The most important invention in the history of mankind, which opened the way for the industrial revolution and the subsequent accelerated development of mankind, was steam engine. In 1698. Englishman Severi created a steam engine for pumping water from mines. In 1712 Thomas Newcomen improved this machine by providing it with a cylinder and a piston. In 1763 Newcomen's car perfected James Watt. Understanding the shortcomings of the model, Watt created a machine that was fundamentally different from it. The size of the steam engine has been significantly reduced. Mass production of steam engines was not possible without precision lathes; a decisive step in this direction was taken by the mechanic Henry Maudsley who created self-propelled caliper. In 1802 the American Robert Fulton built in Paris steam engine boat. Then he built the steamship Claremont. In 1807 "Clairmont" made the first flight along the river. Hudson. Nine years later, there were 300 steamers in America, and 150 in England. In 1819, the American steamer Savannah crossed the Atlantic Ocean. The first steamships in the Russian Empire appeared in 1815 . Simultaneously with the construction of steamboats, attempts were made to create a steam wagon. AT 1803 mechanic Richard Trevithick built the first steam locomotive. In 1815, self-taught mechanic George Stephenson built his first steam locomotive. In 1830 Stephenson completed construction first big railroad between the cities of Manchester and Liverpool; for this road, he designed the steam locomotive "Rocket", on which he first used a tubular steam boiler. In 1765 the weaver and carpenter Hargreaves created a mechanical spinning wheel which he named after his daughter Jenny»; this spinning wheel increased the productivity of the spinner by 20 times. In 1769 Richard Arkwright patented spinning water machine, designed for water drive, and from that moment the machines began to be used in manufactories. AT 1850 -s. English inventor and entrepreneur Henry Bessemer invented Bessemer converter, and in 1860 -s. French engineer Emil Martin created the open-hearth furnace. This made it possible to later establish a mass production of steel tools. The "epoch of electricity" began with the invention of a dynamo - a direct current generator, it was created by the Belgian engineer Z. Gramm in 1870 In the 1880s gg. Yugoslav Nikola Tesla created a two-phase AC motor. Worked in Germany at AEG Russian electrical engineer M.O. Dolivo-Dobrovolsky created an effective three-phase electric motor, as well as the first power lines high voltage and a transformer to it. After that, Dolivo-Dobrovolsky became the leading electrical engineer of that time, and the AEG company became the largest manufacturer of electrical equipment. Since that time, plants and factories began to move from steam engines to electric motors, large power plants and power lines appeared. It should be emphasized that the great achievement of electrical engineering was the creation of electric lamps. For solving this problem in 1879 the American inventor took Thomas Edison; Edison's first light bulbs were "bamboo". Only twenty years later, at the suggestion of a Russian engineer Alexander Nikolaevich Lodygin The filament was made from tungsten. The first workable gasoline engine was created in 1883 by the German engineer Julius Daimler. This engine ushered in the era of automobiles; already in 1886, Daimler put his engine on a four-wheeled carriage. Panhard and Levassor used only the Daimler engine to create their car, equipping it with a clutch system, gearbox and rubber tires. It was the first real car in history. Daimler himself in 1890 created the Daimler Motoren company, which ten years later produced the first Mercedes car. Diesel's first engine, which appeared in 1895, created a sensation - its efficiency was 36% - twice that of gasoline engines. The advent of the internal combustion engine played a big role in the birth of aviation. In the 1870s Alexander Bell took out a patent for the telephone and sold over 800 copies that same year. T.A. Edison provided the membrane with a needle, and so the phonograph was born. In 1887, the American Emil Berliner replaced the cylinder with a round plate and created the gramophone. A new step in the development of communications was the invention of the radiotelegraph. In March 1896 Popov demonstrated his apparatus. Simultaneously with Popov, a young Italian, Guglielmo Marconi, created his radiotelegraph installation. Marconi replaced the coherer with a magnetic detector and made radio communication across the Atlantic Ocean. Cinema was created at the end of the 19th century. This was due to the improvement of photography invented by Louis Daguerre. At the end of the XIX century. plastics are created. In 1873, J. Hyatt (USA) invented celluloid. In 1887, the American Hiram Maxim created the first machine gun. In 1860, the first iron battleship Warrior was launched in England. Idea of ​​use jet apparatus for space flights belongs to Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky. Invention of the loom, steam engine, locomotive, steamboat, rifle, etc. - all these were fundamental discoveries that caused the emergence of a new cultural circle - that society that is called industrial civilization.

inventions of the 19th century. From grateful descendants

The inventions of the 19th century laid the scientific and practical foundation for the discoveries and inventions of the 20th century. The nineteenth century became the springboard for the breakthrough of civilization. In this article I will talk about the most significant and outstanding scientific achievements of the nineteenth century. Tens of thousands of inventions, new technologies, fundamental scientific discoveries. Cars, aviation, spacewalks, electronics… You can list for a long time. All this became possible in the 20th century thanks to the scientific and technological inventions of the nineteenth century.

Unfortunately, in one article it is impossible to tell in detail about each invention created in the century before last. Therefore, in this article, all inventions will be described as briefly as possible.

inventions of the 19th century. The Age of Steam. rails

The nineteenth century was golden for steam engines. Invented in the eighteenth century, it was increasingly improved, and by the middle of the nineteenth century it was used almost everywhere. Plants, factories, mills...
And in 1804, the Englishman Richard Trevithick installed a steam engine on wheels. And the wheels rested on metal rails. It turned out the first steam locomotive. Of course, it was very imperfect and was used as an amusing toy. The power of the steam engine was only enough to move the locomotive itself, and a small cart with passengers. The practical use of this design was out of the question.

But after all, a steam engine can be put more powerful. Then the steam locomotive will be able to carry more cargo. Of course, iron is expensive and the creation of a railway will cost a pretty penny. But the owners of coal mines and mines knew how to count money. And from the middle of the thirties of the century before last, the first steam locomotives went along the plains of the Metropolis, hissing steam and scaring away horses and cows.

Such clumsy constructions made it possible to sharply increase the turnover. From the mine to the port, from the port to the steel furnace. It became possible to smelt more iron, and from it to create more machines. So the steam locomotive dragged technical progress forward.

inventions of the 19th century. The Age of Steam. Rivers and seas

And the first steamboat that was ready for practical use, and not just another toy, splashed down the Hudson with paddle wheels in 1807. Its inventor, Robert Fulton, installed a steam engine on a small riverboat. The engine power was not great, but still the steamer made up to five knots per hour without the help of the wind. The steamer was a passenger one, but at first few people dared to step aboard such an unusual design. But gradually things got better. After all, steamships were less dependent on the vagaries of nature.

In 1819, the Savannah, a ship with sailing equipment and an auxiliary steam engine, crossed the Atlantic Ocean for the first time. For most of the journey, the sailors used a fair wind, and the steam engine was used during calm. And 19 years later, the steamship Sirius made the crossing of the Atlantic only with the help of steam.

In 1838, the Englishman Francis Smith installed a propeller instead of bulky paddle wheels, which was much smaller and allowed the ship to reach greater speed. With the introduction of screw steamers, the centuries-old era of handsome sailboats came to an end.

inventions of the 19th century. Electricity

In the nineteenth century, experiments with electricity led to the creation of many devices and mechanisms. Scientists and inventors conducted many experiments, deduced the fundamental formulas and concepts used in our 21st century.

In 1800, the Italian inventor Alessandro Volta assembles the first galvanic cell - the prototype of the modern battery. A disc of copper, then a cloth soaked in acid, then a piece of zinc. Such a sandwich creates an electrical voltage. And if you connect such elements together, you get a battery. Its voltage and power directly depend on the number of galvanic cells.

1802, Russian scientist Vasily Petrov, having designed a battery of several thousand elements, receives a Voltaic arc, a prototype of modern welding and a light source.

In 1831, Michael Faraday invented the first electrical generator that could convert mechanical energy into electrical energy. Now there is no need to burn yourself with acid and collect countless metal mugs together. On the basis of this generator, Faraday creates an electric motor. So far, these are still demonstration models that clearly show the laws of electromagnetic induction.

In 1834, the Russian scientist B. S. Yakobi designed the first electric motor with a rotating armature. This motor can already find practical application. The boat, driven by this electric motor, goes against the current along the Neva, carrying 14 passengers.

inventions of the 19th century. Electric lamp

Since the forties of the nineteenth century, experiments have been going on to create incandescent lamps. A current passed through a thin metal wire heats it up to a bright glow. Unfortunately, the metal hair burns out very quickly, and the inventors are struggling to increase the life of the light bulb. Various metals and materials are used. Finally, in the nineties of the nineteenth century, the Russian scientist Alexander Nikolaevich Lodygin presents the electric light bulb that we are used to. This is a glass flask from which air is pumped out; a spiral of refractory tungsten is used as a filament.

inventions of the 19th century. Telephone

In 1876, American Alexander Bell patented the "talking telegraph", the prototype of the modern telephone. This device is still imperfect, the quality and range of communication leave much to be desired. There is no call familiar to everyone and to call a subscriber you need to whistle into the phone with a special whistle.
Literally a year later, Thomas Edison improved the telephone by installing a carbon microphone. Now subscribers do not need to yell heart-rendingly into the phone. The communication range increases, a familiar handset and a call appear.

inventions of the 19th century. Telegraph

The telegraph was also invented in the early nineteenth century. The first samples were very imperfect, but then there was a qualitative leap. The use of an electromagnet made it possible to send and receive messages faster. But the existing legend about the inventor of the telegraph alphabet, Samuel Morse, is not entirely true. Morse invented the very principle of coding - a combination of short and long pulses. But the alphabet itself, numerical and alphabetic, was created by Alfred Weil. Telegraph lines eventually entangled the entire Earth. There were submarine cables linking America and Europe. The huge data transfer rate also made a significant contribution to the development of science.

inventions of the 19th century. Radio

Radio also appeared in the nineteenth century, at its very end. It is generally accepted that the first radio was invented by Marconi. Although his discovery was preceded by the work of other scientists, and in many countries the primacy of this inventor is often questioned.

For example, in Russia, Alexander Stepanovich Popov is considered the inventor of the radio. In 1895, he introduced his device, called the lightning detector. Lightning during a thunderstorm caused an electromagnetic pulse. From the antenna, this pulse entered the coherer - a glass flask with metal filings. The electrical resistance sharply decreased, the current went through the wire winding of the bell electromagnet, a signal was heard. Then Popov repeatedly upgraded his invention. The transceivers were installed on warships of the Russian Navy, the communication range reached twenty kilometers. The first radio even saved the lives of fishermen who broke away on an ice floe in the Gulf of Finland.

inventions of the 19th century. Automobile

The history of the car also dates back to the nineteenth century. Of course, connoisseurs of history can also remember the steam car of the Frenchman Cugno, the first exit of which took place in 1770, by the way, the first exit ended and the first accident, the steam cart crashed into the wall. Cugno's invention cannot be considered a real car, it is more of a technical curiosity.
The inventor of a real car, which is suitable for everyday practical use, can be considered Daimler Benz with a high degree of certainty.

Benz made his first ride in his car in 1885. It was a three-wheeled carriage, with a gasoline engine, a simple carburetor, electric ignition and water cooling. There was even a differential! Engine power was just under one horsepower. The motor crew accelerated to 16 kilometers per hour, which, with a spring suspension and simple steering, was quite enough.

Of course, other inventions preceded the Benz car. So, a gasoline, or rather a gas, engine was created in 1860. It was a two-stroke engine that used a mixture of light gas and air as fuel. The ignition was spark. In its design, it resembled a steam engine, but it was lighter and did not require time to ignite the firebox. Engine power was about 12 horsepower.
In 1876, a German engineer and inventor, Nikolaus Otto, designed a four-stroke gas engine. It turned out to be more economical and quiet, although more complex. In the theory of internal combustion engines, there is even the term "Otto Cycle", named after the creator of this power plant.
In 1885, two engineers, Daimler and Maybach, designed a light and compact carburetor engine that runs on gasoline. This unit installs on its tricycle Benz.

In 1897, Rudolf Diesel assembles an engine in which the mixture of air and fuel is ignited by strong compression, and not by a spark. In theory, such an engine should be more economical than a carburetor. Finally the engine is assembled and the theory is confirmed. Trucks and ships now use engines called diesels.
Of course, dozens and hundreds of automotive little things are being invented, such as the ignition coil, steering, headlights, and much more, which made the car comfortable and safe.

inventions of the 19th century. Photo

In the 19th century, another invention appeared, without which existence seems to be unthinkable now. This photo.
Camera - obscura, a box with a hole in the front wall, has been known since ancient times. Even Chinese scientists noticed that if the room is tightly draped with curtains, and there is a small hole on the curtain, then on a bright sunny day, an image of the landscape outside the window appears on the opposite wall, although it is upside down. This phenomenon was often used by magicians and negligent artists.

But it wasn't until 1826 that Frenchman Joseph Niepce found a more practical use for a box that collects light. On the sheet of glass, Joseph applied a thin layer of asphalt varnish. Then the first photographic plate was installed in the apparatus and ... In order to get an image, it was necessary to wait about twenty minutes. And if this was not considered critical for landscapes, then those who wanted to capture themselves in eternity had to try. After all, the slightest movement led to a spoiled, blurry frame. And the process of obtaining an image was not yet like that which had become familiar in the twentieth century, and the cost of such a “picture” was very high.

A few years later, chemicals more sensitive to light appeared, now there was no need to sit, staring at one point and be afraid to sneeze. In the 1870s, photographic paper appeared, and ten years later, photographic film replaced heavy and fragile glass plates.

The history of photography is so interesting that we will definitely devote a separate large article to it.

inventions of the 19th century. Gramophone

But a device that allows you to record and reproduce sound appeared almost at the turn of the century. At the end of November 1877, the inventor Thomas Edison presented his next invention. It was a box with a spring mechanism inside, a long foil-covered cylinder, and a horn outside. When the mechanism was started, it seemed to many that a miracle had happened. From the metal bell came, albeit softly and unintelligibly, the sounds of a children's song about a girl who brought her lamb to school. And the song was sung by the inventor himself.
Edison soon improved this device, calling it the phonograph. Instead of foil, wax cylinders began to be used. Recording and playback quality has improved.

If instead of a wax cylinder a disc made of durable material is used, the volume and duration of the sound will increase. The first disk made of shell was used in 1887 by Emil Berlinner. The device, called the gramophone, gained great popularity, because it turned out to be much faster and cheaper to stamp records with records than to record music on soft wax cylinders.

And soon the first record companies appeared. But this is the history of the twentieth century.

inventions of the 19th century. Warfare

And of course, technological progress has not bypassed the military either. Of the most significant military inventions of the nineteenth century, one can note the massive transition from muzzle-loading smoothbore guns to rifled firearms. There were cartridges in which gunpowder and a bullet were a single whole. There was a bolt on the guns. Now the soldier did not have to separately pour gunpowder into the barrel, then insert the wad, then push the bullet and again the wad, wielding a ramrod during each operation. The rate of fire has increased several times.

The queen of the fields, artillery, has also undergone similar changes. Since the second half of the nineteenth century, gun barrels have become rifled, dramatically increasing the accuracy and range of fire. The loading now took place from the breech, and instead of the cores they began to use cylindrical shells. Gun barrels were no longer cast from cast iron, but from stronger steel.

Smokeless pyroxylin powder appeared, nitroglycerin was invented - an oily liquid that explodes with a small push or impact, and then dynamite - all the same - nitroglycerin mixed with binders.
The nineteenth century gave the generals and admirals the first machine gun, the first submarine, sea mines, unguided rockets and armored steel ships, torpedoes, and instead of red and blue uniforms, suitable only for parades, the soldiers received a comfortable and inconspicuous uniform on the battlefield. The electric telegraph began to be used for communication, and the invention of canned food greatly simplified the provision of food to the armies. Many of the wounded were saved by the invention of anesthesia in 1842.

inventions of the 19th century. Match

In the nineteenth century, a lot of things were invented, sometimes invisible in everyday life. Matches were invented, the most seemingly simple and ordinary thing, but for the appearance of this small wooden stick, the discoveries of chemists and designers were needed. Special machines were created for the mass production of matches.

1830 — Thomas McCall of Scotland invents the two-wheeler

1860 - Pierre Michaud from France modernizes the bike by adding pedals to it

1870 — James Starley of France creates a modification of a bicycle with a large wheel

1885 — John Kemp from Australia makes cycling safer

1960 race bike appears in the USA

In the mid-1970s, mountain biking appeared in the USA.

inventions of the 19th century. Stethoscope

Remember going to the doctor - the therapist. A cold touch to the body of a metal round, the command "Breathe - do not breathe." This is a stethoscope. He appeared in 1819 due to the reluctance of the French physician Rene Laennec to put the ear to the body of the patient. At first, the doctor used tubes made of paper, then made of wood, and then the stethoscope was improved, it became even more convenient, and modern devices use the same principles of operation, the hundred and first paper tubes.

inventions of the 19th century. Metronome

To train beginner musicians to get a sense of rhythm, the metronome was invented in the nineteenth century, a simple mechanical device that clicked evenly. The frequency of sounds was regulated by moving a special weight on the scale of the pendulum.

inventions of the 19th century. metal feathers

The nineteenth century brought relief to the saviors of Rome - the geese. In the 1830s, metal feathers appeared, now there was no need to run after these proud birds in order to borrow a feather, and there was no need to correct steel feathers. By the way, the penknife was originally used for the constant sharpening of bird feathers.

inventions of the 19th century. ABC for the blind

While still a toddler, the inventor of the alphabet for the blind, Louis Braille became blind himself. This did not stop him from learning, becoming a teacher, and inventing a special method of 3D printing, now the letters could be felt with your fingers. The Braille alphabet is still used today, thanks to it, people who have lost their sight or have been blind from birth have been able to gain knowledge and get an intellectual job.

In 1836, an interesting structure appeared in one of California's endless wheat fields. Several horses pulled a wagon that made noise, creaked, screeched, frightened crows and respectable farmers. The wagon's wheels spun, the chains rattled, and the blades of knives gleamed. This mechanical monster was devouring wheat and spitting out straw that no one wanted. And the wheat accumulated in the belly of the monster. It was the first grain harvester. Later, harvesters became even more productive, but they also required more and more traction power, up to forty horses or oxen were pulled through the fields of mechanical monsters. At the end of the nineteenth century, the steam engine came to the aid of horses.

The 19th century laid the foundations for the development of 20th century science and set the stage for many future inventions and technological innovations that we enjoy today. Scientific discoveries of the 19th century were made in many areas and had a great influence on further development. Technological progress progressed uncontrollably. To whom are we grateful for the comfortable conditions in which modern humanity now lives?

Scientific discoveries of the 19th century: Physics and electrical engineering

A key feature in the development of science of this period of time is the widespread use of electricity in all branches of production. And people could no longer refuse to use electricity, feeling its significant benefits. Many scientific discoveries of the 19th century were made in this area of ​​physics. At that time, scientists began to closely study electromagnetic waves and their effect on various materials. The introduction of electricity into medicine began.

In the 19th century, such famous scientists as the Frenchman Andre-Marie Ampère, two Englishmen Michael Faraday and James Clark Maxwell, Americans Joseph Henry and Thomas Edison worked in the field of electrical engineering.

In 1831, Michael Faraday noticed that if a copper wire moves in a magnetic field, crossing lines of force, then an electric current arises in it. This is how the concept of electromagnetic induction appeared. This discovery paved the way for the invention of electric motors.

In 1865, James Clark Maxwell developed the electromagnetic theory of light. He suggested the existence of electromagnetic waves, through which electrical energy is transmitted in space. In 1883, Heinrich Hertz proved the existence of these waves. He also determined that the speed of their propagation is 300 thousand km / s. Based on this discovery, Guglielmo Marconi and A. S. Popov created a wireless telegraph - radio. This invention became the basis for modern technologies for wireless information transmission, radio and television, including all types of mobile communications, which are based on the principle of data transmission by means of electromagnetic waves.

Chemistry

In the field of chemistry in the 19th century, the most significant discovery was D.I. Mendeleev's Periodic Law. Based on this discovery, a table of chemical elements was developed, which Mendeleev saw in a dream. In accordance with this table, he suggested that there were still unknown chemical elements. The predicted chemical elements scandium, gallium and germanium were subsequently discovered between 1875 and 1886.

Astronomy

XIX Art. was a century of formation and rapid development of another field of science - astrophysics. Astrophysics is a branch of astronomy that studies the properties of celestial bodies. This term appeared in the mid-60s of the 19th century. Johann Carl Friedrich Zöllner, a German professor at the University of Leipzig, stood at its origins. The main research methods used in astrophysics are photometry, photography and spectral analysis. One of the inventors of spectral analysis is Kirchhoff. He conducted the first studies of the spectrum of the Sun. As a result of these studies, in 1859 he managed to obtain a drawing of the solar spectrum and more accurately determine the chemical composition of the Sun.

Medicine and Biology

With the advent of the 19th century, science begins to develop at an unprecedented speed. There are so many scientific discoveries that it is difficult to track them in detail. Medicine and biology are not far behind. The most significant contributions to this field were made by the German microbiologist Robert Koch, the French physician Claude Bernard, and the microbiological chemist Louis Pasteur.

Bernard laid the foundations of endocrinology - the science of the functions and structure of the endocrine glands. Louis Pasteur became one of the founders of immunology and microbiology. In honor of this scientist, the technology of pasteurization is named - this is a method of heat treatment of mostly liquid products. This technology is used to kill vegetative forms of microorganisms to increase the shelf life of food products such as beer and milk.

Robert Koch discovered the causative agent of tuberculosis, anthrax bacillus and vibrio cholerae. For the discovery of the tubercle bacillus, he was awarded the Nobel Prize.

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Computers

Although it is believed that the first computer appeared in the 20th century, the first prototypes of modern machine tools with numerical control were built already in the 19th century. Joseph Marie Jacquard, a French inventor, came up with a way to program the loom in 1804. The essence of the invention was that the thread could be controlled using punched cards with holes in certain places where the thread was supposed to be applied to the fabric.

Mechanical engineering and industry

Already at the beginning of the 19th century, a gradual revolution in mechanical engineering began. Oliver Evans was one of the first who in 1804 in Philadelphia (USA) demonstrated a car with a steam engine.

At the end of the 18th century, the first lathes appeared. They were developed by the English mechanic Henry Maudsley.

With the help of such machines, it was possible to replace manual labor, when it was necessary to process metal with great accuracy.

In the 19th century, the principle of operation of a heat engine was discovered and the internal combustion engine was invented, which served as an impetus for the development of faster vehicles: steam locomotives, steamboats and self-propelled vehicles, which we now call cars.

Railroads also began to develop. In 1825, George Stephenson built the first railway in England. It provided rail links to the cities of Stockton and Darlington. In 1829 a branch line was laid that linked Liverpool and Manchester. If in 1840 the total length of railways was 7,700 km, then by the end of the 19th century it was already 1,080,000 km.

The 19th century is the age of the industrial revolution, the age of electricity, the age of railroads. It had a significant impact on the culture and worldview of mankind, radically changed the system of human values. The appearance of the first electric motors, the invention of the telephone and telegraph, radio and heating devices, as well as incandescent lamps - all these scientific discoveries of the 19th century turned the life of people of that time upside down.

BERING VITUS IONASSEN(1681–1741). Navigator, captain-commander of the Russian fleet, a native of Denmark.

On behalf of Tsar Peter I, at the head of the 1st Kamchatka Expedition (1725-1730), he went through all of Siberia to the Pacific Ocean, crossed the Kamchatka Peninsula and found that in the north the Siberian coast turns west. Bering's first expedition was a prologue to further exploration of the northeast of Asia. Understanding this, he wrote: “America, or other lands lying between it, are not very far from Kamchatka ... It was not without benefit that the Okhotsk or Kamchatka water passage, to the mouth of the Amur River and further, to the Japanese Islands, to find out .. .". And Bering was appointed head of the 2nd Kamchatka (Great Northern) expedition (1733-1743), during which the Siberian coast was most accurately explored, the coast of the Alaska Peninsula and a number of islands of the Aleutian ridge were discovered. Having fallen ill during the winter on the island, the captain-commander ended his life on December 19, 1741. Now the island, where the brave navigator found eternal rest, is called Bering Island. On all maps of the world, the semi-closed sea in the North Pacific Ocean, on which he sailed, is named after him - the Bering Sea, and the strait located between the continents of Eurasia and North America and connecting the Arctic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean - the Bering Strait. And the islands on which his schooner "Saint Peter" was thrown are called Commander Islands.

After the death of Bering, the 2nd Kamchatka expedition was completed by his assistant, Captain-Commander Alexei Ilyich Chirikov (1703–1748), who approached the shores of America on the sloop St. Paul.

BETANKUR AUGUSTIN AVGUSTINOVICH(1758–1824). Mechanical engineer and builder.

Under the leadership of Betancourt, a number of important works were carried out: the Tula Arms Plant was re-equipped, steam engines created according to his project were installed on it; the building of the Manezh was built in Moscow, covered with wooden trusses of a unique span (45 m), etc. On the initiative of Betancourt, the Institute of Communications was established in St. Petersburg in 1810, which he led until the end of his life.

VINOGRADOV DMITRY IVANOVICH(1720?–1758). Inventor of Russian porcelain.

He studied at the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy in Moscow. In 1736, together with M. V. Lomonosov and R. Reiser, he was sent abroad, where he studied chemistry, metallurgy and mining. Upon his return, he was sent (1744) to the "porcelain manufactory" established by the Russian government (then the Lomonosov State Porcelain Factory). Since the methods of obtaining Chinese and Saxon porcelain were kept secret, Vinogradov set to work without any information about the production technology.

He developed a production technology and received the first samples of porcelain made from domestic raw materials (1752). He spoke about his experiments in the manuscript "A detailed description of pure porcelin, as it is done in Russia near St. Petersburg, together with an indication of all the works belonging to it."

GENNIN VILIM IVANOVYCH (1676–1750).

Outstanding mining manager and machine tool builder. The reign of Gennin (1722-1734) was an important period in the history of the industry of the Urals. Under his leadership, important measures were taken in the field of organization, improvement of equipment and production technology. He also managed the Sestroretsk and Tula arms factories.

GEOLOGICAL STUDY OF THE TERRITORY OF RUSSIA

At the beginning of the XVIII century. the search for minerals led to the discovery of the Alopaevsky copper deposit (1702), refractory clays (1704), mineral waters near Petrozavodsk (1714), coal on the Don and in the Voronezh province (1721), coal on the territory of the modern Kuznetsk basin (1722), gems in Transbaikalia (1724).

In 1768–1774 academic expeditions took place that studied the geological structure of Russia: the routes of the expedition of Ivan Ivanovich Lepekhin (1740–1802) covered the Volga region, the Urals, and the north of European Russia; the expedition of Peter Simon Pallas (1741–1811) explored the Middle Volga region, the Orenburg Territory, Siberia to Chita and compiled a description of the structure of mountains, hills, and plains; the expedition of Johann Georg Gmelin (1709–1755) reached Derbent and Baku through the Astrakhan region, etc.

DEMIDOV. Russian breeders, landowners, scientists, educators, patrons.

Their genealogy goes back to the Tula blacksmiths, since 1720 - the nobles. At the end of the XVIII century. entered the circle of senior officials and the nobility, founded over 50 factories that produced 40% of the iron in the country. The most famous:

Nikita Demidovich Antufiev (1656-1725) - the founder and organizer of the construction of metallurgical plants in the Urals.

Pavel Grigorievich Demidov (1738–1821) - founder of the Demidov Lyceum in Yaroslavl - a higher educational institution for children of nobles and commoners in 1803–1918. In 1918 it was transformed into a university.

Pavel Nikolaevich Demidov (1798–1840) - honorary member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, founder of the Demidov Prizes awarded in 1832–1865. Academy for works on science, technology, art. These awards were considered the most honorable scientific award in Russia.

KOTELNIKOV SEMEN KIRILLOVYCH(1723–1806). Academician of the Petersburg Academy of Sciences.

Talented Russian scientist, student of M.V. Lomonosov and L. Euler, author of "The Book Containing the Teaching on the Balance and Motion of Bodies" - the first Russian textbook on mechanics, the most serious of all original and translated works on mechanics published in Russia in 18th century

CRAFT GEORGE WOLFGANG(1701–1754). Physicist, mathematician, academician of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences.

Author of the first Russian book on mechanics, "A Brief Guide to the Knowledge of Simple and Complex Machines" (1738), as well as the book "A Brief Introduction to Geometry" (1740) and several textbooks. He did a lot to teach and popularize mechanics in Russia.

KRASHENINNIKOV STEPAN PETROVICH(1711–1755). Founder of Russian scientific ethnography, researcher of the nature of Kamchatka.

The work of the scientist "Description of the land of Kamchatka", published in 1756, was not only the first Russian essay in which a description of one of the regions of Siberia was given, but also the first in Western European literature.

It consisted of 4 parts. Part one - "About Kamchatka and the countries that are in its neighborhood" - contained a geographical description of Kamchatka. Part two - "On the benefits and disadvantages of the land of Kamchatka" - is devoted to the natural-historical description of Kamchatka: flora, fauna, mammals inhabiting the land, birds and fish, livestock breeding prospects. Part three - "On the Kamchatka peoples" - is the first Russian ethnographic work: a description of the life, customs, language of the local population - Kamchadals, Koryaks, Kurils. The fourth part is devoted to the history of the conquest of Kamchatka.

Krasheninnikov was named "Nestor of Russian Ethnography" for his book.

KULIBIN IVAN IVANOVYCH(1735–1818). Outstanding mechanical engineer.

Since 1749, for more than 30 years, he was in charge of the mechanical workshop of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. He developed a project for a 300-meter single-arch bridge across the Neva with wooden lattice forms (1772). In the last years of his life, he made a searchlight with a reflector of the smallest mirrors, a river "machine" vessel moving against the current, a mechanical crew with a pedal drive.

He became famous as the author of an amazing clock made as a gift to Empress Catherine II, which looked like an Easter egg. "A curiosity in appearance and size between a goose and a duck egg", showing the time and striking the hours, halves and quarters of the hour, enclosed within itself a tiny automatic theatre. At the end of each hour, the folding doors were moved apart and a theatrical performance unfolded. The clock mechanism "consisted of too 1,000 tiny wheels and other mechanical parts." At noon, the clock played a hymn composed in honor of the Empress. In the second half of the day they performed new melodies and verse.

KUNSTKAMMERA (From it. Kunstrammer - cabinet of rarities). The first Russian natural science museum.

It was opened in 1719. It contained anatomical, zoological and historical collections collected in many regions of Russia, as well as collections acquired by Peter I in Western Europe, his personal collections of weapons and works of art. In the 30s. 18th century turned into a complex museum with departments of art and ethnography, natural science, numismatics and historical materials (Peter I's office). By the beginning of the 19th century, when a huge number of diverse collections had accumulated, museums were separated from it into independent institutions that still exist today: the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

LOMONOSOV MIKHAIL VASILIEVICH (1711 – 1765)

The first Russian natural scientist of world significance, a poet who laid the foundations of the modern Russian literary language, an artist, a historian, an advocate of national education, the development of Russian science and the economy.

Born in the family of a Pomor peasant. Wanting to get an education, at the end of 1730 he went on foot to Moscow. Here, posing as the son of a nobleman, in 1731 he entered the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy. In 1735, among the best students, he was sent to St. Petersburg to the newly opened university at the Academy of Sciences, and then to Germany to continue his education. In 1741 he returned to the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. Since 1745, the first Russian academician of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences.

"Wise sciences" make up the natural-technical direction of his activity: chemistry and physics, astronomy and mineralogy, geology and soil science, mining and metallurgy, cartography and navigation. For the first time, he distinguished between the concepts of "corpuscle" (in the language of modern science - a molecule) and "element" (atom), formulated the principle of conservation of matter and motion, made other discoveries, some of which belong to the golden fund of world science. Literature, history and national language - that's what the scientist's research was connected with in another, humanistic direction of his activity. He created "Russian Grammar" (1756), "Ancient Russian History" (1766). It is no coincidence that V. G. Belinsky called him "Peter the Great of Russian literature." The scientific and organizational activity of the scientist was also fruitful: the opening of the first chemical laboratory in Russia (1748), the development of a project for the reorganization of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. On the initiative of Lomonosov, Moscow University was founded (1755), now bearing his name.

For Lomonosov, science, technology, and art were inseparable. This is evidenced by mosaic portraits and paintings of Peter I, Alexander Nevsky, Elizaveta Petrovna, the Battle of Poltava. From 1763 - member of the Academy of Arts.

MAGNITSKY LEONTY FILIPPOVICH(1669–1739). The first Russian outstanding teacher-mathematician.

It is believed that he came from peasants and his father's surname was Telyatin. Being self-taught, in his youth he acquired knowledge, attracting them to himself like a magnet. The surname "Magnitsky" was assigned to him by decree of Peter I, who highly valued the scientist. From 1701 he taught mathematics at the School of Mathematical and Navigational Sciences in Moscow. In 1703, his main work "Arithmetic, that is, the science of numerals" was published - for its time, an encyclopedia of mathematical knowledge. It summarizes data on mathematics ("digital counting wisdom"), astronomy, navigation. No wonder M. V. Lomonosov called the book of the scientist, according to which he himself studied, "the gates of learning."

Arithmetika retained its scientific and methodological significance for at least half a century, and its historical significance as a book by which one can judge the state of mathematical education in Russia in the first half of the 18th century is preserved in our time.

MANUFACTORIES, (from lat. manus - hand and faktura - manufacture).

An enterprise based on the division of labor and handicraft technology.

In the first quarter of the XVIII century. in Russia, more than 200 manufactory-type enterprises were created, of which over a third were metallurgical and metalworking plants. In total, under Peter I, 15 state-owned and 30 private iron-foundries and weapons factories were built. For example, in 1724 Russian blast-furnace plants produced 1,165,000 poods of pig iron. By the end of the XVIII century. in Russia there were about 190 mining plants, and the total number of industrial enterprises reached 1160.

LAPTEV DMITRY YAKOVLEVICH (1701–1767) AND KHARITON PROKOFIEVICH(1700-1763/64). Russian navigators, members of the Great Northern Expedition, cousins.

On weak wooden ships, with primitive instruments, they were able to explore the coast of the Arctic Ocean between the Lena River and Bering Cape, delivering a variety of information about the nature of the region, its geography, population, wildlife and vegetation, and the coastline. The marginal sea of ​​the Arctic Ocean between the Taimyr Peninsula and the Severnaya Zemlya and Novosibirskye Islands is named after them.

LVOV NIKOLAI ALEKSANDROVICH (1752–1803).

Russian scientist, architect, poet, graphic artist. Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences (since 1783), honorary member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts (since 1786). Author of a number of outstanding architectural structures. He also dealt with issues of economics, construction equipment, geology.

In the region of the Valdai Upland and in the city of Borovichi in 1786, he discovered deposits of "earthen" coal, organized its extraction and study of its composition. His book "On the benefits and use of Russian earthen coal" (1799) is dedicated to this. He did a lot for the formation of the domestic coal industry. He wrote the first work in Russia on heating and ventilation technology (1795–1799).

NARTOV ANDREY KONSTANTINOVICH (1693 – 1756).

"Peter the Great mechanic and turning art teacher" was one of the outstanding inventors who prepared the transition from handicraft to factory production. In St. Petersburg and Paris, the machine tools of the Russian scientist, who outstripped the technical thought of Europe by more than half a century, are still stored. His main invention was a mechanical support for a lathe, which made it possible to manufacture standard parts, as well as a quick-firing battery (1741), a lifting screw for adjusting the elevation angle, a mechanism for raising the Tsar Bell and many other mechanisms.

SCIENTIFIC DESCRIPTIONS

Throughout the XVIII century. geographical, botanical, zoological, ethnographic materials valuable for Russian and world science were collected. To this end, in 1714-1717. an expedition led by an associate of Peter I Alexander Bekovich-Cherkassky (? -1717) headed to the Caspian Sea, Khiva and Bukhara, which confirmed the existence of the Amu-Darya-Uzboy channel, collected information about the flow of the Amu-Darya and proved its confluence with the Aral Sea. In 1719–1726 Expedition member, hydrograph Fedor Ivanovich Soimonov (1692–1780) described the entire coast of the Caspian Sea, and in 1720 the first Russian map of the Caspian was made, which Peter I sent to the Paris Academy of Sciences. In 1734 he also published an atlas of the Baltic Sea.

Of great importance was held in 1720-1727. on the instructions of Peter I, the expedition of Daniil Gottlieb Messerschmidt (1685–1735) explored the interior regions of Siberia. As a result, natural history materials, collections of mammals and birds were collected, the way of life and geographical distribution of many Siberian animals were described.

One of the results of the 2nd Kamchatka (Great Northern) expedition was the book by Johann Georg Gmelin "Flora of Siberia" (1747–1769), containing a description of 1,200 plant species and 300 sketches of individual individuals; Stepan Petrovich Krasheninnikov (1711–1755) described a distant part of Siberia in his work Description of the Land of Kamchatka (1756); historian Gerard Friedrich Miller (1705–1783) compiled several survey historical and geographical maps depicting the northeast of Asia and the north of the Pacific Ocean, wrote the book "History of Siberia". The naturalist Georg Wilhelm Steller (1709-1746) prepared the essay "On Sea Animals" (1741), which contained a description of the sea cow named after him (Steller's cow), sea otter, sea lion and seal.

The result of the held in 1768-1769. The Arctic research expedition received a map of the Arctic, on which four islands of the Svalbard archipelago were plotted.

GENERAL AND SPECIALIZED EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS

The transformations in civil life and scientific and technological development of the country, carried out by Peter I, required the training of specialists of various professions. Thus, the first church educational institutions of the university type appeared - the Kiev-Mohyla Academy (founded in 1632; until 1701 - a collegium) and the Moscow Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy (founded in 1687 under the name of the Hellenic-Greek Academy), many people from who later worked in the secular field. In 1692, an artillery school was organized in Moscow at the Cannon Yard, and in 1701, the School of Mathematical and Navigation Sciences ("Navigation School"), which became the first specialized institution of higher education. It trained sailors, shipbuilders, surveyors, cartographers. Already by 1712, 180 students from various classes were studying there.

Following the Navigation School, engineering (1711) and artillery (1712) schools were opened, in 1719 - the St. Petersburg Higher Engineering School ("Engineering Company"), and in 1715 - the Naval Academy. Along with technical and mathematical education, medical and technical-pharmaceutical education quickly began to develop. In 1707, by decree of Peter I, the first medical "hospital" school was opened in Moscow. By 1733, medical schools were organized in St. Petersburg and Kronstadt. Together with Moscow, they played a big role in the training of Russian doctors and the dissemination of anatomical, physiological, botanical and zoological knowledge.

At the end of the XVIII century. medical and surgical academies are being created in St. Petersburg and Moscow.

In 1773, the Mining School was organized in St. Petersburg, which trained the first Russian geologists. By the time of foundation it was the second in the world.

Since 1714, preparatory "digital" (primary general education) schools have been organized in provincial centers, and mining schools in the Urals and Siberia.

In the 1880s public schools, in the program of which considerable attention was paid to mathematical and natural sciences, were opened in 25 provinces of Russia.

PALLAS PETER SIMON (1741-1811). Russian naturalist, member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences.

In 1768–1774 led the expedition of the Academy to the regions of the Volga region, the Caspian lowland, Bashkiria, the Urals, Transbaikalia, Siberia, the results of which were published in his work "Journey through different provinces of the Russian state" (3 hours, 1773-1788). He discovered and described a large number of new species of birds, mammals, fish and insects, gave a description of their internal structure, seasonal variability, and geographical distribution. As a paleontologist, he studied the fossil remains of the hairy rhinoceros, buffalo, mammoth. In the field of botany, he owns the first attempt to create a work on the flora of Russia (1784-1788).

THE FIRST PUBLIC LIBRARY

It was opened in St. Petersburg in 1714. It was based on the personal library of Peter I, books from other collections. By 1725 she had about 12 thousand books and a valuable collection of manuscripts.

FIRST CHEMICAL LABORATORY

It was built in 1748 at the Academy of Sciences as the first research institution in the history of the country, a prototype of the future research institute. Her work is based on the principles of combining science and practice. M. V. Lomonosov conducted research in the field of physics and chemistry in it, and also lectured to students, demonstrating experiments. This was the beginning of seminars and practical classes, which entered the educational process only in the 19th century.

THE FIRST RUSSIAN TEXTBOOK OF MECHANICS

It was published in 1722 under the title "Static Science, or Mechanics" and was compiled for students of the St. Petersburg Naval Academy. Written by a military and political figure of the first half of the 18th century. Grigory Grigorievich Skornyakov-Pisarev. The textbook is short: 26 pages and 21 drawings. The book begins with a definition of the subject of mechanics and a listing of the seven "major" machines. In the textbook, only the addition and decomposition of gravity forces are given. The mechanics described in the book is a part of statics that studies the actions of the forces of weight.

PETERSBURG ACADEMY OF SCIENCES (AN)

Its creation is the final link in the chain of cultural transformations of the Petrine era. On January 28 (February 8, NS), 1724, the Senate issued a decree on the founding of the Academy - a state scientific institution, the purpose of which was to meet the scientific and technical needs of the country. It included the Kunstkamera, a physics cabinet (1725), an observatory (1730s), a geographical department (1739), a chemical laboratory (1748, on the initiative of M.V. Lomonosov).

From 1803 - Imperial Academy of Sciences, from February 1917 - Russian Academy of Sciences, from 1925 - Academy of Sciences of the USSR, then from 1991 - again Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS).

POLZUNOV IVAN IVANOVICH(1728–1766). Brilliant self-taught scientist, creator of the heat engine and the first steam engine in Russia.

Born in the family of a soldier who came from peasants, he graduated in 1742 from the first Russian mining school. From 1748 he worked at the Barnaul plant. He was engaged in self-education, studying the works of M. V. Lomonosov, English and French inventors. It was here that he set out to create a perfect steam engine so that he could "all the burdens imposed on oneself, which are usually for fanning a fire, are usually required for factories, to wear and, at our will, to correct as necessary." And further: "In order to achieve this glory (if the forces allow) for the Fatherland, and so that it is for the benefit of the whole people, due to the great knowledge about the use of things that are still not very familiar (following the example of other sciences), to introduce into the custom."

In 1763, a note, calculations and a draft of the world's first universal steam engine with a capacity of 1.8 liters were presented. with. But this project was not implemented. For the first time, the principle of adding up the work of several cylinders on one shaft, put forward by a scientist, was found at the end of the 19th century. widely used in internal combustion engines.

PROKHOROV. Russian capitalists, natives of peasants.

Vasily Ivanovich Prokhorov, in 1799 founded a textile factory in Moscow - Trekhgornaya manufactory. In 1843, the Trading House "Br. I. K. and Y. Prokhorov" was opened. In 1874, the brothers Ivan and Alexei Prokhorov, together with two employees of the Trading House, created the Association of the Prokhorov Trekhgornaya Manufactory. The fixed capital of the factory by 1917 over the past century has been increased from 200 thousand to 8 million rubles.

RICHMANN GEORGE WILHELM(1711–1753). Russian physicist, academician of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences.

The main works of this scientist are devoted to the study of heat and electricity. He was the first to introduce quantitative measurements into the science of electricity. In 1745 he made a report at a meeting of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences about the electrical measuring device he had invented - the "electric pointer". Richman and Lomonosov used this device in their research on electricity. In 1748–1751 discovered the phenomenon of electrostatic induction. In 1752–1753 together with Lomonosov, he conducted research on atmospheric electricity using the so-called "thunder machines". On July 26, 1753, while conducting experiments with an ungrounded "thunder machine", he died from a lightning strike.

THE GROWTH OF PRINTING

For 60 years of the XVIII century. 1,134 titles were published, an average of 18 books per year. In 1708, the first educational literature of scientific and technical content was published - "Geometry of Slavic land surveying" and "The book on methods, free flow of rivers". The first popular science magazine was a supplement to the newspaper "Sankt-Peterburgskiye Vedomosti"", published monthly in 1727-1742.

During 1761–1770 1,050 books were published, that is, 105 books a year. In the 70s. 18th century - 146 books annually, in the 80s. the average number of books rose to 268 per year. From 1791 to 1795, 1,099 books were published.

TATISCHEV VASILY NIKITICH (1686–1750).

Historian, statesman, author of the first generalizing fundamental work on the history of Russia, on which he worked for more than twenty years (submitted to the Academy of Sciences in 1739). His complete edition, titled "The history of Russia from ancient times with vigilant labors thirty years later collected and described by the late Privy Councilor and Astrakhan Governor Vasily Nikitich Tatishchev" published in 1768-1848.

He came from an old noble family, received a systematic education in mathematics, mechanics, geodesy, etc. In 1704–1720. was in military service, participated in the Northern War. In 1720-1722 and 1734-1737. managed state-owned factories in the Urals; founded the city of Yekaterinburg (1721). In 1741–1745 was appointed governor of Astrakhan.

He is also known for his works on geography and ethnography. He compiled a brief general outline of the geography of Russia called "Russia or, as it is now called, Russia"(1739), a classification of nationalities and tribes of Russia is given. With his writings, the scientist laid the foundation for the scientific geographical description of Russia.

Tatishchev compiled the first Russian encyclopedic dictionary - "Lexicon of Russian historical, geographical, political and civil"(1793, before the letter "K").

FROLOV KOZMA DMITRIEVICH(1726–1800). Russian hydraulic engineer, inventor in the field of mining.

In the 1760s built several "ore-crushing and ore-washing establishments", where all the main operations for the enrichment and transportation of ores were mechanized, devices, including carts on the intra-factory tracks, were set in motion by water power.

From the beginning of the 1770s. Frolov began designing and building at the Zmeinogorsk mine a system of hydraulic power plants that was grandiose at that time. The dam, 18 m high, erected by him on the Zmeevka River, has survived to this day.

CHELYUSKIN SEMYON IVANOVICH(c. 1700–1764). Polar explorer, member of the Great Northern Expedition.

Exploring the coast of the Taimyr Peninsula from east to west, overcoming frosts and snowstorms, on May 7, 1742, his expedition reached the cape, from which stretched the boundless expanse of the sea, bound by ice. In the journal, the researcher wrote: "... This cape is stone, of medium height, near the cape the ice is smooth, there are no hummocks. Here I named this cape: the eastern northern cape." Thus, the northern point of Asia was reached, and with it the northernmost tip of the mainland in general.

Descendants will say about Chelyuskin: "Chelyuskin is not only the only person who, a hundred years ago, managed to reach this cape and go around it, but he succeeded in this feat, which others failed, precisely because his personality was higher than others. Chelyuskin, undoubtedly, is the crown of our sailors, active in that area."

The cape discovered by him is known on all maps of the world as Cape Chelyuskin. In addition, Chelyuskin Island (in the delta of the Taimyr Bay) and the Chelyuskin Peninsula (the northernmost part of Taimyr) remind of the navigator.

SHLATTER IVAN ANDREEVICH(1708–1768). Russian scientist and statesman.

From 1760 he was president of the Berg Collegium. He proposed a number of improvements in the processes of melting precious metals and minting coins. He is the author of the first Russian book on assay art, Description of the Required Art in Monetary Affairs (1739), as well as a number of works on metallurgy, mining, hydraulic power and steam installations.

EULER LEONARD (1707-1783). Mathematician, mechanic, physicist and astronomer, who had a huge impact on the development of physical and mathematical sciences in the 18th century. In 1731–1741 and from 1766 - Academician of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences.

The son of a Swiss pastor, studied at the University of Basel. In 1727 he accepted an invitation to work and moved to St. Petersburg. During his first stay at the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences (1727–1741), he prepared more than 75 scientific papers and was engaged in pedagogical activities. Having learned Russian, he spoke and wrote Russian fluently. Living in Germany during 1741-1766, he did not stop ties with the St. Petersburg Academy, he was its foreign honorary member. In 1766 he returned to Russia and lived here until the end of his life.

In total, scientists have written about 850 works and a huge number of letters on various scientific topics. All his work was permeated by the idea of ​​a close relationship between mathematics, natural sciences and technology. The merits of the scientist in the development of science in Russia are especially great. " Together with Peter I and Lomonosov, - wrote S. I. Vavilov, - Euler became the good genius of our Academy, who determined its glory, its strength, its productivity.

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Thanks to the human discoveries of the last centuries, we have the ability to instantly access any information from all over the world. Advances in medicine have helped humanity overcome dangerous diseases. Technical, scientific, inventions in shipbuilding and mechanical engineering give us the opportunity to reach any point on the globe in a few hours and even fly into space.

Inventions of the 19th and 20th centuries have changed humanity, turned its world upside down. Of course, development took place incessantly and every century gave us some of the greatest discoveries, but the global revolutionary inventions occurred precisely in this period. Let's talk about those very significant ones that changed the usual outlook on life and made a breakthrough in civilization.

X-rays

In 1885, the German physicist Wilhelm Roentgen, in the course of his scientific experiments, discovered that the cathode tube emits certain rays, which he called x-rays. The scientist continued to study them and found out that this radiation penetrates through opaque objects without being reflected or refracted. Subsequently, it was found that by irradiating parts of the body with these rays, you can see the internal organs and get an image of the skeleton.

However, it took as much as 15 years after the discovery of Roentgen for the study of organs and tissues. Therefore, the name "X-ray" itself is attributed to the beginning of the 20th century, since it was not used everywhere before. Only in 1919 did many medical institutions begin to put the properties of this radiation into practice. The discovery of X-rays has revolutionized medicine, particularly in the field of diagnosis and analysis. The X-ray device has saved the lives of millions of people.

Airplane

Since time immemorial, people have tried to rise into the sky and create such an apparatus that would help a person to take off. In 1903, the American inventors brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright did it - they successfully launched their aircraft with the Flyer-1 engine into the air. And although he stayed above the ground for only a few seconds, this significant event is considered the beginning of the era of the birth of aviation. And the inventor brothers are considered the first pilots in the history of mankind.

In 1905, the brothers designed the third version of the device, which was already in the air for almost half an hour. In 1907, the inventors signed a contract with the American army, and later with the French. At the same time, the idea of ​​​​carrying passengers on an airplane came up, and Orville and Wilbur Wright improved their model by equipping it with an additional seat. The scientists also equipped the plane with a more powerful engine.

TV set

One of the most important discoveries of the 20th century was the invention of the television. Russian physicist Boris Rosing patented the first apparatus in 1907. In his model, he used a cathode ray tube, and used a photocell to convert signals. By 1912, he had improved the television, and in 1931 it became possible to transmit information using a color picture. In 1939, the first television channel was opened. Television has given a huge impetus to change people's worldview and ways of communication.

It should be added that Rosing is not the only one who invented the television. Back in the 19th century, the Portuguese scientist Adriano De Paiva and the Russian-Bulgarian physicist Porfiry Bakhmetiev proposed their ideas for the development of a device that transmitted images over wires. In particular, Bakhmetiev came up with a scheme for his device - a telephotographer, but he could not assemble it due to lack of funds.

In 1908, the Armenian physicist Hovhannes Adamyan patented a two-color apparatus for transmitting signals. And at the end of the 20s of the 20th century in America, Russian emigrant Vladimir Zworykin assembled his own TV, which he called the "iconoscope".

Car with an internal combustion engine

Several scientists worked on the creation of the first gasoline-powered car. In 1855, the German engineer Karl Benz designed a car with an internal combustion engine, and in 1886 received a patent for his vehicle model. Then he began to produce cars for sale.

The American industrialist Henry Ford also made a huge contribution to the production of automobiles. At the beginning of the 20th century, companies appeared that were engaged in the production of cars, but the palm in this area rightfully belongs to Ford. He had a hand in designing the low-cost Model T and created a low-cost assembly line to assemble the vehicle.

A computer

Today we cannot imagine our daily life without a computer or laptop. But just recently, the first computers were used only in science.

In 1941, the German engineer Konrad Zuse designed the Z3 mechanical apparatus, which worked on the basis of telephone relays. The computer practically did not differ from the modern sample. In 1942, the American physicist John Atanasoff and his assistant Clifford Berry began developing the first electronic computer, but they failed to complete this invention.

In 1946, the American John Mauchly developed the electronic computer ENIAC. The first cars were huge and occupied entire rooms. And the first personal computers appeared only in the late 70s of the 20th century.

antibiotic penicillin

In 20th century medicine, a revolutionary breakthrough occurred when, in 1928, the English scientist Alexander Fleming discovered the effect of mold on bacteria.

Thus, the bacteriologist discovered the world's first antibiotic penicillin from the mold fungi Penicillium notatum - a medicine that saved the lives of millions of people. It is worth noting that Fleming's colleagues were mistaken, believing that the main thing is to strengthen the immune system, and not fight germs. Therefore, for several years antibiotics were not in demand. Only closer to 1943, the drug was widely used in medical institutions. Fleming continued to study microbes and improve penicillin.

Internet

The World Wide Web has transformed human life, because today, probably, there is no such corner of the world where this universal source of communication and information would not be used.

Dr. Licklider, who led the US military information exchange project, is considered one of the pioneers of the Internet. The public presentation of the created Arpanet network took place in 1972, and a little earlier, in 1969, Professor Kleinrock and his students tried to transfer some data from Los Angeles to Utah. And despite the fact that only two letters were transmitted, the beginning of the era of the worldwide web was laid. Then the first e-mail appeared. The invention of the Internet became a world famous discovery, and by the end of the 20th century there were already more than 20 million users.

Mobile phone

We can’t imagine our life without a mobile phone now, and we can’t even believe that they appeared quite recently. American engineer Martin Cooper became the creator of wireless communication. It was he who made the first cell phone call in 1973.

Literally one decade later, this means of communication became available to many Americans. The first Motorola phone was expensive, but people really liked the idea of ​​this method of communication - they literally signed up to get it. The first tubes were heavy and large, and the miniature display showed nothing but the dialed number.

After some time, the mass production of various models began, and each new generation was improved.

Parachute

For the first time, Leonardo da Vinci thought about creating a semblance of a parachute. And after a few centuries, people have already begun to jump from balloons, to which they hung half-open parachutes.

In 1912, American Albert Barry parachuted out of an airplane and landed safely. And engineer Gleb Kotelnikov invented a backpack parachute made of silk. They tested the invention on a car that was in motion. Thus was created the brake parachute. Before the outbreak of the First World War, the scientist patented the invention in France, and it is rightfully considered one of the important achievements of the 20th century.

Washing machine

Of course, the invention of the washing machine greatly facilitated and improved people's lives. Its inventor, the American Alva Fisher, patented his discovery in 1910. The first device for mechanical washing was a wooden drum that rotated eight times in different directions.

The predecessor of modern models was introduced in 1947 by two companies - General Electric and Bendix Corporation. Washing machines were uncomfortable and made noise.

After a while, Whirlpool employees introduced an improved version with plastic overlays that muffled the noise. In the Soviet Union, the Volga-10 washing machine appeared in 1975. Then, in 1981, the production of the Vyatka-avtomat-12 machine was launched.