British Commonwealth Inventions

Charles Babbage was the first to think of a programmable solving machine - a computer. It's a sure bet he never thought you could use one to order takeout.

Bahamian inventor Moses Daxon came up with the idea that's similar to a bathroom mat. It's a boxing ring corner mat to prevent boxers from slipping.

It's a high-tech version of an X-ray machine. CAT (computerized axial tomography) scan machines can see you in slices. It takes a lot of X-ray photographs, and then assembles them into a 3D image of your internal organs.

Alan Emtage created Archie, which is considered the first search engine on the Internet. It was an archive search engine, from which companies like Google have made a lot of money.

Bungee jumping in its original form was about picking the right vine rope, and jumping off a wooden structure. These days, the elastic bungee cord makes sure you have an experience you can bounce away from.

Belizean inventor Andre Gray is credited with the invention of mobile ringtones and ringbacks. He is still a very active inventor.

Walkie talkies were first developed by Canadian Donald Hings. They are basically two-way radios.

Pule Mmolotsi, who is from Botswana, specializes in biometric studies. His specialty helped him to develop a fingerprint system for phone identification.

India cultivated cotton in ancient times. Once they had the raw material, it was easy to make clothes.

Jim Bandy helped develop a Fijian machine that can press 150 coconuts in 30 minutes. That's a lot of oil.

USB flash drives, or as some call them, pen drives, have a confusing history. Most people point to Malaysian Pua Khein -Seng as the father of the technology that lets us put our personal files in our pockets.

Canadian electrical engineer Gideon Sundback was an unlikely inventor for the first modern-day zipper. Invented in 1913, it was an improvement from all others before it.

Dr. Lecky bred a cow that was perfect for Jamaica. It was small, disease-resistant, and could produce a lot of milk.

The World Wide Web was first conceived by British scientist Tm Berners-Lee. He didn't patent it, though.

Glenn Martin has developed a one-man jet pack, called, of course, the Martin Jetpack. It can be flown with or without a person in it.

Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone. This invention is still a baseline technology, as landlines are now the ultimate backup.

Singaporean company Ractiv's Touch+ is a brainchild of Darren Lim. The idea is to have a device that tracks movements on any surface to help you use your PC, rather than use a mouse.

Dyson noticed that the vacuum cleaner he bought wasn't doing the "suck" part of its job very well, thanks to a clogged bag. So, he made one that didn't need to use a bag. Less really is more.

Henri Johnson knew that sports fans would dearly love to know all the stats of their idols. He made a gun to measure the speed of balls and other similar objects used in sports.

William Hamilton dreamed of having a high-power boat that he could use in New Zealand rivers. So, he made the jet-propelled boat to address all the issues with river boating.

In India, it was first known as champo, a massage oil for use on the head. Now, it's shampoo, which is liquid soap for hair and the scalp.

Canadian Moses Nadler, founder of the Canadian Lady Corset Company, was the one who made sure that perkiness would be prevalent for Wonderbra users.

Bernard Kiwia has developed phone chargers that work off the bicycle's wheel.

Buttons were first used as ornaments. They later became a tool for fastening clothes.

Singapore company CreoPop has come out with a pen that can harden the plastic "paste" coming out of it with UV light. It's perfect for starting kids on 3D production.

Computerized ticketing may not sound like a big invention, but think about it: it not only makes attending events easier, but it also works for travel bookings, and even shop sale reservations!

Gallagher thought of inventing electrical fences to have an extra zap of security, whether to keep animals in or bad people out. It’s now a required installation in high-security prisons and other similar facilities.

Insulin is the drug that can help diabetics convert sugar properly in their system.

Professor Manley West from Jamaica was concerned that people in his own country were going blind from glaucoma. He developed Canasol to give them a treatment option.

Brit mining engineer Richard Trevithick invented the steam locomotive to carry cargo - originally meant for minerals such as iron. Of course, a steam locomotive can carry anything, really.

South African physicist Vivian Albert was able to invent a cheaper solar power system that used really thin metal films, rather than the traditional solar cells. It's made solar power much  cheaper in South Africa.

The modern garbage bag is designed to be disposable, and cheap. They were first used in places like hospitals. They were invented by Canadians Harry Wasylyk and Larry Hansen.

Arthur Lydiard was a marathon runner and athletics coach who found out he wasn't as fit as he wanted to be. So, he invented jogging, and the world of fitness changed forever.

Peanut butter was created by Canadian Marcellus Gilmore Edson. It was originally for people who had problems chewing.

Bahamian Gwendlyn Rolle learned from her years in fashion. It's simple: one shoe, and you can clothe it in different colors with slip-on covers.