SteamboatThe steamboat opened trade routes within the US and Europe, but especially the early US. The cost of travel throughout the US dramatically decreased while safety and quality increased. The steamboat also allowed upstream river navigation, impossible without paddling, opening vast areas of land to development. Early Efforts De Jouffroy allegedly had a predecessor steamboat … Continue reading "Steamboat"
Locomotive (High-Pressure Steam Engine)The high-pressure steam engine was invented about the same time by Richard Trevithick in the UK and Oliver Evans in the US. Neither man knew about the other. Richard Trevithick Trevithick, a mining engineer, built a high-pressure steam-powered car, the “Puffing Devil,” in 1801, taking it for a ride around town, picking up friends. He … Continue reading "Locomotive (High-Pressure Steam Engine)"
Automatic Tomato HarvesterGrain and corn harvesters date back to the 1800s. However, grain and corn are relatively easy to harvest. Grain harvesting involves little more than cutting tall grass whereas ears of corn are large, strong, and similarly shaped. Tomatoes Interestingly, tomatoes were not common food until the 1800s. Early colonialists brought the tomato plant to Europe … Continue reading "Automatic Tomato Harvester"
RadarThe origin of Radar is secret. Even after commercialization, the inventors remained in the shadows, secret warriors who enabled the Allies to shoot down the Nazi Lufthansa with eerie precision. Consequently, it was as if the Allies could project through the clouds exactly where the planes were. Of course, that would be impossible… Specifically, Watt … Continue reading "Radar"
DialysisDialysis machines do the work of kidneys, cleaning the blood of impurities. After two years of experimentation on terminal patients, 15 who died, Kolff successfully kept a woman suffering renal failure alive with his “artificial kidney” dialysis machine. After WWII he donated the machines to hospitals around the world then immigrated to the US in … Continue reading "Dialysis"
Inexpensive Postage & StampPenny postage refers to low-cost prepaid postage. Background By the early 1800s, postage was centuries old. But many postal carriers were essentially government couriers. They were extremely expensive. However, recipients could reject mail by refusing to pay. This made the entire system unpredictable and unstable. Furthermore, postal employees sometimes opened and read mail. Government censors … Continue reading "Inexpensive Postage & Stamp"
SubmarineSubmarines changed naval warfare, increasing the risk of maritime travel from hostile countries. Underwater ships have existed in various forms for ages. There was a semi-underwater boat built for Tsar Peter the Great in 1720, and also one allegedly built during the US revolution in 1776. Steamboat baron Robert Fulton built one for the French … Continue reading "Submarine"
Heavy-Duty DC Motor / Trolley / SubwayFaraday proved an electric motor was possible but, like his many inventions, neither scaled the idea up nor commercialized it. Voltaic piles at that time were the sole source of electricity. Because they produced little electricity high-power motors seemed pointless. Background The new field of electricity interested Sprague, a Navy officer. While serving in the … Continue reading "Heavy-Duty DC Motor / Trolley / Subway"
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"
Electronic Airline Reservation System (SABRE)As the Cold War heated up during the 1950s, the United States installed an enormous number of missiles, radars, and nuclear weapons to track and respond to nuclear war. WWII radars were good enough for propeller planes but the delay between detection and analysis proved too slow for jet engines and missiles. SAGE As the … Continue reading "Electronic Airline Reservation System (SABRE)"
Washing MachineBefore washing machines, wealthier families hired maids or brought their laundry to cleaners. Most people did laundry by hand, a time-consuming process usually tasked to women. Washing machines dramatically lowered the cost of washing clothes while increasing cleanliness. A patent issued to Fisher on Aug. 9, 1910, for an electric washing machine. Many people claim … Continue reading "Washing Machine"
- Blue Ocean Strategy Basics – Making Competition Irrelevant
A different way of thinking. It’s right there on the front of the jacket of the book Blue Ocean Strategy, “How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant.” It’s also one of the most misunderstood concepts of blue ocean strategy. I’ve been working on blue ocean strategy since 2001, when it was … Continue reading "Blue Ocean Strategy Basics – Making Competition Irrelevant"
UnixUnix is a computer operating system. Among other things, it allows a computer to do many things at once. Derivatives of the original Unix include Linux, MacOS, and BSD. You’re reading this right now due to a server running Unix derivative Linux. Background Dennis Ritchie and Ken Thompson worked at Bell Labs. Thompson worked on … Continue reading "Unix"
Public-Key Cryptography (Public key encryption)Public Key Cryptography (PKC) dramatically lowers the risk of information intercept and also lowers the risk of impersonation. PKC vastly increases security. For example, Google allows people to send queries to them encrypted. But they cannot decrypt the queries sent by others with what they give you, only Google can. Besides encrypting and decrypting, public … Continue reading "Public-Key Cryptography (Public key encryption)"
Transcontinental RailroadBackground After much debate in Washington, DC, and with the civil war brewing, Judah presented a transcontinental railroad a “Think Big” project. Asa Whitney had lobbied for a western railroad starting in 1847 but got nowhere. Somehow, Judah cut through the other issues (especially slavery) to get attention and became a central plank of the … Continue reading "Transcontinental Railroad"