Great Feuds in Technology

by Hal Hellman

If someone were to ask you who invented the miner's safety lamp, you'd probably have no trouble answering "I don't know." But what about the telegraph? The automobile? The airplane? Television? Conflicting claims over the answers to these questions have led to some of the longest and most bitter battles in the history of technology. Great Feuds in Technology takes a close look at each of these celebrated disputes and reveals that the answers are far more complex, entertaining, and enlightening than you might ever imagine.