Do You Remember These Famous Inventors and Their Creations?
Written by Kiera Hart History Expert
Last updated · 7 min play time
Where was the inventor of the telephone born? Who invented dynamite? What was a battery called before it was called a battery? Find out now!
Where was the inventor of the telephone born? Who invented dynamite? What was a battery called before it was called a battery? This quiz about inventors will reveal all!
Quiz written by
Kiera HartFamous Inventors Quiz Questions
20 Questions · 13.4K Plays · 5 Comments
Question 1
Thomas Edison has been dubbed one of the greatest inventors of all time. His Kinetograph was a pre-cursor to which piece of audio-visual equipment?
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AVideo camera
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BWireless microphone
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CBoom microphone
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DTripod
Video camera
Unlike earlier similar devices, Edison's kinetograph used celluloid film. He demonstrated his first rudimentary movies in 1893.
Question 2
Alexander Graham Bell patented the telephone in 1876. In which country of the United Kingdom was he born in 1847?
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AEngland
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BWales
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CScotland
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DIreland
Scotland
Alexander Graham Bell was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, the second son of Alexander Bell and Eliza Symonds Bell. The "Graham" was not added to Alexander junior's name until he was 10 years old.
Question 3
Benjamin Franklin had an impressive CV that included titles like postmaster, politician, freemason, inventor, and diplomat. Which vision-improvement aid is he credited with inventing?
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AContact lenses
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BAnti-glare lenses
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CBifocal lenses
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DProgressive lenses
Bifocal lenses
Benjamin Franklin wrote in 1784 that he was "happy in the invention of double spectacles, which serving for distant objects as well as near ones, make my eyes as useful to me as ever they were".
Question 4
French industrialist Edouard Michelin's most famous invention was revolutionary (no pun intended!) - his name lives on to this day in a popular brand name. Which car accessory did he invent?
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ADetachable pneumatic tires
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BCar alarm
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CRear vision mirror
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DHazard lights
Detachable pneumatic tires
In making pneumatic tires that were detachable, the Michelin brothers slashed tire repair time from overnight to a mere 15 minutes.
Question 5
Isaac Newton had few friends but loved animals. Which of these pet accessories did he invent?
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AKong toy
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BCat door
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CDog whistle
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DBark collar
Cat door
Isaac Newton was said to have invented the cat door by cutting 2 holes in a wall for his cat and her kittens, then covering the holes with felt.
Question 6
Through his work with Apple, entrepreneur and industrial designer Steve Jobs changed how most of us live our daily lives. In what year of the 2000's was the original ipod released?
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A2000
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B2002
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C2001
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D2003
2001
The first iPod was released on October 23, 2001, nearly 9 months after the release of iTunes.
Question 7
Laszlo Biro was a Hungarian-Argentinian inventor. He is credited with the creation of which common stationery item?
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ABallpoint Pen
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BPaper Clip
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CPost-it note
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DStapler
Ballpoint Pen
Laszlo Biro's ballpoint pen was borne of a desire for a pen with ink that dried quickly, unlike the fountain pens of the time.
Question 8
Brilliant botanist and inventor George Washington Carver is well known for discovering many unconventional uses for which humble crop?
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ABarley
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BPeanuts
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CCotton
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DWheat
Peanuts
George Washington Carver managed to turn peanuts into more than 100 different products incudling gasoline, plastics, dyes and even an untested treatment for polio.
Question 9
The Wright brothers pioneered aviation and changed the world. What were their first names?
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ASamuel and Hubert
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BJames and Herbert
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COrville and Wilbur
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DGeorge and Clancy
Orville and Wilbur
Wilbur Wright was born on April 16, 1867. His younger brother Orville was born on August 19, 1871.
Question 10
Cartoons featuring Road Runner and Wyle E. Coyote just wouldn't be the same without this mind-blowing Alfred Nobel invention. What was it?
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AFireworks
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BDynamite
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CGun powder
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DHand grenades
Dynamite
Alfred Nobel mixed nitroglycerine with kieselguhr to make a paste, which he formed into rods and named dynamite.
Question 11
Although Leonardo Da Vinci was well-known as a painter, sketches he made in the 15th century were a precursor to the invention of which aircraft?
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AAeroplane
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BHang-glider
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CBi-plane
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DHelicopter
Helicopter
Leonardo da Vinci's 15th century "Helical Air Screw" bore a strong resemblance in construction and proposed operation to modern helicopters.
Question 12
Adolphe Sax was a very inventive Belgian musician. His most famous invention was an instrument from which section of the orchestra?
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APercussion
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BBrass
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CWoodwind
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DStrings
Woodwind
Despite being made of brass, the saxophone is classed as a woodwind instrument due to the mechanism of sound production. Unlike true brass instruments, the sound of a saxophone comes from a vibrating reed rather than vibration of the player's lips.
Question 13
Alexander Fleming was a biologist and pharmacologist by trade, but his most famous discovery was accidental and changed medicine forever. Which substance did he identify and isolate?
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APenicillin
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BAspirin
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CValium
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DParacetamol
Penicillin
Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin after carelessly leaving a culture plate out in his lab before going on holiday. He came back to find that mold had grown - the mold that would end up being the world's first true antibiotic.
Question 14
Rudolf Diesel lent his name to the mechanical device that became his most famous invention. What type of device was it?
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AElectric battery
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BEngine
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CSpark plug
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DPrinting press
Engine
Rudolf Diesel's work in engine design had the goal of a much higher efficiency ratio than steam engines.
Question 15
Although Henry Ford didn't invent the assembly line, he pioneered its use in the production of which form of transport?
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ABikes
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BBoats
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CTrains
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DCars
Cars
The assembly line for mass production of automobiles was first installed on December 1, 1913.
Question 16
Aside from revolutionizing communication with the eponymous Morse code, Samuel Morse was also famous for which artistic pursuit?
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AMusic
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BActing
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CPainting
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DSculpture
Painting
Samuel Morse's artistic ability saw him admitted to the Royal Academy of Arts in 1811.
Question 17
When it was first invented, people called this Alessandro Volta creation the Voltaic pile. What was this powerful object's eventual name?
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AAir compressor
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BExtension cord
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CHydraulic spring
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DBattery
Battery
The term 'Voltaic pile' came from Alessandro Volta's name and the design of his invention - a 'pile' of copper and zinc discs separated by spacers soaked in salt water.
Question 18
Frenchman Louis Braille's powerful legacy enabled blind and vision-impaired people to navigate life in a sighted world. Standard Braille cells feature raised dots arranged in how many columns?
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AFour
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BSix
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CEight
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DTwo
Two
The two columns with 3 dots in most Braille cells allow a total of 64 different combinations to represent letters and contracted words.
Question 19
Johannes Gutenberg's printing press started the Printing Revolution in Europe. In which century was it invented?
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A15th
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B16th
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C12th
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D14th
15th
Gutenberg's printing press was invented sometime between 1440 and 1450.
Question 20
Across his working life, Nikola Tesla obtained around 300 patents for his inventions. One of these was for an early version of which hugely-popular toy?
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ALego
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BKinetic sand
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CMeccano
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DRemote-control vehicles
Remote-control vehicles
Nikola Tesla used the first remote control to move a tiny boat in a pool of water in Madison Square Garden in 1898.
Comments (5)
We want to hear your feedback! Share your scores and discuss the quiz, but keep it civil.
great quiz sure learned a lot of facts
Great quiz
I can press the last one and the first one lights up. I'm not stupid and it's just a game but really it's unfair. Please fix this
Science is fun. Who knew? Thanks Kiera.
Good question, on inventions that changed mankind's life forever.