Subscribe1. Wheel and Axle
The wheel is probably the most important mechanical invention of all time. Nearly every machine built since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution involves a single, basic principle embodied in one of mankind’s truly significant inventions. It’s hard to imagine any mechanized system that would be possible without the wheel or the idea of a symmetrical component moving in a circular motion on an axis. From tiny watch gears to automobiles, jet engines and computer disk drives, the principle is the same. The earliest examples of wheels discovered by archaeologists appear around 3500 BC in Mesopotamia, near the Black sea (Thinkquest.org). The first recognizable wheels in Eurasia were of a peculiar design, composed of longitudinally-cut boards that were attached together and shaped into a disk, through which an axle was mounted. This design was necessary due to the internal structure of wood; simple slices of a tree trunk would be unable to support any considerable weight.
2. Numbers and Counting
This set of numbers (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9), which is known as the decimal system of numeration, which is also known as the Hindu-Arabic numeral system, actually originated in India some 1,500 years ago! This invention can indeed be termed as "one of India's greatest contribution to the world", since our lives have been made so much easier with this easily understandable symbols.
3. Calender
The word 'calendar' originated from the Latin word 'kalendae'. According to archaeologists, the first to do so were the Sumerians. They were able to study the moon and came up with a calendar which depicted a year as a total of 12 lunar months. To make up for the difference between this year and the year of the seasons, they added an extra month in the calendar about every four years. The early Egyptians and Greeks merely copied this calendar.
4. Locks
Locks are an essential part of life today. Every civilisation in history has understood the need for security in the form of locks, to protect life and property. Even cave men rolled rocks across the entrances of their caves. In truth Locksmithing has been acknowledged as the second oldest profession on Earth. Paintings inside Egyptian pyramids give details of complex locks used around 2000 BC. The principles they used are still the basis for many of the more sophisticated locks of this millennium.
5. Compass
A compass depending for its directive force upon the attraction of the Earth's magnetism for a magnet free to turn in any horizontal direction. A compass is an instrument used for determining horizontal direction. A form of compass that points South has been known in China since around 200 B.C. It wasn’t until the late 13th Century A.D. that a Chinese ship is known to have navigated with a Compass. In Europe the first Historically recorded mention of a compass used for navigation dates to 1190 A.D. This fact coupled with the fact that European compasses have always pointed North rather than South has caused many to speculate that Europeans invented the Compass independently in the 12th Century A.D. The classic story is, however, that it arrived in Europe via the famous Silk Road, but to do that it would have had to come through the Middle East, and Middle Eastern mentions of the compass date to a time after the European mention, and the Arabic word for compass seems to have Italian rather than Chinese origins. Furthermore, its advent comes at a time when trade on the silk road is in decline due to barbarian incursions. (answer.com)
The wheel is probably the most important mechanical invention of all time. Nearly every machine built since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution involves a single, basic principle embodied in one of mankind’s truly significant inventions. It’s hard to imagine any mechanized system that would be possible without the wheel or the idea of a symmetrical component moving in a circular motion on an axis. From tiny watch gears to automobiles, jet engines and computer disk drives, the principle is the same. The earliest examples of wheels discovered by archaeologists appear around 3500 BC in Mesopotamia, near the Black sea (Thinkquest.org). The first recognizable wheels in Eurasia were of a peculiar design, composed of longitudinally-cut boards that were attached together and shaped into a disk, through which an axle was mounted. This design was necessary due to the internal structure of wood; simple slices of a tree trunk would be unable to support any considerable weight.2. Numbers and Counting
This set of numbers (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9), which is known as the decimal system of numeration, which is also known as the Hindu-Arabic numeral system, actually originated in India some 1,500 years ago! This invention can indeed be termed as "one of India's greatest contribution to the world", since our lives have been made so much easier with this easily understandable symbols.
3. Calender
The word 'calendar' originated from the Latin word 'kalendae'. According to archaeologists, the first to do so were the Sumerians. They were able to study the moon and came up with a calendar which depicted a year as a total of 12 lunar months. To make up for the difference between this year and the year of the seasons, they added an extra month in the calendar about every four years. The early Egyptians and Greeks merely copied this calendar.
4. Locks
Locks are an essential part of life today. Every civilisation in history has understood the need for security in the form of locks, to protect life and property. Even cave men rolled rocks across the entrances of their caves. In truth Locksmithing has been acknowledged as the second oldest profession on Earth. Paintings inside Egyptian pyramids give details of complex locks used around 2000 BC. The principles they used are still the basis for many of the more sophisticated locks of this millennium.
5. Compass
A compass depending for its directive force upon the attraction of the Earth's magnetism for a magnet free to turn in any horizontal direction. A compass is an instrument used for determining horizontal direction. A form of compass that points South has been known in China since around 200 B.C. It wasn’t until the late 13th Century A.D. that a Chinese ship is known to have navigated with a Compass. In Europe the first Historically recorded mention of a compass used for navigation dates to 1190 A.D. This fact coupled with the fact that European compasses have always pointed North rather than South has caused many to speculate that Europeans invented the Compass independently in the 12th Century A.D. The classic story is, however, that it arrived in Europe via the famous Silk Road, but to do that it would have had to come through the Middle East, and Middle Eastern mentions of the compass date to a time after the European mention, and the Arabic word for compass seems to have Italian rather than Chinese origins. Furthermore, its advent comes at a time when trade on the silk road is in decline due to barbarian incursions. (answer.com)
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