The Local Heroes: Book of British Ingenuity [Paperback]

Adam Hart-Davis (Author), Paul Bader (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1997

Based on the popular UK tv program featured on the Learning Channel here, this lively history tells the stories of more than 45 pioneers of science, invention and technology.

This delightful history of science focuses on surprising facts and bizarre discoveries by Britain's scientific heroes. Readers will delight in such true adventures as how smallpox vaccination inventor Edward Jenner was elected to the Royal Society for his paper on cuckoos and turned down an invitation to sail around the world with Captain Cook; the practical joker who defied incredible odds to build the first Eddystone Lighthouse and then died when it was swept away by the greatest storm England has ever known; the failed Scottish minister who invented the first kaleidoscope; Sarah Guppy's modified tea urn which simplified breakfast; and Hertha Marks's research on ripples which led to the invention of the Ayrton fan that saved thousands of soldiers' lives in World War I gas attacks.

Product Details

• Paperback: 150 pages
• Publisher: Sutton Pub Ltd (October 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0750914734
• ISBN-13: 978-0750914734
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.7 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,353,369 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Combines English history, geography, science and technology in a pick and mix, June 27, 2010

By 

Andrew J Brunskill "jaberwok" (Edmonds, WA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Local Heroes: Book of British Ingenuity (Paperback)

A shame that this book and its companions are not better known to a US audience- they are great companions to a trip to England (wales and Scotland are seriously under-represented). You will probably have to get them from a UK dealer - or you could buy them in England. They were produced as companions to a very successful TV series in which pioneers of science, invention and technology are given short biographies linked to the sites where they lived or worked. The writing is great fun - did you know that Jenner the smallpox vaccine proponent was elected to the Royal Society for his paper on cuckoos and declined to travel the world with Captain Cook? Similar material on Sarah Guppy's patented tea urn which by combining tea making and boiling eggs could have revolutionized breakfast . Astonish and amuse yourself and others and embellish any journey in England with more bizarre anecdotes than ever found in Fodor - you will end your day with much more enjoyable memories than motorway traffic! Strongly recommended!