The 1820s are known for a number of things. In the United States, the Missouri Compromise became law, Joseph Smith received the first of his "visions" which would lead to his founding Mormonism, and the ban on coffee in Sweden was lifted. The 1820s also saw a number of inventions that are still commonplace in the world in 2011. In fact, some of these inventions are essential to everyday life for many people across the globe.
Photography, 1826
In the 21st century, cameras are commonplace. Cameras are even built into our cell phones and computers. The common appearance of cameras today lend their creation to Joseph Nicephore Niepce, a French inventor who took the first ever photograph in 1826. Unlike modern images, this first image was taken on a pewter plate, and then was covered in a type of petroleum called bitumen of Judea. After a couple of days the bitumen would be washed away and what would be left is the image.
Lighters and Friction Matches, 1823
By the time the 21st century came about, lighters could be purchased from just about any corner convenience store for roughly a dollar. This was not always the case, of course, and before the invention of Dobereiner's Lamp in 1823, cigarette smokers were forced to use matches. Dobereiner's Lamp, designed by a German chemist named Johann Wolfgang Dobereiner, used a mixture of zinc and sulfuric acid to generate hydrogen gas. When the user wanted a flame, he would turn a valve and the hydrogen would be released, igniting when it touched oxygen.
A few years later, in 1826, the modern day friction match was invented by John Walker.
Fountain Pen, 1827
Fountain pens had existed in some capacity since the 10th century, but it wasn't until 1827 that the basis for what would be the modern refillable fountain pen was invented by Romanian Petrache Poenaru. Poenaru received what would be the first of many patents for a refillable fountain pen, and his design would become the basis for almost every pen on the market today. If you have used a fountain pen at any point in your life, odds are it is based on Petrache Poenaru's design.
Electromagnet, 1824
In the 1820s, two major discoveries pertaining to electromagnetism were made. The first was by Hans Christian Orsted, who initially discovered that electricity currents created magnetic fields. This discovery was made in 1820. It wasn't until 1824 that William Sturgeon invented the first electromagnet. This first electromagnet was built using a piece of varnished iron shaped like a horseshoe, which was then wrapped in copper wire. When an electric current was sent through the copper wire, the iron magnet would attract other pieces of iron to it.
Tags: what would, 21st century, copper wire, Dobereiner Lamp, first electromagnet
