posted June 21, 2006 09:36 AM            

What do you think? Rank order the top three and explain why you put them in that order.

Note: Again, don't explain why they're in your top three. Instead, explain why they are in that order. Why is the first more important than the second and the second more important than the third.

posted June 21, 2006 11:37 PM            

1 - electricity!
I know it's more of a discovery than anything else, but it brings so much to the table. As a result, so much else has been invented and built upon because of it.

2 - sports!
The several inventios of several individual sports created much more than a game to play. It has developed into a form of communication that spans the globe. Sports don't judge, it is cross cultural and does not discriminate. It has linked strangers together and taught sportsmanship and competition, true life lessons, to people all over. And it is a fun way to keep people healthy.

3 - the internet!
The vast world of technology and the infinite possibilities that are linked to the (invention of the) internet are profound. It creates an arena of opportunity for expression, education, information-sharing, art, culture, interest, health, business, communication, and the list goes on and on and on...

posted June 23, 2006 08:04 PM            

1. electricity -- As I was reading through the website, I noticed a comment that caught my attention: "Electricity contains the word city which certainly is our most complex invention and from the density of human interaction all else flows." I put this one first basically because without electricity, many of the other inventions on this list would not be possible!

2. languages -- Without languages, we as a society would not be able to communicate with one another, so this without a doubt had to go on my list. I put it second because I think electricity was an extraordinary invention, so putting it next would just make sense to me.

3. computers -- In the future "computers are essential to prevent a collapse of civilization." I put this one third because without electricity and languages a computer could not function, and also because computers over the last several years have improved how we communicate, how we learn, how we secure our country, how we shop, and countless other valuable things.

posted June 25, 2006 01:30 PM         

1. electricity
2. printing press
3. computer

Automobile
Television
Camera
Steam Engine
Sewing machine
Light bulb
Penicillin

Some nominations were obvious:
the printing press,
the contraceptive pill,
the atomic bomb

the abstract
calculus,
quantum theory,
evolution,
double-entry accounting

the world-historical
religion,
the city,
democracy

the quirkily mundane
the eraser,
reading glasses,
plumbing

the physiological
anesthesia,
DNA sequencing,
aspirin

the philosophical
scientific method, "the idea of an idea"

posted June 25, 2006 06:38 PM            

So these are my top three choices, they are in this order for the following reasons:

Without the printing press any written documentation, like historical events, would have to be hand copied for anyone to learn. Relying on word of mouth for information is inaccurate and anything with historical value would be lost. The printing press allowed accuracy. It allowed people all over the world to have access to any written documentation. By transferring hand written records into books that could be mass produced, civilization gained a global sharing of ideas, stories, and history.

The internet is essential for business and lives today. Going forward the internet is an integral part of commerce. It gives businesses and consumers the ability to transfer mass quantities of information in less than a second.

Indoor plumbing not only covers toilets, but running water in general. Besides people’s homes, businesses rely on accessible running water, indoors. Water impacts cooking, bathing, drinking, cleaning, etc…

posted June 26, 2006 03:12 PM            

This was an easy list for me to come up with, thank god for electricity, we would not be writing this discussion right now without it, or without a computer, and we could not take this class, so that's why i am happy for that. But seriously....

We use electricity every second of every day, even when you wake up in the middle of the night to look at the clock, we would be nowhere as a world without it.

There are so many interesting parts of the world, places we would not be able to see and appreciate without the automobile, or it would take a very long walk. The automobile ables us to travel, as well as bring items with us on travel, and to our homes.

The computer is now essential, i dont know what life would be like without it, but it would be much slower-paced, and most likely, suck.

posted June 27, 2006 04:53 PM            

2. Internet Technology - Because of the current and future impacts on economics, cultural geography, and general flow of information, the internet has to be considered one of the most important advances in history.

posted June 27, 2006 07:01 PM            

Telephone- without communication in this world there would have never been globalization.

posted June 27, 2006 09:43 PM            

1. Electricity - I thought electricity is number one because of the number of inventions that resulted from the invention of electricity. Many of the other choices wouldn't be possible without electricity. Just imagine a city with just candlelight.

2. Computers - I thought computers should go second because of the way it made life so much more efficient the past 30 years and created a lot of innovation that can help us in the future.

posted June 28, 2006 05:45 PM         

2) The microprocessor, because it led to the computer revolution and allowed us to start sharing information beyond paper.

posted August 06, 2006 05:43 PM            

2. The internet: what can I say? The sky is the limit. It provided wealth of information available to all. You could communicate with people who live on the other side of the planet with a simple click of a mouse.

3. Telephone: provided a very effective communication tool that linked people from all over the world. When letters were the only solution to long distance communication, telephones solved this problem and provided answers within seconds from dialing the number.

I wish I could put more because the invention of modern medicine approaches is definitely in the top 5 inventions in my opinion.

------------------
The biggest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance. It is the illusion of knowledge.

posted August 16, 2006 12:59 PM         

2) The Wheel- I believe the wheel is the second most important invention. Before the wheel men were limited to as far as they could walk or drag their objects. The wheel allowed for men to move across territories at much greater distances and with greater ease eventually leading to international and galactic travel.

3) Electricity- Without electricity modern day life as we know it would not exist- computers, TV, phone, lights, transportation systems, satellites, communication networks, etc etc. The list is endless. If Benjamin Franklin had not played in the electrical storm with a kite and a key who knows how much longer it would have taken to discover the properties of electricity and where we would be today!