Technology of the 1920's

Numerous inventions were developed in the 1920’s. Some are still used today, but others have become obsolete. Many modern-day household appliances, weapons, medications, and prepared food items had their basis in designs from this era. This technology contributed to economic prosperity and improved American lives in every conceivable way.

The first major invention was the commercial radio channel. In 1920, the Pittsburgh company KDKA broadcast that Warren G. Harding had won the presidential election against James M. Cox. This broadcast caused radios to increase in popularity. This improvement in radio was the only major development in sound technology; most people were working on visual transmissions at this time.

The first half-tone photograph sent in an electronic manner was transmitted by Western Union in 1921. The concept of a photograph being sent in this manner was conceived by Alexander Bain, a Scottish clockmaker, in 1843, but this was the first physical manifestation of his concept.

In the 1920s, multiple different people developed televisions. Unlike the electrical television we have today, these televisions were mechanical. The major model in America, invented by Philio Farnsworth, worked by utilizing radio transmissions and a spinning motor to display an image made of 60 horizontal lines. This model was perceived as a threat by the head of the Radio Corporation of America, and the resulting lawsuits eventually pushed its creator into committing suicide.

Another main version of the television was patented in 1929. This was Vladimir K. Zworykin’s kinescope, which was a cathode-ray tube. The storage principle it used is one of the main components of modern-day televisions.

One major development in the film indus...

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...iple treatments to regain their own ability to breathe. In building the device, the inventors examined other methods of treatment for people who were unable to breathe. The doctors discovered that manually attempting to force the patient into breathing did not provide enough air, but all mechanical methods until this point forced too much air in too quickly, causing damage to other important organs. One of the goals for the design was to be able to put almost any person in it successfully.

Technology and human innovation led to some of the greatest economic prosperity that the United States had experienced to that point. New advancements, discoveries, and inventions improved American lives in ways that were never even considered possible before this point. In addition, these new developments inspired future inventors to improve upon the ideas of the predecessors.