Condoms, the wheel, the printing press, telephones, light bulbs… are among the most important inventions of all time, as selected by a team of experts from Life’s Little Mysteries.
1. The Wheel
Before the invention of the wheel around 3500 B.C., the development of human society was greatly limited due to transportation difficulties. The introduction of wheeled carts facilitated agriculture and trade, as it made moving goods from one place to another easier, reducing human labor and effort. Today, wheels are utilized in all aspects of life, from clock manufacturing to turbine engine construction.
2. Nails
It is not an exaggeration to say that without nails, human civilization would likely have collapsed. This important invention dates back to ancient Rome, associated with the Greek scholar Archimedes in the 3rd century B.C., and became common after humans developed the ability to cast and shape metals.
Previously, building wooden structures was quite challenging due to the need to fit the edges and grooves of each wood plank together. Therefore, the introduction of nails made this task much easier.
3. The Compass
Ancient sailors often relied on the stars to navigate their ships, but this method could not be used during the day or on cloudy nights.
However, this became less of an issue when the Chinese invented the first compass between the 9th and 11th centuries. It was made from magnetite, a naturally magnetized iron ore. The compass allowed sailors to find safe directions, contributing to the development of maritime trade and ushering in the Age of Exploration for humanity.
4. The Printing Press
German engineer Johannes Gutenberg invented the first printing press around 1440. It revolutionized the printing industry, enabling the rapid production of large quantities of books and newspapers. Thanks to printed materials, the transmission and preservation of human knowledge flourished, with twenty million books printed in Western Europe by the year 1500.
5. The Internal Combustion Engine
The internal combustion engine is a type of thermal engine that generates mechanical power by burning fuel within the engine. Models of the internal combustion engine were applied in the late 19th century, opening a new chapter in the industrial age and leading to the development of significant inventions such as modern cars and airplanes.
6. The Telephone
Although several inventions played pioneering roles in transmitting voice through electronic devices, Alexander Graham Bell was the first to receive a patent for his invention of the telephone in 1876. It became a crucial element in the global commercial and communication revolution.
7. The Light Bulb
The light bulb changed the world by allowing people to engage in activities at night. According to historians, among those who contributed to the creation of incandescent lamps in the 1800s, Thomas Edison is credited as the primary inventor for developing a comprehensive lighting system, including generators, wiring, and carbon filament bulbs in 1879.
Since then, human sleep patterns have gradually changed. Instead of going to bed when it gets dark (as it was difficult to accomplish anything in the dark) and sleeping continuously until dawn, people now typically allocate about 7 to 8 hours for sleep.
8. Penicillin
This is one of the most significant discoveries in human history. In 1928, in the laboratory of Scottish scientist Alexander Fleming, an uncovered Petri dish filled with bacteria was observed.
Remarkably, wherever there was mold, the bacteria were killed. This antibiotic mold was named Penicillium. In the following two decades, scientists successfully developed penicillin, a drug used to treat bacterial infections. Penicillin began mass production in 1944.
9. Contraceptive Devices
In addition to contraceptive pills, condoms and other forms of birth control have sparked a sexual revolution. As a result, the relationships between men and women now serve not only reproductive purposes but also significantly reduce the average number of children per woman. Consequently, the quality of life in each family has greatly improved. On a global scale, contraceptive measures have helped stabilize the population growth, which may stabilize by the end of this century. The use of condoms also reduces the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.
Condoms became popular in the 18th century, while birth control pills were invented in the late 1930s by a chemist named Russell Marker.
10. The Internet
The Internet—a global information system made up of interconnected computer networks—has now become familiar to billions of people worldwide.
While many contributed to its creation, the invention of scientist Lawrence Roberts is one of the most recognized.
In the 1960s, a team of computer specialists working for the ARPA (Advanced Research Projects Agency) of the U.S. Department of Defense began constructing a communication network connecting computers within the agency, known as ARPANET. This was the precursor to today’s Internet.
