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  • © 2012

How James Watt Invented the Copier

Forgotten Inventions of Our Great Scientists

Authors:

  • Reveals the forgotten but magnificent and ingenious inventions of the greatest scientists of the past centuries

  • Presents the discoveries of famous scientists for which they are actually not known

  • Provides ample unique figures which illustrate the forgotten designs of the greatest researchers throughout history

  • Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras

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Table of contents (25 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-vii
  2. Johannes Kepler

    • René Schils
    Pages 1-6
  3. Robert Hooke

    • René Schils
    Pages 7-12
  4. Edmond Halley

    • René Schils
    Pages 13-18
  5. Daniel Bernoulli

    • René Schils
    Pages 19-24
  6. Benjamin Franklin

    • René Schils
    Pages 25-30
  7. Joseph Priestley

    • René Schils
    Pages 31-36
  8. James Watt

    • René Schils
    Pages 37-42
  9. Edward Jenner

    • René Schils
    Pages 43-48
  10. John Dalton

    • René Schils
    Pages 49-54
  11. Thomas Young

    • René Schils
    Pages 55-61
  12. Justus von Liebig

    • René Schils
    Pages 63-69
  13. Charles Darwin

    • René Schils
    Pages 71-76
  14. William Thomson (Lord Kelvin)

    • René Schils
    Pages 77-82
  15. James Clerk Maxwell

    • René Schils
    Pages 83-88
  16. Alexander Graham Bell

    • René Schils
    Pages 89-94
  17. Hendrik Antoon Lorentz

    • René Schils
    Pages 95-101
  18. Svante Arrhenius

    • René Schils
    Pages 103-109
  19. Pierre Curie

    • René Schils
    Pages 111-116
  20. Walther Nernst

    • René Schils
    Pages 117-122

About this book

Features 25 different scientists and the ideas which may not have made them famous, but made history…

Typically, we remember our greatest scientists from one single invention, one new formula or one incredible breakthrough. This narrow perspective does not give justice to the versatility of many scientists who also earned a reputation in other areas of science. James Watt, for instance, is known for inventing the steam engine, yet most people do not know that he also invented the copier. Alexander Graham Bell of course invented the telephone, but only few know that he invented artificial breathing equipment, a prototype of the ‘iron lung’. Edmond Halley, whose name is associated with the comet that visits Earth every 75 years, produced the first mortality tables, used for life insurances. This entertaining book is aimed at anyone who enjoys reading about inventions and discoveries by the most creative minds. Detailed illustrations of the forgotten designs and ideas enrich the work throughout.

Authors and Affiliations

  • Heerde, Netherlands

    René Schils

About the author

Since 2005, René Schils has been a freelance science writer and in the past five years has written nearly twenty articles on this topic for the Dutch science magazine ‘Natuurwetenschap en Techniek’. Subsequently, these articles were used as the basis for this book. Currently, René writes popular science articles on varying topics for several science magazines, which can be viewed at the author’s website www.reneschils.nl.

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: How James Watt Invented the Copier

  • Book Subtitle: Forgotten Inventions of Our Great Scientists

  • Authors: René Schils

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-0860-4

  • Publisher: Springer New York, NY

  • eBook Packages: Physics and Astronomy, Physics and Astronomy (R0)

  • Copyright Information: Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2012

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-1-4614-0859-8Published: 14 December 2011

  • eBook ISBN: 978-1-4614-0860-4Published: 15 December 2011

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: VII, 170

  • Number of Illustrations: 81 b/w illustrations, 17 illustrations in colour

  • Additional Information: Translation from Dutch

  • Topics: History and Philosophical Foundations of Physics, Popular Science, general

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 24.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 34.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access