Handout # 4

idea of lifting things using

counterweights.
Topic: Science and Technology in Different Periods

1. Prehistory and Ancient period c1700 Semites of the Digital pens

BCE Mediterranean develop the
Date Articles explain the stuff Invention or alphabet.
discovery
1000 BCE Iron Age begins: iron is Iron and
Prehistory widely used for making steel
tools and weapons in many
4–5 billion Sun starts to Solar Cells parts of the world.
years ago produce energy. energy
600 BCE Thales of Miletus discovers Electricity
~3.5 Humans make the Tools and static electricity. Static
million first tools from machines electricity
years ago stone, wood,
antlers, and bones. 500BCE– Nazca people of Peru are Hot-air
900CE believed to have balloons
1–2 Humans discover fire. Biofuels experimented with
million Candles balloon flight.
years ago Car engines
Jet engines 400BCE– Chinese experiment with Airplanes
300BCE flying kites.
10,000 Earliest boats are Ships and boats
BCE constructed. ~300– Chinese invent early Compasses
200 BCE magnetic direction finders.
8000– Beginnings of Biofuels
9000 BCE ~250 BCE Archimedes invents the Tools and
human Water
screw pump for moving machines
settlements and
water and other materials.
agriculture.
c.150– Gear-driven, precision Clockwork
6000– Hand-made bricks Brick (ceramics)
100 BCE clockwork machines (such
7000 BCE first used for
as the Antikythera
construction in the
mechanism) are in
Middle East.
existence.

c.50 BCE Roman engineer Turbines

Date Articles explain the stuff Invention or Vitruvius perfects the
discovery modern, vertical water
wheel.
Ancient times
62 CE Hero of Alexandria, a Greek Steam
4000 BCE Iron was used for the Iron and scientist, pioneers steam engines
first time in decorative steel power. Steam
ornaments. turbines

3500– Glass is made by people for Glass 105 CE Ts'ai Lun makes the first Paper
5000 BCE the first time. paper in China.

3500 BCE Humans invent the wheel. Tools and 27 BCE– Romans develop the first, Steel and
machines 395 CE basic concrete called concrete
Wheels and pozzolana.
axles

3000 BCE First written languages Digital pens 2. Medieval Period

are developed by the Typewriters Date Articles explain the stuff Invention or
Sumerian people of discovery
southern
Mesopotamia (part Middle/Medieval
of modern Iraq).
~600 Windmills are invented Wind
~2500 Ancient Egyptians produce Paper CE in the Middle East. turbines
BCE papyrus, a crude early
version of paper. 700– Chinese invent gunpowder Bullets
900 CE and fireworks. Fireworks
3000– Bronze Age: Copper Space rockets
600BCE Widespread use of Alloys
copper and its Metals
800– Banū Mūsā brothers and Clockwork
important alloy bronze.
1300 al-Jazari, the Islamic Cams and
CE "Golden Age" sees the cranks
2000 BCE Water-raising and Elevators
irrigation devices like the Tools and development of a wide Robots
shaduf (shadoof), machines range of technologies,
invented by the Ancient Water including ingenious
Egyptians, introduce the clocks and feedback
 mechanisms that are the 1643 Galileo's pupil Barometers
ancestors of modern Evangelista Torricelli
automated factory builds the first mercury
machines. barometer for measuring
air pressure.
1000 Chinese develop eyeglasses Lenses
CE ?? by fixing lenses to frames
that fit onto people's faces. 1650s Christiaan Huygens Pendulum
develops the pendulum clocks
1206 Arabic engineer al-Jazari Toilets clock (using Galileo's
invents a flushing the hand earlier discovery that a
washing machine, one of swinging pendulum can
the ancestors of the be used to keep time).
modern toilet.
1687 Isaac Newton Motion
1232 Chinese repel Mongol Space rockets formulates his three
CE invaders using early laws of motion.
rockets.
1700s Bartolomeo Pianos
1450 Johannes Gutenberg Printing Cristofori invents
pioneers the modern the piano.
printing press, using
rearrangeable metal letters
called movable type.
4. Industrial Revolution/ 18th Century
1470s The first parachute is Parachutes
Date Articles explain the stuff Invention or
sketched on paper by an
discovery
unknown inventor.
Industrial
3. Renaissance Period/ 16th-17th Century Revolution/18th
Century
Date Articles explain the stuff Invention or
discovery 1701 English farmer Jethro Tull Tractors
begins the mechanization
Renaissance Period/ of agriculture by
16th 17th Century inventing the horse-
drawn seed drill.
1530s Gerardus Mercator Satellite
helps to revolutionize navigation 1703 Thomas Newcomen Steam engines
navigation with better builds the first practical
mapmaking. (but stationary) steam
engine.
1590 A Dutch spectacle maker Microscopes
named Zacharias Janssen Electron 1700s Christiaan Huygens Car engines
makes the first microscopes conceives the internal
compound microscope. combustion engine, but
never actually builds one.
1596 Sir John Harington Toilets
describes one of the first 1737 William Champion Metals
modern flush toilets. develops a commercially
viable process for
~1600 Galileo Galilei designs Thermometer
extracting zinc on a large
a basic thermometer. scale.
1600 William Gilbert Magnetism 1757 John Campbell invents Satellite
publishes his great the sextant, an improved navigation
book De Magnete navigational device that
describing how Earth enables sailors to
behaves like a giant measure latitude.
magnet. It's the
beginning of the 1730s– John Harrison develops Quartz clocks
scientific study of 1770s reliable chronometers and
magnetism. (seafaring clocks) that watches
allow sailors to Satellite
1609 Galileo Galilei builds a Space telescopes measure longitude navigation
practical telescope and accurately for the first
makes new time.
astronomical
discoveries. 1769 Wolfgang von Kempelen Speech
develops a mechanical synthesizers
mid- Antoni van Microscopes speaking machine: the
17th Leeuwenhoek and Electron world's first speech
century Robert Hooke microscopes synthesizer.
independently develop
microscopes. 1770s Abraham Darby III builds a Bridges
 pioneering iron bridge at 1816 Robert Stirling invents Stirling engines
a place now called the efficient Stirling
Ironbridge in England. engine.

~1780 Josiah Wedgwood (or Pyrometers 1820s– Michael Faraday builds Electricity
Thomas Massey) 1830s primitive electric generators
invents the generators and Electric motors
pyrometer. motors. Hub motors

1783 French Brothers Hot-air balloons 1824 Nicolas Sadi Carnot Heat engines
Joseph Michel sets out his hugely
Montgolfier and influential theory of
Jacques-Étienne engine efficiency.
Montgolfier make the
first practical hot-air
balloon.

1791 Reverend William Titanium 1827 Joseph Nicéphore Photography

Gregor, a British Niépce makes the Digital cameras
clergyman, and amateur first modern
geologist photograph.
discover a
mysterious
mineral that he 1830s William Sturgeon Electric motors
calls develops the first Hub motors
menachite. Four practical electric motor.
years later, Martin
Klaproth
1830s Louis Daguerre invents Digital cameras
gives it its modern
a practical method of Photography
name, titanium.
taking pin-sharp
photographs called
5. 19th Century Daguerreotypes.
Date Articles explain the stuff Invention or
discovery 1830s William Henry Fox Digital cameras
Talbot develops a Photography
19th Century way of
making and
1800 Italian Alessandro Volta Electricity printing
makes the first battery Batteries photographs
(known as a Voltaic using
pile). reverse images
called negatives.
1801 Joseph-Marie Jacquard History of
invents the automated computers 1830s– Charles Wheatstone Telephones
cloth-weaving loom. The 1840s and William Cooke, in
punched cards it uses to England, and
store patterns help to Samuel Morse, in
inspire programmable the United
computers. States, develop the
electric telegraph
1803 Henry and Sealy Paper (a forerunner of
Fourdrinier develop the the
papermaking machine. telephone).
1806 Humphry Davy develops Electrolyzers 1836 Englishman Francis Propellers
electrolysis into an Petit Smith and
important chemical Swedish
technique and uses it to American John Ericsson
identify some new independently develop
elements. propellers with blades
for ships.
1806 Sir William Congreve Space rockets
develops long-range 1839 Charles Goodyear Rubber
military rockets, finally perfects a
based on an earlier durable form of rubber
Indian technology (vulcanized rubber)
known as the after many years of
Mysore rocket unsuccessful
experimenting.
1814 George Stephenson Steam engines
builds the first
practical steam
locomotive.
1840s Scottish physicist Energy 1876 Alexander Graham Bell Telephones
James Prescott Joule Great physics patents the telephone,
outlines the theoryof experiments though the true owner
the conservation of of the invention
energy. remains controversial
even
1840s Scotsman Alexander Fax machines today.
Bain invents the
1870s Thomas Edison CD players
primitive fax machine
develops the MP3 players
based on chemical
phonograph, the first
technology.
practical method of
1849 James Francis invents Turbines recording and playing
a water turbine now Water back sound on metal
used in many of the foil.
world's hydropower
1870s Lester Pelton invents a Turbines
plants.
useful new kind of
1850s Henry Bessemer Iron and steel water turbine known
pioneers a new as a
method of Pelton wheel.
making steel in
1877 Thomas Edison invents Record players
large quantities.
his sound-recording Sound
machine or
1850s Louis Pasteur Pasteurization phonograph—a
develops forerunner of the
pasteurization: a way record player and CD
of preserving food by player.
heating it to kill off
1880 Thomas Edison Incandescent
bacteria.
patents the modern lamps
1850s Italian Giovanni Fax machines incandescent
Caselli develops a electric lamp.
mechanical fax
machine called the 1880s Thomas Edison opens the Power plants
pantelegraph.

1860s Frenchman Étienne Car engines world's first power plants.

Lenoir and German Cars, history of
Nikolaus Otto pioneer 1880s Charles Autoclaves
the internal Chamberland
combustion engine. invents the
autoclave (steam
1860s James Clerk Maxwell Radio sterilizing
figures out that radio machine).
waves must exist and
sets out the basic laws 1880s Charles and Julia Aluminum
of Hall and Paul
electromagnetism. Heroult
independently
1860s Fire extinguishers Fire extinguisher develop an affordable
are invented. way of making
aluminum.
1861 Elisha Graves Otis Elevators
1880s Carrie Everson Copper
invents the elevator
invents new ways
with a built in safety
of mining
brake.
silver, gold, and copper.
1868 Christopher Latham Typewriters
1883 George Eastman Digital cameras
Sholes invents the
invents plastic Plastics
modern typewriter
photographic film.
and QWERTY
keyboard.
1884 Charles Parsons Steam turbines
1871 Frank Wenham, a Wind tunnels develops the steam Turbines
British aeronautical Aerodynamics turbine.
engineer, invents the
wind tunnel. 1885 Karl Benz builds a Car engines
gasoline-engined car.

1886 Josephine Cochran Dishwashers

invents the dishwasher.
 6. 20th Century
1888 Friedrich Reinitzer LCD screens and
discovers liquid crystals. displays Date Articles explain the stuff Invention or
discovery
1888 John Boyd Dunlop Pneumatics
patents air-filled 20th Century
(pneumatic) tires.
1901 Guglielmo Marconi Radio
sends radio-wave
1888 Nikola Tesla patents Electricity
signals across the
the alternating current Electric motors
Atlantic Ocean from
(AC) electric induction Induction motors
England to Canada
motor and, in Power plants
opposition to
1901 The first electric Vacuum cleaners
Thomas Edison, vacuum cleaner is
becomes a staunch developed.
advocate of AC power
1903 Brothers Wilbur and Airplanes
1899 Everett F. Morse invents Pyrometers
Orville Wright built the Jet engines
the optical pyrometer
first engine-powered
for measuring
airplane.
temperatures at a safe
distance.
1905 Albert Einstein Photoelectric cells
1890s French brothers Joseph Projection TV explains the
and Louis Lumiere photoelectric effect.
invent movie
projectors and open 1905 Samuel J. Bens Chainsaws
the first movie invents the
theater. chainsaw.

1890s German engineer Rudolf Diesel engines 1906 Willis Carrier pioneers Air conditioners
Diesel develops his the air conditioner.
diesel engine—a more
efficient internal 1906 Mikhail Tswett Chromatography
combustion discovers
engine without a chromatography.
sparking plug.
1907 Leo Baekeland Plastics
1890s Russian Konstantin Space rockets develops Bakelite, the
Tsiolkovsky figures out first popular synthetic
the theory of space plastic.
rockets.
1907 Alva Fisher invents Clothes washer
1894 Physicist Sir Oliver Radio the electric clothes
Lodge sends the first washer.
ever message by radio
wave in Oxford, 1906- Frederick Gardner Air pollution
England. 8 Cottrell develops Electrostatic smoke
the electrostatic precipitators
1895 German physicist X rays smoke
Wilhelm Röntgen precipitator
discovers X rays. (smokestack
pollution scrubber).

1908 American industrialist Car engines

1895 American Ogden Electric and engineer Henry Cars, history of
Bolton, Jr. invents bikes Ford
the electric bicycle. launches the Ford
Model T, the world's
1884 Charles G. Curtis Steam first truly affordable
develops the turbines car.
compound,
1909 German chemists pH meters
impulse steam
Fritz Haber and
turbine.
Zygmunt
1898 Nikola Tesla invents Remote Klemensiewicz
remote, radio control develop the glass
control. electrode,
enabling very precise
measurements of
acidity.
1910 Romanian-born Henri- Jet engines artificial humans.

1921 John Larson develops Forensic science

the polygraph ("lie
Marie Coandă detector") machine.
builds a simple jet
plane, but it never 1928 Thomas Midgley, Jr. Air conditioners
actually flies. invents coolant Refrigerators
chemicals for air
1912 American chemist Lithium-ion
conditioners and
Gilbert Lewis batteries
refrigerators.
describes the basic
chemistry that leads
to practical, lithium- 1928 The electric Refrigerators
ion refrigerator is
rechargeable invented.
batteries (though
they don't
appear in a practical, 1920s– Frank Whittle of Jet engine
commercial form until 1930s England and Hans
the 1990s). Pabst von
Ohain of Germany
1916 Robert Hutchings Space rockets develop rival jet engines.
Goddard, an
American physicist, 1930s Peter Goldmark Television
publishes pioneers color LCD TV
influential ideas on television.
building space rockets.
1930s Laszlo and Georg Digital pens
1919 Francis Aston Mass Biro pioneer the
pioneers the mass spectrometers modern
spectrometer and ballpoint pen.
uses it to discover
many isotopes. 1930s Maria Telkes creates Passive solar
the first solar- Solar cells
1920s John Logie Baird Television powered house.
develops LCD TV
mechanical 1930s Robert Watson Watt Radar
television. oversees the
development of radar.
1920s Philo T. Farnsworth Television
invents modern LCD TV 1938 Chester Carlson Photocopiers
electronic invents the
television. principle of
photocopying
1920s Robert H. Goddard Bullets (xerography).
develops the principle Space rockets
of the modern, liquid- 1938 Roy Plunkett GORE-TEX®
fueled space rocket. accidentally invents a Nonstick pans
nonstick plastic
1920s German engineer OCR coating called Teflon®.
Gustav Tauschek and
American Paul Handel 1939 Igor Sikorsky builds the Helicopters
first truly practical
independently
helicopter.
develop primitive
optical
1942 Enrico Fermi builds the Nuclear power
character
first nuclear chain
recognition (OCR)
reactor at the
scanning systems.
University of
Chicago.
1920s Albert W. Hull Magnetrons
invents the Microwave ovens
1945 Arthur C. Clarke Satellites
magnetron, a device
conceives the idea of
that can generate
the communications
microwaves from
satellite, a space-
electricity.
based signal "mirror"
that can bounce
1921 Karel Capek and his Robots
radio waves from
brother coin the
one side of Earth to
word "robot" in a
the other.
play about
1947 John Bardeen, Amplifiers 1963 Ivan Sutherland Computer graphics
Walter Brattain, Electronics develops
and William History of Sketchpad, one of
Shockley invent computers the first computer-
the transistor, Transistors aided design
which allows programs.
electronic
equipment to be 1964 IBM helps to pioneer E-commerce
made much e commerce with an
smaller and leads airline ticket
to the modern reservation system
computer called SABRE.
revolution.
1966 Robert H. Dennard Computer memory
1949 Bernard Silver and N. Barcodes of IBM invents
Joseph Woodland and barcode dynamic random
patent barcodes— scanners access memory
striped patterns that (DRAM).
are initially developed
for marking products 1969 Astronauts walk Space rockets
in grocery stores. on the Moon.

1950s Charles Townes and Lasers 1960s Douglas Engelbart Computer mouse
Arthur Schawlow develops the
invent the maser computer mouse.
(microwave laser).
Gordon Gould coins 1960s James Russell CD players
the word "laser" and invents compact
builds the first optical discs.
laser in 1958.
1973 Martin Cooper Cellphones
develops the first
1950s Stanford Ovshinksy Batteries handheld cellphone
develops various Electric bicycles (mobilephone).
technologies that Electric cars
make renewable Solar cells 1973 Robert Metcalfe Computer networks
energy more figures out a Internet
practical, including simple way of
practical solar cells linking computers
and improved together that he
rechargeable names Ethernet.
batteries. Most computers
hooked up to the
1950s Percy Spencer Microwave ovens Internet now use it.
accidentally
discovers how to 1974 First grocery-store Barcodes and
cook with purchase of an item barcode
microwaves, coded with a scanners
inadvertently barcode.
inventing the
microwave oven.
1980s Japanese electrical CD players
1956 First commercial Nuclear power pioneer Akio Morita MP3 players
nuclear power is plants develops the Sony
produced at Walkman, the first
Calder Hall, truly portable player
Cumbria, England. for recorded music.

1958 Jack Kilby and History of computers 1981 Patricia Bath Lasers
Robert Noyce, integrated circuits develops laser eye
working Transistors surgery for removing
independently, cataracts.
develop the
integrated 1989 Tim Berners-Lee Internet
circuit. invents the World World Wide Web
Wide Web.
1959 IBM and General Computer graphics
Motors develop 1991 Linus Torvalds creates Computers
Design the first version of Linux
Augmented by Linux, a collaboratively
Computers-1 written computer
(DAC-1), the first operating system.
computer-aided
design (CAD)
system.
 1997 Electronics Wireless Internet 2016 Three Nanotechnology
companies agree to nanotechnologists
make Wi-Fi a win the Nobel Prize
worldwide standard in
for wireless Internet. Chemistry for building
miniature machines
out of molecules.
7. 21st Century
Date Articles explain the Invention or 2019 Google claims to Quantum
stuff discovery have achieved computers
"quantum
21st Century supremacy"—with a
quantum computer
2001 Apple revolutionizes MP3 players that calculates
music listening by faster than a
unveiling its iPod conventional one.
MP3 music player.
2020 Deep Mind, Neural networks
2001 The Wikipedia online Electronic books Google/Alphabet's
encyclopedia is artificial intelligence
founded by Larry computer
Sanger and Jimmy program, cracks the
Wales. classic problem of
protein folding.
2001 Bram Cohen BitTorrent
develops Internet
BitTorrent file-
sharing.

2002 iRobot Corporation Roomba

releases the first Robots
version of its Roomba®
vacuum cleaning
robot.

2004 Electronic voting plays Touchscreens

a major part in a
controversial US
Presidential Election.

2005 A pioneering low-cost Computers

laptop for developing
countries called
OLPC is
announced by
MIT computing
pioneer Nicholas
Negroponte.

2007 Amazon.com Electronic books

launches its Kindle
electronic book (e
book) reader.

2007 Apple introduces a Cellphones

touchscreen Touchscreens
cellphone 14
called the
iPhone.

2010 Apple releases its Computers

touchscreen tablet Touchscreens
computer, the iPad.

2010 3D TV starts to 3D Television

become more Television
widely available.

2015 Supercomputers (the Supercomputers

world's fastest
computers) are now
a mere 30 times less
powerful than human
brains.