Here are the
top 10 inventions that changed the world for the better and made human life
easier and more convenient.
Top 10 Inventions That
Changed the World and Made Human Life Easier
Scientific Inventions
People
resort to inventions for several reasons, the most prominent of which is
"Necessity". "Necessity is the mother of invention" is a
well-known proverb, a person or society as a whole may go through difficulties
and challenges that ultimately compel him to invent something in order to
overcome these challenges.
The methods of
access to inventions are many and numerous, so an invention may be accessed
after the advance of science and the arrival of new discoveries. The DNA
fingerprint is one of the most important inventions that have been accessed in
this way.
Another way to
access inventions is by trial and error, and by developing previous inventions,
and some inventions may be reached through accidents or errors.
Top 10 Inventions of All
Time that Changed the World for the Better
No
sensible person can deny the fact that inventions have dramatically changed
human life in various fields. Among the most prominent inventions
influencing human life are the following:
The Internal Combustion
Engine:
The
internal combustion engine converts the heat produced from combustion into
mechanical or kinetic energy.
Many
scientists and engineers have contributed to the development of internal
combustion engines.
George Bailey
Brayton, an American mechanical engineer, invented the first commercial
liquid-fueled internal combustion engine in 1872.
In 1876,
Nikolaus August Otto - a German engineer, working with Gottlieb Daimler and
Wilhelm Maybach, developed the four-stroke internal-combustion engine.
In 1879, Karl
Friedrich Benz, a German mechanical engineer, patented a reliable two-stroke
gas engine.
The
development of the internal combustion engine helped free men from the most
difficult manual labor, revolutionized power generation, contributed to the era
of industry, and made aircraft and other forms of transportation possible.
The Printing Press:
A
printing press is a mechanical device by which text and images are transferred
to paper or other media by means of ink.
A German
goldsmith Johannes Gutenberg is credited with inventing the printing press in
the fifteenth century.
The Printing
Press made the process of writing and copying books an easy process, as nearly
half a million books spread around the world within the 60 years of the
invention of this machine.
The Compass:
The
compass was invented by the Chinese in the period between the 2nd century BC
and 1st century AD where it was called the "South Pointing Fish" or
"south-governor".
In ancient
times, people tracked the stars as they traveled, and they encountered
difficulties during that. And this method was not effective during the day or
when there were clouds in the sky at night.
Initially, the
magnetic compass was not used for navigation, but for geomancy and
fortune-telling by the Chinese. The compass was used for navigation in the
early thirteenth century. Later on, the compass is used for navigation,
direction and location.
The Wheel:
The
wheel impacted our life in many ways such as transportation, communication,
construction, etc.
Before the
invention of the wheel in 3500 BC, the process of moving objects across the
surface of the earth was limited.
The wheeled
wagons have simplified both agriculture and trade, as they have facilitated the
transportation of goods to and from markets, and have reduced the burden of
people traveling over long distances.
Wheels are now
found in most everyday applications such as watches, vehicles, and turbines.
The Light Bulb:
The
famous American inventor Thomas Edison is often credited with creating the
first commercially successful lamp in 1879, but he was not the only one who
contributed to the development of this revolutionary technology. British
chemist Warren de La Rue solved scientific challenges nearly 40 years earlier.
Humphrey Davy introduced an electric arc lamp to the Royal Society of Britain
in 1806.
The lamp has
greatly changed a person’s life and made him more productive. As he became not
only working in the morning but was able to work at night as well, due to the
presence of the lighting he needed.
The Nails:
The
invention of the nail dates back to 2000 years ago in the ancient Roman
era. Archeological evidence shows nails were used in Ancient Egypt around
3,400 B.C.
The use of the
nail began after humans developed their ability to cast and shape metals.
Previously, they built wooden structures by clamping the wooden panels
together, which made the construction process difficult.
In the year
1990 AD, all the nails were made by hand by blacksmiths heating a square iron
bar and then hitting it on all four sides to form the head of the nail.
The nails
industry began to develop until 1886 AD, when 10% of American nails were made
of soft steel wire, and in 1913 most of the nails were made from them.
The Telephone:
A
telephone is a communication device designed to simultaneously transmit and
receive human voice when people are too far apart to be heard directly.
The invention
of the telephone was the culmination of work done by many individuals.
Alexander Graham Bell is often credited with being the inventor of the
telephone. However, there were many other inventors like Antonio Meucci and
Elisha Gray.
On December
28, 1871, Antonio Meucci filed a patent notice in the US Patent Office for a
device he called the "Sound Telegraph". In 1872, Elisha Gray founded
the Western Electric Manufacturing Company.
This invention
has a great impact on the field of communications. The communication process
has become a quick and easy process, and it is considered a means of
entertainment in addition to being very important in many fields.
This invention
is the seed from which other inventions sprouted, such as the cell phone and
even the web.
The Internet:
The
Internet is the global system of computer networks connected to each other that
uses the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and the Internet Protocol (IP) to
communicate between networks and devices.
The first
working prototype of the Internet came in the late 1960s with the creation of
the Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANET).
ARPANET was
the network that allowed multiple computers to communicate on a single network.
In 1969, the idea became a humble reality with the interconnection of four
university computers. Later, it became the basis of the Internet.
An English
computer scientist, Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee (Tim Berners-Lee), invented
the World Wide Web (WWW) in 1989 while working at European Council for Nuclear
Research (CERN).
Two American scientists
Vinton Cerf and Robert Elliot Kahn (Bob Kahn) are credited with inventing the
Internet communication protocols we use today and the system referred to as the
Internet.
The web is now
being used by millions of people around the world for various purposes.
The Calculator:
A
calculator is usually a portable electronic device used for performing
calculations.
In 1642,
Blaise Pascal invented the first adding machine or a mechanical calculator with
a sophisticated carry mechanism.
In 1921, Edith
Clarke invented a simple graph-based calculator, known as the Clarke
calculator, for solving line equations involving hyperbolic functions.
After being
invented, this small machine has facilitated many calculations for workers in
various fields. Students and engineers are no longer required to memorize
complex equations.
Airplane:
The
plane is the most influential invention of the twentieth century, simply
because it shrunk the world.
The
Wright brothers—Orville Wright and Wilbur Wright — are often credited with
inventing the first aircraft capable of flying in the air and said that they
were the first who invented aircraft controls that made fixed-wing powered
flight possible.
The
airplane has greatly facilitated travel and mobility, which required months in
the past to cover short distances, but with the presence of the plane, this
time was shortened to only a few hours to cover large distances.
The airplane has shown us an unseen and astonishing new perspective on our Earth.