Thomas Alva Edison's phonograph (1877)
Robert Fulton (1807)'s Clermont
The first successful steamboat. Like the locomotive, made trade so, so much better. For example, now the US could leverage its advantage in having the Mississippi river.
Helped plant crops
Marc Brunel's first underwater tunnel (1826-1842)
Under the Thames
Cathode rays discovered
1858
John Kay (1733)'s flying shuttle
Tremendously helped with making weaving easier, used in the putting-out industry at first.
James Brindley (1761)'s Bridgewater Canal
Allowed for barges to carry coal from Worsely to Manchester
Cartwright's power loom (1787)
According to wikipedia:
William Murdock's cool thing he did (1792)
Lit his home using coal gas. Also, he was James Watt's assistant.
Joseph Monier (1849)
Large suspension bridge, "triumph of engineering."
Henry Bessemir's steel converter (1854)
Liverpool and Manchester Railway (1830)
Began the first regular commercial rail service
Michael Faraday (1831)'s discovery of electromagnetic currents
Made generators and electrical engines possible
Richard Arkwright's water frame (1769)
More efficient thread spinning
James Watt's efficient steam engine (1765)
Thomas Newcomen (1712)'s steam engine
First commercially successful (though kind of clumsy) steam engine, used to pump water out of coal mines. Big deal, since we've just unlocked a new power source.
Eli Whitney (1793)'s cotton gin
This separated the useful raw cotton from its seeds, making the cotton industry much more profitable. It had mixed effects — remember how a lot of cotton was farmed using slave labor.
Gugliemo Marconi (1901) transatlantic radio message
Gasoline refinement
First occurred in 1850. Gasoline is an important fuel source.
Gugliemo Marconi (1896)'s wireless telegraph patent
Useful for, like, ship distress calls. Say, for example, the one the Titanic sent out.
James Hargreaves (1765)'s spinning jenny
Automated thread spinning
First high explosive that could be safely handled. Useful for mining and clearing areas for infrastructure.
1858
Robert Trevithick (1801)'s steam locomotive demonstration
George Stephenson's Rocket, 1829, would lead to great railroad infrastructure, which helped with city planning, made moving to the city easier, and made trade and large-scale commerce much better. For example, now placing factories in population centers made more sense. (I barely understand why myself, but okay)
Mass slaughter is now possible, begins mechanization of warfare. Unfortunately, as some predicted, his machine gun did not prevent war — people still fought, despite these monsters being on the battlefield.
Alexander Graham Bell's telephone (1876)
Made communicating across long distances much easier, but such conversations still had to be done in public, etc.,
Samuel F. B. Morse's telegraph and Morse Code (1837)
Invented the incandescent lamp. Though he was, in general, prone to rude tendencies.
Eiffel Tower (1889)
