I was introduced to Alexander Fleming when yet in primary school. This British scientist developed a substance that would revolutionize medicine when accidentally leaving a petri dish uncovered. The substance - penicillin.
As trawling for fish in the North Sea grew, so also did the popularity of fish and chips with the British working class. In 1860, the first fish and chips shop was opened in London's East End by Jewish proprietor Joseph Malin and, by 1910, there were 25,000 fish and chips shops in Britain. It is impossible to estimate the number of fish and chips places currently in operation! (My favourite is Rock & Soul, established in 1871. It is London's oldest fish and chips shop, located at 45 Endell Street WC2H 9AJ, near Covent Garden.)
In 1925, John Logle Baird became the first man to televise moving images - the precursor to today's television. As is so often the case, he was initially dismissed as a nutter by the British press.
The reflective cat's eye safety devise used along roads and motorways originated in the UK in 1933. The inventor was Percy Shaw of Halifax, West Yorkshire, who was inspired by the eyeshine of a cat sitting by the side of the road one dark night.
More recently, Sir Timothy Berners-Lee, an MIT professor, implemented the first communication between an http client and the computer server thereby creating the world wide web.
I stand in awe of these cleaver Brits and am so grateful for the contributions that they have and continue to make to our lives!
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