5 Inventions That Changed the World

Think about your favorite book. How much time would it take you to copy it entirely by hand? In the early 1400s, most books were still made that way. Sounds exhausting, right?

German inventor Johannes Gutenberg had a better idea. He developed a printing press with individual metal letters that could be rearranged and reused many times to print an entire page of text at once. 

Here’s how it worked: The metal letters were set in place to spell out a section of text, then coated with ink. That block of text was then hand cranked onto a sheet of paper, making a copy. The printing press could create about 250 pages an hour. That made it possible to mass-produce printed materials for the first time.

In 1455, Gutenberg had a hit with his first major effort—a printing of the Bible. Now known as the Gutenberg Bible, it’s widely considered the first modern book. Gutenberg printed about 180 copies. (If you happen to find an original copy, hang on to it—it’s worth more than $35 million today!) 

Gutenberg’s invention made books cheaper and more accessible for ordinary people. It also allowed scholars to share their knowledge with a wide audience. That helped spread the wealth of ideas in art, culture, and science that sprang up in Europe between the 14th and 17th centuries—a period known as the Renaissance—which led to even more key innovations.

Think about your favorite book. How much time would it take to copy it by hand? In the early 1400s, most books were still made that way. Sounds exhausting, right?

German inventor Johannes Gutenberg had a better idea. He developed a printing press with individual metal letters. They could be rearranged and reused many times to print an entire page of text at once.

Here is how it worked. The metal letters were set in place to spell out a section of text. They were coated with ink. That block of text was then hand cranked onto a sheet of paper. That made a copy. The printing press could create about 250 pages an hour. That made it possible to mass-produce printed materials for the first time.

In 1455, Gutenberg had a hit with his first major effort. It was a printing of the Bible, now known as the Gutenberg Bible. It is widely considered the first modern book. Gutenberg printed about 180 copies. (If you happen to find an original copy, hang on to it. It is worth more than $35 million today!)

Gutenberg’s invention made books cheaper and more accessible for ordinary people. It also let scholars share their knowledge with a wide audience. That helped spread the wealth of ideas in art, culture, and science that sprang up in Europe between the 14th and 17th centuries. That period is known as the Renaissance. It led to even more key innovations.

Imagine discovering something life-altering right in your backyard. That’s what happened to the ancient Egyptians. They found a tall green reed called papyrus growing on the muddy banks of the Nile River delta. It was sturdy, plentiful, and free, and Egyptians used it to construct huts, temples, and boats. Eventually, that humble swamp plant would go on to change civilization.

More than 5,000 years ago, around 3000 B.C., the Egyptians began turning papyrus plants into paper. How? Workers soaked papyrus stems, then peeled away the outer layers to reveal the inner white part, known as the pith. They sliced the pith thinly and laid the strips parallel to each other, overlapping just slightly, to form a sheet. More strips were placed on top, at right angles to the first layer. Finally, the two layers were pressed together until they dried to form a single page.

It was a complicated process, but at the time, many people were still carving their writings into stone or metal! In comparison, producing sheets of paper from papyrus was a breeze. 

The Egyptians wisely kept their paper-making method a secret and made big bucks exporting their invention to the world for thousands of years. That paper gave people near and far a standard, durable medium on which to record their ideas. The scrolls and sheets produced in Egypt allowed people to record the news-making events of the day—descriptions that we now study as ancient history. In fact, countless words written on papyrus continue to inform and inspire the world today. 

Imagine discovering something life-changing right in your backyard. That is what happened to the ancient Egyptians. They found a tall green reed called papyrus growing on the muddy banks of the Nile River delta. It was sturdy, plentiful, and free. Egyptians used it to make huts, temples, and boats. Eventually, that humble swamp plant would go on to change civilization.

More than 5,000 years ago, around 3000 B.C., the Egyptians began turning papyrus plants into paper. How? Workers soaked papyrus stems. Then they peeled away the outer layers. This revealed the inner white part called the pith. They sliced the pith thinly. They laid the strips parallel to each other, overlapping just slightly, to form a sheet. More strips were placed on top, at right angles to the first layer. Finally, the two layers were pressed together until they dried to form a single page.

It was a complicated process. But at the time, many people were still carving their writings into stone or metal! In comparison, producing sheets of paper from papyrus was a breeze.

The Egyptians wisely kept their paper-making method a secret. They made big bucks exporting their invention to the world for thousands of years. That paper gave people everywhere a standard, durable medium on which to record their ideas. The scrolls and sheets produced in Egypt allowed people to record the news of the day. We now study those descriptions as ancient history. In fact, countless words written on papyrus continue to inform and inspire the world today.

The wheel is often said to be humanity’s greatest invention. But for a wheel to be helpful, it needs an axle (a stationary pole) on which to turn. It’s the combination of wheel and axle that allows people to move objects using less force. So who thought of putting the two together?

Probably ancient smarties in Mesopotamia, a historical region that includes present-day Iraq and parts of Iran, Kuwait, Syria, and Turkey. A potter’s wheel more than 5,500 years old found there suggests that Sumerians, who occupied the region from about 4100 B.C. to 1750 B.C., had a handle on wheel-and-axle mechanics. Wheeled transport in the form of carts and wagons followed.

“Most [experts] assume that the earliest wagons were invented in Mesopotamia, which was urban and therefore more sophisticated than the tribal societies of Europe [at the time],” writes anthropologist David Anthony in his book The Horse, the Wheel, and Language. Still, he notes, there’s evidence that multiple cultures had similar ideas around the same time. 

What’s indisputable is that moving heavy stuff on wheels was a game changer. Previously, it might have taken a whole village (really!) to lug stones, lumber, or crops. Wheeled transport reduced people’s reliance on group labor to get things done, allowing societies to spread out. Single-family farms sprouted up. Trade expanded as people could move large amounts of goods long distances on carts. And over time, as wheeled vehicles became really popular, humans invented traffic jams!

The wheel is often said to be humanity’s greatest invention. But for a wheel to be helpful, it needs an axle (a stationary pole) on which to turn. It is the combination of wheel and axle that allows people to move objects using less force. So who thought of putting the two together?

Probably ancient smarties in Mesopotamia. That is a historical region that includes present-day Iraq and parts of Iran, Kuwait, Syria, and Turkey. Sumerians occupied the region from about 4100 B.C. to 1750 B.C. A potter’s wheel more than 5,500 years old was found there. It suggests that Sumerians had a handle on wheel-and-axle mechanics. Wheeled transport in the form of carts and wagons followed.

“Most [experts] assume that the earliest wagons were invented in Mesopotamia, which was urban and therefore more sophisticated than the tribal societies of Europe [at the time].” Anthropologist David Anthony wrote that in his book The Horse, the Wheel, and Language. Still, he notes, there is evidence that multiple cultures had similar ideas around the same time.

What is certain is that moving heavy stuff on wheels was a game changer. Before, it might have taken a whole village (really!) to lug stones, lumber, or crops. Wheeled transport reduced people’s reliance on group labor to get things done. That let societies spread out. Single-family farms sprouted up. Trade expanded as people could move large amounts of goods long distances on carts. And over time, as wheeled vehicles became really popular, humans invented traffic jams!

In the mid-1800s, when Thomas Edison was a kid, people depended on candles, oil lamps, or gas lamps for indoor light. Gaslight was the best option, but it had serious drawbacks: Gas was expensive and smelly, and it could potentially explode!

Edison, an inventor who would go on to receive a whopping 1,093 U.S. patents, knew electricity was the answer. Other inventors at the time knew this too. The basic idea was that wires would carry electric currents to a thin piece of material—called a filament—inside a glass bulb. As the filament grew hotter, it would glow, producing light. 

The trouble was finding the ideal material for the filament. It had to burn brightly, last for hours at a time, and be affordable. Many people around the world were trying to come up with a practical electric light bulb. But Edison was determined to be the first to succeed. “The electric light is the light of the future, and it will be my light,” he wrote. 

In the mid-1800s, when Thomas Edison was a kid, people depended on candles, oil lamps, or gas lamps for indoor light. Gaslight was the best option. But it had serious drawbacks. Gas was expensive and smelly. And it could potentially explode!

Edison was an inventor. He would go on to receive a whopping 1,093 U.S. patents. He knew electricity was the answer. Other inventors at the time knew this too. The basic idea was that wires would carry electric currents to a thin piece of material, called a filament, inside a glass bulb. As the filament grew hotter, it would glow. That produced light.

The trouble was finding the ideal material for the filament. It had to burn brightly, last for hours at a time, and be affordable. Many people around the world were trying to come up with a practical electric light bulb. But Edison was determined to be the first to succeed. “The electric light is the light of the future, and it will be my light,” he wrote.

As early as the Han Dynasty, which began around 206 B.C., Chinese scholars started experimenting with what they thought was a magical type of rock. They had found that a thin piece of the rock aligned itself north and south when it was suspended at its center by a thread. 

As it turned out, the rocks were lodestones—naturally magnetized pieces of the mineral magnetite. The stones also temporarily magnetized metal objects, such as needles, if rubbed against them. That discovery put China on the path to developing the first magnetic compasses centuries later. 

Historians believe Chinese thinkers began rubbing lodestones against needles around the 11th century to magnetize them for navigation. By the 13th century, the magnetic compass had spread throughout the Middle East and Europe.

Before the invention of the compass, people relied on the sun, the stars, and familiar landmarks to find their way. On dark, cloudy nights, they just hoped for the best. The compass, however, enabled sailors to confidently steer ships on a set course. People could transport goods long distances without getting lost. Such advancements eventually encouraged foreign trade.

As compasses improved over time, they became essential. Even today, in a world of GPS and map apps, high-tech compasses are still built into airplanes and ships to help guide people and goods to their destinations all over the world.

The Han Dynasty began around 206 B.C. As early as that time, Chinese scholars started experimenting with what they thought was a magical type of rock. They had found that a thin piece of the rock aligned itself north and south when it was suspended at its center by a thread.

It turned out that the rocks were lodestones. Those are naturally magnetized pieces of the mineral magnetite. The stones also temporarily magnetized metal objects, like needles, if rubbed against them. That discovery put China on the path to developing the first magnetic compasses centuries later.

Historians believe Chinese thinkers began rubbing lodestones against needles around the 11th century to magnetize them for navigation. By the 13th century, the magnetic compass had spread throughout the Middle East and Europe.

Before the invention of the compass, people relied on the sun, the stars, and familiar landmarks to find their way. On dark, cloudy nights, they just hoped for the best. But the compass enabled sailors to confidently steer ships on a set course. People could transport goods long distances without getting lost. Such advancements eventually encouraged foreign trade.

As compasses improved over time, they became essential. Even though we have GPS and map apps today, high-tech compasses are still built into airplanes and ships. They help guide people and goods to their destinations all over the world.