Technology is the key to improving lifestyles. Our ancient ancestors knew this, so they made stone tools to make, cut, and harvest. They saw the destructive power of nature and learned to cook with fire. We then move on wheels until we fly with our wings. We bring electricity into glass bulbs and light into the darkness. Our greatest scientists learned to ** atoms, but they are still trying to fuse them. Over time, each advancement has made humanity more preeminent, and future concepts and prototypes will be of immeasurable value in improving the lives of the next generation. These are the most important creations left to the world by inventors and geniuses.
A Australopithecus, the ancestor of humans.
About 3.3 million years ago, the human ancestor known as the "Lucy species", the "australopithecus afarensis", began using stone tools and eating meat, and evidence of toolmaking dates back at least 2.6 million years. Early humans invented a method of making stone chips into blades and attaching these blades to wood or bone with plant fibers. Then, between 1.7 million and 2 million years ago, after observing naturally occurring wildfires, we humans combined the ability to use tools (essential for hunting and building) with fire. Mastering cooking and smoking is necessary for the safe consumption and preservation of meat, as well as for surviving in harsh winters. Finally, our ancestors invented the wheel in 5200 BC (more than 7000 years ago) and used it mainly for pottery. Despite this, it became a necessity for transportation in 3300 BC and became common in 2200 BC with the advent of chariots. All of these technologies are still being used by humans today.
Hieroglyphs and ancient symbols on beautiful Egyptian landmarks inside huge columns.
The earliest examples of abstract shapes dating back to the ancient writing system are the Jiahu inscription inscription on the shell of the Jiahu turtle around 6600 BC, the Wencha symbol carved on the T rt Ria stele from 5300 BC, and the Indus script from 3300 BC. Thanks to these examples, we can safely say that the first writing system of the Early Bronze Age was not invented suddenly. Around 3200 BC, the Sumerians were likely the first to forge the first complete written language in Mesopotamia, which they carved on clay tablets. Experts once believed that Egyptian hieroglyphs originated in Sumerian, but they now believe that the system developed independently.
If we turn our attention back to more recent times, it is clear that the written language of the world has evolved considerably. Around 1440, with the advent of the printing press in Germany, the talented goldsmith Johannes Gutenberg began the printing revolution. This innovation allowed publishers to leave obsolete manuscripts behind, as books and ** could now be copied in large numbers, allowing the information to be widely disseminated among the public.
Industrial metallurgical plants.
The ability to control fire and melt metal ores is an alarming advance in human history. This technology made it possible to extract metals from ores, marking humanity's transition to the Bronze and Iron Ages. Archaeologists and geologists have found a copper axe at the site of Belovode near Plonik, the earliest evidence of copper smelting, belonging to the Wincha culture and dating back to 5500 BC. Alloys are made by adding a mixture of various metals during metal processing, and it binds copper to other ores such as tin, silver, iron, etc. Thus, the first alloy age was the Bronze Age, around 3300 BC. It was much more difficult to refine iron into a usable metal, and the Iron Age only began around 1200 BC.
As early as 1800 BC, metalworkers created one of the most important alloys - steel. All steels contain carbon with a content of 0002% to 214%, when chromium is mixed into it and its content exceeds 11%, it becomes stainless steel. Compared to iron, steel has the advantage of being lightweight and flexible. Finally, due to the infrastructure required to produce it, the use of steel was significantly more frequent during the Roman Empire's time.
Black and white of an old-fashioned steam locomotive**.
A steam engine is an external combustion engine that uses coal as fuel and steam as the working fluid. Like many engines, the pressure of the steam is converted into power that can propel the wheels of the train through rods such as pistons or rolling turbines. There is a record of the rudiments of the steam engine, known as the "aolipile", described by a famous Greek mathematician in the 1st century AD. Further rudimentary steam turbine installations were described by the erudite Tachi Al Ding in 1551 and by the Italian engineer and architect Giovanni Blanca in 1629. However, in 1712, British inventor Thomas Newcomen invented a steam engine that could power the iconic 19th-century train, and by 1764 a successor had refined the design. This major technological advance brought about the life of semi-automated factories, as well as the remote and fast transportation of goods, and sparked the beginning of the Industrial Revolution.
Sparks cause ** between the cables.
Like fire, electricity is a natural phenomenon that does not need to be invented. In 1752, the American learned Benjamin Franklin, the most acclaimed scientist, tied a wire to a kite during a thunderstorm. However, it was studied by scientists like William Gilbert in the 17th century and Thales of Miletus in the 6th century BC. It is debatable about the importance of studying and ultimately mastering electricity as the basis of all subsequent technological advances.
Thanks to electricity, in 1837, the first telegraph was invented by British inventor William Forsergill Cook and British scientist Charles Wheatton. Thanks to Guglielmo Marconi's invention of the new radio wave transmission technology in 1894, this revolutionary form of communication quickly evolved into wireless communication. It was adopted shortly after Samuel Morse invented the Morse code in 1838, leaving behind the first pin telegraph. The Morse message sent for the first time from Washington to Alfred Weil in Baltimore quoted the Bible: "What did God create?."”
Like the discovery of electricity, the invention of the light bulb was a process that took nearly a century – only part of which began with Thomas Edison. He obtained some patents from his predecessors, learned from their mistakes, and invented an imperfect light bulb in 1879. In 1881, it took the Italian inventor Alessandro Cruto more than two years to reach 500 hours, close to the modern incandescent lamp, which lasted more than 1,000 hours and is now often ignored by LEDs.
The Ford Model T at the 1921 Used Car Exhibition.
The development of the automobile began in 1672, and the first models still relied on steam power. Then, in 1804, Isaac de Rivaz invented a revolutionary new engine, one of the first examples of the internal combustion engine. This design led engineers to build the first prototype car in 1807. Carl Benz put the first car into mass production, which appeared in small quantities in 1886. Later automobile production was concentrated on the Ford Model T, which was assembled at the Ford Motor Company's plant. Ford introduced the car in 1908 and for the first time succeeded in bringing the concept of a personal car to a wide audience. Compared to the top speed of the first Mercedes 10 miles per hour, the fastest cars today can reach more than 330 miles per hour. Today, despite the rise of electric vehicles, cars powered by internal combustion engines are far from obsolete. Therefore, the technology is dynamic.
In July 1909, Wright's plane made a test flight at Fort Meyer, Virginia.
Throughout history, the exploration of flying has been an extraordinary journey. Ancient legends and Greek legends, such as those of Icarus and Daedalus, have inspired generations. Similarly, Leonardo da Vinci's meticulous study of bird wing design marked a major leap forward in the understanding of aerodynamics. In 1868, pioneers such as Jean Marie Le Bis made the bold attempt to soar in his glider. However, it wasn't until the Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur Wright, appeared, that the dream of manned flights became a reality. In 1903, they invented and flew their first airplane, the biplane, which was a breakthrough achievement. The biplane needed two pairs of wings to support the fuselage and lift it into the air, "the first sustained and controlled heavier-than-air powered flight".
Over the next few years, the Wright brothers developed their aircraft to allow them to operate longer and more aerodynamically efficient. Using a small wind tunnel they built, the Wrights collected more accurate data, allowing them to design more efficient wings and propellers to achieve their goals. Thanks to their efforts and many others, commercial airliners can now be used at as high as 0At a speed of Mach 92, it flies between countries with ease.
CERN, where the Higgs boson was discovered in 2012.
Human curiosity brings us closer and closer to looking inside things, discovering molecules, atoms, and particles. In 1927, the German physicist Max Stienbeck theorized a particle accelerator for the first time when he was a student at the University of Kiel. When Stynbeck was frustrated, the Hungarian physicist Leo Szilárd patented several types of particle accelerators in late 1928 and early 1929, Ernest OLawrence built one in 1930.
Before the 50s of the 20th century, cyclotrons were the most powerful and practical particle accelerator technology. They use a powerful magnetic field to force particles such as neutrons through a circular patch to hit another particle at nearly the speed of light, allowing scientists to observe new interactions between them. Essentially, large accelerators are used to explore uncharted territory in particle physics.
1946 Nuclear Fission**, Operation Crossroads Baker test.
On December 19, 1938, German chemists Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann discovered nuclear fission through experiments on atomic nuclei. Subsequently, physicist Lisa Meitner and her nephew Otto Robert Frisch theoretically explained the experiment in January 1939: a large atom like uranium-235, with 92 protons and 143 neutrons, was hit by a fast-moving neutron. This collision causes it to turn into uranium-236 for a short time, and then into two smaller atoms. This chain reaction produces a huge amount of energy that can either power the turbines of a nuclear reactor or be devastating. Therefore, while nuclear reactors are efficient and prolific, nuclear ** is a threat to all.
Essentially, a nuclear reactor slows or stops the reaction by lowering the reactor chamber with control rods and water, and carefully controls the chain reaction. However, on the ** side, the military urged the chain reaction to be "unleashed" in order to achieve large-scale destruction. Finally, despite the hazards that human error and natural disasters make nuclear reactors hazardous, many believe that the benefits outweigh the cons, especially when compared to the hazards of fossil fuels.
The ENEAC computer was the first general-purpose electronic digital computer.
Computers aren't just for sending and receiving email—they can theoretically do calculations, and that alone is incredibly valuable. Ancient civilizations understood the value of fast mathematics because mathematics gave them the ability to build, measure, and navigate. For example, the abacus was invented in 2400 BC to help people do simple calculations. However, a group of modern divers discovered an ancient device in a wreck, the Antykitera Machine. It dates back 2,200 years and is the first known gear simulation computer in history.
With regard to modern binary languages consisting of 1s and 0s, Clifford Berry and John Vincent Atanasoff invented the first digital computer in 1939. In 1943, a new machine called the Colossus became the world's first electronic, digital, programmable computer. It uses 1500 vacuum tubes as valves, and with paper tape inputs, it can do some things, but it's not "Turing-complete" (enough time to be able to do any calculations). In 1945, the first real computer, ENIAC, was born in the United States. This huge machine occupies all the space of a large room, but it has only very little memory and computing power.
After 1947, transistors replaced vacuum tubes, speeding up calculations. Today, billions of transistors are packed into our smartphones to help us with our daily tasks.
Business people and humanoid AI robots sit together waiting for an interview.
Artificial intelligence (AL) refers to any machine that is capable of doing tasks that would normally only be done by humans. The difference is in the details: Our organic intelligence is built on living cells (neurons) that work together in a fast, adaptive network of information that allows us to make ** and make choices. Computers are primarily algorithms that typically do not possess these advantages, but can easily surpass humans in proficiency such as memory and calculation. Historically, artificial intelligence as an academic field was founded in 1956, and British mathematician Alan Turing was one of the first to study how engineers might eventually design truly "smart" computers.
The sophisticated algorithms used by search engines such as Google, Amazon, and Netflix are modern examples of AI technology that can understand a user's preferences and try to recommend the best results or products for them. Creations like Open Al's artistic Dall-E 3 or Chat GPT*** are the latest developments in machine learning Xi artificial intelligence. Essentially, machine Xi allows advanced AI models to form knowledge by inputting large amounts of information. This process often mimics the structure and efficiency of neurons in the human brain, albeit much simpler, which is why professionals describe these computer systems as "neural networks."
Many experts worry that AI could overtake human intelligence and bring chaos to society. Such superintelligence can be difficult to control and contain. Currently, AI scientists are considering ways to implement failsafe to prevent disasters. Hopefully, people will be able to use, or at least coexist, with AI, realizing the benefits of advanced AI may seem like a method for detecting complex diseases or automating difficult labor. Self-driving cars, AI-powered medical diagnostics, and disasters** could save many lives. However, these major benefits come with issues of ethical use and social stability.
Astronauts on missions to the moon.
Human curiosity leads us to question the boundaries and limits of what our ancestors thought was impossible. However, until the last century, the power of Earth's gravity was an indisputable boundary. The first rocket to successfully go into space was the first V2 missile launched by Germany in 1944. Subsequently, a fierce rivalry broke out between the United States and the Soviet Union. This "space race" led to the launch of the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, into Earth orbit in 1957. Just four years later, the Soviets also successfully carried out the first manned space flight, taking a young Russian cosmonaut named Yuri Gagarin out of the Earth's atmosphere. After several failed attempts, Apollo 11 succeeded in sending commanders Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins to the moon in 1969, where they even walked. On July 21, 1969, Armstrong became the first man to land on the moon. Since then, humanity has also celebrated the discovery of the Hubble and James Webb telescopes, released in 1990 and 2022, respectively.
In terms of long-term human habitation in space, there are currently two occupied space stations orbiting the Earth. In addition to the Tiangong space station, which was launched by China in 2021, the International Space Station (ISS) is the largest modular space station in low-Earth orbit. The ISS is a joint venture between the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos), the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). The first component of the ISS was launched in 1998 and has been in operation and maintenance ever since. The station is a laboratory of the space environment and microgravity for research in astrobiology, astronomy, meteorology, physics and other fields. During the stay, the astronauts took turns on expeditions for up to six months. To date, 69 long-term expeditions have been completed, and more than 273 astronauts, astronauts and space tourists from 21 different countries have visited the space station.
A female doctor is doing a CT scan on a patient.
In 1928, Alexander Fleming unexpectedly invented penicillin, which completely shook the heart of medicine. Since then, mankind has made great progress in medicine due to the rapid development of the technological revolution. Before 1800, the average life expectancy of humans was less than 40 years, but today it is more than 80 years.
Among the factors that contributed to this astonishing leap was the study of nuclear magnetic resonance, which was first discovered and described by Isidore Rabbi in 1938. This physical phenomenon includes the stimulation of atomic nuclei with magnetic fields and has led to an incredible medical application, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). This incredible breakthrough was published in 1973, and in 1974 the first working MRI machine was built and tested on a mouse, and it was in full production in the 80s of the 20th century. The ability of MRI to detect diseases such as cancer and stroke has saved countless lives.
Another recent important medical development is CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing technology. Interestingly, this discovery took place in three parts of the world. The first was done in 1987 by researcher Yoshiizumi Ishino and his colleagues. Ishino and his team accidentally copied a portion of the DNA sequence, hinting at the possibility of intentionally altering the DNA. CRISPR-Cas9 is the latest version of the technology, further refining and simplifying the process and effectiveness. As a de facto gene-editing tool, it has been shown to be useful to repair defective DNA in mice, effectively ** their genetic diseases. In other words, if these diseases are targeted before everyone is born, the diseases that have plagued humanity for thousands of years could become extinct. However, there are legitimate ethical concerns about its use, such as the creation of genetically engineered "design children". Irresponsible application can lead to social stratification, terrible accidents, or worse.
IBM presented a quantum computer model at CEBIT.
30 years ago, it was hard to imagine making ** to someone from all over the world and enjoying** a call. This rapid progress raises the question: "How much more technology will advance in another thirty years?"Clues and signs point us in the right direction:
- Quantum computers: Computers are getting more powerful every year and chips are getting smaller, but soon, we may run into a wall that can slow things down. The smallest component involved, the transistor gate, will be difficult or impossible to produce products less than one nanometer long, whereas currently, they are three nanometers long. Today, transistors can be thought of as simple switches of less than 3 nanometers. Fortunately, a new technology is being studied: quantum computing. This new breakthrough stems from research in the field of quantum mechanics. The simplest explanation is that the current method uses "bits", which carry information stored as 0 or 1. The new unit of information is the "qubit", which can be both 0 and 1!This could dramatically increase computing power and data storage, but we're still in the early stages of this technology.
- Nuclear fusion:In contrast to nuclear fission, nuclear fusion does not ** atoms by emitting particles at them. On the contrary, nuclear fusion brings atoms together for fusion. This process also generates a large amount of energy and is theoretically more efficient and sustainable than nuclear fission power plants. However, this ingenious device is far from being as simple as fission;The device requires a temperature 7 times higher than that of the sun. Unfortunately, building an environment that can withstand these conditions is slow and extremely expensive. So far, nuclear fusion reaction experiments have consumed more energy than they produce, and it will take time to develop a prototype that can produce energy consistently and efficiently. A fully functional fusion reactor, on the other hand, is synonymous with the new "industrial revolution" because it equates with cheap, safe, unlimited energy.
- Lab-grown edible meat: Artificial meat is another long-awaited breakthrough. At the beginning of the 21st century, Jason Matheny co-authored a ** that brought the concept to the attention of the public. Interest has been in the possibility of raising chickens in factories rather than farms since at least 1931, when Winston Churchill wrote: "We will get rid of the absurdity of raising whole chickens to eat chicken breasts or wings by cultivating these parts separately under a suitable medium." "Fundamentally, the process involves taking a small sample of meat from a donated animal and growing it continuously in a controlled environment. While this was already possible in 2013, optimizing the time and cost of production is no small matter. A few years ago, a regular-sized faux burger sold for $330,000. Currently, this cost has been reduced to 9. per burgerAround $80. While production costs are falling rapidly, there is still room for improvement. It's still 3 to 5 times more than a grass-fed burger, and it will take time to meet the high demand.
Humanity is the result of billions of years of continuous evolution, and it shows no signs of stopping. However, the last 100,000 years have shown that humanity is now progressing technologically, not genetically. We shape our tools and clothing, and we define our culture with our language and traditions. When we stopped migrating and followed the migratory food, we began to build houses and farm. We have created a stable community and have dedicated roles distributed between us. We have explored our world and transcended it. Our progress has brought us to an unsettling brink, where big discoveries and inventions can make or harm the planet.