The Top Thirty Innovations of the Last Thirty Years: Ever watch a thirty year-old movie or TV show, and feel frustrated that the hero or heroine doesn’t whip out a cell phone as the murderer inches closer? How did humanity ever "survive" without cell phones?   The question itself points to the enormous technological changes that have happened in my lifetime.  The “Nightly Business Report” on PBS and Knowledge@Wharton (The Wharton Business School at the University of Pennsylvania) collaborated in a project to rank the top thirty innovations that have impacted our lives.

In 1979 there were no cell phones or iTunes™, no Blackberries™ or E-mail, no MRI’s or GPS.  According to the project, the top five innovations are:   1. The World Wide Web (the Internet) 2. Personal computers (PC’s) 3. Mobile Phones 4. Email 5. DNA Testing GPS was ranked 14th, bar codes and scanners were 26th, and ATMs were 27th.   Read More Here.