Supersonic FlightOn Tuesday, October 14, 1947, a B-29 bomber took off in the Mojave Desert in California. Instead of a bomb, it carried another plane. Chuck Yeager & the X-1 The Bell X-1 “research vehicle” was a rocket fired aircraft. As the bomber climbed, test pilot Capt. Charles E. “Chuck” Yeager, climbed into the rocket aircraft. … Continue reading "Supersonic Flight"
Streaming VideoEarly streaming video was more science experiment than entertainment. Video over the internet wouldn’t become common for almost 20 more years after the first stream. Background However, computer companies, thinking about the early Internet, were interested in using it for television. These early transmissions required expensive and complicated computers and extremely expensive Internet connections to … Continue reading "Streaming Video"
SemiconductorsSemiconductors are solid-state electronic replacements for vacuum tubes. They vastly enhanced productivity and lowered cost. Semiconductors also lowered the amount of electricity computers, or any equipment that ran on tubes, required. In 1947, John Bardeen, William Shockley, and Water Brattain co-invented the semiconductor while working at Bell Labs for which they were awarded the Nobel … Continue reading "Semiconductors"
Social NetworkWhen they’re not rigging elections, sowing discord, or amplifying hate social networks are a fun, simple, and convenient way to stay in touch. However, they suffer serious privacy issues under current implementations. Electronic social networks, in various forms, are older than Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg. The first online bulletin-board enabling people to chat and hang … Continue reading "Social Network"
PhonographWe, the editors of innowiki, have reviewed thousands of inventions. We’ve read through countless idea, rejecting the vast majority not because they lacked merit but because they didn’t rock the world. Background Of the innovations we accept there are very few who have more than one invention. Granted, the raw number of innovations does not … Continue reading "Phonograph"
Random Access MemoryRandom Access Memory (RAM) is a type of fast memory. The Central Processing Unit (CPU), the brain of a computer, relies on RAM. RAM exists to this day. Every computer, including smartphones, contains RAM. The “random” in RAM refers to its ability to access memory anywhere, instantly, unlike a disk drive that must search for … Continue reading "Random Access Memory"
Metric SystemThe metric system standardized weights and measures enabling trade and improving communication. Before the metric system, every country and also countless regions, used different forms of measurement. This vastly complicated international trade. Metric The metric system derives from the natural world and uses a decimal counting system for simplicity. Length derives from the meter, a … Continue reading "Metric System"
Matches1827 Friction matches are ordinary matches. Strike them against a flint or, for some types, any hard service and they start a fire. Friction Matches were invented by Englishman John Walker in 1827. While it seems hard to believe it took so long before the innovation of matches by Walker people would have to find … Continue reading "Matches"
DNA SequencingDNA sequencing creates a map of DNA. The process reads DNA like a computer reads a hard drive. Eventually, the technology will allow scientists to understand and manipulate life functions. In 1955, Sanger discovered how to sequence DNA, which would later win him the Nobel Prize. He is one of four people in the world … Continue reading "DNA Sequencing"
ImmunotherapyIt’s common for meaningful inventions to take years or even decades to reach their commercial potential. At about 110 years from discovery to practical use, immunotherapy is the second longest invention we’ve found after the Suez Canal. Immunotherapy is the process of training the body’s natural immune system to attack and destroy cancer cells. The … Continue reading "Immunotherapy"
Megawatt WindmillMegawatt wind turbines are windmills capable of generating a megawatt or more of electricity and feeding it into the electrical grid. Background Palmer Putnam was an MIT geologist. Literature notes he has “no formal education or experience in wind power.” Of course, that was true for everybody in the 1930s. There was no such thing … Continue reading "Megawatt Windmill"
SecuritizationSecuritization enables income streams of pooled loans, reducing overall risk to lenders. This spreads the risk of both prepayments and defaults, lowering the cost of credit. Background Denmark created pooled mortgages, called covered bonds, in 1850. Switzerland followed in 1930. In 1970 US government pseudo-agency Ginnie Mae (GNMA) created the first securitized pool of home … Continue reading "Securitization"
Stepping SwitchStepping switches change the direction of a magnetic flow to one of multiple channels, stepping through them incrementally. Which sounds incredibly boring until we realize they enabled the modern phone system and powered the decryption machines which morphed into the modern computer. Stepping switches were literally a step from the industrial revolution to the modern … Continue reading "Stepping Switch"
ParachuteParachutes lowered the risk of flight, encouraging innovation in flying. In 1782, the Montgolfier brothers launched the first hot air balloon from the grounds of the Palace of Versailles. King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette — the last of the French aristocracy who would be beheaded during the revolution — watched as the balloon lifted … Continue reading "Parachute"
Hybrid CornGenetic modification by people have produced virtually all plants and animals in the western world. Broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, kohlrabi, and brussels sprouts are all derived from a wild mustard plant in Europe. None of these vegetables exist but-for early genetic engineering. Similarly, all dogs, cows, pigs, sheep, and chickens are modern man-made creations. Scientists … Continue reading "Hybrid Corn"