Tech & Science · 1900
Dawn of Quantum Physics and Modern Innovation
As the nineteenth century draws to a close, human ingenuity leaps into a new era defined by subatomic physics and accessible consumer technology. From the birth of quantum theory to accessible photography and airborne giants, 1900 lays the technological bedrock for the modern world.
- December 14, 1900 | Physics | Germany
Planck's Quantum Hypothesis
Max Planck presents his revolutionary law of black-body radiation to the German Physical Society, birthing the field of quantum mechanics.
- July 2, 1900 | Aviation | Germany
First Flight of the Zeppelin LZ 1
Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin launches the world's first rigid airship over Lake Constance, ushering in a dramatic era of flight.
- February 1900 | Photography | USA
Kodak Brownie Camera Launch
Eastman Kodak introduces a simple, one-dollar cardboard box camera that turns snapshot photography into a global popular pastime.
- 1900 | Medicine | Austria
Discovery of Human Blood Groups
Karl Landsteiner identifies the ABO blood group system, laying the essential medical foundation for safe blood transfusions.
- 1900 | Physics | France
Discovery of Gamma Rays
French chemist Paul Villard discovers extremely high-frequency electromagnetic radiation while investigating the decay of radium.
- December 23, 1900 | Radio | USA
First Audio Radio Transmission
Reginald Fessenden successfully transmits the human voice over radio waves for the first time, broadcasting intelligible speech across one mile.
- 1900 | Genetics | Europe
Rediscovery of Mendelian Inheritance
Three botanists independently replicate Gregor Mendel's forgotten 1866 experiments, establishing modern genetic science.
- April 14, 1900 | Engineering | France
Commercial Escalator at Paris Expo
The Otis Elevator Company debuts the modern commercial escalator at the Exposition Universelle, transforming urban mass transport.
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