Science Museum 20th century icons
The Science Museum in London nominated
ten 20th century icons, including penicillin, the x-ray machine, DNA and the electric telegraph. This series of videos made for the
Newton Channel explores the contribution of each scientific and technological breakthrough in turn
X-ray vision: how a chance discovery revolutionised medicine
Few discoveries can have brought such far-reaching benefits for humanity as X-rays
Alan Turing's Pilot Ace computer - video
Built in the 1950s and one of the Science Museum's 20th century icons, The Pilot Ace "automatic computing engine" was the world's first general purpose computer
Model T Ford: what made it so special? – video
Henry Ford created 'the car which made us ordinary folk want to drive', says David Rooney, curator of transport at London's Science Museum
V2 rocket: engine of war and discovery - video
'Without the V2 maybe we wouldn't have gone to the moon,' says Doug Millard of London's Science Museum in conversation with planetary scientist Colin Pillinger
The wonder and the tragedy of penicillin - video
When penicillin went into mass production at the end of the second world war it was hailed as a wonder drug, but creeping bacterial resistance has steadily robbed it of its potency
What made Stephenson's Rocket so special? - video
The steam locomotive Stephenson's Rocket didn't contain a single technological innovation, so how did it trigger a transport revolution?
How the electric telegraph switched on the connected world - video
In 1837 Cooke and Wheatstone patented their telegraph, starting a new era of instant, long-distance electrical communication
The machines that made the industrial revolution - video
Science museum curator Ben Russell tells the story of the atmospheric beam engine built by Francis Thompson in 1791
The DNA double helix: A 20th century icon
The Science Museum's Robert Bud talks to Dr Mark Hirst of the Open University about why the discovery of the structure of DNA marked a turning point in our understanding of life
Apollo 10: To the moon and back
As part of the Science Museum's 20th century icons series Doug Millard, senior curator of ICT and Space Technology and Colin Pillinger, who worked on the Apollo project, discuss the moon landings' legacy
