What Were the Hottest Tech Trends in 1776?

It's probably weird to think of the phrase "hottest tech trends" and "1776" in the same train of thought, but I suppose TECHNOLOGY has always been with us.

I ran across a blog ABOUT such tech trends and what figurative seeds were being planted 240 years ago.

What I discovered was a list of things, many of which we all take for granted every single day.

Although I've long believed that underwater travel--submarines--really didn't hit its stride until the mid-1800s, something called the "Turtle" was employed in 1776 to attach explosives to the undersides of ships. And it was manned.

Sticking with this theme, a man from England developed a leather-covered suit for diving that came equipped with a windowed helmet a bunch of tubes that were used for breathing.

Sounds like scuba to me.

Plus, there was the toilet and the stove and even multi-tasking...something with which most of us are all too familiar but probably didn't realize there was a device for it 240 years ago.

Fascinating little bits of history here with which an old history teacher of mine would have had a FIELD day.

Happy Fourth of July!