But, as James Hamilton contends in an illuminating new biography, Michael Faraday's story is not just the tale of a young man's rise through the scientific ranks.
These account for 10% of the total, including Faraday's electric motor (1821), waterproof material (1823), Aspdin's cement (1824), George Stephenson's passenger railway (1825) and the lawnmower by Edwin Beard Budding (1827).