In a recent poll, in which 10,000 people got the chance to have their say, the X-ray machine was voted as the most important innovation of the century. More than 50,000 votes were recorded in the Science Museum of London inquiry, which saw X-rays defeat things like penicillin and steam engine. All of the ten objects came from areas of research such as science, engineering, technology and medicine, and the goal of the poll was to promote Science to the masses, and make it more interesting, the BBC News reports. Further details on all the items are available at the SML.One of the main reasons why X-rays are considered to be so groundbreaking is the fact that, for the first time in millenia, doctors became able of looking inside a patient without having to cut them open first. This represented the most massive advancement ever made in this field of researchers, the voters in the poll believed. In fact, all three positions on the poll are occupied by medical innovation. Following the X-ray machines are penicillin and the discovery of the double-helix structure of DNA. The latter discovery led to massive advancements in understanding how we evolved over millions of years.
“It's very inspirational to budding scientists to learn that an invention now declared the most important in world history could be pioneered by enthu... (read more)
