One of the interesting things about Chinese history is that China created numerous inventions that have been expanded upon by the rest of the world. Of the eastern side of the hemisphere, China was the most technologically advanced civilization. It was one civilization that would those of Rome and Egypt. Rome and Egypt had their own technologically advanced civilizations. Without China’s contribution, there would be many things nonexistent from this world.
China has spawned many great inventions through the many dynasties. As Rome fell, China was still intact. From there, more inventions continued to come out from China. One cannot deny that China played a huge and vital role through the development of the world.
PAPER:
One of the most important inventions that came out of China was paper. If it was not for China, we would not have had paper to begin with. History without paper would be a very different thing. So far, the formula to create paper was simple. However, it was a strongly kept secret. To get the formula, a few Chinese men were tortured. There would be a transition from bamboo, silk strips, and clay tablets.
PRINTING:
The earliest type of woodblock printing came from China. One could say that the first printing press was made out from wood. From there, there would be the movable type of printing press. Then, it would be extended towards the invention of bookbinding. From paper and printing, there would be the creation of books. This would be used by stitches instead of Western-style bookbinding.
GUNPOWDER:
It was China that came up with the explosive black powder called gunpowder. It was used as a defensive measure. However, firearms would not exist today if it was not for gunpowder.
COMPASS:
The Chinese saw that iron could be magnetized if it went into contact with lodestone. A lodestone compass was used in Central America. However, the Olmecs did not possess the metal known as iron.
WINE:
The origins of wine can be traced back to China. This is called the fermented beverage.
FORK:
What could be shocking is that the Chinese used forks before chopsticks. The earliest type of fork was made from bone. It was discovered by archaeologists. As a result, the earliest utensils in China were not the chop sticks.
NOODLES:
Without noodles, we would not have pasta. While spaghetti originated in Italy, the noodles used for it originated from China.
RICE:
Rice, one of the most important staple foods originated from China. If it was not for China, we probably would not have had many of today’s world dishes. Rice is an important part of ethnic cuisines around the world.
SILK:
Silk originated from China. If it was not for China, many articles of clothing would not exist. That is due to many articles of clothing being made from silk.
ACUPUNCTURE:
Acupuncture is a very popular form of alternative medicine today. This is also important to the development of the Chinese martial arts.
BANKNOTE:
The first paper currency came out from China. Without this invention, we would not have had the Dollar Bill, the British Pound, the Japanese Yen, or the Euro. The Euro would not have come into existence without this invention.
HARD LIQUOR:
Hard liquor came from China. Beer content was normally about four to five percent. China came up with alcohol that was at least over eleven percent. Without this invention, we probably would not have stuff like vodka, gin, tonic, tequila, and so forth.
CHOPSTICKS:
That invention is self-explanatory. The first chopsticks were made from ivory. The next one would be made out of bronze.
BRISTLE TOOTHBRUSH:
The toothbrushes that we see and use everyday originated from China. If it was not for that invention, what would we be brushing our teeth with?
CROSSBOW:
China came up with the first handheld crossbow.
MARTIAL ARTS:
Many of the world’s martial arts have originated from China. They would be spread across the world as a result. Without China, we would not have Karate, Tae Kwon Do, Judo, or Jiu-Jitsu.
These are merely examples of the inventions that came out from China. Other inventions are the: blast furnace, India ink, hybrid rice, horse collar, horse harness, gas cylinder, Gaussian elimination, signaling flare, double piston flamethrower, forensic science, fishing reel, fireworks, fire lance, exploding cannonballs, the zoetrope, board games, the collapsible umbrella, and a bunch of other goodies.
