Advances in Technology Making Life Easier. (JU) Photo credit: waitbutwhy.com/table/invention-world-needs-to-have.

Scholes invents the typewriter. Photo credit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sholes_and_Glidden_typewriter.

1867

Christopher Scholes, a Milwaukee WI printer and editor, was the first to patent a workable writing machine. His invention of the typewriter made document preparation more efficient, accurate, and legible. Office workers were able to create legible documents and authors used it to write quicker stories. Not only was it more efficient, but it increased worker's productivity; making it easier to meet deadlines and keep up with the rapid growth of the business needs.

Alexander Graham Bell patents the telephone. Photo credit: www.history.com.

1876

One of the greatest advancements in expediting communication was the telephone. i Bell, who established a school for the deaf in Boston, Massachussetts was the first to patent the use of the telephone. This tremendously decreased the transit time of communicating. The old way of sending messages through a messenger, which could take weeks, was replaced by instant communication where sounds were transmitted by electricity.

i Corbett, U.S. History, Chapter 18.1

Wright Brothers pioneer aviation. Photo credit: www.uscg.mil.

1903

American inventors and brothers, Wilbur and Orville Wright were the first to invent a power sustained, controlled airplane flight. i
When the world thought it was moving fast, at the speed of a steam engine, little did they know how this motorized bird in the sky would change the world. What started with a one person passenger flight for 12 seconds, would later grow to multi passenger planes cutting travel times down to hours versus days.

i www.history.com/topics/inventions/wright-brothers

First mass produced automobile. Photo credit: corporate.ford.com.

1908

Henry Ford's Model T was not the first automobile, but it was the first to be mass produced in a factory assembly line type fashion. In Detroit, Michigan, Ford mass produced the Model T cars utilizing a moving assembly line. This assembly line opened up more jobs. With the creation of the assembly line and the ability to mass produce cars, Ford was able to sell more cars at a lower cost. He wanted the car to be available for every American to be able to afford to buy.

The invention of the iron lung. Photo credit: rarehistoricalphotos.com.

1924

Philip Drinker and Louis Agassiz Shaw from Harvard University made a medical breakthrough by inventing a device that assisted people to continue breathing. This iron lung or tank respirator is closely associated with the polio disease. i Since polio caused breathing problems, the iron lung was used as part of the management of the disease, prolonging the lives of those affected. i "The Iron Lung and Other equipment," http://amhistory.si.edu/polio/howpolio/ironlung.htm

Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin. Photo credit: gettyimages.com.

1928

Alexander Fleming was a Scottish biologist that discovered penicillin by accident. While away on vacation, he left a plate of staphylococcus bacteria uncovered and noted on his return that the mold penicillium notatum had killed many of the bacteria. i

Although it took many years to finalize it as a treatment, penicillin was the first antibiotic to help combat deadly infectious diseases. Like the iron lung, this prevented premature death. i "This Day In History," history.com.