What do penicillin, the telephone and television all have in common? While it sounds like the setup for an odd joke the answer is that they were all invented by Scottish people and it is often said that “Scots invented the modern world”.
Certainly, Scotland has been at the forefront of all sorts of revolutionary change from our architecture to our religion, arts, politics, literature and more. To explore and celebrate this rich heritage, we asked our Scotsman readers who their “most influential Scot of all time” was and in response we received hundreds of fascinating nominations.
Now, in this list condensed to seventeen nominations, let’s explore these Scottish icons and unpack their legacies which earned them the respect of being thought of as the ‘most influential Scots’ of all time.
13. John Loudon McAdam
McAdam was a civil engineer who invented a road surface which completely changed the state of road building and transport. Noting the disastrous condition of Britain’s roads, in 1811 he proposed his invention as a solution to Parliament. Thus, the name “McAdam” became synonymous with excellent road building as his road designs complemented the canal systems being constructed around the British Isles during the industrial revolution. Photo: via WikiCommons and Geograph
14. James Watt
The National Library of Scotland states that James Watt is famous for “Inventing the Watt steam engine, which converted steam back to water. Developing a rotary engine which mechanised weaving, spinning and transport.” Aside from his work on the steam engine, Watt had many other talents as a chemist, civil engineer and scientific instrument maker, while also being involved with the Lunar Society in Birmingham. Photo: via WikiCommons and Look and Learn
15. Adam Smith
Adam Smith is well known for his 1776 book “The Wealth of Nations”. His work details the importance of having free markets, gross domestic product and assembly-line productions which has been studied by 20th-century economists, thus forming the basis for many classical economics theories. Eastbourne College said: “In large part because of his ideas, England overturned the Corn Laws and went on to become the dominant economic power in Europe during the Industrial Revolution.” Photo: via WikiCommons and Picryl
16. James Clerk Maxwell
The National Library of Scotland tells us that “Maxwell is best known for his research in electromagnetic radiation, which unites the sciences of electricity, magnetism and optics.” The Scottish mathematician is widely considered one of the “greatest scientists of the nineteenth century” and was even recognised by Albert Einstein. According to the James Clerk Maxwell Foundation, Einstein said: "The special theory of relativity owes its origins to Maxwell's equations of the electromagnetic field." Photo: via WikiCommons and itupictures on Flickr