The first (chronologically) of the top ten inventions of all time is the wheel. It was first used in Mesopotamia in 3500 B.C. The wheel has since been important for future inventions like horse-drawn carriages and automobiles.
The invention ranked second place of all time is the boat, which is known to have been used by early settlers of New Guinea from Southeast Asia about 60,000 years ago during the Ice Age. This paved the way for the bigger ships like the ships and ocean liners. In ancient Greece (900 B.C to 400 B.C.), the astrolabe aided navigation and is now the compass. It could predict the positions of the moon, sun, stars, and planets.
The invention that is third best of all time is the rocket. The Greek Pythagorean Archytas was said to have propelled a wooden bird using steam about 400 B.C. In 1264 A.D. fireworks using internal-combustion rocket propulsion led the way to the invention of rockets. Solid propellant rockets were invented by Zasiadko, Constantinov, and Congreve. The American Robert Goddard contributed to the invention of rockets. Rockets are now used for space exploration including the Space Shuttle and International Space Station.
The invention rated in fourth place of all time is the microscope. It was invented, among others, in 1609 by Galileo Galilei. He invented the occhiolino that was a compound microsope that had both a convex and concave lens. The microscope is used to study very small organisms like amoeba. It has been used to study bacteria to find ways to fight diseases caused by bacteria.
The invention in fifth place of all time is the telescope, invented, also among others, in 1610 by Galileo Galilei. He discovered a magnifying lens that he used to study the moons of Jupiter. The Hubble telescope has taken many pictures of the stars and planets. It revolves around the sun the same as the satellites and ISS.
The invention in sixth place of all time is the mercury barometer, invented in 1643 by the Italian physicist Evangelista Torricelli. It helps meteorologists prepare weather forecasts using the atmospheric pressure readings on the barometer. An improvement of the mercury barometer was invented in 1843 by the French physicist Lucien Vidie.
The invention ranked seventh place of all time is the cotton gin, invented in 1793 by Eli Whitney. The cotton gin separates the cotton fibers from the seeds, which was done by hand before the invention of the cotton gin. This greatly increased the production of cotton.
The eighth place invention of all time is the electric motor, invented in 1832 by William Sturgeon. The electric motor uses electric energy to produce mechanical energy. The electric motor runs machines like lawn mowers, electric power boats, motorbikes, etc.
The last two of the greatest inventions of all time were made in modern times. The ninth place invention is the computer, invented by many people. The first programmable computer was invented by Konrad Zuse in 1936. The Harvard Mark 1 computer was invented in 1944 by Howard Aiken and Grace Hopper. The transistor was invented in about 1947 by John Bardeen, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley. Univac was the first commercial computer, invented in 1951 by John Presper Eckert and John W. Mauchly. Transistor radios were popular in the 1960s. The first computer game was invented in 1962 by Steve Russell and MIT. It was called the Spacewar Computer Game. The computer mouse was invented in 1964 by Douglas Engelbart. The floppy disk was invented in 1971 by Alan Shugart and IBM. The first consumer computers were invented in about 1974 by International Business Machines, Apple, and Commodore. Word processors were invented in 1979 by Seymour Rubenstein and Rob Barnaby. The home computer was invented in 1981 by International Business Machines. Microsoft Windows was invented in 1985 by Microsoft.
The tenth invention is the cellular telephone, invented by many different people. The idea was first conceived in about 1947, but the modern mobile phone was not mass produced until just a few years ago. Nowadays almost anyone who wants a cellular phone has one. There have been many inventions since Man began as a caveman. They have improved the speed and ease of daily life. They have also helped businesses grow and prosper.
