(Wikipedia, 2016)
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The Heritage of Ancient ChinaChina is responsible for being the host country of many great inventions. Such as paper making, silk, tea production, kites, a more efficient seed drill, deep drilling, porcelain, compass, noodles, alcohol, iron and steel smelting, wheelbarrow, seismograph, printing, gunpowder and possibly many more.(10) Many of these inventions permanently changed the world, even if China wasn't the one who did it. These technologies enabled the discovery of many new things about the world around us, helped us feed the masses, and build highly complicated machines. China's inventions allowed us to sail the seas, communicate easily and store information for the generations to come. We would not be where we are without these inventions.
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Compass(China Expat - Chinese Cultural Observations From The Western Perspective, 2012)
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The compass was first invented in the Qin dynasty, China (221 BC - present). The device was first intended to be a device used to foretell the future. The fortune tellers eventually worked out that needles made of the metal would only ever point north, so they abandoned it. However navigators saw use in this device and the compass was born. The compass was instrumental in navigating the world and first allowed people to travel over the sea with a negligible chance of never seeing the shore again. (11)
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Paper Making(Quatr.us, 2016)
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In 105 A.D an eunuch in the Eastern Han dynasty discovered how to make paper from fishnet, bark and cloth. Previous 'paper' were just bits of stone, bone or wood, and you just chisel words in. The new paper significantly decreased the weight of paper and was flexible, so allowed books and scrolls to be easily distributed across China. Traditionally silk was used as paper, it was light and flexible, but hugely expensive and took too long to make. The new paper was incredibly cheap, so anyone in China can afford it and be able to write. this invention greatly increased communication and cultural growth. (11)
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Gunpowder |
Gunpowder was accidentally invented during the search for the elixir of immortality. Gunpowder was first used for entertainment in the form of fireworks. However the military soon saw use in a explosive, flammable material. Gunpowder was used to make simple bombs, lengths of bamboo were filled with gunpowder and a fuse installed at one side, once detonated, Boom. After cast iron was invented, the bamboo was replaced with iron, and the world's first cannon was created. Soon more advanced explosives were used in the army, such as multistage rockets, mines, flamethrowers, even hand grenades were used by the Chinese army. (10)
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