Inventing Modern America: From the Microwave to the Mouse

By David E. Brown

Book Overview

Lively accounts of thirty-five American inventors who helped shape the modern world.

Inventing Modern America profiles thirty-five inventors who exemplify the rich technological creativity of the United States over the past century. The range of their contributions is broad. They have helped transform our homes, our healthcare, our work, our environment, and the way we travel and communicate.

The inventors profiled include such well-known figures as George Washington Carver, Henry Ford, and Steve Wozniak, as well as unsung technological pioneers such as Stephanie Kwolek, inventor of Kevlar, and Wilson Greatbatch, inventor of the first implantable cardiac pacemaker.

Inventing Modern America is designed to create excitement about invention through the personal stories of these American scientists, technologists, and researchers. It is accessible enough to engage high school students yet wide-ranging and interesting enough to appeal to anyone who has ever wondered where microwave ovens and traffic lights come from.

The book was developed by the Lemelson-MIT Program for Invention and Innovation, whose mission is to inspire a new generation of American scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0262523493
• ISBN13: 9780262523493
• Release Date: March 2003
• Publisher: MIT Press
• Length: 221 Pages
• Weight: 2.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 9.1" x 11.2"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Great Way To Inspire Young Inventors!

If your child is heading off to higher education, or is just looking for a book that has some great information for a middle to high school book report, a parent can't go wrong with the book "Inventing Modern America: From The Microwave To The Mouse" by David E. Brown (2002, MIT Press, 209 Pages).One of the features that grab the reader right off the bat is the fact that the book centers upon modern innovations, such as that friendly little gadget that makes home computer use such a joy--otherwise known as a `mouse'. Another great inclusion is the contributions of Black inventors, such as Dr. George Washington Carver and Garrett Morgan. No, we are not talking about just a `paragraph or two', we are talking about royal treatment of each of the inventors contained within its covers--including glimpses at other inventions by featured inventors.Of course, to a real info-junkie, the book is too short. However, it does provide a lot of inspiration to those who have the talent and the drive to invent. It is an encouraging work, as it talks not only about the successes of each inventor and innovator, the book is full of diagrams, photos, and pictures of many other inventions by those selected for discussion.If you are looking for a book to encourage and uplift your future inventor, you can't go wrong with presenting a copy of this work to your son or daughter--or even as a gift for yourself, if you have that hidden desire to want to create a better mousetrap; or even improving upon something that already exists. It is a reference book that will keep on giving, and inspiring long after its purchase. I highly recommend it.Mike Ramey

Best book i ever read!!!!!!!!!!!!!

this was such a cool book. i mean, i never really thought about the beginnings of these famous things before, but now this book got me thing. 3 thumbs up!

Best book ever!

this was the best book i have ever read in my entire life! it really made me think about were all this stuff we use in our everyday life comes from. 3, no 4 thumbs up!