RetJun 22

Me in 1768: I dislike the new Prime Minister and the Steam Machine is still too expensive.

Me in 2026: I dislike the new Prime Minister and the Steam Machine is still too expensive.

Show threadEnsō
@ret 1768 is very early for steam engines! Stephenson's Rocket was 1829
Jun 22 at 8:01pmWeb
Show threadRetJun 22
@ensoyote 1776 was the first commercial use I think. I just picked the first prime minister term start I remembered lol
Show threadEnsōJun 22
@ret ah yeah, the Newcomen engine was 1712. I guess steam locomotives came much later. My year 3 project was about the history of engines so this is taking me back lol
Show threadglasspshrJun 23

@ensoyote @ret

https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/397019/the-most-powerful-idea-in-the-world-by-william-rosen/9781845951351

The Most Powerful Idea in the World

'The most important invention in the whole of the Industrial Revolution was invention itself.' Those words are at the heart of this remarkable book - a history of the Industrial Revolution and the steam engine, as well as an account of how inventors first came to own and profit from their ideas and how invention itself springs forth from logic and imagination. Rocket. It was the fortuitously named train that inaugurated steam locomotion in 1829, jump-starting two centuries of mass transportation. As William Rosen reveals, it was the product of centuries of scientific and industrial discovery. From inventor Heron of Alexandria in AD 60 to James Watt, the physicist whose 'separate condenser' was central to the development of steam power - all those who made possible the long ride towards the Industrial Revolution are brought to life. But crucial to their contributions are other characters whose concepts allowed their invention to flourish - John Locke and intellectual property; Edward Coke and patents. Along the way, Rosen takes us deep into the human mind, explaining how 'eureka' moments occur - when the brain is most relaxed.