Caravel Oceanic ShipBefore the Caravel, ships were limited to coastal navigation. The Caravel, with its relatively small hull and large sails, enabled long-distance navigation over large bodies of water; it was the jetliner of its era. Invented in the mid-1400s, the Caravel — among other things — enabled Columbus to navigate from Europe to North America. Other … Continue reading "Caravel Oceanic Ship"
Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI)MIDI allows instruments to talk to computers and to one another. As engineers began connecting instruments to computers it became clear there needed to be a standard interface so that each instrument did not need to “talk” differently to each computer. Smith, who holds degrees in computer science and electrical engineering. He created the MIDI … Continue reading "Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI)"
Blue JeansBlue jeans are fun. The once entirely functional pants evolved to represent a lifestyle. When sold as functional work pants, Levi’s did OK. When sold on emotion sales mushroomed. Background Levi Loeb immigrated from Germany to the US and changed his name to Strauss, which sounded more American. In Germany, Jews were forbidden from owning … Continue reading "Blue Jeans"
Plasma Panel1964 Donald BitzerGene SlottowRobert Wilson Plasma panels form fonts, images, and other patterns using plasma, rather than tubes. The panels are flat, cool, and use less power than CRT tubes. Bitzer developed the plasma panel as the monitor for his teaching computer, PLATO. PLATO is a lesser-known fountain of innovation. Along with Bell Labs, Xerox … Continue reading "Plasma Panel"
AutomobileIt’s difficult, and arguably pointless, to separate the innovation of the automobile and Internal Combustion Engine (ICE). The use of an ICE for a “horseless carriage” was so obvious that early engines were all used for cars. Engine propelled buggies were, by far, the most popular use case though ICE’s also powered other applications. Early … Continue reading "Automobile"
LASERLASER’s allow light to be intensely focused. There are many uses, from reading digital media at low power to cutting at higher powers. Countless applications rely on LASER technology. In 1957, Arthur Schawlow and Charles Townes, of Bell Labs, worked on an infrared LASER, called an “optical MASER.” They patented the invention in 1958. In … Continue reading "LASER"
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)"
Modern AdvertisingBefore Albert Lasker advertisements tended to be crude, raising awareness or reinforcing a brand name. Many ads were not much more than offers to purchase something, with no overarching idea. Lasker used the emerging science of psychology and budding technology of radio to radically change advertising. Background Born in Germany, Lasker moved to the US … Continue reading "Modern Advertising"
CanningLike refrigeration, invented a year earlier, this is another way to preserve food. All the sudden items available only for a certain portion of the year could be reliably preserved for far longer. This lowered the cost and increased the availability of food. Appert is a Frenchman who perfected caning. Napoleon needed a consistent way … Continue reading "Canning"
Multi-Shot Revolver“God created men equal, Sam Colt made them equal.” Samuel Colt Overview Colt’s revolver reduced the cost and risk of settling the US. Before the revolver, Native Americans could shoot arrows faster than pioneers could reload muskets, making westward travel and settlement dangerous. The Colt revolver reversed the dynamics and is widely credited with winning … Continue reading "Multi-Shot Revolver"
NylonNylon is a popular low-cost high-strength silk alternative. It vastly lowered the cost of producing silk-like fabric. Carothers started undergraduate school, at Tarkio College in Missouri, as an English major but switched to chemistry due to an influential professor. He excelled, working as an instructor during his undergraduate years. He went on to earn a … Continue reading "Nylon"
Internal Combustion EngineFew innovations throughout history are as important as the internal combustion engine. In 1807, the Niepce brothers received a patent on an internal combustion engine but failed to commercialize it. The brothers also invented photography. The first known working internal combustion engine (ICE) belongs to Lenoir. He converted a steam engine to burn coal gas … Continue reading "Internal Combustion Engine"
Roll Film & Roll Film CameraKodak’s original camera contained plates. Later versions contained one-hundred exposures; customers would take their pictures, mail in their camera, and the company mailed back developed pictures and a refilled camera. Roll film changed all that, vastly lowering the cost and complexity of photography and eventually enabling the creation of movie film. Ordinary people could purchase … Continue reading "Roll Film & Roll Film Camera"
Military TankTowards the late 1800s, Europeans and Americans both worked on the idea of a tire tread. They realized a treaded machine would be useful on rougher terrain. The Holt Manufacturing Company, later renamed Caterpillar, perfected and patented a working tread in 1904. While engineers experimented developing working treads for tractors their use in war was … Continue reading "Military Tank"
Ethernet NetworkingEthernet is a computer networking protocol. Before Ethernet, computers were connected using a hodgepodge of various systems, a digital Tower of Babel. Background Bob Metcalfe invented Ethernet at Xerox PARC. However, Xerox failed to commercialize the technology. Metcalfe left and worked on his own Digital (see minicomputers) and Intel to set Ethernet as a networking … Continue reading "Ethernet Networking"