7 Great inventions that changed the world
CELEBRATE ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Inventions have always helped to make our lives easier. Over centuries many people have contributed to the overall ease of our lives through their inventions. These inventions which range from very simple to complex designs were dreamed up and created by people who wanted to help solve specific problems. They have affected our communication, transportation, businesses, and others.
In a bid to celebrate Global Entrepreneurship Week, we are celebrating and spotlighting some amazing inventions that have changed the world, especially those that help us as entrepreneurs to do business better. Here are the top 5 that our team selected…
TELEPHONE
This invention is credited to Alexander Graham Bell in 1876. A Swedish newspaper, Dagens Nyheter, had referred to the invention as “the speaking telegraph” which “plainly and conveyed the words uttered at one end of the telegraph line to the other”. Today, one of the most fundamental means of communication is our mobile phone. Through years of adjustments to Bell’s invention, we have been able to develop a tool that helps us communicate a lot easier and makes us reachable 24/7 – well, even though we just hate it sometimes 😉
AEROPLANES
Flying across cities, states, countries and even continents will give you a greater appreciation for this invention. The first successful flight is credited to the Wright brothers, Wilbur and Orville, on December 17, 1903. One of the most important parts of their story is their entrepreneurial resilience. Having an initial interest in flying, they ventured into the printing business and then bicycle repairs and subsequent production, while still keeping their dream to fly alive. A little resilience says a lot about an entrepreneur.
LIGHT BULB
A piece of ingenuity that has helped us become more productive at night without depending on natural light. Imagine a world where we could only work for half a day. This invention is generally credited to the American inventor Thomas Edison. While others had created some other versions of light bulbs even before Edison, Edison’s version proved to be sustainable and encouraged the commercial production of bulbs. I guess inventions and perhaps services get noticed more if they do what they are meant for, in the simplest way possible.
Just a note on the side, the light bulb wasn’t Thomas Edison’s only invention: Throughout his life, he filed more than 1,000 patents for different inventions mainly focusing on the telegraph and, of course, electricity and light.
PRINTING PRESS
German inventor Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press sometime between 1440 and 1450. The printing press made book and print production a lot easier. This encouraged a rapid dissemination of knowledge. The invention of the printing press is synonymous with the creation of social media today. Like social media, the printing press gave more people access to information that was previously not readily available, including at the time, the Bible.
INTERNET
Internet is an acronym for the “interconnected network”, a network of computers around the globe. Computer scientists Vinton Cerf and Bob Kahn are credited with inventing the Internet communication protocols we use today and the system referred to as the Internet. The system they invented is known as TCP/IP, or Transmission Control Protocol and Internet Protocol. The TCP part of the protocol is in charge of packing the data before it moves across the network and unpacking it once it has arrived. The IP component acts as the trip coordinator and maps the movement of information from its start point to its endpoint.
The internet has not only helped with communication but hundreds of businesses have also been created around the internet and this is worth celebrating! 🎉
Stay tuned and follow our daily series celebrating Entrepreneurship & Founders during this year’s Entrepreneurship Week!
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