Top 10 Inventions of All Time

To invent is to create, to create is to originate; but mostly it is hard work, fun or simply an accident. It’s quite mind boggling how inventions or technology has given mankind so much so that once which was considered magic, bad omens, witchcraft is now simply science or much more, an advancement. As mentioned earlier, these inventions has helped mankind in various ways and helped each of us realize the importance of creativity and advancement for easy and healthy living. Following are the top 10 inventions of all time made by various people in different fields. These were the founding inventions that made world a better place to live.

10. Wheel

The basic invention, at times even considered as the first invention is the wheel. It may seem insignificant in the modern era but it is still in use today. Every other invention follows this; even include it, thus making it a foundation for all others. According to the different Archeological teams the wheel was approximately invented in about 3500 BC, it was invented in the city states of Mesopotamia (now making the region of Iraq) by Sumerians or post Aryan race.

9. Compass

The ‘New World’, though discovered accidentally by Christopher Columbus in 1492 was actually made possible only by the invention of a Compass which in turn led to the field of Navigation. The compass was first designed by the Han dynasty of China in the second century for religious purposes; these religious purposes over time changed and led to new discoveries, trekking and even to events such as colonization.

8. Paper

Without paper, imagining life is quite impossible. Today it is used so often and so recklessly that it is nearly impossible to consider that centuries ago it was a very expensive, luxurious item and thus so was education or Scholarship as the ancient might have it put. Paper led to the invention of Printing Press which made cheap printing possible and thus education widened. Paper was invented in China by the Emperor Wu, whose reign is recorded between 140 BC and 80 BC. Paper was first made with Hemp plant and later other plants and trees were added such as Bamboo etc.

7. Morse code

Today Operators do not have to go through a lot of trouble as they did a century back as today Operators simply receive text instead of a code which would then have to be translated. The Fax machine or even the simple text messages that now are so common or by and large the chat rooms all are an extension of Morse code. The Morse code is a signaling system involving long or short pulses for each of the alphabet letters. The first Morse code sent was ‘what hath God wrought?’

6. Antibiotics

Antibiotics have transformed the fate of medicine and health in general of all, these are a type of medicine which inhabit bacterial growth or completely nullify it. The first antibiotic was an accident thus termed as a discovery, ‘The discovery of penicillin’ is a common phrase, one may have heard of it. Though penicillin was discovered but the latter antibiotics stronger than penicillin were all medical inventions. Penicillin was discovered in the year 1928 by Professor Alexander Fleming.

5. Light Bulb

Following the discovery of electricity, much was accomplished, a major invention being the light bulb. Every structure has a source of light in the modern world, be it day or night, lighting has become a necessary means for a reformed society. The first light bulb was made by Joseph Swan in 1860 but it did not run longer than a few hours, later a light bulb was invented by Thomas Edison which glowed for a longer period of time in the year 1879. It is one of the most popular inventions and name of the inventor of light bulb is still alive.

4. Transistor

The electronic world full of gadgets such as computers etc are a result of a simple chip like invention called a Transistor. The invention of transistors transformed magnanimously the heavy weight electronics to light weight, better working and faster machines. Transistor is a semiconductor which is used to amplify or, switch on or off electronic signals. The first transistor was the ‘point contact’ transistor which was invented by Walter Brattain and John Bardeen in 1948; this transistor consisted of two thin gold files on a germanium crystal. The team won a Noble prize in 1956 for their invention.

3. Airplanes

Man has always been fascinated by birds, butterflies or any other flying creature, thus making mythical creatures such as Unicorns, Dragons or in some ways Angels. This fascination soon led to the death of many who tried to jump off the cliffs in an attempt to fly. The first sustained air flight was made possible by the efforts of two brothers, namely Orville and Wilbur Wright in 1903. They then developed it further to bring into being a fixed wing aircraft, which led to the modern day Airplanes.

2. World Wide Web

The internet and the various web sites one visits each day is a blessing due to the invention of the World Wide Web. The Web was engineered for the common people and it is not to be confused with internet which was built for military purposes in the United States. The inventor of the World Wide Web is Sir Tim Berners Lee from UK in 1989.

1. Exploding Bacteria

Synthetic Biology has yet again surprised all with their new disease fighting bacterial cells, only these cells explode in the infected area resulting in cure of particular diseases. The teams of scientists working on this new breakthrough have created an Escherichia coli cell which on contact with the intended pathogens explodes. Further experimentation in the field is still in progress.