The Master List
A–Z of Scottish Inventions
From logarithms (1614) to tidal turbines (2021), the inventions that came out of a small northern nation.
Anaesthesia / Chloroform
James Young Simpson · 1847
Surgical anaesthesia using chloroform.
Antiseptic Surgery
Joseph Lister · 1867
Carbolic acid and the birth of sterile surgery.
ATM and PIN
James Goodfellow · 1966
The personal identification number and cash machine.
Bain's Chemical Telegraph
Alexander Bain · 1846
A telegraph that printed messages chemically.
Bank of England
William Paterson · 1694
Founded by a Scot in London.
Beta-Blockers
Sir James Black · 1964
The drug class that revolutionised cardiology.
Chainsaw
John Aitken & James Jeffray · 1780s
Originally invented for symphysiotomy surgery.
Dolly the Sheep
Ian Wilmut & Keith Campbell · 1996
The first mammal cloned from an adult cell.
Encyclopaedia Britannica
Colin Macfarquhar & Andrew Bell · 1768
The world's most authoritative encyclopaedia.
Europe's First Passenger Steamboat (Comet)
Henry Bell · 1812
The first commercial steamship in Europe.
Fingerprint Identification
Henry Faulds · 1880
Forensic fingerprinting.
First Electric Clock
Alexander Bain · 1840
Timekeeping powered by electricity.
First Oil Refinery
James Young · 1851
Commercial paraffin oil from coal shale.
First Permanent Colour Photograph
James Clerk Maxwell · 1861
Three-colour-separation photography.
Flush Toilet / S-bend
Alexander Cumming · 1775
The S-bend that made indoor plumbing possible.
Glasgow Coma Scale
Graham Teasdale & Bryan Jennett · 1974
The global standard for measuring consciousness.
Grand Piano Foot-pedal
John Broadwood · 1783
The sustain pedal as we know it.
Kaleidoscope
Sir David Brewster · 1816
Mirrors, light and infinite symmetry.
Kinetoscope
W. K. L. Dickson · 1891
An early motion-picture device.
Logarithms
John Napier · 1614
The mathematical tool that simplified calculation.
Macadamised Roads
John Loudon McAdam · 1820
The road surface that paved the modern world.
Mackintosh Raincoat
Charles Macintosh · 1823
The first practical waterproof coat.
Maxwell's Equations
James Clerk Maxwell · 1865
The unification of electricity, magnetism and light.
MRI Scanner
John Mallard & James Hutchison · 1980
Whole-body magnetic resonance imaging.
Orbital O2 Tidal Turbine
Orbital Marine Power · 2021
The world's most powerful tidal turbine.
Pedal Bicycle
Kirkpatrick Macmillan · 1839
The first rear-pedal-driven bicycle.
Penicillin
Alexander Fleming · 1928
The world's first true antibiotic.
Pneumatic Tyre
John Boyd Dunlop · 1888
The air-filled rubber tyre.
Radar
Robert Watson-Watt · 1935
The detection system that won the Battle of Britain.
Refrigeration
William Cullen · 1755
The first artificial refrigeration.
Saline Drips
Thomas Latta · 1832
Intravenous saline therapy.
Salter's Duck
Stephen Salter · 1974
An early ocean-wave power device.
Stirling Engine
Robert Stirling · 1816
A clean, closed-cycle heat engine.
Teleprinter
Frederick G. Creed · 1900
The high-speed text wire-machine.
Television
John Logie Baird · 1925
The first working television, built from household objects.
The BBC
John Reith · 1922
A Scotsman built the British Broadcasting Corporation.
The Carronade
Carron Ironworks · 1778
A short, devastating naval cannon.
The Telephone
Alexander Graham Bell · 1876
The instrument that put a voice on the wire.
The Wealth of Nations
Adam Smith · 1776
The foundational text of modern economics.
Threshing Machine
Andrew Meikle · 1786
Mechanised grain processing.
Ultrasound
Ian Donald · 1956
Diagnostic ultrasound imaging.
Universal Standard Time
Sandford Fleming · 1879
Worldwide standard time zones.
Watt Steam Engine
James Watt · 1769
The separate condenser that powered the Industrial Revolution.