The roots of invention: Gardon Rattray Taylor explores the motivations of the tiny band of creative geniuses who- of all the people who have inhabited the earth - have made our civilization possible (Page 6-8) Dictionary of inventions: Abacus to zoom lens - an A -Z guide to the milestone that mark mankind's journey from the Stone Age to the Space Age (Page 9 - 335) SPECIAL FEATURES Stories of genius and eccentricity, of triumphant success and bizarre failure. and of the optimism shared by all inventors INVENTIONS THAT REFUSED TO FAIL............................................42 LEONARDO : THE MAN WHO WORKED MIRACLES.......................68 THE FRUITLESS QUEST FOR PERPETUAL MOTION.....................92 INVENTION BEFORE THEIR TIME....................................................114 INVENTIONS THAT HAVEN;T MADE IT . . . YET...............................130 FAMOUS FIRST WORDS IN THE STORY OF INVENTION...............155 EDISON : THE MAN WHO INVENTED TOMORROW.........................242 THE INVENTIONS THE WORLD NEEDS MOST.................................312 The great inventors : The life -stories of inventions who gained the fame - but not necessarily the riches - they deserved (Pages 336 - 349) Inventions in their time : A record of ingenuity covering the 4 million years between the first stone tools and flight of a solar-powered aircraft (Pages 350 - 359). About the Author The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. is a global media and direct marketing company based in Chappaqua, New York, best known for its flagship publication founded in 1922, Reader's Digest. The company's headquarters are in New York City, where it moved from Pleasantville, New York.The company was founded by DeWitt and Lila Wallace in 1922 with the first publication of Reader's Digest magazine, but has grown to include a diverse range of magazines, books, music, DVDs and online content.