Edinburgh's historical reputation

Edinburgh is often associated with the famous fathers of the Scottish Enlightenment, including pioneering economist Adam Smith and philosopher David Hume.

But the city's reputation for invention and innovation has continued throughout the decades across every sector. More recent achievements include:

• The world’s first ‘camera on a chip’
• The world’s smallest colour television screen
• The world’s first commercial underwater radio frequency modem
• The world’s first commercial wave farm
• Dolly the sheep, the world's first cloned mammal
• The world's first supermarket bank, internet bank and offset bank account
• The world's first mortgage
• The world's first Division of Pathway Medicine
• The world's first supercomputer
• The world's first 'bionic' arm
• The world’s first ‘City of Literature’ status, awarded by UNESCO.