An easy, secure, and reliable method of preventing harmful infections before you are exposed to them is vaccination. It boosts your immune system and builds up your body's natural defenses against particular infections. Many scientists agree that the first vaccine was created by Edward Jenner against smallpox disease in 1796.

The battle against bacteria was initially launched by Joseph Lister and Louis Pasteur, but it was Alexander Fleming who, in 1928, through the unintentional discovery of the bacteria-inhibiting mold that would later become known as penicillin, helped advance medical science significantly. The 20th century saw widespread usage of penicillin, which turned out to be a significant advancement in the field of antibiotics.

Inspite of the fact that fire wasn't formally invented, it was essential for human civilization. Fire was discovered and used by prehistoric humans who roamed the Earth some two million years ago, but it wasn't until 125,000 years ago that fire had reached its full potential and had become a tool.
 
Fire not only kept us warm in the winter and lit up the night, but it also helped us learn new skills like cooking. In addition to ensuring human survival, the capacity to produce healthier food and purer drinking water contributed to increased intelligence due to optimal nutritional intake.

Today, most (if not all) quantitative sciences, including mathematics and economics, are built on a counting system made up of 10 integers (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9) and their positional numerical values (123 stands for one hundred plus twenty plus three). Before the Arabs, the Europeans, and eventually everyone else adopted this numeral system, Hindu nations were the first to invent it and use it effectively.

The wheel is regarded by many as the world's greatest innovation. The wheel was developed by the Mesopotamians around 3500 BCE, primarily for the purpose of manufacturing pottery. It took roughly three centuries before the first wheel was fastened to a chariot and things only got better from there.
 
The wheel is an instrument of engineering that we take for granted in modern life since it is so common. Humans had very limited means of transportation and hauling before this development. However, the wheel was simply a component of the life-changing invention known as the wheel-and-axle. To put it another way, it is the concept of properly securing a wheel to a stationary platform so that they could cooperate.

The dissemination of information and historical documents accelerated significantly as a result of Johannes Gutenberg. He transformed note-taking from a handwritten to a printed form in 1439. He created the machinery that allowed ink to be repeatedly applied to sheets of paper, greatly accelerating the writing process.
 
With the aid of a mold, Gutenberg erected his machinery on top of pre-existing presses to improve the output and capacity of lead-alloy type components. The assembly was not only successful, but it also significantly reduced the cost of books for the lower grades. The Gutenberg presses produced more than 200 million volumes by the year 1600.

Given that the concept evolved over thousands of years, attributing the invention of electricity to a single person would be unfair. The first to study the phenomena was Thales of Miletus, although Benjamin Franklin is largely considered as an American Renaissance man who contributed to our understanding of electricity.
 
It is certainly impossible to overestimate the importance of electricity in human civilization. Other inventions such as the light bulb, battery, computers, toasters, and even coffee machines are the extensions of electricity’s potential. We have arrived at a point where we can safely say that we can’t live without electricity.

Global positioning systems and satellites have replaced magnetic compasses as the primary navigational tools, but their historical significance — particularly in the realm of land and sea exploration — will never be forgotten. Early compasses were created in China between 300 and 200 B.C.E. using lodestone, a naturally magnetic mineral.
 
The majority of navigational methods used astronomical signals before the invention of these compasses. The Age of Discovery was initiated by just one thing: the compass. It had a significant impact on how European nations developed in their quest for money and power, which eventually sparked the Industrial Revolution.

Contraceptives have had an enormous impact while being useful to human civilization in a straightforward way. With fewer mouths to feed, every family has raised their standard of living and can now more adequately care for each of their children.
 
The typical number of children per woman has substantially decreased in many nations where contraceptives are used (and are readily available). Birth control has gradually but consistently contributed to halting the needless and perhaps hazardous rapid population expansion on a worldwide level.

When and how language first began to develop are not entirely apparent. Undoubtedly, the most powerful force driving civilization is humankind's capacity to create and use a wide variety of languages, including written, spoken, body language, codes, and symbols.
 
It is a method through which we share thoughts, sentiments, feelings, goals, even war plans. Simply said, without the ability to communicate in an understood language, people would not be able to work together or negotiate on their own terms. Without language, it is likely that we would not have survived this long.

Ice and snow were valuable natural ingredients up until the first decades of the 20th century, helping to preserve goods and medications. Despite being readily available, ice-making equipment was mostly employed in sizable enterprises and breweries. In the 1920s, after the introduction of ecologically acceptable chemicals used to refrigerate, home refrigerators became common household appliances.
 
The capacity to preserve food at a cool temperature transformed the food industry and eating practices. Refrigerated trucks also ensured that all deliveries of food would be made in a salable state. Even if there isn't a farm close to where you live, having daily access to fresh meats, veggies, and fruits is undoubtedly convenient.

Consider going through surgery without being given anesthetic (either yourself or someone else). In layman's terms, anesthetic medications either put your body and mind to sleep or sufficiently numb certain body regions so that you don't feel anything when they are treated. Anesthesia both releases you from the threat of pain and aids in the scientific community's understanding of the workings of human awareness.

In 3000 B.C.E., Northern Scotland invented the first indoor toilet. Around this time, the ancient Mesopotamians began to understand the value of hygiene in preserving good health and developed the concept of washing soap produced from animal fat and wood ash.

Duck fabric strips were used as the original duct tape. Despite some individuals using it as a decorative accessory on clothing, its primary usage was as an insulator for steel cable. The same material was also used to reinforce some footwear in the 1910s, including boots and shoes.
 
Duct tape for household use first became available in hardware stores following World War II. It remains to be the best multi-tool, regardless of how you classify it as a substance or a device. Even NASA astronauts used it to fix things in orbit.

We now have a greater grasp of the world, everything in it, and certain things beyond it because we asked the proper questions and presented data obtained from experiments.
 
Everyone must put forth plausible theories and concepts in order to follow the scientific approach. If you must contest someone else's views, you must also provide indisputable proof that your hypotheses are superior or more correct. Everyone can contribute to science because of the way it operates.

The original bicycle was referred to as a penny-farthing, also known as a high-wheeler. It was first made available in 1869 and had success for at least 20 years. The penny-farthing was rendered obsolete by the development of "modern bicycles" with gear trains that were propelled by chains.
 
Although there have been earlier models with the same chain-driven technology, the rover safety bicycle was likely the first widely used bicycle design. Although it was useful for transportation, the bicycle played its most significant historical role with the beginning of women's independence in western civilization. It is said that the bicycle had a significant role in enabling women to obtain the right to vote.

One of the first examples of a shadow clock is an obelisk, which the ancient Egyptians built at approximately 3,500 B.C.E. Around 2000 years later, the sundial also originated in Egypt. Both served as excellent examples of modern timekeeping devices.

Without photography, things would have been very different from how we study history and retain knowledge today. Stopping time and enhancing an event's recall for future generations are two of the best things that a camera can do. In 1826, Joseph Nicéphore Niépce used a camera that Charles and Vincent Chevalier created to take the first-ever photograph, which was permanently preserved. To use a metaphor, the camera has gone through several stages of evolution, from the Obscura to the DSLR.

Bringing fresh water into homes and removing sewage from towns were two major issues that hydraulic engineering helped to resolve in the late 19th century.
 
Hydraulic engineering significantly improved wastewater treatment and sanitation in general, even though complex waterworks had already existed in ancient Rome. Countries like the United States and Britain were able to develop more quickly because infectious diseases brought on by unclean water were considerably reduced.

The invention of the light bulb is typically credited to Thomas Edison. He wasn't the only one, though, who made contributions to the advancement of technology. Edison created a cheap, useful light bulb as a means of staying one step ahead of his rivals.
 
Even after he applied for his invention's patent in 1879, a number of other people contributed to its improvement, especially with regard to the filament materials. Because it could burn for more than 1,200 hours, carbonized bamboo was discovered to be the perfect filament by Edison.

The Internet is available to everyone and is not owned by anyone, not even Google. Despite the fact that the Internet was created, the entire system was a collaboration of many people. In the 1960s, the US Department of Defense worked on a project known as ARPANET, which served as the Internet's forerunner.
 
Later, Vint Cerf and Robert E. Kahn created the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP), which has remained the de facto Internet networking protocol ever since. The emergence of email and fast, low-cost international communication drastically altered how we communicate, learn, work, and share information.

The first known toothbrush kind is the chew stick. It was manufactured from basic twigs with frayed ends and was used by many people to try to remove anything unclean from their teeth.
 
An Englishman by the name of William Addis was jailed for inciting a riot in 1770. He pierced a few tiny holes in a piece of bone that he had preserved from his meal and attached bristles to it while he was imprisoned. The current toothbrush's basic design was virtually designed by Addis. He sold toothbrushes after getting out of prison and amassed a fortune.

James Watt created a continuous rotary steam engine between the years of 1763 and 1775, and it was patented in 1781. Soon, the Industrial Revolution as a whole, the manufacturing sector, the shipping industry, and the trains were all powered by his engine.
 
The steam engine was a key contributor to the rapid development and growth of industries, agriculture, and transportation throughout the 1800s. Others kept on modernizing James Watt's steam engine concept over time. The steam turbine, which uses a variety of heat sources to generate the majority of the electricity in the United States, is its most recent significant advancement.

Paper is another Chinese creation. People have used it to preserve historical documents and transcribe knowledge to the following generation since 100 B.C.E.

People in the Ukrainian steppes discovered ways to domesticate horses some 6,000 years ago, when the species was on the verge of extinction. Horses significantly contributed to the repopulation of Europe after that.
 
Their importance also had an impact on trade and communication, among other civilizational issues. Horses also contributed to the transformation of warfare, as the animals helped to raise the bar for both exploration and bloodshed. Overall, horses contributed to the development of some of the largest cities in Asia and Europe.

Ancient Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Hebrews, and even ancient Chinese all contributed to the development of the alphabet over a period of hundreds of years. Around the first millennium B.C.E., alphabetization started to emerge. It took the world thousands of years to create a universal alphabetical order that primary school students today can quickly recall. Everything is now a lot more searchable thanks to alphabetization.

Similar to how the automobile was created, airplanes combine numerous excellent ideas, such as wheels and steam turbines, into a single, durable vehicle. Beyond the marvels of engineering, the airplane made our perspective bigger, wider, and broader. The way we travel and wage war has altered as a result.

In the 1820s, when commercial train networks were only being started, George Stephenson's "Rocket" locomotive grabbed public attention. His appointment as the Stockton and Darlington railway's engineer in 1821 marked him as a true pioneer.
 
The first public roadway was constructed in about four years. Both Rocket and the railway's opening turned out to be significant factors in the industry's growth. Prior to the invention of the diesel engine in the 1890s, the business would have had to wait for the next significant advancement.

It's challenging to identify a single person who came up with the concept of plowing machinery, and it's equally challenging to argue that the plow didn't alter the trajectory of human history. Primarily farmers and hunter-gatherers, early people devoted their lives to gathering food and ensuring their survival. Their modern counterparts have discovered new means of surviving, and their wants have evolved from merely wanting to feed to expecting comforts and frills.
 
Plowing eliminated the need to live a nomadic lifestyle, at least for our ancestors and farmers. The ostensibly straightforward concept of plowing helped our ancestors establish civilizations in the regions they lived in, lead lives that were more stable, gather and store food. They were able to harvest more food than they required due to the continual advancements in plow technology, which gave rise to the idea of trading.

A crucial aspect of modern technology is long-distance radio transmission. The communication method was continuously developed by numerous individuals, but Guglielmo Marconi, an Italian, was the inventor of the first functional radio device. In 1895, he developed his wireless telegraphy method.

Darwin's theories of evolution, at least up to this point, provide the best explanation of both our origins and those of the rest of the planet's living creatures, including information about who our ancestors were, which animals are direct descendants of dinosaurs, why and what exists where, and other factors. Despite the fact that the quest for the real first beginning of life is still ongoing, no new information has been found that challenges the idea of evolution.

We still don't know for sure who created the MRI, despite the fact that everyone agrees — including doctors, scientists, patients, and laypeople — that it's a fantastic invention. On the one hand, many people think it was Raymond Damadian, as it was he who pioneered the use of the device as medical equipment in 1973 when he used it to distinguish between healthy and cancerous tissues.
 
In contrast, Peter Lauterbur and Peter Mansfield both won Nobel Prizes for significant discoveries they made using the same machine.

English courtier and Queen Elizabeth I's godson Sir John Harington invented the first flushable toilet in 1596. A 2-foot-deep oval bowl that was waterproofed with pitch, glue, and wax and supplied with water from an above cistern was the design of Harington's contraption. 
 
Harington's pot needed to be flushed with 7.5 gallons of water, which was a genuine torrent in the days before indoor plumbing. Up to 20 people may use his toilet between flushes when there was a water shortage, according to Harington.

Beer is thought to have been created by ancient Mesopotamians at approximately 10,000 B.C.E. in modern-day Iraq. The Sumerians mastered the art of brewing eight different kinds of beers by the year 2000 BCE, ranging in strength from strong to good dark, and their recipes quickly spread throughout other cultures.

The transistor is a crucial part of almost every contemporary electronic device. Julius Lilienfeld invented a field-effect transistor in 1926, but the practical device was not yet possible.
 
Since then, transistors have had a great impact on technology, becoming an essential component of the circuitry in many electronic products, such as televisions, telephones, and computers.

The Mesopotamians and Egyptians were the first to develop optical lenses. Telescopes and microscopes are just two examples of modern equipment that utilize optical lenses. Magnifying glasses helped people comprehend minute organisms as well as distant objects like stars and other planets.
 
Around four centuries after the invention of the microscope and telescope, optical lenses were first used as weak-sightedness aids in the 13th century. We learned more about a wide range of academic disciplines such as biology, astronomy, archaeology, chemistry, and physics thanks to magnifying lenses.

The Gregorian calendar, which was developed in 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII, is currently the most popular civil calendar. A change to the Julian calendar was intended and in an effort to align local time with the four seasons, it advanced the calendar by 10 days.

Around 6500 B.C.E., the first structures resembling concrete appeared in parts of southern Syria and northern Jordan. The most common man-made substance is concrete, which is formed of coarse composite combined with fluid cement. Over time, the mixture solidifies, creating a highly solid foundation for a building. However, the substance is incredibly simple to mold while it's still wet.

The steam engine may have sparked the Industrial Revolution, but the electric motor has made chores in homes all around the world more time-effective. It's not necessary about a specific kind of electrical equipment, but rather the concept of using electricity to move a mechanism, as is the case with kitchen appliances and power tools.

Both the concept of regulating fire for human purposes and the development of the match were amazing. One of the oldest ways to start a fire was to direct sunlight onto wood using a lens. Since you required fire the most at night, it wasn't very useful since it would only operate on sunny days.
 
Another typical technique was to strike steel and flint together to start a spark. Although the chemical match was created in 1669, it wasn't until 1910 that a non-poisonous match was created. Before, a person could have easily been lethally poisoned by the amount of chemical compounds (such sulfur and phosphorus) needed to create just one spark.

The x-ray was first discovered in 1895, and Wilhelm Conrad Rontgen received all the credit. He performed cathode ray experiments and discovered that they could pass through human flesh in addition to glass.
 
Finding anything of an unknown nature, like the x-ray, must have been amazing. The device was first used in a real-world setting to locate shattered bones and gunshots within patients during the Balkan War.

The idea that Dmitri Mendeleev presented in 1869 to the Russian Chemical Society had an impact on the periodic table that exists today. Although it wasn't the first periodic table, it was the first to be accepted by the scientific community as a whole.
 
The order of the elements is the primary distinction between the traditional and contemporary versions of the periodic table. The newer method is based on atomic weight, whereas the earlier one used atomic numbers.

A switch and an electric light bulb constitute a flashlight, which is a rather basic gadget. In 1899, a British inventor by the name of David Misell was granted the first flashlight U.S. patent. The cops in New York City received some early flashlights as a donation.
 
Early versions of the light merely flashed repeatedly rather than continuously since they were ineffective and required a brief "rest" to be operational, hence the name.

Many people believe NASA was responsible for the development of Velcro, but this is untrue. Although NASA did popularize the material, George de Mestral was the one who gave it a patent in 1955. Velcro was initially made fun of in numerous ways, but de Mestral ultimately won the day. Velcro was used by astronauts to fasten equipment for simple recovery in the 1960s.
 
Two thin fabric strips are joined together, one with countless tiny loops, the other with tiny hooks. Everyone, from DIY enthusiasts to engineers, can use Velcro because it is so simple to use.

The earliest known batteries date back perhaps 2000 years. The ancient Parthians placed an iron rod encircled by a copper cylinder within clay jars that had been filled with vinegar solution. It is assumed that they applied it to silver electroplating.
 
However, Alessandro Volta, an Italian physicist, created the first electric battery in 1800. It was made of zinc and copper plates that were layered on top of one another and kept apart by brine-soaked paper disks. While Volta believed that his device could produce energy indefinitely, it was actually unable to do so.
 
36 years later, a British scientist by the name of John Frederic Daniel enhanced the battery and made it more useful. The first usable and reasonably secure portable energy source — the dry cell battery — was created at the tail end of the 19th century.

The steam engine paved the way for the industrial revolution, which produced the vehicle. Despite not being the primary mode of ground transportation, cars move much more quickly thanks to the way their engines drive them.

Nick Holonyak created the LED in 1962 while working as a consultant for General Electric. It began as a straightforward, low-cost, yet efficient technique to aid in our comprehension of how well computers could process input or information. It started out simply as a simple visible spectrum of red light and has subsequently been utilized to make the largest 24-million LED pixel billboard that spans a full city block in New York Times Square.

The ability of injections as a method of drug delivery is thought to have been recognized by the ancient Romans and Greeks after they observed snakebites. However, Christopher Wren's 1656 injection of opium into dogs is the oldest known experiment that used hypodermic needles. Four years later, J.D. Major of Kiel and J.S. Elsholtz of Berlin conducted unsuccessful human experimentation.
 
Hypodermic needles lost popularity for approximately 200 years. All of that changed as a result of Dr. Francis Rynd's successful first injection in 1844 and Dr. Alexander Wood's 1851 invention of the all-glass syringe for dosage measurement.

Steel is not a metal that occurs naturally, despite what the uninitiated may believe. Steel is an alloy made primarily of iron with very little carbon. Iron and bronze were used by humans for more than 4,000 years before steel became a major component of human civilization during the Industrial Revolution.
 
Using the "Bessemer Process," a method for producing steel by using molten pig iron, mass production of steel started in the 1850s. Steel has since been employed in the building of everything from engines to skyscrapers to houses and bridges.

If there were no traffic lights, imagine navigating the congested roadways of today. James Hoge is credited with creating the first electric traffic light, while earlier models (both manually and electrically driven) had been used in various locations throughout the globe.
 
On August 5, 1914, Cleveland became the first city to use the system based on his invention. On each corner of a junction, he designed a wired traffic light that was mounted on a single post. The police and fire agencies had complete control over the wiring and configuration of the lights, allowing them to alter the lighting pattern as required. The patent was applied for by James Hoge in 1913, and it was approved five years later.

Without nails, human civilization would fall apart much like a structure. Before the invention of these metal fasteners, timber constructions were constructed by individually fastening each component to another through laborious mathematical effort. Ancient Egyptians have been using nails since about 3400 B.C.E. When mankind discovered how to cast and mold metals in Ancient Rome, they reached their ultimate development.
 
You might find it difficult to believe, but up until the early 1800s, the majority of nails were crafted by hand from iron. Iron had to be shaped into an arrow-like shape by blacksmiths using a hammer. The 1790s saw the invention of the first nail-making machine.

In order to develop the Bombe, an Enigma code-breaker, Turing's machine required mathematical calculations. The Universal Turing Machine was created by Alan Turing, and depending on the input or program, it may do various types of computations. Its capability to run only one program at a time was a limitation. The Universal Turing Machine, despite its drawbacks, might be regarded as the predecessor of modern computers.

From the beginning, the development of genetic sequencing was competitive. American biologist, geneticist, biotechnologist, and entrepreneur Craig Venter declared in 1998 that he could sequence the complete human genome for $300 million in just three years.
 
When you consider how short the schedule and money were in comparison to the publicly financed Human Genome Project, it doesn't sound all that shocking. Both projects presented an exhaustive summary on their successful endeavors in 2001, tying the race in the end. The project was finished in three years as promised by Mr. Venter.

The operator of the first fire extinguishers posed a greater risk than the fire itself. It was built up of a pewter chamber for gunpowder and a liquid-filled cask. By lighting the fuse, the entire device was set off.
 
When the gunpowder was ignited, it produced an explosion that was necessary to distribute the liquid retardant. Ambrose Godfrey created it in 1723 and obtained an English patent for it. Throughout history, the fire extinguisher was the focus of development. Today, dry chemicals, carbon dioxide, and air-pressurized water are some of the most popular versions. Each works best when used to extinguish a certain kind of combustible material.

An outdoor tool symbol that will never go out of style is the Swiss Army Knife. Many individuals claim they never leave the house without it because it has can openers, short knives, a pair of scissors, and screwdrivers. At the very least, it can make you feel like MacGyver, even though it may not be useful for any major carpentry tasks.
 
Wester & Co. Solingen, a firm with its headquarters in Germany, created the first version in the 1880s. It had a blade, reamer, can opener, screwdriver, and an oak handle. A multifunctional knife was intended to be given to the military so they could cut things as needed, open cans of food, and fix firearms as needed.

Humans were unable to perceive objects smaller than a sand grain for many thousands of years. The invention of the microscope in 1950 revolutionized everything. Small objects, such as food particles, germs, and other microbes, become easier for us to investigate.
 
It is still unknown who created the microscope, despite its obvious use in scientific research. Typically, the discussion centers on two parties: either Hans Lippershey or the father-son duo of Hans and Zacharias Janssen.

Tin cans were the only method of food preservation prior to the invention of the refrigerator. The tin can was patented by Peter Durand. King George III of England gave him the patent in 1810.
 
He did not continue to work on his idea, instead selling the patent to two Englishmen, Bryan Donkin and John Hall, for £1,000 (more than £72,000 in modern currency). Many businesses continue to package their food and beverage items in tin cans, which were developed for mass production.

At the DuPont laboratories in Wilmington, Delaware, Stephanie Kwolek was the first to synthesize Kevlar. Although it was lighter than fiberglass, Kevlar was five times stronger than steel (weight for weight). At temperatures of up to 400 degrees Celsius, it can degrade without melting and is also heat resistant. Extreme sports gear, protective vests, and aircraft building are a few examples of common uses.

On October 4, 1957, the former Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik I, altering the course of history. The first man-made satellite was around the size of a basketball, weighed only 183 pounds, and took 98 minutes to complete one elliptical orbit of the Earth.

One of the first efficient water pumps in history was a rotating corkscrew invented by Archimedes to transport clean water from the source to a somewhat remote point. The concept is still prevalent today in a lot of irrigation systems and wastewater treatment plants all around the world.