20th-century inventions that changed the world

november 7, 2025

Images: Shutterstock

Not only did the 20th century witness some of the biggest socio-political changes, but it also saw through some of the most era-defining innovations in technology, science, and more.

Let’s look at some of the 20th-century inventions that redefined how we interact with the world around us.

Internet

In 1974, Vinton Cerf and Bob Kahn invented the architecture for the protocols that govern the system known as the Internet today. The framework was adopted by the US government in 1980.

Aeroplane

In 1903, the Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur, made history with their first flight in a powered aeroplane. More than a century later, air travel has become the norm for long-distance travel.

Image: wikipedia.org/Public domain

Cell phone

Motorola became the first company to mass-produce handheld cell phones with the “DynaTAC” in 1973. However, the mobile’s history dates back to a 1908 US patent for a wireless phone.

Image: wikipedia.org/Redrum0486

Computer

The first general-purpose electronic computer, known as the ENIAC was built in the 1940s by J. Presper Eckert and John Mauchly. However, its foundations rely on years of contributions.

Polio vaccine

The first successful polio vaccine was created in 1950 by US physician Jonas Salk, who tested it on himself and his family. Since then, two out of three strains of wild poliovirus have been eradicated.

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