The Greatest Invention Ever Made

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Originally posted by seiya_33@15 March 2004 - 22:36
well i want to say math , cuz you can relate pretty much everything with it , but really not sure if its considered an invention , cuz its not just numbers , well as you can see im not as smart as you think , so if anybody wants to correct my error or put it in words people can understand. :D

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i would say the modern number system (roman numerals don't have a zero) and algebra are the greatest inventions

but if you're going to argue that you can't invent maths then i would say the greatest, bestest invention ever is: fire :unsure:

I thought fire was not invented till the early 20th century. Was it not first created by rubbing two boy scouts together. :lol:


P.S. Dont go there, it is meant as a joke. :)

i vote C3PO :01:

I voted other.

I think the best invention ever was the telephone because it opened up all kinds of new things for the world.


I also think the oscilloscope is a kick ass thing B)

The wheel was actually invented, because nobody used it, untill the Sumerians started doing so. That means it started there. Probably by several people rather than only one person. It gradually had other uses...
Beer is actually invented by the Sumerians and Babylonians.
Mesopotamians developed the first language ass well. dame it. :lol:
mesopotamians developed Pythagora's theorem. I've seen the tablets. There are several triangles and writings on the tablets explaining all this s##t. Unfotunately, these were all destroyed when the Iraqi museum was destroyed during the war on Iraq :( .
Fire is not an invention. Well, it could be, but it is said that the first fire was created from lightning and other natural causes, such as volcaneos. The above is a theory though.
telephone/radar/Tv are possibly great inventions.
the granite blade? It is possible as well

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Originally posted by oldmancan@15 March 2004 - 09:24
I think the greatest invention is language and more specifically the written word.

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I want to be more specific than my original post. The greatest invention is the written word, the root of which is the alphabet. So the alphabet is the greatest invention.

A few points, please consider:

Language expressed by the written word is more than symbols. Hieroglyphics are pictographs, a symbol relates to an object. You don't take parts of these and mix them up, creating a new "word". When I refer to the written word it is comprised of a group of symbols that represent sounds. These sounds can be combined to form various arrangements. Sound arrangements are given meaning by consent of those "voicing" them.

A language is a community object. If no people use a particular language it will cease to exist. The same is true of a language's creation, it takes a group to develop a language. Several ppl have pointed this out and I agree.

If people use a language, teach it to others, especially the children then the langauge will outlive the individuals who developed it. This is what allows for an oral history.

Individuals can learn things from each other, without ever having even met. People can "know" things without having experiencing them directly.

A solely oral language is quite prone to human error. Think of the parlour game "I'll tell you something", the something at the beginning can be quite different from the something at the end. Throw time into the equation and the errors multiply.

The word once written doesn't change. The language may change from when the word was written, but what was written doesn't change. The person who writes something can look at it later and understand it. Somebody else can look at those written words and also understand them. Time is taken out of the equation. That somebody might read those words hours, days or years later.

This ability to communicate, beyond time, to collect a wealth of knowledge is because of the alphabet.

:ninja: I'm quite surprised nobody's talked about the printing press.

And a Micro&#036;haft product? What the hell were you thinking? <_<

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Originally posted by supersonic@15 March 2004 - 18:47
j2k4:
Life is definitly the greatest invention, but it is actually not ours. Humans did
not create life :( . Many people (including me) say it is GOD, others say it was
created by itself. Critical thinking and nice selection.

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supersonic-

I was referring to the equipment used to facilitate spectating, which we use constantly.

Walls to lean against while watching women, for example, and lips to whistle at them with.

All of the things which enhance the art. ;)

I share your beliefs regarding LIFE, as well as it&#39;s Creator. :)

J&#39;Pol-

I think I must default to your (at least in this instance) superior plumbing of proper candidates for the honor:

ALL HAIL THE WRITTEN WORD&#33;

Well done, sir, as usual. :P

Boab-

Humor, written or otherwise, runs a very close second in my book (which I wrote); it does not occur in nature-we invented it, with the aid of laughter, my third-place selection. :lol:

Seems to me that the greatest invention to some people is the long post, good grammar and a smillie. (resisting a smillie)

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Originally posted by mrcall1969@16 March 2004 - 02:51
Seems to me that the greatest invention to some people is the long post, good grammar and a smillie. (resisting a smillie)

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Sorry to offend, then.

Short enough for you?