A lot of inventions have come and changed our world so it is difficult to pick out just ten. This is my list of all-time greatest inventions arranged in chronological order.
1. The use of fire: the invention that sparked human civilization. Fire has tremendously changed man's way of life. It opens up numerous ways of processing food, provides light, heat and is a weapon to fight against the oppressive nature. In spiritual life fire also plays important roles. It presents in many rituals and is adored as a god in several parts of the world.
2. Wheel: the foundation of almost every means of transportation. With wheel man partly reliefs his burden and achieves the ease of movement. Thus it quickens man's living pace. Besides that wheel has many uses in other aspects of life: in a potter's tool, in a clock, etc.
3. Writing: the record of man's life and mind. Writing plays a huge role in communication: with some lines man can correspond with someone far away. Furthermore: it literally materialized man's lore and feeling thus those delicate things can be virtually indefinitely preserved. It is the base of many art forms: poetry, novels, etc.
4. Printer: the revolution of the intellectual world. Wurtenberg's invention enables the mass production of books and similar materials thus considerably lowering their cost and making them accessible to everyone noble and common alike. Thanks to printing technology, a normal citizen can have as much knowledge as his leaders. Therefore, printers in a way liberalizes people and promotes equality.
5. Engine: the force that drive the whole society. First successfully put to use by James Watt and perfected by many other engineers, engine incredibly increases productivity. Powered by steam, coal, petrol or electricity, it creates goods en mass with much lower expense than before and is the core of speedy means of transportation. It takes man to the industrial era hence changing thoroughly the structure of modern society.
6. Electricity: the blood of modern society. Compared to other sources of power, electricity is economical, convenient, safe, reliable and relative clean. It powers factories, household appliances and in future transportation may depend on it as well. Therefore, the discovery of electricity and its use is truly a huge achievement.
7. Telecommunication: the bridge that spans the greatest distance. The world seems to get smaller and smaller when telegraph, telephone and cell phone successively came on stage. Information travels from one place to another with dramatically increasing speed. One now has a broader and deeper knowledge of the planet one's living in than one's ancestors. All parts of the world are connected and influence strongly each other. Life has never been this globalized.
8. Computer: the most powerful tool man has ever known. Since its introduction in the 50s of the 20th century, computer and the technology related to it have had a great development in the shortest amount of time ever seen. Now computer is commonplace in most areas of the world both developed and developing. It has almost indefinite uses: in office work, engineering, daily communication, entertainment, etc.
9. Spaceship and other products of space technology: the means through which man fulfills his ancient dream: reaching the stars. They have significances in many fields of science. Thanks to them, the physicists can approach nearer the nature of the universe and the Earth, the weather predictors can observe the activities of flows of wind and tide; the communication service providers have another option to add to their services. Space also represents the unlimited ambition of human.
10. The Internet: the highway of information. Internet is the broadest and probably most democratic medium. Anyone can find the necessary information of any type on the net. Internet is also where one can freely express oneself without most of the restrictions existing in the "outer life". It establishes new kinds of social relationship and changes the way many people view the world.