We like to think we are living in a world of technological marvels, the likes of which have never been seen before in human history. But, let’s not put down our ancestors too much. After all, they invented some vital technologies that we still use today. Here are five of them.
Household tools
No house or garden can survive without essential tools like the hammer, the shovel, the rake, and many more. But, those very tools that everyone has have been around for thousands of years. Bronze and iron age humans all over the world were the first to create rudimentary versions of all of these tools. So, the next time you miss the nail with your hammer and hit your thumb instead, you can rest assured that countless generations have done the same.
Ball bearings
When you think of Leonardo Da Vinci, what are you reminded of? The Mona Lisa is probably high on the list, followed closely by The Last Supper. Then you might think about his contribution to anatomy and his ideas for a medieval helicopter. But, there’s one of his inventions that is perhaps the most important: ball bearings. Much of modern day technology relies on ball bearings, including bicycles, cars, planes, and trains. Head over to http://www.locateballbearings.com/ to find out more and to see the enormous range of uses of ball bearings.
Paper
While books and newspapers have new rivals in electronic form, it is doubtful that the world will ever see the back of paper. It’s used in so many situations and is vital to many aspects of modern human life. And, it was invented over six thousand years ago. According to historical experts, the oldest known use of paper was back in Ancient Egyptian times. It was slightly different to what we use today – pounded reeds, as opposed to wood pulp. But, essentially, it had precisely the same effect.
Vending machine
Think about this the next time you make use of your office vending machine: the Greeks were doing similar things thousands of years ago. The oldest recorded vending machine was invented by Heron of Alexandria, and worked, in principle, in exactly the same way that they do today. You would put in a coin, and it would dispense water. Whether that water was horrendously overpriced or not isn’t known – but let’s face it; it’s more than likely.
The dentist’s drill
With so much sugar in our diets these days, it’s hard to say exactly how bad our teeth would look without the dentist’s drill. However, it might surprise you to hear that the drill is the oldest technology on our list. In fact, teeth have been found that are more than 9000 years old. Whoever they belonged to was part of the Indus Valley Civilization, and there is clear evidence that a drill was used to create cavities in them. Perhaps that fear of the dentist is now hardwired into our DNA!