They Laughed at Galileo by Jack, Albert -- Read -- Imperial Library of Trantor

Index

Cover Front Title Page Copyright Dedication Acknowledgements Contents Introduction Science and Technology

The Radio The Telescope – and Why They Laughed at Galileo Air Conditioning: The King of Cool The Robotic Arm The X-ray Is a Hoax The Telephone Is a Meaningless Toy Computers – Who Needs Them? The Jet Engine Satellite Communications Microwave Ovens The Fireman’s Safety Hood The Parachute Ancient Inventions We Still Use Everyday Archimedes (287–212 BC) Hoisted by Their Own Petard: Inventors Killed by Their Creations

Food

The Potato Worcestershire Sauce: Who were Mr Lea and Mr Perrins? Who Is on the Menu? (Culinary Inventions)

Popular Culture

The Hula Hoop The Record Executive Who Might Have Kicked Himself to Death That’s a Terrible Idea for a Book More Authors Who Suffered Brutal Rejections Superstars Who Were Told Not to Give Up Their Day Jobs Monopoly The Pet Rock Billy Bob’s Teeth The Grand Canyon The Yo-yo Blockbuster Films Initially Rejected as Terrible Ideas

Glorious Failures

Thomas Edison Sigmund Freud Winston Churchill Abraham Lincoln Socrates Henry Ford Walt Disney Frederick W. Smith Frank Winfield Woolworth

Business and Industry

Crude Oil Clinton’s Ditch Unzipped – The True Story of the Zipper The Bra It Was a Close Shave Kitty Litter Ballpoint Pen? What’s That, Then? The Railway Networks The Horseless Carriage Velcro E-commerce – The World at Your Fingertips The Post-it Note – The Accidental Billion-Dollar Invention Vulcanized Rubber: Charles Goodyear Black & Decker Workmate – ‘You Will Sell about a Dozen of Those’ The Barcode The Tin Can Going Underground – You Want to Run Steam Trains Where?

Accidental Inventions

Saccharin Popsicles Viagra Coca-Cola The Hamburger: From a German Snack to American Icon Safety Glass Penicillin

Suppressed Inventions: True or Urban Legend?

The Rifle Beam The Light Bulb Cold Fusion The Chronovisor Wardenclyffe Tower The Cloudbuster The Anti-Gravity Device The EV1 The Water Fuel Cell The Implosion Generator Project XA

Ridiculous Inventions You Wish You Had Invented

Spanx The Snuggie The Plastic Wishbone The HeadOn Billy Big Mouth Bass The Beanie Baby Tamagochi iFart Yellow Smiley Faces The Wacky Wall Walker The Slinky The Million-Dollar Homepage

Eponymous Inventions

Maxim Gun The Leotard The Jacuzzi The Guillotine The Davy Lamp Shrapnel: Maximum Damage The Diesel Engine

← Prev
Back
Next →

← Prev
Back
Next →