Pedal Power In the 1970s American Joe Breeze along with other bicycle enthusiasts started a new trend in biking Breeze combined the best features of two popular bicycle designs the BMX bicycle motocross and the racing bike His new design known as the mountain bike offers speed on smooth stretches but can easily handle rough bumby roads and hills Today mountain bikes are often used on mountain trails and rough unpaved roads 4
Inventions and Innovations An invention is a product or process that is the first creation of its kind The first bicycle ever built is an invention Joe Breeze’s mountain bike is an innovation An innovation is a change or improvement to an existing invention Inventions and innovations in transportation make getting around easier faster and safer for all of us Perhaps the stories in this book will inspire you to be a problem solver too Inventors innovators and engineers solve problems or meet needs An engineer’s job is to use science and math to solve problems or meet needs Sometimes engineers can also be inventors and innovators when they make new solutions or improve on existing ones Inventors innovators and engineers all share the same traits such as curiosity and creativity These students are racing small cars they have built that run off solar power or power from the Sun 5
Rolling Away Two hundred years ago there were no cars motorcycles trains planes powerboats or even skateboards or scooters Long trips took a lot of time and effort In 1839 Scottish blacksmith Kirkpatrick Macmillan invented a clever machine to solve the problem He built one of the world’s first bicycles To demonstrate its usefulness Macmillan pedaled it around the countryside covering 70 miles 112 kilometers in just 10 hours Many innovations of Macmillan’s bicycle have brought us the bicycles we enjoy today Since Macmillan’s invention others have improved on the bicycle’s design In the 1970’s American Joe Breeze and other bicycle enthusiasts started a new trend in biking His new design was the durable mountain bike 6
Roller Skates Years before the bicycle’s invention London inventor John Joseph Merlin had invented a different way to get around on wheels He attached wheels to his shoes so that he could make a grand entrance to a party Merlin’s first roller skates didn’t work so well he crashed into a large expensive mirror The skates lacked brakes and had no way to steer Luckily innovator James Plimpton added rubber cushions to the skates The cushions allowed skaters to control their movement by shifting their weight Over the years innovators have produced much easier and more fun versions of roller skates including the popular in-line skates that many people use today 7
