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Inventions: A Visual Encyclopedia
Discover the amazing inventions throughout history that have shaped the world as we know it.
This stunning visual guide explores and explains the greatest inventions, ideas, and discoveries throughout the ages, and introduces their inventors. From fire, stone tools, and the wheel to ploughs and paper, discover the first inventions that shaped societies and grew mighty civilizations and empires such as those in ancient Greece, ancient Rome, and ancient China.
In the centuries that followed, "Eureka" moments abounded, with James Watt's steam engine during the Industrial Revolution, Henry Ford's car assembly line at the start of the 20th century, the Wright brothers' flying machines, Thomas Edison's light bulb, John Logie Baird's television, and so much more.
Read about era-defining moments during the Digital Revolution, such as the first website developed by Tim Berners-Lee, and the growth in the use of robotics in industry and at home.
Inventions: A Visual Encyclopedia reveals the stories behind the crucial and quirky contraptions - products of the world's most brilliant minds.
This stunning visual guide explores and explains the greatest inventions, ideas, and discoveries throughout the ages, and introduces their inventors. From fire, stone tools, and the wheel to ploughs and paper, discover the first inventions that shaped societies and grew mighty civilizations and empires such as those in ancient Greece, ancient Rome, and ancient China.
In the centuries that followed, "Eureka" moments abounded, with James Watt's steam engine during the Industrial Revolution, Henry Ford's car assembly line at the start of the 20th century, the Wright brothers' flying machines, Thomas Edison's light bulb, John Logie Baird's television, and so much more.
Read about era-defining moments during the Digital Revolution, such as the first website developed by Tim Berners-Lee, and the growth in the use of robotics in industry and at home.
Inventions: A Visual Encyclopedia reveals the stories behind the crucial and quirky contraptions - products of the world's most brilliant minds.
304 pages, Hardcover
Published July 10, 2018
5 people are currently reading
59 people want to read
About the author
John Farndon
633 books31 followersJohn Farndon is an internationally known author, as well as a playwright, composer and songwriter, whose work has been performed at such theatres as the Donmar and Almeida in London and the Salisbury Playhouse and selected for showcases, such as Beyond the Gate.
He has written hundreds of books, which have sold millions of copies around the world in most major languages and include many best-sellers, such as the award-winning Do Not Open, which received rave reviews in the USA and became a cult-hit as well as featuring on the New York Times and Washington Post best-seller lists. In earlier years, he wrote mostly for children, and has been shortlisted a record four times for the junior Science Book prize. Books such as How Science Works and How the Earth Works each sold over a million copies worldwide. But recently he has written much more for adults.
Many of his books focus on popular science, and in particular earth science, nature, and environmental issues. His Practical Encyclopedia of Rocks and Mineral is widely used as a reference work by geologists, while The Atlas of Oceans, his big book on endangered life in the oceans for Yale in the USA (A&C Black in the UK and Australian Geographic in Australia), garnered glowing reports prepublication from major figures such as the Cousteaus, Carl Safina, Nancy Knowlton and Harm de Blij.
But he has covered a wide range of topics, from contemporary China to the food market. The history of ideas and intellectual curiosity is a particular speciality.
In 2010, his book for Icon Do You Think You're Clever? was a best-seller, reaching the top 20 on Amazon and the top 10 in South Africa and Turkey, and was shortlisted for the Society of Authors Education Award. The follow-up The World’s Greatest Idea was selected as one of the top 50 Wish List books of the year in South Africa.
He has been interviewed extensively on radio and TV stations around the world, and conducted talks, demonstrations and displays at many events, from the Brighton Science Festival to the Oxford Literary Festival.
He has written hundreds of books, which have sold millions of copies around the world in most major languages and include many best-sellers, such as the award-winning Do Not Open, which received rave reviews in the USA and became a cult-hit as well as featuring on the New York Times and Washington Post best-seller lists. In earlier years, he wrote mostly for children, and has been shortlisted a record four times for the junior Science Book prize. Books such as How Science Works and How the Earth Works each sold over a million copies worldwide. But recently he has written much more for adults.
Many of his books focus on popular science, and in particular earth science, nature, and environmental issues. His Practical Encyclopedia of Rocks and Mineral is widely used as a reference work by geologists, while The Atlas of Oceans, his big book on endangered life in the oceans for Yale in the USA (A&C Black in the UK and Australian Geographic in Australia), garnered glowing reports prepublication from major figures such as the Cousteaus, Carl Safina, Nancy Knowlton and Harm de Blij.
But he has covered a wide range of topics, from contemporary China to the food market. The history of ideas and intellectual curiosity is a particular speciality.
In 2010, his book for Icon Do You Think You're Clever? was a best-seller, reaching the top 20 on Amazon and the top 10 in South Africa and Turkey, and was shortlisted for the Society of Authors Education Award. The follow-up The World’s Greatest Idea was selected as one of the top 50 Wish List books of the year in South Africa.
He has been interviewed extensively on radio and TV stations around the world, and conducted talks, demonstrations and displays at many events, from the Brighton Science Festival to the Oxford Literary Festival.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 20, 2019
I just browsed this, but it reminded me of all the inventions I am grateful for.
November 16, 2021
Poor exploration, judgement* full but empty . Just read the title not the whole book . Good effort anyways. Knowledge is what we buy.
Read
June 4, 2024Good but too much details
February 11, 2020
132 - 2020
Read
January 25, 2019I'm oddly unsettled on this one. I get that as an encyclopedia of sorts there won't be too much on any one item, but I do wish there were more explanations of how the inventions worked. (Especially as someone who regularly gets asked about jet engines by kids of varying ages and has trouble understanding, let alone explaining!)
When I first flipped through and saw the Polynesian map it was like 'yes!' but then as I sat down to read it properly it's still basically western civ plus China.
I was pleased that in an era of why bother with exploration and study that after a bit on the space race they did talk a little about inventions that came from space exploration.
So it's interesting and helpful but still whiter and maler than I was hoping for.
(Also, I get it's not necessarily the place for moral issues, but mentioning von braun working for germans in one paragraph and the us army in the next and somehow leaving out the word nazi felt disingenuous-it seemed that operation paperclip should have been mentioned. I kept thinking of Tom Lehrer:
And what is it that put America in the forefront of
the nuclear nations? And what is it that will make it
possible to spend twenty billion dollars of your money
to put some clown on the moon? Well, it was good old
American know how, that's what, as provided by good
old Americans like Dr. Wernher von Braun!
Gather 'round while I sing you of Wernher von Braun
A man whose allegiance
Is ruled by expedience
Call him a Nazi, he won't even frown
"Ha, Nazi, Schmazi" says Wernher von Braun
Don't say that he's hypocritical
Say rather that he's apolitical
"Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down?
That's not my department" say Wernher von Braun
Some have harsh words for this man of renown
But some think our attitude
Should be one of gratitude
Like the widows and cripples in old London town
Who owe their large pension to Wernher von Braun
You too may be a big hero
Once you've learned to count backwards to zero
"In German, oder Englisch, I know how to count down
Und I'm learning Chinese!" says Wernher von Braun)
When I first flipped through and saw the Polynesian map it was like 'yes!' but then as I sat down to read it properly it's still basically western civ plus China.
I was pleased that in an era of why bother with exploration and study that after a bit on the space race they did talk a little about inventions that came from space exploration.
So it's interesting and helpful but still whiter and maler than I was hoping for.
(Also, I get it's not necessarily the place for moral issues, but mentioning von braun working for germans in one paragraph and the us army in the next and somehow leaving out the word nazi felt disingenuous-it seemed that operation paperclip should have been mentioned. I kept thinking of Tom Lehrer:
And what is it that put America in the forefront of
the nuclear nations? And what is it that will make it
possible to spend twenty billion dollars of your money
to put some clown on the moon? Well, it was good old
American know how, that's what, as provided by good
old Americans like Dr. Wernher von Braun!
Gather 'round while I sing you of Wernher von Braun
A man whose allegiance
Is ruled by expedience
Call him a Nazi, he won't even frown
"Ha, Nazi, Schmazi" says Wernher von Braun
Don't say that he's hypocritical
Say rather that he's apolitical
"Once the rockets are up, who cares where they come down?
That's not my department" say Wernher von Braun
Some have harsh words for this man of renown
But some think our attitude
Should be one of gratitude
Like the widows and cripples in old London town
Who owe their large pension to Wernher von Braun
You too may be a big hero
Once you've learned to count backwards to zero
"In German, oder Englisch, I know how to count down
Und I'm learning Chinese!" says Wernher von Braun)
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews