Nikola Tesla was a major contributor to the electrical revolution that transformed daily life at the turn of the twentieth century. His inventions, patents, and theoretical work formed the basis of modern AC electricity, and contributed to the development of radio and television. Like his competitor Thomas Edison, Tesla was one of America's first celebrity scientists, enjoying the company of New York high society and dazzling the likes of Mark Twain with his electrical demonstrations. An astute self-promoter and gifted showman, he cultivated a public image of the eccentric genius. Even at the end of his life when he was living in poverty, Tesla still attracted reporters to his annual birthday interview, regaling them with claims that he had invented a particle-beam weapon capable of bringing down enemy aircraft. Plenty of biographies glamorize Tesla and his eccentricities, but until now none has carefully examined what, how, and why he invented. In this groundbreaking book, W. Bernard Carlson demystifies the legendary inventor, placing him within the cultural and technological context of his time, and focusing on his inventions themselves as well as the creation and maintenance of his celebrity. Drawing on original documents from Tesla's private and public life, Carlson shows how he was an "idealist" inventor who sought the perfect experimental realization of a great idea or principle, and who skillfully sold his inventions to the public through mythmaking and illusion. This major biography sheds new light on Tesla's visionary approach to invention and the business strategies behind his most important technological breakthroughs.

This late 18th Century Coffee House society provided a group of natural philosophers with the opportunity to discuss the topics that most interested them. Though the Minute books deal with some practical and procedural matters, they mostly record the discussions, which centred around chemistry, and in particular the phlogiston theory. Contemporary accounts of such meetings are extremely rare, and the survival of the manuscript copy, made by William Nicholson, a member and secretary of the society is remarkable. In this book, the original has been reproduced. The editors also include an account of the membership, 55 in number and of whom 33 were Fellows of the Royal Society of London, and background essays by Jan Golinski and Larry Stewart. Many of the members were medical, and some were lawyers and clergymen, but all shared a fascination for practical science and technology. Readers across a broad range of disciplines will find the book of great interest.

This book charts the history of the worldwide introduction of an operative treatment method for broken bones, osteosynthesis, by a Swiss-based association, called AO. The success of the close cooperation between the AO's surgeons, scientists and manufacturers in establishing a complicated and risky technique as a standard treatment sheds light on the mechanisms of medical innovation at the crossroads of surgery, science and industry and the nature of modern medicine in general.

For a brief period in the early Twentieth Century it seemed as if the future of air travel lay with the giant airships of Count von Zeppelin. The First World War ended that dream, fixed wing aircraft superseding the slow moving and unwieldy airships. As weapons of war the Zeppelins were never truly successful although they did manage to terrify huge numbers of unknowing and naive civilians-perhaps more by imagination than by any practical manifestation of their power. The Zeppelin crews of the First World War spent hours in the air, cold and hungry-and with the prospect of a horrendous death, either by fire or by falling thousands of feet to the ground, ever present. As vehicles of mass destruction the Zeppelins were remarkably ineffective. Their real value, lay in their ability to make silent reconnaissance missions over enemy territory and sea lanes. In the post-war days the public began to realise that airships offered a form of air travel that was comfortable, mostly stable and, sometimes, even luxurious. The 'Graf Zeppelin' and the 'Hindenburg' were the height of elegance.Unfortunately, they had two major defects-they were vulnerable to the elements and, due to the hydrogen that kept them aloft, they were also highly flammable. The 'Hindenburg' disaster of 1937 effectively spelled the end of the giant airship as a commercial enterprise but for almost half a century these wonderful machines had cruised elegantly through the clouds.

A penetrating, mesmerizing biography of a scientific icon

"Absolutely fascinating . . . Davidson has done a remarkable job."-Sir Arthur C. Clarke

"Engaging . . . accessible, carefully documented . . . sophisticated."-Dr. David Hollinger for The New York Times Book Review

"Entertaining . . . Davidson treats the] nuances of Sagan's complex life with understanding and sympathy."-The Christian Science Monitor

"Excellent . . . Davidson acts as a keen critic to Sagan's works and their vast uncertainties."-Scientific American

"A fascinating book about an extraordinary man."-Johnny Carson

"Davidson, an award-winning science writer, has written an absorbing portrait of this Pied Piper of planetary science. Davidson thoroughly explores Sagan's science, wrestles with his politics, and plumbs his personal passions with a telling instinct for the revealing underside of a life lived so publicly."-Los Angeles Times

Carl Sagan was one of the most celebrated scientists of this century the handsome and alluring visionary who inspired a generation to look to the heavens and beyond. His life was both an intellectual feast and an emotional rollercoaster. Based on interviews with Sagan's family and friends, including his widow, Ann Druyan; his first wife, acclaimed scientist Lynn Margulis; and his three sons, as well as exclusive access to many personal papers, this highly acclaimed life story offers remarkable insight into one of the most influential, provocative, and beloved figures of our time a complex, contradictory prophet of the Space Age."

The dramatic stories of ten historic feuds: How they altered the course of discovery-and shaped the modern world
Hall Hellman tells the lively stories of ten of the most outrageous and intriguing disputes from the seventeenth to the twentieth centuries. Bringing the cataclysmic clash of ideas and personalities to colorful life, Hellman explores both the science and the spirit of the times. Along the way, he reveals that scientific feuds are fueled not only by the purest of intellectual disagreements, but also by intransigence, ambition, jealousy, politics, faith, and the irresistible human urge to be right.
Unusual insight into the development of science . . . I was excited by this book and enthusiastically recommend it to general as well as scientific audiences. -American Scientist
Hellman has assembled a series of entertaining tales. . . . many fine examples of heady invective without parallel in our time. -Nature
An entertaining and informative account of the unusual personalities and sometimes bitter rivalries of some of the world's greatest scientific minds. -Publishers Weekly
A fascinating new book which details some of the most famous disputes of the ages.-Courier Mail
Dry science history turns into entertaining reading without sacrificing historical accuracy. -The Christchurch Press
Great Feuds in Science is wonderful history, as the reader learns how scientists had to fight with religious leaders and other scientists to get their work recognized, accepted, and even get the credit for it -Bookviews

Pockets, matches, spectacles, postage stamps. Whether it's the stitches that hold our clothes together or the syringes that deliver life-saving vaccines, small things really do make a big difference. Yet these modest but essential components of everyday life are often overlooked. Science and comedy writer Helen Pilcher shares the unexpected stories of 50 humble innovations - from the accidental soldering of two bits of metal that created the pacemaker, to the eighteenth-century sea captain whose ingenious invention paved the way for the filming of Star Wars - and celebrates the joy of the small yet mighty.

Americas Hundred Thousand covers in detail the eleven U.S. fighter aircraft types produced just before and during World War II - with a combined production total of just over 100,000 aircraft. Covered are the Army Lockheed P-38 Lightning, P-39 Airacobra, Curtiss P-40 Tomahawk/Kittyhawk/Warhawk, P-47 Thunderbolt, North American P-51 Mustang, Northrop P-61 Black Widow, and the Navy F2A - Buffalo, F4F - Wildcat, F4U - Corsair, and F6F - Hellcat fighters. The text is supplemented by more than 650 photographs, and 200 tables and graphs. Fighter production figures are also included. After an introduction of each type, a heavily illustrated overview of earlier inter-war production from 1920-on, along with a discussion and illustration of wartime experimental types, is provided. A lengthy section considering several technical factors affecting fighter performance follows. These include engine models, supercharger types, propellers, aerodynamic thrust, lift and drag, aircraft weight, balance, stability and control, and armament. Americas Hundred Thousand also provides details of each U.S. World War II production fighter in terms of models and changes, numbers produced, and major engine and aircraft performance aspects - in tabular and graphical form - details of weights, discussion of handling qualities and general comments, along with detailed descriptions containing many illustrations of aircraft structures and systems showing the technology of that time. In addition a comprehensive week-to-week and month-to-month chronology of development and wartime combat operational life for each fighter is provided, including many photos. This study concludes with comparisons of the eleven types in terms of program milestones, aircraft drag, power available at various altitudes, speed, climb, rolling and turning, acceleration, and diving performance, as well as general evaluations by World War II pilots.

Over the past thirty years, the world’s patent systems have experienced pressure from civil society like never before. From farmers to patient advocates, new voices are arguing that patents impact public health, economic inequality, morality—and democracy. These challenges, to domains that we usually consider technical and legal, may seem surprising. But in Patent Politics, Shobita Parthasarathy argues that patent systems have always been deeply political and social.   To demonstrate this, Parthasarathy takes readers through a particularly fierce and prolonged set of controversies over patents on life forms linked to important advances in biology and agriculture and potentially life-saving medicines. Comparing battles over patents on animals, human embryonic stem cells, human genes, and plants in the United States and Europe, she shows how political culture, ideology, and history shape patent system politics. Clashes over whose voices and which values matter in the patent system, as well as what counts as knowledge and whose expertise is important, look quite different in these two places. And through these debates, the United States and Europe are developing very different approaches to patent and innovation governance. Not just the first comprehensive look at the controversies swirling around biotechnology patents, Patent Politics is also the first in-depth analysis of the political underpinnings and implications of modern patent systems, and provides a timely analysis of how we can reform these systems around the world to maximize the public interest.

Polymer science is central to material and intellectual life in the 20th century. Polymer chemistry and engineering have led not only to such substances as synthetic fibers, synthetic rubber, and plastic, but also to discoveries about proteins, DNA, and other biological compounds that have revolutionized Western medicine. In "Inventing Polymer Science", Yasu Furukawa explores the history of modern polymer science by tracing its emergence from macromolecular chemistry, its true beginning. Furukawa's lively book gains human interest through its focus on two central figures, Hermann Staudinger and Wallace Carothers. He examines the origins and development of their scientific work, illuminates their different styles in research and professional activities, and contrasts the peculiar institutional and social milieux in which they pursued their goals. In the process he provides us with a richly contextualized history of the emergence of macromolecular chemistry.

A richly illustrated introduction to the engineering triumphs that made America modern

Praise for The Tower and the Bridge

"Fascinating and informative. . . . [S]hould be required reading for architects, engineers, and anyone who is interested in the special role of structural art in our technological society." — Myron Goldsmith Coeditor (with David Billington) Technique and Aesthetics in the Design of Tall Buildings

"David Billington brings the special insight of an engineer to the study of history. The result is a provocative analysis . . . bound to excite and instruct a wide variety of readers, from the casual buff to the professional scholar. The book is a delight to read." — Merritt Roe Smith Editor, Military Enterprise and Technological Change

They built the future. Their ingenuity, their vision, their genius propelled a young nation toward the twentieth century, and paved the way for America's emergence as the world's leading industrial power. The Innovators tells the impressive story of the engineering pioneers whose designs revolutionized commerce, industry, and world history.

Enter the workshops of America's early engineering geniuses and discover how they came up with their ideas and applied them to the marketplace. David Billington, acclaimed author of The Tower and the Bridge, reveals the strokes of brilliance behind such landmark developments as the steamboat, electric power, and the rise of the iron and steel industry. He explains each major innovation through the story of the remarkable new engineering formulas that made it possible, showing that one key to engineering progress is the discovery of fundamental relationships in the physical world. He also explores the political and social conditions that allowed these brilliant individuals to implement their ideas, and the sweeping changes that followed in their wake.

Who were the innovators? Some are legendary: Robert Fulton, inventor of the steamboat; Samuel Morse, inventor of the telegraph; and Thomas Edison, inventor of the incandescent lightbulb. Others are not as well known, however, and readers will be introduced to many whose contributions, if not their names, have stood the test of time: people like J. Edgar Thompson, who built the Pennsylvania Railroad; and Thomas Telford, who revolutionized large-scale bridge building and design.

In the age of microchips and space probes, The Innovators brings insight and perspective to America's engineering history.

Man, racing driver, entrepreneur: three terms that well describe Gianpiero Moretti, creator of Momo half a century ago, an Italian company renowned for its excellence in the production of steering wheels, racing suits and car components from 1964 to today. The historic marque decided to celebrate this important anniversary with a book that covers the salient stages of its development and consolidation, as well as Moretti's long and prestigious motor racing career. From the company's association with Ferrari, dating back to the '60s when the Prancing Horse adopted Momo steering wheels for Formula 1, to the prolific IMSA experience, first with the Porsche 935 and then the Ferrari 333 SP, to its current involvement in the official Momo team. Then there was the far-reaching production of steering wheels and rims for production cars and the lively, colorful advertising campaigns that branded half a century of communications. These are just some of the chapters that comprise this engaging book, produced in close collaboration with the company.

In September 1969, several months after the Apollo 11 lunar landing, President Richard M. Nixon established the Space Task Force to chart NASA's path for the decades to come. This imaginative vision was shattered less than six months later when, on January 13, 1970, NASA Administrator Dr. Thomas Paine announced that, owing to funding cuts, only the reusable Space Shuttle could be afforded -- there would be no space station, no return to the Moon, and no missions to Mars. This is a story never before told about the missions and technologies that NASA had begun to plan but never fully realized. The book is a companion to the author's previous two works on the Space Shuttle. Whereas the first two books showed how the Space Shuttle flew in space and what the program accomplished, this book explains what more the Space Shuttle could have achieved and how the space transportation system could have further matured if circumstances had been otherwise. A final chapter also discusses how some of these plans might be resurrected in future programs.

Conquering the Electron offers readers a true and engaging history of the world of electronics, beginning with the discoveries of static electricity and magnetism and ending with the creation of the smartphone and the iPad. This book shows the interconnection of each advance to the next on the long journey to our modern-day technologies. Exploring the combination of genius, infighting, and luck that powered the creation of today's electronic age, Conquering the Electron debunks the hero worship so often plaguing the stories of great advances. Want to know how AT&T's Bell Labs developed semiconductor technology-and how its leading scientists almost came to blows in the process? Want to understand how radio and television work-and why RCA drove their inventors to financial ruin and early graves? Conquering the Electron offers these stories and more, presenting each revolutionary technological advance right alongside blow-by-blow personal battles that all too often took place.

Discover the enthralling story of how we took to the skies, in this journey through over 100 years of airborne innovation and adventure.

From the Wright brothers' first powered flight to Concorde's final voyage, Flight takes you sky-high, swooping you through world aviation history. Featuring spectacular photography of iconic aircraft, this book also recounts the feats of pioneers, trailblazers, and jet test pilots, and traces the technological developments so important to aviation's progress.

Memorable moments of aerial warfare and record-breaking flights are recalled alongside more than 250 profiles of innovative aircraft in this book packed with flight facts for the aviation enthusiast. The human experience of flying is documented too, and historical quotes give a glimpse into the thoughts and ambitions of key figures in flight history.

So board now and follow a journey full of achievement, adventure, and tragedy in Flight and see how our dream to fly became a reality.

About 100 years ago, it was dicovered that insects transmit grave, mainly tropical diseases - very much to the astonishment of the physicians of that time, who saw this as a new, possibly easy, way of eradicating the diseases by exterminating the vectors. For some years, DDT and other then new insecticides achieved great improvements, but subsequently serious setbacks emerged: insecticide-resistance and anxiety about toxicity to man and animals. In the past twenty years, serious efforts have been made tofind alternatives, with varying degrees of success.

A brief history of Boston's Big Dig, the largest public works project in American history.

This volume represents an introduction to a new world-wide attempt to review the history of technology, which is one of few since the pioneering publications of the 1960s. It takes an explicit archaeological focus to the study of the history of technology and adopts a more explicit socially-embedded view of technology than has commonly been the case in mainstream histories of technology. In doing so, it attempts to introduce a more radical element to explanations of technological change, involving magic, alchemy, animism - in other words, attempting to consider technological change in terms of the 'world view' of those involved in such change rather than from an exclusively western scientific perspective.

The Story of Mini is a pocket-sized and beautifully illustrated celebration of the iconic car. For more than 60 years, the Mini has been one of the most beloved and instantly recognisable cars on the road. From its humble beginnings with the British Motor Corporation in 1959, to the modern BMW-backed models of today, The Story of Mini tells the story of the car and the unique culture that has built up around it. Exploring the evolution of Mini design from the original two-door model - the most popular British car of all time - through to the diverse range of Minis available today, this book is an exceptionally designed tribute to the marque, and the people who helped create it. Touching on the Mini's impact on pop culture, as well as the racing heritage cultivated by the legendary John Cooper, and filled with stunning imagery and insightful commentary, The Story of Mini charts the history of this beloved brand in a small but perfectly formed package.