How Do They Work?

Lesson Tip
This lesson will help provide the students with a greater understanding of inventions of the last century.

Objectives

• Describes contributions of famous U.S. inventors and scientists
• Explains how scientific discoveries and technological innovations influenced U.S. economic development

Materials
Computer with online capabilities, ink, printer paper

Procedure
The students will search online for the following information:

1. How were the radio, telephone and light bulb invented? 
2. What, if any, background information did the three inventors have
   prior to their creations? 
3. What material did they use? 
4. Was it readily available? 
5. Could those first inventions be recreated today? 
6. If you were to build a radio, telephone, or light bulb
   how would you do it?

Evaluation
Students complete the Open Computer Test.

Homework
The students will choose the telephone, light bulb or the radio
and create a timeline* on the computer depicting how the
invention has changed since its inception. 

An example is the telephone. They will then research online and find out how the phone has improved over the course of time. 
Example:
telephone (with an operator), dial phone, cordless, cell phone,
cell with camera, and then write what the phone of the future
will be like.

* One way to make a timeline is to click Insert, Picture, Auto
Shapes, Word Art (the capital A on the tool bar.) Make and
align them according to how many are needed.

Websites
Workings of Telephone Communications
http://ccism.pc.athabascau.ca/html/courses/promo/ccis/comp210/describe/grphc055.htm 

How the Telephone Works
http://atcaonline.com/phone/telworks.html 

How Radio Works
http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/radio1.htm 

Mad Sci Network
http://madsci.wustl.edu/posts/archives/may97/864507907.Ph.r.html 

Beginners Guide to Ham Radio
http://irony.com/ham-howto.html 

Extension Activity
Build a ham radio.