At the turn of the century the materials at hand were pretty straight forward. You built your houses out of wood, brick, stone and glass. your stoves were made from cast iron, there were no planes and auto were just starting to into the picture and they were mostly steel, wood and rubber. The shoes on your feet were leather and the clothes on your back were cotton, linen or if you were rich, silk. Electricity was just coming into its own and there was no radio or tv. Life was a lot simpler then.

Enter the 20th century. As the century progressed more and more new materials were being invented. By the middle of the century people weren't as limited in the material they wore. Rayon had been invented along with different synthetic blends that made clothes lighter and in some cases much cheaper. Nylon was another big invention and nylon stockings had replaced silk making ladies stockings much more affordable. When World War II came along and produced a shortage in nylon for consumers (the military was using all the nylon for things like parachutes). Women became desperate and tried to make their stockings last but unfortunately they would run and rip. A favorite trick was to take a pair of nylon stockings that just began to run and put a dab of clear nail polish on the run to stop it from going any further , thus giving you a chance for a few more wearings. Shoes also began to change. PVC and plastic began to show up in the shoes. PVC soles were much longer lasting than the traditional leather ones but plastic shoe bodies were generally no where as comfortable or long lasting as the leather ones and looked crummy. As the century moved on shoes began to become cheaper and different bargain chains of shoe stores like Payless opened up selling shoes made in China of mostly non leather materials at very low prices.

Houses were not immune to this revolution. Houses which were traditionally built using things like plywood were now being built with something called particle board. This was a board that was formed by pieces of wood held together with a heavy glue and formed into a board. Another material that was beginning to find itself in home construction was a pvc sheet. It is a type of plastic sheet and can also be made into beams. It has the strength of wood and is immune to pests like termites. Wiring began to change in the home also. There had been a switch to aluminum wiring in some areas but it was causing fires and the switch back to copper was taking place. Windows were still made from glass but plexiglas was available for special cases. One the outside of the house you first had wood siding, then asbestos, aluminum and finally vinyl. Vinyl siding was strong, almost maintaince free and bug proof. It covered a multitude of sins. You could now get Shaker shingles that looked exactly like wood but were vinyl. Even the pipes in the home were being replaced. Lead pipes were gone, copper, aluminum and steel were being replaced, in some cases, with plastic piping. The plastic pipe was easier to handle and you just glued it to connect it.

Stone House
Photo Source: PD CD

Automobiles moved on from being beasts of steel, rubber and glass to vehicles containing many different materials. Plastic became a big part of the material used in automobiles. It was used in the upholstery, dashboard, steering wheel, doors and many other places. There is even talk now of some sort of engine made from a plastic base, but this is probably years away. Aluminum found its way into cars because of its light weight. A lighter auto means better gas mileage and less stress on the parts. Some cars were being made with a material called fiberglass. This is a lightweight material and is used in the Chevy Corvette sports car although it has a much larger market in boat construction. There is a saying in the boat industry that the first fiberglass boat is still being used. Plastic has moved into the exteriors of some cars like the Saturn, which claims that it protects the car from minor dents. Honda has also used it in a limited amount of models as Pontiac did. Aluminum next was used in engines. As cars became more sophisticated they required more power for their amenities, electrical power that is. Because of this, new types of batteries are being experimented with and some of these power sources contain exotic materials. It won't be long before the automobile is no longer powered by a 12 volt electrical system but by an 18, 24 or 36 volt one.

Early Car
Photo Source: Me

Communications was not immune from this revolution. At the turn of the century copper transmitted the telegraph messages, but by the end of the century many messages were being sent over optical lines. These plastic lines transmit light that carries the messages. Silicone was now being used to build computer chips. Formerly just sand, this material has found wide spread use around the world. Electricity is still sent through high power lines but there are plans to beam it through the air using no lines at all. There are alternate plans that call for individual fuel cells to be used to power homes. This would make the home transmission wire free and responsible for its own power needs

Many new composite materials being used in aircraft. These materials are stronger than steel but yet very light. The composites are finding their way into commercial aircraft and maybe there will be no metal in the aircraft of the future.

Aerogel
Photo Source: NASA

The world is changing every day and with these changes new materials are born. A good example of this was the discovery of Aerogel by NASA. Aerogel is a material that is light as air but very strong. It has many uses such as a heat insulator. This material has currently been used in the Pathfinder mission and in Spirit and Opportunity,the Mar's rovers. I am sure that there are materials that the government has developed that we don't even know about yet. Ah the world is an interesting place.