Popular inventions (популярні винаходи)

Popular inventions

Over the years scientists have invented a great number of things, which we now use in everyday life, for example, computers, printing machines, telephones, radio, television, automobiles, photography, electricity, steam engine, planes etc. One of the most useful and handy devices today is the computer. It is a comparatively new invention, which came into use in the 20th century. However, the form of computer was designed already in the mid- 1830s by the British mathematician Charles Babbage. Today, people simply can’t imagine their lives without computers. There is a whole generation which has grown up with calculators, computer games, word processor, Internet and else. 

Another vital device is the TV. This invention has truly changed the leisure habits of millions of people worldwide. Television was pioneered in the 1920s by Scottish electrical engineer John Logie Baird. He was the first to realize that light could be converted into electrical impulses, which are then transmitted over a distance. Electricity, perhaps, is even more important. We wouldn’t be able to use computers and TVs without it. The invention of electricity dates back to the 19th century and is connected with such renowned names as Michael Faraday, Alessandro Volta, Humphry Davy and Andre Marie Ampere. For the invention of telephones we should be grateful to Alexander Graham Bell. He is an Edinburgh-born scientist who patented the invention of telephone in 1876. A year later a great American scientist Thomas Edison produced the first working telephone. 

The invention of different types of transport has also changed the world, for example, airplanes and motor cars. Planes have brought distant lands within easy reach of ordinary people. American-born Wright brothers were the first to make the flight in 1903. The first petrol-driven car was produced in 1885 by the German engineer Carl Benz. Whether we like them or not, cars have given people great freedom of travel.

Television (1920s)

The invention that swept the world and changed leisure habits for countless millions was pioneered by Scottish-born electrical engineer John Logie Baird. It had been realised for some time that light could be converted into electrical impulses, making it possible to transmit such impulses over a distance and then reconvert them into light.

Motor Car (Late 19th Century)

With television, the car is probably the most widely used and most useful of all leisure-inspired inventions. German engineer Karl Benz produced the first petroldriven car in 1885 and the British motor industry started in 1896. Henry Ford was the first to use assembly line production for his Model Т car in 1908. Like them or hate them, cars have given people great freedom of travel.

Electricity

The name came from the Greek word for amber and was coined by Elizabeth I's physician William Gilbert who was among those who noticed that amber had the power to attract light objects after being rubbed. In the 19th century such great names as Michael Faraday, Humphry Davy, Alessandro Volta and Andre Marie Ampere all did vital work on electricity.

Photography (Early 19th Century)

Leonardo da Vinci had described the camera obscura photographic principle as early as 1515. But it was not until 1835 that Frenchman Louis Daguerre produced camera photography. The system was gradually refined over the years, to the joy of happy snappers and the despair of those who had to wade through friends' endless holiday pictures.

Telephone (1876)

Edinburgh-born scientist Alexander Graham Bell patented his invention of the telephone in 1876. The following year, the great American inventor Thomas Edison produced the first working telephone. With telephones soon becoming rapidly available, the days of letter-writing became numbered.

Computer (20th Century)

The computer has been another life-transforming invention. British mathematician Charles Babbage designed a form of computer in the mid-1830s, but it was not until more than a century later that theory was put into practice. Now, a whole generation has grown up with calculators, windows, icons, computer games and word processors, and the Internet and e-mail have transformed communication and information.

Aeroplane

The plane was the invention that helped shrink the world and brought distant lands within easy reach of ordinary people. The invention of the petrol engine made flight feasible and the American Wright brothers made the first flight in 1903.

Лексична вправа Match the parts of word-combinations.

1. A vacuum cleaner	1. To cook meals
2. A washing machine	2. To press clothes
3. A dishwasher	3. To clean the carpets
4. A microwave oven	4. To do the cooking
5. An iron	5. To wash clothes
6. A cooker	6. To find information
7. A computer	7. To wash up
8. A mobile phone	8. To watch films and news
9. A television	9. To communicate with people

“Лексична гра. Match the inventions with the inventors.

1. The electric light bulb	1. Alexander Graham Bell 1875
2. The Law of gravitation	2. Samuel Morse 1838
3. The telephone	3. Thomas Edison 1879
4. The theory of evolution	4. Charles Darwin 1859
5. The telegraph	5. Isaak Newton1687
6. The steam engine	6. Albert Einstein 1905
7. The theory of relativity	7. Marie Curie 1911
8. Radium	8. James Watt

Make up sentences using the structure

·         The telegraph was invented in 1838 by Samuel Morse