Great Idea Finder
Idea Finder: James Watt
This article provides information regarding James Watts and his improvements to the steam engine in 1769.
Famous Scientists
Famous Scientists: Thomas Newcomen
Find out about the life and work of the inventor who created the first practical steam engine for pumping water in 1712, the Newcomen steam engine.
Other
Engineering Your Future Ohio: Della Steam Plant Case Study
This lesson gives a real world example of challenges and choices engineers face in their careers. The Della Steam Plant Case Study allows students to analyze and present finding about a problem found in the power plant's turbine system....
University of Houston
University of Houston: Engines of Our Ingenuity: No. 695: John Ericsson
A biography of John Ericsson, a man who invented in three countries over most of a century. He invented an early locomotive, a hot-air engine, screw propeller, and the Monitor, which was used in the Civil War. This is a transcript of an...
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: Activity: Engineering Design Challenge
From the San Francisco 49er's Museum Education Program which promotes STEAM projects, students construct an irrigation system for the football field. The concept of engineer design is explored.
Science Struck
Science Struck: Working of a Fusible Plug
Explains how the fusible plug in a steam engine works and why it is essential for safety reasons.
University of Houston
University of Houston: Engines of Our Ingenuity: Fulton's Battery Catamaran
A description of Fulton's steamboat and its influence on subsequent military warships. Interesting, anecdotal and well-written. Includes some biographical information. (Text is the actual radio transcript of a syndicated radio broadcast...
Other
Cincinnati Library: Reflections on the River: Tall Stacks
This site focuses on the Tall Stacks Music Arts and Heritage Festival in Cincinnati, Ohio. It offers information about the upcoming Tall Stacks and links to its history.
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Education: Spotlight Biography Inventors
This site provides information on American inventors Benjamin Franklin, Robert Fulton, Eli Whitney, Thomas Jefferson, Isaac Singer, Wilbur Wright, Thomas Alva Edison, Elias Howe, and Alexander Graham Bell. It offers pictures from and...
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: Energy Through Time
The quest for energy has always been a balancing act. As humans have gained greater control over their environment, they've found abundant resources - and faced numerous challenges. This article traces the history of our quest for energy.
PBS
Wnet: Thirteen: Freedom: A History of Us: Wake Up, America!
This resource covers the changing of America due to the Industrial Revolution which brought in not only new technology but also opened the door to reform movements. From the series by Joy Hakim, "A History of Us." Includes a teacher's...
University of Sydney (Australia)
Thermal Physics Module: Heat Engines [Pdf]
The second law of thermodynamics and the concept of entropy is applied to the topic of heat engines. The Carnot and Stirling engine are discussed. Efficiency is explained and an equation is derived.
Great Idea Finder
The Great Idea Finder: Elijah Mc Coy
Find out where the expression "The Real McCoy" comes from. This site provides brief biographical information about the inventor Elijah McCoy (1844-1929 CE).
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Harcourt: Biographies: Benjamin Bradley
Learn about inventor and African-American slave, Benjamin Bradley, developer of a steam engine large enough to run the first steam-powered warship.
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: Innovations in Football Equipment
Due to recent advances in technology and engineering, new innovations in equipment are helping to support the game of football in every respect.
University of Houston
University of Houston: Engines of Our Ingenuity: No. 1338: The Last Masts
Read about the history of the steamboat and the difficult transition that led to the eventual relinquishing of a ship's sails. This article is a transcript of a radio broadcast.
PBS
Pbs: Who Made America?: Innovators: Oliver Evans
A versatile Revolutionary-era inventor looked for ways to improve and automate industry, and created an engine that would power hundreds of new businesses in the young nation.
University of Waterloo (Canada)
University of Waterloo: Rudolf Julius Emanuel Clausius
Lists the most important publications of Rudolf Clausius. Provides some biographical details. Part of a set of History of Thermodynamics course notes.
Other
Clemson University: British Industrial Revolution
Lecture notes for a class on the Industrial Revolution provide an overview of the transition of the British economy from a predominantly agricultural one to an industrial society.
National Academy of Engineering
Greatest Achievements: Agricultural Mechanization
This page details the mechanization of agriculture from the late 1800's to the late 1900's.
Curated OER
Steam Engine
An extraordinarily rich collection of photos, stereographs, engravings, maps, and documents. Many 19th century accounts of building and traveling on the railroad, plus travel guides and government documents.
Curated OER
Unesco: Netherlands: ir.d.f. Woudagemaal (d.f. Wouda Steam Pumping Station)
The Wouda Pumping Station at Lemmer in the province of Friesland opened in 1920. It is the largest steam-pumping station ever built and is still in operation. It represents the high point of the contribution made by Netherlands engineers...
Black Past
Black Past: Woods, Granville T.
A fascinating encyclopedia article about Granville Woods, a black inventor,often referred to as the "black Edison."
Other
Black Inventor Online Museum: Andrew Beard
A short biography of Andrew Beard, whose invention improved the safety of railroads in the 19th century.