The French are pretty smart y’know; 2 February 1799 saw the world’s first international scientific conference held in Paris, and to date, France has the second highest number of Fields Medals (mathematics) in the world, after the United States.
The European Space Agency (ESA) is based in Paris; the street is called rue Mario Nikis. Nikis not only created Radioélectriques Laboratories, but was also a member of French Resistance. Sadly, he didn’t live to see a street named after him – he died in 1944.
France’s Arianespace, with more than 50% of the global market share of satellites, is the world leader in commercial space launch.
Last but not least, many things we take for granted these days were invented in France, including these…
- 1642 – the adding machine (Blaise Pascal)
- 1782 – the hot air balloon (Joseph-Michel & and Jacques-Étienne Montgolfier)
- 1793 – the four-wheeled ambulance service (Dominique Jean Larrey)
- 1807 РThe internal combustion engine (Nic̩phore & Claude Ni̩pce)
- 1825 Рphotography (Nic̩phore Ni̩pce)
- 1853 – the airship (Henri Giffard)
- 1863 Рthe mechanically-powered submarine (Sim̩on Bourgeois)
- 1877 – Animation (Charles-Émile Reynaud)
- 1894 – cinema (Auguste and Louis Lumière)