His full name was Thomas Alva Edison. He was born in 1847. The light bulb was not his only invention (others had invented a light bulb as well but he was the first to patent it, and is "generally" recognised as the inventor). Among his other inventions are the motion picture camera, the phonograph, the stock ticker and much more.
In the US alone, he holds 1,093 patents, not counting his patents in Britain, Germany and France. He is known by the nickname "Wizard of Menlo Park". He died in 1931.
2. The Wright brothers
Answer: Airplane
Their names were Wilbur and Orville. Wilbur was born in 1867 and Orville four years later, in 1871. Their occupation was bicycle repairmen. They achived the first flight with airplane in 1903, at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. However, despite their great achievement, Ernest Archdeacon, founder of the Aero-Clude de France, refused to believe to their exploit. Only when they performed a flight in France did Archdeacon admitted he was wrong. Neither Wilbur nor Orville Wright ever married. Wilbur died in 1912 and Orville in 1948.
3. Henry Ford
Answer: Model T automobile
Henry Ford was born in 1863. Although Ford did not *invent* the automobile, his model was the one the common people of America could afford. Ford is given credit for the development of Fordism, an economical model based on mass production and high wages for workers. Ford believed that consumerism was the key to achieving world peace. Ford is sometimes accused of antisemitic statements in the book "The International Jew", a set of booklets containing antisemitic material distributed by Ford. However, Ford claimed never to have read the text, much less to have written it.
He died in 1947.
4. Johannes Gutenberg
Answer: Printing by movable type
Johannes Gutenberg was born around 1398. It was in 1439 that he invented the printing press with movable type. His invention allowed the publishing of many books in a short time, thus boosting the Renaissance, and creating the prerequisites for the Scientific Revolution and the Protestant Reformation.
However, in order to complete the printing of the Bible, aka the Gutenberg Bible, he borrowed money from Johann Fust. In 1456, Fust accused Gutenberg of misusing the profits from the printing press and, in the trial, Gutenberg was found guilty. We cannot be sure if Gutenberg was involved with printing in the rest of his life, but it is highly possible.
The first known portrait of Gutenberg appeared in 1567, 99 years after his death.
5. Alessandro Volta
Answer: Electric battery
Alessandro Volta was born in 1745. He invented the first form of electric battery, the Voltaic pile, in 1799 and reported the results one year later. Napoleon Bonaparte, soon to be Emperor of France, was amazed by Volta's invention and invited him to demonstrate his invention to the Institute of France.
The two men enjoyed a close relation and Napoleon bestowed numerous honors on Volta. The SI unit of electric potential, the volt, was named after him . Volta died in 1827.
6. Benjamin Franklin
Answer: Lightning rod
Benjamin Franklin was born in 1706. He is one of the best known Founding Fathers of the United States, sometimes described as "the first American", for his stauch support of colonial unity but, contrary to popular belief, he was never president or vice-president of the United States.
When the American War for Independence erupted, Franklin was selected as Ambassador to France and secured French support of the American cause. He was also one of the most ardent spokespersons for the abolition of slavery.
He died in 1790.
7. Isaac Newton
Answer: Reflecting telescope
Isaac Newton was born in 1642. His most known achievements are the development of calculus and the discovery of the law of universal gravitation. While Newton did not invent the telescope itself, the reflecting telescope was his idea and project. It was Newton's works that refuted any remaining doubts concerning the heliocentric model of the solar system.
Despite his endeavours in science, Newton was also involved with alchemy and religious mysticism. He was also Master of the Royal Mint. He died in 1727.
8. Alfred Nobel
Answer: Dynamite
Alfred Nobel was born in 1833. While there are more than 300 patents in his name, his most famous invention was that of dynamite. Nobel invented dynamite in 1867 and later invented a more stable substance, ballistite. By the time he invented ballistite, he was living in Paris, France.
However, he sold his invention to Italy, an act for which he was considered a traitor. In 1891, he went to live in San Remo, in Italy. It is said that when, in 1888, Ludvig Nobel, Alfred's brother, died, a French nespaper falsely claimed it was Alfred Nobel who had died and wrote that "the inventor of death was dead". Alfred Nobel died in 1896, having revised his will to create the famous Nobel prizes.
9. John Spilsbury
Answer: Jigsaw puzzle
Spilsbury was born in 1739. He was a cartographer. For a period, he worked under Thomas Jefferys, royal cartographer of George III of Great Britain. Spilsbury invented the first jigsaw puzzle as an educational tool for his students, to help them learn geography.
He did this by affixing a world map on a piece of wood and carving each one of the countries. Subsequently, seeing this as an opportunity to earn money, he decided to create more puzzles. After his death, in 1769, his business was run by his wife.
10. Earle Dickson
Answer: Band-Aid
Dickson was born in 1892. He worked as a cotton buyer in Johnson & Johnson. He invented the Band-Aid because his wife, Josephine Knight, was very prone to accidents while doing the housework. Because the invention was very successful commercially, Dickson was promoted to vice president of the Johnson & Johnson corporation. He died in 1961.
This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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