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Colt Edgcomb

Sep 24, 2025 

The Pencil, Stethoscope, Tunneling Shield, and Paved Roads 

This week I learned about four inventions. The pencil, stethoscope, tunneling shield, and paved roads, all have something in common. They all make things either more convenient, or safer. Come to think of it, most of the inventions I have learned about this year do kind of the same thing; they make things more convenient.

The pencil is a piece of graphite that is made inside a piece of wood that is attached to a piece of rubber. Its first form was a stylus that you would use to imprint a message or just to write on a clay tablet. It was a major breakthrough, and it revolutionized the writing industry by having a utensil that has the ability to easily erase writing. It was invented by Nicolas-Jacques Conte in 1795.

The stethoscope is a tool used to listen to someone’s heartbeat and to hear breathing inside the lungs. It was invented to help doctors save patients’ lives. It was invented by a young man named Rene Laennec in 1816. His inspiration came from two kids who had a long funnel, and used it to help them hear each other. In a moment’s notice, he made a long funnel and saved a woman who was dying. 

The tunneling shield is a huge piece of metal that protects the workers from the tunnel caving in and flooding. It was invented because people couldn’t build underground tunnels without abandoning the process because of floods. It was invented by Marc Isambard Brunel, in 1818. It allowed for tunneling to even be possible.

Paving roads is a process in which a lot of crushed gravel is involved. First, they lay gravel and larger rocks. Then, they lay some clay to seal it. Next, you put more gravel and rocks layered on top. Lastly, you put clay down again and seal it up. It was invented by John MC-Adam, in the 19th century.

These inventions were created during the industrial revolution. This allowed people to save time, resources, and money.