The equals sign, =
Robert Recorde (1510-58) was born in Tenby and, astonishingly, died in debtors’ prison, but he had had a glittering academic career at […]
Category: Inventions
Caxton’s printing press
Kent-born William Caxton (c.1422-91) was the first to bring the printing press to Britain and to publish in English. During the twenty […]
The portable defibrillator
Born in Hillsborough, near Lisburn, Professor J. Frank Pantridge, CBE, MC (1916-2004) is regarded as a pioneer of emergency medical treatment. He […]
Sir Isaac Newton
Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727) was born on a farm in Lincolnshire but he was never suited to taking on the family business. […]
The bowler hat
An iconic part of the city gent’s uniform, the black bowler hat was named after nephew and uncle Thomas and William Bowler […]
The Catseye
The Catseye, trademark of Reflecting Roadstuds Ltd, was invented by Percy Shaw, OBE (1890-1976) who was born in Yorkshire. He was prompted […]
The turbojet engine
Sir Frank Whittle (1907-96) invented the turbojet engine. A brilliant mathematician and engineer, he became an RAF officer in his twenties. He […]
Television
Two Scotsmen played significant roles in the invention of the television, albeit in opposite directions. The route taken by the older of […]
Radar
Radar stands for ‘Radio Detection and Ranging’ and there were two Scottish physicists who had key roles in its invention. The first […]
Big Ben
‘Big Ben’ is the nickname given to the hour bell in the Elizabeth Tower at the Houses of Parliament in London. The […]
Wave energy
The British Isles are surrounded by the natural resource of the sea, making the possibility of producing electricity from wave energy an […]
The flushing toilet
Sir John Harington invented the flushing toilet for his own manor house in Somerset and his godmother, Queen Elizabeth I, requested one […]