Forbes has an interesting article on the top 20 tools in history, as voted on by a panel of experts from history and technology fields, including Don Norman, Henry Petroski, and others. Although public attention to technology frequently focuses on the next (or most recent) "big thing," the Forbes list is interesting for its historical perspective. (I think the list would make for interesting discussion in classes about innovation and technology.)
The article includes brief discussions of each of the top 20, with notes on history and social impact (and links to current companies selling the technologies--it is Forbes, after all). The knife comes in at number 1; others in the list in include the pencil and the needle. Duct tape gets an honorable mention.
Posted by johndanseven at March 17, 2006 03:28 PM