Technological and Scientific developments in Canada from 1914 to 1929 - Nicole Toth

By nikkiloveshistory

  • Hydrophone

    Hydrophone
    The hydrophone was invented by Reginald Fessenden in 1914. He started working on the idea after the Titanic disaster and he was looking for a way to locate icebergs. Although, his device could not tell the direction of an underwater object, instead, only the distance (Weebly).

  • Sonar

    Sonar
    The first sonar was constructed in 1915 to detect submarines. The first World War caused an increased interest in sonar which resulted in its construction. Sonar is short for Sound Navigation And Ranging (Scholastic 2020).

  • First Gas Mask

    First Gas Mask
    Cluny MacPherson invented the gas mask in 1915. In response to the use of poison gas in Ypres, Belgium, MacPherson was set on finding a way to help the soldiers. MacPherson invented the gas mask made of fabric and metal. He had taken a German helmet and added a canvas hood with eyepieces and a breathing tube. After a few improvements, the gas mask was invented (Bellis 2020).

  • Snowblower

    Snowblower
    Arthur Sicard was a Canadian inventor that invented the snowblower in 1915. His invention was made up of three parts. There was a four-wheel drive truck base frame and truck motor, a snow scooping section, and a snow blower with two adjustable chutes and a separate motor (Bellis 2006).

  • The Queenston-CHippawa Hydro-Electric Power Generator

    The Queenston-CHippawa Hydro-Electric Power Generator
    The Queenston-Chippawa Hydro-Electric Power Generator started construction in 1917 and was finished in 1925. It was created by Ontario’s Hydro-Electric Power Commission and was the first large hydro-electric project in the world (Government of Canada).

  • Discovery of Insulin

    Discovery of Insulin
    In 1921, Canadian physician, Fredrick Banting, discovered insulin with the help of medical student, Charles H. Best. They discovered the hormone insulin in pancreatic extracts of dogs. They had injected a hormone into a diabetic dog and noticed that it lowered the dog’s blood glucose levels to normal. With other help they were able to purify insulin by the end of that year. The next year it helped successfully treat a boy who suffered from severe diabetes (Rogers 2011).

  • First Snowmobile

    First Snowmobile
    In the winter of 1922, Joseph-Armand Bombardier, a young mechanic, had designed a propeller driven sleigh with a model T engine. Bombardier had incorporated the motive sprocket wheel and double, endless track which made the snowmobile practical (The Canadian Encyclopedia 2020).

  • Variable Pitch Propeller

    Variable Pitch Propeller
    In February of 1922, Wallace Rupert Turnbull patented the variable pitch propeller. This device allowed for a change in blade pitch to better suit flying conditions and airplane weight. This is considered one of the most important aviation developments (Virtual Museum 2008).

  • Alternative Current Radio Tube

    Alternative Current Radio Tube
    In 1925, Edward Samuel Rogers created an alternating-current radio tube. This was said to revolutionize the home radio-receiver industry throughout the world. Rogers' invention made main-powered home radios practical. Before his invention, home receivers had to run on direct current from rechargeable acid-filled batteries (The Canadian Encyclopedia 2015).

  • Robb Wave Organ

    Robb Wave Organ
    Frank Morse Robb designed the Robb Wave Organ in 1927. The instrument used similar sounds from a cathedral pipe organ by a similar tone-wheel mechanism. Robb added amplification to the design of Melvin Severy’s ‘Choralcelo’ (120 Years).