The Age of Invention

Sir Henry Bessemer• 1813 – 1898• English• Patented the “Bessemer

Process,” a method for cheaply mass producing steel, in 1855

• Steel would quickly become the building material of choice, since it was stronger, lighter, and more flexible than plain iron

Alfred Nobel• 1833 – 1896• Swedish• Began to use steel to manufacture

cannons and other weapons, leading him to experiment with explosives

• Invented dynamite in 1867, a stable (and therefore safer) new explosive which had both military and commercial uses, such as in mining and construction

• A devoted pacifist, Nobel used his fortune to found the Nobel Prizes, which are awarded yearly for accomplishments in science, literature, and world peace

William Le Baron Jenney• 1832 – 1907• American• “Father of the Skyscraper”• Designed the first building to

use an entirely steel frame, the Home Insurance Building in Chicago, IL

• Using steel allowed buildings to be built taller and began a trend of cities growing vertically as land became scarcer and, therefore, more expensive

Home Insurance Building• Chicago, IL• Constructed in 1885• First to have a steel frame,

reducing the weight of the building by over 60%

• 10 stories (138 ft.), with 2 more floors added in 1890

• Demolished in 1931 because it was considered too small – “skyscrapers,” such as NYC’s Empire State Building and Chrysler Building, by this point had grown 10 times taller

Tallest Structures

Burj Khalifa (Dubai)

John Deere• 1804 – 1886• American• Revolutionized agriculture

by developing the first commercially successful steel plow, an invention which opened up the American Midwest to large-scale farming

• His company is a top maker of tractors and lawn mowers today

Cyrus McCormick• 1809 – 1884• American• Invented the mechanical

reaper, a machine pulled by a horse which could harvest far more grain than a man swinging a scythe; led to farmers planting more acreage, creating an increase in grain production

• His company is known today as International Harvester

Alessandro Volta• 1745 – 1827• Italian physicist and

chemist who studied electricity

• Invented the electric battery around 1800

• Honored by Napoleon for his work

• Electrical measurement “volts” named after him

Michael Faraday• 1791 – 1867• English• No formal education, largely

self-taught• Discovered the link

between electrical and magnetic fields, vital to generating electrical power

• Laid the groundwork for creating usable electric current for houses, factories

Nikola Tesla• 1856 – 1943• Serbian immigrant to the U.S.• Developed alternating current,

or “AC” electrical power• Worked briefly for Thomas

Edison, but the two developed a heated rivalry over how to best deliver electrical current (Edison supported direct current, or “DC” electrical power)

• In the end, Tesla’s AC won out over Edison’s DC, due to safety and cost issues

Thomas Edison• 1847 – 1931• Called “The Wizard of Menlo Park”

(Workshop was in Menlo Park, NJ)• He and his staff patented over 1000

inventions, including the light bulb, phonograph, X-ray machine, and motion picture camera

• In 1882, he built the first electrical power plant designed to provide constant electrical current to homes and businesses in Manhattan

• Edison’s electrical appliance company, General Electric (GE), remains one of the largest corporations in the U.S.

Electricity• By 1900, electrical

power had changed how people lived and worked

• Electric lighting was safer, brighter, and more efficient

• Electric appliances made people’s lives easier, creating more leisure time

Samuel F.B. Morse• 1791 – 1872• American• Actually a landscape painter

by trade• Invented the telegraph, a

way of communicating by transmitting bursts of electrical current along wires, along with “Morse Code,” a system of “dots” and “dashes” that could be arranged to represent specific letters

Alexander Graham Bell• 1847 – 1922• Scottish-Canadian• Pursued a career in working

with the deaf (mother and wife were both deaf)

• His interest in how sound was transmitted led him to invent the telephone, a device which transferred sound waves along wires, allowing direct voice communication

Guglielmo Marconi• 1874 – 1937• Italian• Developed the radio,

transmitted the first trans-Atlantic radio message in 1901

• Radio allowed for voice communication without wires, vital to modern devices such as television and cell phones

Nikolaus Otto• 1832 – 1891• German• Invented the first internal

combustion engine, greatly reducing the size and weight of engines, while simultaneously increasing efficiency

• His invention would make both automobiles and airplanes possible

Karl Benz• 1844 – 1929• German• Invented the gasoline-

burning internal combustion engine in 1878

• Sold the first commercially produced automobile in 1888

• His company still exists today as Daimler AG (producer of Mercedes-Benz automobiles)

Benz’s First Car

Gottlieb Daimler• 1834 – 1900• German• Built first motorcycle in

1885• Sold his first auto in

1892• Greatly increased the

speed of automobiles, as well as stability (by adding a 4th wheel)

Daimler’s Motorcycle

Early Daimler Automobile

Henry Ford• 1863 – 1947• American• One time employee of

Thomas Edison, but left after Edison showed no interest in automobiles

• Built his first car in 1896• Founded Ford Motor

Company in 1903• Sold 15,000,000 of his Model

T automobile between 1908 and 1927

Ford Model “T”

New Methods of Production• Ideas first pioneered on a large scale by Henry

Ford (although he did not invent either method)• Made manufacturing quicker (increased supply)• Made manufacturing cheaper (lowered costs)• Led to lower prices for consumers (increased

access)• Also changed labor practices by paying his

workers $5/day, making it possible for them to afford the very cars they built

• “If you think you can, you can. If you think you can’t, you’re right”

- Henry Ford

New Methods of Production1. Interchangeable Parts• First used by inventor Eli Whitney

around 1800 for manufacturing standardized muskets for the US military

• System where individual parts are made exactly the same so that parts from one machine can be removed and placed on another machine of the same type

• Ensures consistent quality and allows for simple repairs

2. The Assembly Line• Also first used by Eli Whitney• System where every worker

is assigned one specific task in the manufacturing process, allowing them to become hyper-efficient at their task; workers are then arranged to perform their tasks in sequence to rapidly mass-assemble products

1. Interchangeable Parts

2. The Assembly Line

Orville & Wilbur Wright• 1867 – 1912 (Wilbur)• 1871 – 1948 (Orville)• American mechanics• Developed a series of

unpowered gliders over the period of 1899-1902

• Finally built first successful powered airplane in 1903, opening the age of aviation

Wrights’ Airplane