Inventions that Built the Information Technology Revolution

McCarney draws on a doctorate in physics and years of experience as a corporate researcher to create a fascinating account tracing the development of the modern world’s defining technologies. Using detailed charts, diagrams, and formulas, McCarney outlines how each major communications breakthrough, starting with telegraphs, telephones, and radios, yielded a new frontier of development and a new source of profit for burgeoning tech companies. The detailed scientific history is interwoven with stories of human greed and ambition, revealing the ample political backstabbing, legal battles, and business machinations that accompanied the development of now-ubiquitous items. Among other tales, McCarney recounts the cliffhanger story of the race to patent the first working telephone, which saw Alexander Graham Bell and his competitor Elisha Gray submit documents to patent offices on the very same day. Whether McCarney is exploring the use of liquid as a medium for capturing and transmitting the human voice—Gray’s approach for his abortive device—or showcasing how diode lasers reinvented modern communication, his focus remains on the tireless human impulse toward innovation. McCarney’s impeccable research is certain to interest and inspire STEM students, while the behind-the-scenes drama will appeal to nonspecialists. (Self-published.)