The Greatest Innovations Since the Wheel

Innovation is integral to the physical and economic operating infrastructure of our modern world. Whether created out of necessity, out of a desire for comfort, a desire to achieve profitability through unique products on the market or even the result of accidental discoveries, innovation has always driven the advancement of civilisation.

The innovations on this list come from any number of contexts; be they innovations that extend life (eg: vaccinations), innovations that enabled the industrial revolution (the practical steam engine for example) or a product of the industrial revolution. It could be innovations in the realm of communications such as the telephone or the internet or innovation in the transport sphere like the internal combustion engine or the aeroplane. Wherever they are rooted, they have all made an unarguably immense impact on our world.

1.??????The printing press, 1430s – When it became possible for knowledge to be disseminated freely

2.??????Electricity, late 19th century – Suddenly a mysterious natural force could be harnessed and used everyday

3.??????Penicillin, 1928 – Accidentally discovered, has led on to the development of many other antibiotics and the combating of hitherto fatal diseases

4.??????Semiconductor electronics, mid-20th century – The hardware foundation of the software world

5.??????Optical lenses, 13th century – led to eyeglasses, telescopes, microscopes

6.??????Paper, second century – an easily transportable media for communication

7.??????The internal combustion engine, late 19th century - Turned air and fuel into power, eventually replacing the steam engine, allowed much more powerful personal motor vehicles due to their small power/weight ratio

8.??????Vaccination, 1796 - British doctor Edward Jenner used the cowpox virus to protect against smallpox in 1796, but it wasn’t until Louis Pasteur developed a rabies vaccine in 1885 that medicine—and governments—began to accept the idea that making someone sick could prevent further sickness.

9.??????The Internet, 1960s - The digital infrastructure of the modern world

10.??The steam engine, 1712 - Powered the factories, trains, and ships that drove the Industrial Revolution, eventually led to animal-drawn vehicles becoming redundant

11.??Nitrogen fixation, 1918 - German chemist Fritz Haber, also considered the father of chemical weapons, won a Nobel Prize for his development of the ammonia-synthesis process, which was used to create a new class of chemicals central to artificial fertilisation.

12.??Sanitation and sewage systems, mid-19th century - A major reason we live 40 years longer than we did in 1880, separates effluent from water supply.

13.??Refrigeration, 1850s – Allowed preservation of food without drying it, preventing sickness and proving economically useful. Considered almost as profound a discovery as learning to cook.

14.??Gunpowder, 10th century – Outsourced killing to chemicals and machines, dehumanised what had been previously a purely hand to hand concept. Also allowed for blasting for quarrying, mining and excavations.

15.??The aeroplane, 1903 - Transformed travel, warfare, and our view of the world

16.??The personal computer, 1970s – Augmented human capabilities on the micro (personal) level.

17.??The graduated compass, 12th century - Oriented us, even at sea with no landmarks or stars visible for navigation

18.??The automobile, late 19th century - Transformed daily life through ease of transport and by extension our culture, our cities and our communications.

19.??Industrial steelmaking, 1850s - Mass-produced steel, made possible by a method known as the Bessemer smelting process, became the basis of modern industry.

20.??Nuclear fission, 1939 - Gave humans new power for destruction, and creation. Altered the course (and ultimately ended) the largest conflict in history and changed the geo-political landscape completely. Also introduced new methods of propulsion and power generation.

21.??The sextant, 1757 – Allowed us to navigate by, and map, the stars.

22.??The telegraph, 1837 – Allowed our words to travel over almost limitless distances instantaneously, before it information could travel no faster than a man on horseback.

23.??The telephone, 1876 - Allowed our words to travel over almost limitless distances instantaneously.

24.??The mechanized clock, 15th century – Quantified time, allowed timetables, economy planning (charging by the hour), and more without relying purely by looking at the heavens.

25.??Radio, 1906 - The first demonstration of electronic mass media’s power to spread ideas and homogenize culture. Also allowed voice communication between ships (and later aircraft).

26.??Photography, early 19th century - Changed journalism, art, culture, and how we see ourselves.

27.??Archimedes’ screw, third century?BC - The first water pumps, a rotating corkscrew that pushed water up a tube. It transformed irrigation and remains in use today at many sewage-treatment plants.

28.??Pasteurization, 1863 - One of the first practical applications of Louis Pasteur’s germ theory, this method for using heat to sterilize wine, beer, and milk is widely considered to be one of history’s most effective public-health interventions.

29.??The Gregorian calendar, 1582 – Essentially debugged the previously used Julian calendar, jumping ahead 10 days to synchronize the world with the seasons.

30.??The steam turbine, 1884 - Turbines are the backbone of today’s energy infrastructure: they generate 80 percent of the world’s power.

31.??Cement, first millennium?BC - The foundation of civilization. Literally.

32.??Oil drilling, 1859 - Fueled the modern economy, established its geopolitics, started wars… it’s influence on world history right up to the present day cannot be overstated.

33.??The sailboat, fourth millennium BC - Transformed travel, warfare, and our view of the world

34.??Large scale rocketry, 1926 – Our only way off the planet.

35.??Air-conditioning, 1902 – Could we imagine summer without it?

36.??Television, early 20th century – Brought the world in pictures directly into homes.

37.??Anaesthesia, 1846 – Increased the survivability of surgical procedures by an estimated 75%.

38.??The assembly line, 1913 - Turned an individual craft-based economy into a mass-market one.

39.??The combine harvester, 1930s - Mechanized the farm, freeing people to do new types of work. Led to the development of other farm machinery.

40.??Paper money, 11th century – The core of our modern economy, promissory notes with a face value higher than their material value.

This list is not in any particular order. Depending on your perspective, any of the above could be the most important. Nor is it in any way claiming to be definitive. What it is intended to do though is provide a snapshot of the most important innovations in history. Each of the above points has had a profound impact on the world and the way we live.

What do you think should be on the list (or shouldn’t be)? Let me know.

Have you got a dream that needs realising? Whether it is the next ground-breaking, history making, society changing development or simply tweaking an existing product to provide a point of difference, INNOVOLO is here for you. Contact us today and get your innovation journey underway (or keep it rolling).