Adam Hart-Davis, one of the nations favourite TV presenters, returns to our screens with a tour through the Top Ten developments of each of the great civilisations of the past. From the Egyptians to the Romans, Babylonians to the Arabs, Adam takes us on an epic history of the world, looking at some of the great legacies left to us by ancient cultures. What the Past Did For Us accompanies a major 9-part new format autumn show, in which Adam is the anchorman who leads us through the history of inventions while testing some of these in the studio. The accompanying book is an entertainingly written history of ancient cultures, capturing Adams enthusiasm for the subject. Adam tells the story of the Chinese inventors who came up with the mariners compass, paper money and gunpowder right through to the Ancient Indians who, according to Einstein taught us how to count as well as giving us the 12-month calendar year and 7-day week.
When Victoria came to the throne in 1837, Britain was on the brink of world supremacy in the production of iron, steel, and steam engines, and had seen an explosion of growth and developments that included railways, the electric telegraph, and wool production. The tremendous feeling of national pride was celebrated in the Great Exhibition of 1851. Drawing on his consummate skill as a storyteller, Adam Hart–Davis shows how Victorian movers and shakers changed our world.
The stories of over 45 British pioneers of science, invention, and technology which often focus on the less well known aspects of renowned heroes such as Edward Jenner, Brunel and Florence Nightingale. Among the inventions covered are the kaleidoscope, the Ayrton fan, the equals sign and decimal point, swimming umbrellas and a mobile sheep-wash.
If you've ever wondered why the pencil came into existence, or how a steam engine works, or when we started using flushing toilets, this book has all the answers. Based on seven key areas of invention, Adam Hart-Davis tells the stories behind steam power, lighting, toilets, clocks, communication, bikes and flight.
For more than five years, Adam Hart-Davis travelled the length and breadth of Britain, bringing to life in his TV series, "Local Heroes", pioneers of science, invention and technology. This book presents 100 of the best stories: ingenious or odd, different or daft, but always entertaining.
This is the dramatic story of how Henry Winstanley defied incredible odds to build the Eddystone Lighthouse, the first of its kind to save the lives of thousands of sailors from the treacherous rocks that lay on the shores of England.
Adam Hart-Davis vividly recreates the story of the Eddystone Lighthouse, the character of the man who built it, and the power of the elements that finally destroyed them both.
During the Victorian era, industrial and economic growth led to a phenomenal rise in productivity and invention. That spirit of creativity and ingenuity was reflected in the massive expansion in scope and complexity of many scientific disciplines during this time, with subjects evolving rapidly and the creation of many new disciplines. The subject of mathematics was no exception and many of the advances made by mathematicians during the Victorian period are still familiar today; matrices, vectors, Boolean algebra, histograms, and standard deviation were just some of the innovations pioneered by these mathematicians. This book constitutes perhaps the first general survey of the mathematics of the Victorian period. It assembles in a single source research on the history of Victorian mathematics that would otherwise be out of the reach of the general reader. It charts the growth and institutional development of mathematics as a profession through the course of the 19th century in England, Scotland, Ireland, and across the British Empire. It then focuses on developments in specific mathematical areas, with chapters ranging from developments in pure mathematical topics (such as geometry, algebra, and logic) to Victorian work in the applied side of the subject (including statistics, calculating machines, and astronomy). Along the way, we encounter a host of mathematical scholars, some very well known (such as Charles Babbage, James Clerk Maxwell, Florence Nightingale, and Lewis Carroll), others largely forgotten, but who all contributed to the development of Victorian mathematics.
‘An extraordinary history’ PETER ACKROYD, The Times ‘A lively account of (Bazalgette’s) magnificent achievements. . . graphically illustrated’ HERMIONE HOBHOUSE ‘Halliday is good on sanitary engineering and even better on cloaca, crud and putrefaction . . . (he) writes with the relish of one who savours his subject and has deeply researched it. . . splendidly illustrated’ RUTH RENDELL In the sweltering summer of 1858, sewage generated by over two million Londoners was pouring into the Thames, producing a stink so offensive that it drove Members of Parliament from the chamber of the House of Commons. The Times called the crisis ‘The Great Stink’. Parliament had to act – drastic measures were required to clean the Thames and to improve London’s primitive system of sanitation. The great engineer entrusted with this enormous task was Sir Joseph Bazalgette, who rose to the challenge and built the system of intercepting sewers, pumping stations and treatment works that serves London to this day. In the process, he cleansed the Thames and helped banish cholera. The Great Stink of London offers a vivid insight into Bazalgette’s achievements and the era in which he worked and lived, including his heroic battles with politicians and bureaucrats that would transform the face and health of the world’s then largest city.
For more than five years, Adam Hart-Davis travelled the length and breadth of Britain, bringing to life in his TV series, "Local Heroes", pioneers of science, invention and technology. This book presents 100 of the best stories: ingenious or odd, different or daft, but always entertaining.
Adam Hart-Davis, one of the nations favourite TV presenters, returns to our screens with a tour through the Top Ten developments of each of the great civilisations of the past. From the Egyptians to the Romans, Babylonians to the Arabs, Adam takes us on an epic history of the world, looking at some of the great legacies left to us by ancient cultures. What the Past Did For Us accompanies a major 9-part new format autumn show, in which Adam is the anchorman who leads us through the history of inventions while testing some of these in the studio. The accompanying book is an entertainingly written history of ancient cultures, capturing Adams enthusiasm for the subject. Adam tells the story of the Chinese inventors who came up with the mariners compass, paper money and gunpowder right through to the Ancient Indians who, according to Einstein taught us how to count as well as giving us the 12-month calendar year and 7-day week.
How and when did forensic science originate in the UK? This question demands our attention because our understanding of present-day forensic science is vastly enriched through gaining an appreciation of what went before. A History of Forensic Science is the first book to consider the wide spectrum of influences which went into creating the discipline in Britain in the first part of the twentieth century. This book offers a history of the development of forensic sciences, centred on the UK, but with consideration of continental and colonial influences, from around 1880 to approximately 1940. This period was central to the formation of a separate discipline of forensic science with a distinct professional identity and this book charts the strategies of the new forensic scientists to gain an authoritative voice in the courtroom and to forge a professional identity in the space between forensic medicine, scientific policing, and independent expert witnessing. In so doing, it improves our understanding of how forensic science developed as it did. This book is essential reading for academics and students engaged in the study of criminology, the history of forensic science, science and technology studies and the history of policing.
Homo sapiens have remained the same species, largely unchanged in genetic makeup and anatomy since the Cro-Magnon era. By contrast, the cultural, social, and technological changes since then have been nothing less than extraordinary. At the core of this development is the ability of humans to store and transmit knowledge, so that each new generation stands upon the shoulders of its predecessors. This ability to use what has gone before is what sets humans apart. Telling our story, from prehistory to the present day, DK's History is a thought-provoking journey, revealing the common threads and forces that have shaped human history. Taking a broad-themed approach, acknowledging varied factors at work, from climate, ecology, disease, and geology and their roles in the human story, this visual celebration makes history accessible and relevant, putting events in their wider context and showing how they have shaped the world we live in. Features inventions, discoveries, and ideas that have shaped world history Looks at human achievement through artifacts, painting, sculpture, and architecture Places humankind in context as part of the natural world Includes eyewitness accounts and biographies of key figures at turning points in history Gives factors such as climate and natural disasters their full place in the human story Uncovers the past, from analyzing ice cores to deciphering extinct languages A comprehensive timeline chronicles the key events of the countries of the world.
Broadcast as an award winning radio-programme on BBC Radio 4 under the title of "Taking the Piss out of London", this work contains anecdotes and tales, from Marilyn Monroe to the Victorians, together with some discoveries about an area with which we are familiar.
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