| Description |
314 pages: illustrations ; 23 cm |
| Note |
Includes index. |
| Summary |
"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."--Amazon.com. |
| Contents |
Introduction -- Zip -- Barcode --Condom -- The incandescent light bulb -- Hypodermic syringe -- Fish hook -- Ballpoint pen -- Smartphone -- Coins -- Ball bearings -- Biscuits -- Wristwatch -- Hamsters -- Transistor -- Toilet roll -- Pacemakers -- Spectacles -- Tampon -- Sewing needle -- Velcro -- Matchsticks -- Ink -- Pregnancy tests -- Spork -- Deodorant -- Knot -- Face mask -- Tin can -- Antibiotics -- Batteries -- Socks -- Knives -- Smoke detector -- Miss Shilling's orifice -- Disposable razor -- Nails -- Paper clip -- Toothbrush -- Integrated circuit -- Thermometer -- Springs -- Golden rice -- Pockets -- Gyroscope -- Baby monitor -- Surgical staples -- The screw cap -- Electrical plugs -- Teabag -- Postage stamps -- Afterword. |
| Subject |
Inventions -- Miscellanea.
|
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Inventions -- Social aspects.
|
|
Discoveries in science -- History -- Miscellanea.
|
|
Discoveries in science. (OCoLC)fst00894959
|
|
Inventions. (OCoLC)fst00977993
|
|
Inventions -- Social aspects.
(OCoLC)fst00978016
|
| Genre/Form |
History. (OCoLC)fst01411628
|
|
Trivia and miscellanea. (OCoLC)fst01921748
|
| Other Form: |
ebook version : 9781787399563 |
| ISBN |
9781787397873 (hardback) |
|
1787397874 (hardback) |
|
9781787399563 (ePub ebook) |
|
