- Portland Cement
- Electromagnets
- Passenger Rail
- Matches
Portland Cement
Joseph Aspdin invented and patented Portland Cement, which resembled stone from the Isle of Portland. Portland cement was very strong, so it became one of the most popular versions in the world. Cement was one of the Ingredients of concrete, and concrete became widespread in Europe and North America. William Aspdin was Joseph Aspidn’s son, and he modified Portland cement to the most common one today. William, however, did not patent it, so it became more widespread.
Electromagnets
Hans Christian Øersted discovered that electric current and magnetism had link, and that inspired William Sturgeon to invent the electromagnet. The Electromagnet is a very strong magnet, and can be turned on/off at will. It works by sending electric current through iron or a similar metal. One of the electromagnet’s uses today is in a magnetic crane at a junkyard for moving old cars.
Passenger Rail
The locomotive is invented in 1801, and British George Stephenson (stee-vuhn-suhn (dictionary.com)) invented the passenger rail for it. Stephenson had experience with trains for a while, and so he came up with the passenger rail. He also figured out that flat rails were much more efficient than hilly rails. He taught Americans how to build better railroads.
Matches
John Walker invented matches after he decided to invent a way to make a fire easier. He was experimenting with chemicals and wood and he had dipped some wood into a mixture and accidentally struck it against something, and it lit. So the strike-anywhere match was invented. The safety match was invented by taking some of the chemicals in the match, and putting them on a special striking surface.