The Most Important Inventions of Mankind

[andyfox]

The book is "The Greatest Inventions of the Past 2,000 Years," by John Brockman.

[Sredni Vashtar]

Have you ever heard of medicine, Dr.? [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] A bit general, but that one helped a bit.

Fire, the wheel, pizza, beer, to cover some of the basics. Without fire they can't cook the pizza, without wheels they can't deliver it and without beer.. well never mind.

On a more serious note, there have been so many, and they are so dependant on that what came before, that it's hard to really say. Look how important the internet has become. The enormous exchange of information that is now occuring is remarkable. For this we needed so many other things to be discovered. But mass communication and it's ramifications have yet to be fully seen.

But inspite of this vote for the most important discovery of them all: the minraise.

SV.

[Shilly]

Alizeé. Still not over it.

[andyfox]

One can, I suppose, make an argument for the greatest of all being the chip. Where, after all, would we be without the computer chip, the poker chip, the chocolate chip, the potato chip, and the chip on one's shoulder?

[Shilly]

How about industrialization, specialization of labor, and interchangable parts?

[The Ocho]

pottery was huge. Definitely one of the top 3 for the "primitives." In fact, I'd use pottery as the dividing line between primitives and post-primitives.

[ QUOTE ]
Domestification of animals such as horses (?)

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The invention of the yoke/plow for horses was indeed pretty big. Having horses plow fields without them choking to death was a big deal.

[andyfox]

Baseball
Coffee Ice Cream
Saran Wrap
The Photograph
Music
The Telescope
Books
Back Surgery

[brassnuts]

The remote control.

[Bill Murphy]

Religion is the worst invention of mankind, although(sadly) prolly the most influential.

[sam h]

The steam engine was an incredibly important invention, one that many economic historians think was crucial to triggering the Industrial Revolution in England.

I also think the semiconductor is arguably the most important invention of the post-WWII age.