. Also included are the disastrous prototypes that never got off the ground and the futuristic fantasies that may soon be up and running. Open your eyes to a world of wonder... and who knows, you might become the trailblazer of tomorrow!

Scientific American Inventions and Discoveries

Scientific American Inventions and Discoveries
Author: Rodney Carlisle
Publisher: Turner Publishing Company
Total Pages: 711
Release: 2008-04-21
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0470306920

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A unique A-to-Z reference of brilliance in innovation and invention Combining engagingly written, well-researched history with the respected imprimatur of Scientific American magazine, this authoritative, accessible reference provides a wide-ranging overview of the inventions, technological advances, and discoveries that have transformed human society throughout our history. More than 400 entertaining entries explain the details and significance of such varied breakthroughs as the development of agriculture, the "invention" of algebra, and the birth of the computer. Special chronological sections divide the entries, providing a unique focus on the intersection of science and technology from early human history to the present. In addition, each section is supplemented by primary source sidebars, which feature excerpts from scientists' diaries, contemporary accounts of new inventions, and various "In Their Own Words" sources. Comprehensive and thoroughly readable, Scientific American Inventions and Discoveries is an indispensable resource for anyone fascinated by the history of science and technology. Topics include: aerosol spray * algebra * Archimedes' Principle * barbed wire * canned food * carburetor * circulation of blood * condom * encryption machine * fork * fuel cell * latitude * music synthesizer * positron * radar * steel * television * traffic lights * Heisenberg's uncertainty principle

The Greatest Invention

The Greatest Invention
Author: Silvia Ferrara
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Total Pages: 227
Release: 2022-03-01
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 0374601631

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In this exhilarating celebration of human ingenuity and perseverance—published all around the world—a trailblazing Italian scholar sifts through our cultural and social behavior in search of the origins of our greatest invention: writing. The L where a tabletop meets the legs, the T between double doors, the D of an armchair’s oval backrest—all around us is an alphabet in things. But how did these shapes make it onto the page, never mind form complex structures such as this sentence? In The Greatest Invention, Silvia Ferrara takes a profound look at how—and how many times—human beings have managed to produce the miracle of written language, traveling back and forth in time and all across the globe to Mesopotamia, Crete, China, Egypt, Central America, Easter Island, and beyond. With Ferrara as our guide, we examine the enigmas of undeciphered scripts, including famous cases like the Phaistos Disk and the Voynich Manuscript; we touch the knotted, colored strings of the Inca quipu; we study the turtle shells and ox scapulae that bear the earliest Chinese inscriptions; we watch in awe as Sequoyah single-handedly invents a script for the Cherokee language; and we venture to the cutting edge of decipherment, in which high-powered laser scanners bring tears to an engineer’s eye. A code-cracking tour around the globe, The Greatest Invention chronicles a previously uncharted journey, one filled with past flashes of brilliance, present-day scientific research, and a faint, fleeting glimpse of writing’s future.

The Invention of Humanity

The Invention of Humanity
Author: Siep Stuurman
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Total Pages: 429
Release: 2017-02-20
Genre: History
ISBN: 0674977513

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For much of history, strangers were routinely classified as barbarians and inferiors, seldom as fellow human beings. The notion of a common humanity was counterintuitive and thus had to be invented. Siep Stuurman traces evolving ideas of human equality and difference across continents and civilizations from ancient times to the present. Despite humans’ deeply ingrained bias against strangers, migration and cultural blending have shaped human experience from the earliest times. As travelers crossed frontiers and came into contact with unfamiliar peoples and customs, frontier experiences generated not only hostility but also empathy and understanding. Empires sought to civilize their “barbarians,” but in all historical eras critics of empire were able to imagine how the subjected peoples made short shrift of imperial arrogance. Drawing on the views of a global mix of thinkers—Homer, Confucius, Herodotus, the medieval Muslim scholar Ibn Khaldun, the Haitian writer Antenor Firmin, the Filipino nationalist Jose Rizal, and more—The Invention of Humanity surveys the great civilizational frontiers of history, from the interaction of nomadic and sedentary societies in ancient Eurasia and Africa, to Europeans’ first encounters with the indigenous peoples of the New World, to the Enlightenment invention of universal “modern equality.” Against a backdrop of two millennia of thinking about common humanity and equality, Stuurman concludes with a discussion of present-day debates about human rights and the “clash of civilizations.”

The Inventions of History

The Inventions of History
Author: Stephen Bann
Publisher: Manchester University Press
Total Pages: 266
Release: 1990
Genre: Historiography
ISBN: 9780719032974

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This collection of essays concentrates on the structures and connections which have made it possible, over the last two centuries, for an integrated regime of historical representation to emerge. It also touches upon the debate about the contemporary uses of history - whether it is a matter of new versus traditional approaches to the school curriculum, or of the need to historicize museums, houses and gardens and so avoid the blandness of an uninformed display.

The Invention of Yesterday

The Invention of Yesterday
Author: Tamim Ansary
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Total Pages: 501
Release: 2019-10-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 1610397975

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From language to culture to cultural collision: the story of how humans invented history, from the Stone Age to the Virtual Age Traveling across millennia, weaving the experiences and world views of cultures both extinct and extant, The Invention of Yesterday shows that the engine of history is not so much heroic (battles won), geographic (farmers thrive), or anthropogenic (humans change the planet) as it is narrative. Many thousands of years ago, when we existed only as countless small autonomous bands of hunter-gatherers widely distributed through the wilderness, we began inventing stories--to organize for survival, to find purpose and meaning, to explain the unfathomable. Ultimately these became the basis for empires, civilizations, and cultures. And when various narratives began to collide and overlap, the encounters produced everything from confusion, chaos, and war to cultural efflorescence, religious awakenings, and intellectual breakthroughs. Through vivid stories studded with insights, Tamim Ansary illuminates the world-historical consequences of the unique human capacity to invent and communicate abstract ideas. In doing so, he also explains our ever-more-intertwined present: the narratives now shaping us, the reasons we still battle one another, and the future we may yet create.

Inventions

Inventions
Author: Adam Hart-Davis
Publisher: Walker
Total Pages: 12
Release: 2012
Genre: Inventions
ISBN: 9781406315004

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If you've ever wondered why the pencil came into existence, or how a steam engine works, or when we started using flushing toilets, this book has all the answers. Based on seven key areas of invention, Adam Hart-Davis tells the stories behind steam power, lighting, toilets, clocks, communication, bikes and flight.

Great Inventions that Changed the World

Great Inventions that Changed the World
Author: James Wei
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 370
Release: 2012-07-02
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 1118342739

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GREAT INVENTIONS THAT CHANGED THE WORLD Discover the inventions that have made our world what it is today A great invention opens the door to a new era in human history. The stone axe, for example, invented some 2 million years ago in East Africa, enabled us to enter the human path of endless improvements through inventions. The taming of fire enabled us to cook food as well as leave the warmth of Africa and move to the frigid lands of the North. From the stone axe to the computer and the Internet, this book provides a fascinating tour of the most important inventions and inventors throughout history. You’ll discover the landmark achievements and the men and women that made the world what it is today. Great Inventions That Changed the World is written by Professor James Wei, a renowned educator and engineer who holds several patents for his own inventions. Following an introductory chapter examining the role of inventors and inventions in fueling innovation and global advancement, the book is organized to show how inventions are spurred by human needs and desires, including: Work Food, clothing, and housing Health and reproduction Security Transportation Information The good life As you progress through the book, you’ll not only learn about inventions and inventors, but also the impact they have had on our lives and the society and environment in which we live today. Inventions solve problems, but as this book so expertly demonstrates, they can also directly or indirectly create new problems as well, from pollution to global warming to bioterrorism. By enabling us to understand the impact of inventions throughout history, this book can help guide the next generation of citizens, decision makers, and inventors.