What does "best" mean? Probably the best definition would be the "most defining of who we are today", Here are the best inventions ever :
Berners-Lee brought the Internet to life in 1991 and made the globe a village. It is providing science with instant information and its use is being refined every single day.
Thomas Savery was an English military engineer and inventor who in 1698, patented the first crude steam engine. Thomas Newcomen invented the atmospheric steam engine in 1712. James Watt improved Newcomen's design and invented what is considered the first modern steam engine in 1765.
Time was actually a measure of events before the timepiece was invented, the main one being the Sun crossing the sky. No universal time actually existed, only a local one. That meant that once you agreed to meet someone at sunset, you had to clearly state where that was, because the Sun is always setting somewhere. And of course, what clocks made possible, they soon made necessary. In a clock-driven world, most of us are now either "on time," "ahead of schedule," or "running late."
Contrary to popular belief, Thomas Alva Edison didn't "invent" the light bulb, but rather he improved upon a 50-year-old idea. In 1809, Humphry Davy, an English chemist, invented the first electric light. In 1878, Sir Joseph Wilson Swan, an English physicist, was the first person to invent a practical and longer-lasting electric light bulb (13.5 hours) with a carbon fiber filament. In 1879, Thomas Alva Edison invented a carbon filament that burned for forty hours.
Most people actually died of infectious diseases, a few centuries ago. The plague that broke out in 1347, killed almost half of Europe's population in nearly two years. When diseases such as smallpox reached North America, they reduced the indigenous population by about 90 percent within a century. As late as 1800, the leading cause of death in the western hemisphere was tuberculosis. Almost no one ever died of old age back in the day, probably the main reason why elders were revered.
"You can have any color as long as it is black," boasted Ford at the turn of the Century. Automobiles have come a long way. They permitted rapid transportation of people and goods. The next challenge lies in developing environment-friendly automobiles. We're still waiting for the flying cars that Back to the Future promised.
In 1884, Paul Nipkow sent images over wires using a rotating metal disk technology with 18 lines of resolution. Television then evolved along two paths, mechanical based on Nipkow's rotating disks, and electronic based on the cathode ray tube. American Charles Jenkins and Scotsman John Baird followed the mechanical model while Philo Farnsworth, working independently in San Francisco, and Russian émigré Vladimir Zworkin, working for Westinghouse and later RCA, advanced the electronic model.
There are many major milestones in the history of computers, starting with 1936, when Konrad Zuse built the first freely programmable computer.
Many people imagined a form of telephony, even long before it was actually invented. This wonder of modern technology allows anyone to talk to anyone anywhere at any given moment, even without physically seeing the person, or even knowing ho he/she is.
10 - The World Wide Web -
Berners-Lee brought the Internet to life in 1991 and made the globe a village. It is providing science with instant information and its use is being refined every single day.9 - The Steam Engine -
Thomas Savery was an English military engineer and inventor who in 1698, patented the first crude steam engine. Thomas Newcomen invented the atmospheric steam engine in 1712. James Watt improved Newcomen's design and invented what is considered the first modern steam engine in 1765.8 - The S
ewing Machine -
The first functional sewing machine was invented by the French tailor, Barthelemy Thimonnier, in 1830. In 1834, Walter Hunt built America's first (somewhat) successful sewing machine. Elias Howe patented the first lock stitch sewing machine in 1846. Isaac Singer invented the up-and-down motion mechanism. In 1857, James Gibbs patented the first chain-stitch single-thread sewing machine. Helen Augusta Blanchard patented the first zigzag stitch machine in 1873.
ewing Machine -7 - The Mechanical Clock -
Time was actually a measure of events before the timepiece was invented, the main one being the Sun crossing the sky. No universal time actually existed, only a local one. That meant that once you agreed to meet someone at sunset, you had to clearly state where that was, because the Sun is always setting somewhere. And of course, what clocks made possible, they soon made necessary. In a clock-driven world, most of us are now either "on time," "ahead of schedule," or "running late."6 - The Light Bulb -
Contrary to popular belief, Thomas Alva Edison didn't "invent" the light bulb, but rather he improved upon a 50-year-old idea. In 1809, Humphry Davy, an English chemist, invented the first electric light. In 1878, Sir Joseph Wilson Swan, an English physicist, was the first person to invent a practical and longer-lasting electric light bulb (13.5 hours) with a carbon fiber filament. In 1879, Thomas Alva Edison invented a carbon filament that burned for forty hours.5 - Antibiotics -
Most people actually died of infectious diseases, a few centuries ago. The plague that broke out in 1347, killed almost half of Europe's population in nearly two years. When diseases such as smallpox reached North America, they reduced the indigenous population by about 90 percent within a century. As late as 1800, the leading cause of death in the western hemisphere was tuberculosis. Almost no one ever died of old age back in the day, probably the main reason why elders were revered.4 - The Automobile -
"You can have any color as long as it is black," boasted Ford at the turn of the Century. Automobiles have come a long way. They permitted rapid transportation of people and goods. The next challenge lies in developing environment-friendly automobiles. We're still waiting for the flying cars that Back to the Future promised.3 - Television -
In 1884, Paul Nipkow sent images over wires using a rotating metal disk technology with 18 lines of resolution. Television then evolved along two paths, mechanical based on Nipkow's rotating disks, and electronic based on the cathode ray tube. American Charles Jenkins and Scotsman John Baird followed the mechanical model while Philo Farnsworth, working independently in San Francisco, and Russian émigré Vladimir Zworkin, working for Westinghouse and later RCA, advanced the electronic model.2 - The Computer -
There are many major milestones in the history of computers, starting with 1936, when Konrad Zuse built the first freely programmable computer.1 - The Telephone -
Many people imagined a form of telephony, even long before it was actually invented. This wonder of modern technology allows anyone to talk to anyone anywhere at any given moment, even without physically seeing the person, or even knowing ho he/she is.
Of course, this top isn't an absolute one, and anyone could argue its classification, but, in fact, it all comes down to how important is this or that invention to a specific individual, and how it influences his way of perceiving the world.
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