Ancient Chinese Inventions
|
|
China, one of the largest nations in the world has been a source of great inventions. The civilization has existed for more than six millennia. It has contributed countless number of inventions that makes its civilization remarkable in the field of science and technology. Ancients inventions like Gunpowder, silk, paper and compass remained as prominent piece of Chinese and global life. The four inventions were born in the 'Sung Dynasty'.
The Toast Monk in ancient china invented the Gunpowder. The search for immortality through science leads to its inventions. It is directly
|
translated as flaming medicine. Ancient Chinese use it for signal flares and fire works. Later, it was adapted for military purposes. They continued the invention as the military capacity continued to develop. It is made by mixing sulphur, saltpeter and charcoal. The use of gun power was mainly confined to the use military purposes to develop fire arrows and primitive rockets in times if conflict.
Silk is an important invention in Ancient china. It contributes a lot to the Ancient economy as it is exported to other European countries. The ancient Chinese invent the art of harvesting it and use it for paper and clothing. The creation of silk gives the ancient Chinese a great opportunity to connect to the outside world through trade. It also led to the creation of Silk Road, which was an overland trade route. The invention of silk make the Chinese to exposed to other part of the world.
The invention of paper in ancient china is one of the greatest contributions in the world. Before the invention of paper, Chinese record their text on either stone or bones. Records of texts were extremely important in royal courts. However, it is difficult to transport the records, as it is heavy and bulky. The only way to avoid using heavy material is the use of silk. They finally invent the process of making paper by mixing fibers that when dried created the modern day paper. The inventions of paper made the world to change the systems of recordings and easy at the same time.
The Compass was invented during the Qin dynasty (221-206 BC). The Chinese fortunetellers who used loadstones to construct their fortune telling boards invented it. The compass came into being after the realization of the loadstones pointing towards the north. The Chinese invented the compass for the use of divination but it evolved as a directional device. The compass was used for religious purpose and it is associated with beliefs. They start making Magnets by heating pieces of ore, called, magnetite, that moves towards the north or south position. One great achievement of compass is that it makes navigation safer that opened the oceans for exploration and led to the discovery of the new world.
The four great ancient inventions show that china occupies an important position in the history of human civilization. The inventions left a magnificent phase in the history of science and culture. The inventions contribute to the advancement of human history.
|
|
