A Small Invention With a Large Impact

In today's world of electronics we would be completely lost without the battery. Batteries run just about every valuable object we own from cell phones to computers. It is hard to imagine that the idea for a battery was being put to the test as early as 2500 BCE. These ancient batteries were no more than clay pots with iron rods surrounded by a copper tube and filled with vinegar.

Multiple pots would be connected together to create a powerful enough charge to complete tasks such as gold plating silver. Unfortunately, this early blueprint for the battery was lost and such an item was not thought of again until the 1700's. Many brilliant minds worked together over the years to produce a battery capable of producing enough power to run new products. It is Alessandro Volta whom we credit with producing the blueprints for the modern battery in the 1800's. In honor of his discovery, the batteries power is expressed in volts. 

Of course as with any invention it can be improved upon and it was discovered that Volta's battery was not capable of producing a charge for long periods of time. Eventually mercury was added to batteries to create a greater reaction. This element did not last too long after the discovery of mercury's harmful tendencies. It was Samuel Ruben who invented the battery we know today as the Duracell battery.