Incredible Inventions: Making the Modern World - From the Plough to Robots

Countless clever discoveries and wonders of engineering have changed the world and helped us to improve our lives, grow food, make things, power machinery and keep healthy. Smart practices and gadgets began appearing in ancient times - and never stopped! Spot the

- mighty steam engine
- fizzy drink sold as a 'brain tonic' (guess what that is)
- 18th-century 'voltaic pile' (that's a battery)
- 'Ajax', a domestic hero aka the first flushing loo, back in 1596
- doggy invention (well, almost)

and so much more, packed into a trail of discovery with brilliant text and humorous illustrations. You'll also find daft ideas, like an earthquake machine (even the inventor didn't dig that one), and happy accidents that gave us penicillin... and crisps...