Physical principles in the history of technology
253 inventions by year: what each evolved from and what it led to.
How the inventions are connected
- Jacob’s staff → Davis quadrant → Octant → Sextant
- Magnetism → Electromagnetism → Electromagnetic induction → Maxwell’s equations
- Heliocentric system → Kepler’s laws → Universal gravitation
- Electrostatic machine → Van de Graaff generator → Particle accelerator
- Magnifying glass → Microscope → Electron microscope
- Ruler → Vernier caliper → Micrometer
| Year | Invention | What it is | Evolved from | Led to |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1000000 BC | Wedge | A simple machine: an inclined plane that pushes material apart. | ||
| 6000 BC | Mirror | A reflecting surface. | ||
| 3000 BC | Balance scale | Scales based on an equal-armed lever. | Electronic scales | |
| 2650 BC | Ruler | A measuring strip with graduations. | Tape measure, Vernier caliper | |
| 1900 BC | Cryptography | Encrypting messages. | ||
| 1500 BC | Water clock (clepsydra) | Measuring time by the outflow of water. | Mechanical clock | |
| 1500 BC | Sundial | Telling time by the shadow of a gnomon. | ||
| 600 BC | Magnetism | The attraction and repulsion of magnets; the Earth’s magnetic field. | Electromagnetism | |
| 600 BC | Map | A scaled picture of an area. | Globe, GPS (satellite navigation), Online maps | |
| 600 BC | Static electricity | Charging by friction (Thales, amber). | ||
| 500 BC | Compasses | A tool for drawing circles. | ||
| 500 BC | String vibration | Pitch depends on length and tension (Pythagoras, Mersenne). | ||
| 400 BC | Camera obscura | A dark chamber with a hole that forms an inverted image. | Camera | |
| 300 BC | Euclidean geometry | Euclid’s Elements. | Trigonometry | |
| 250 BC | Lever | A simple machine that multiplies force through leverage. Described by Archimedes. | ||
| 250 BC | Archimedes’ principle | A submerged body is pushed up by a buoyant force. | ||
| 200 BC | South-pointing spoon (Chinese compass) | A lodestone spoon that points south. | Compass | |
| 200 BC | Armillary sphere | A model of the celestial sphere made of rings. | ||
| 150 BC | Astrolabe | An angle-measuring instrument and analogue calculator of celestial positions. | Quadrant | |
| 150 BC | Trigonometry | The relations between angles and sides (Hipparchus). | Euclidean geometry | |
| 132 | Zhang Heng’s seismoscope | A bronze vessel with balls that showed the direction of an earthquake. | Seismograph | |
| 150 | Quadrant | An angle gauge for measuring the altitude of celestial bodies. | Astrolabe | |
| 400 | Hydrometer | A float with a scale: the denser the liquid, the higher it floats. It is used to measure the density of milk, syrup or battery acid. | ||
| 500 | Hindu–Arabic numerals | The decimal positional system. | Binary number system | |
| 820 | Algorithm | A finite sequence of steps; named after al-Khwarizmi. | ||
| 1100 | Compass | A magnetic needle that points north. | South-pointing spoon (Chinese compass) | Gyrocompass |
| 1250 | Magnifying glass Ibn al-Haytham | A magnifying lens. | Glasses, Microscope | |
| 1280 | Lens | A transparent body that focuses light by refraction. | ||
| 1300 | Hourglass | Measuring time with pouring sand. | ||
| 1342 | Jacob’s staff Яков бен-Махир ибн-Тиббон, Gersonides | A navigational angle gauge. | Davis quadrant | |
| 1441 | Rain gauge | A precipitation meter (Korea). | ||
| 1450 | Hygrometer | Measures air humidity. | ||
| 1450 | Anemometer | Measures wind speed (Alberti; the cup anemometer — Robinson). | ||
| 1492 | Globe | A model of the Earth (Behaim). | Map | |
| 1543 | Heliocentric system | The Earth goes around the Sun (Copernicus). | Kepler’s laws | |
| 1569 | Mercator projection Gerardus Mercator | A map projection that preserves angles for navigation. | ||
| 1590 | Microscope Zaccarias Janssen, Hans Janssen | An optical instrument for looking at small objects (Janssen, Leeuwenhoek). | Glasses, Magnifying glass | Electron microscope |
| 1594 | Davis quadrant John Davis | An angle gauge that let the navigator avoid looking at the Sun. | Jacob’s staff | Octant |
| 1600 | Electroscope | A charge indicator (Gilbert). | ||
| 1602 | Pendulum | A weight on a suspension with a constant period of swing (Galileo). | ||
| 1602 | Resonance | A sharp rise in oscillations when frequencies match. | ||
| 1608 | Telescope Hans Lippershay, Juan Roget | An optical instrument for observing distant objects (Lipperhey, Galileo). | Glasses | Binoculars |
| 1609 | Kepler’s laws | The laws of planetary motion. | Heliocentric system | Universal gravitation |
| 1615 | Triangulation | Surveying with a network of triangles (Snellius). | ||
| 1631 | Vernier caliper | An instrument for measuring dimensions precisely with a vernier scale (Vernier). | Ruler | Micrometer |
| 1637 | Cartesian coordinates | Numbers as points on a plane (Descartes). | ||
| 1643 | Barometer Evangelista Torricelli | Torricelli’s instrument for measuring atmospheric pressure. | Altimeter | |
| 1647 | Pressure | Force per unit area; Torricelli measured atmospheric pressure. | ||
| 1650 | Vacuum pump | Otto von Guericke’s pump for evacuating air. | Piston pump | Boyle’s air pump |
| 1653 | Hydraulics (Pascal’s law) | Pressure in a liquid is transmitted equally in all directions. | ||
| 1654 | Vacuum | A rarefied space; Guericke’s experiments with the Magdeburg hemispheres. | ||
| 1654 | Weather station | A set of weather instruments (the Medici network). | ||
| 1654 | Probability theory | Pascal and Fermat; later Kolmogorov. | Dice | |
| 1656 | Pendulum clock Christiaan Huygens | Huygens’s clock, in which a pendulum sets the pace. | Mechanical clock | Quartz clock |
| 1659 | Centrifugal effect | The tendency of a rotating body to move away from the axis. | ||
| 1659 | Boyle’s air pump | Boyle and Hooke’s pump for experiments with vacuum. | Vacuum pump | |
| 1660 | Elasticity | The ability of a body to regain its shape; Hooke’s law. | ||
| 1661 | Manometer | An instrument that measures the pressure of a gas or liquid: a U-shaped tube of liquid or a Bourdon tube with a needle. | Blood pressure monitor | |
| 1662 | Statistics | Analysing data (Graunt). | ||
| 1662 | Boyle’s law | The pressure of a gas is inversely proportional to its volume. | ||
| 1663 | Electrostatic machine | A generator of static electricity (Guericke, Wimshurst). | Van de Graaff generator | |
| 1666 | Prism | A glass body that splits light into a spectrum (Newton). | ||
| 1666 | Dispersion of light | Refraction depending on colour. | ||
| 1668 | Reflecting telescope James Gregory | A telescope with a mirror instead of an objective lens (Newton). | Corpuscular and wave optics | |
| 1676 | Hooke’s law | Deformation is proportional to force. | ||
| 1676 | Speed of light Ole Rømer | The finite speed of light (Rømer). | ||
| 1684 | Calculus Isaac Newton, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz | Differential and integral calculus (Newton, Leibniz). | ||
| 1687 | Universal gravitation Robert Hooke | Newton’s law of gravitation. | Kepler’s laws | |
| 1687 | Newton’s laws Isaac Newton | The basic laws of mechanics. | ||
| 1687 | Reaction force Isaac Newton | Throwing mass one way pushes a body the other way (Newton’s third law). | ||
| 1687 | Orbital motion | A body moving around another under gravity. | ||
| 1703 | Binary number system | Numbers made of zeros and ones (Leibniz). | Hindu–Arabic numerals | |
| 1711 | Tuning fork John Shore | A standard of sound frequency (Shore). | ||
| 1712 | Orrery | A mechanical model of the Solar System. | Planetarium | |
| 1714 | Thermometer Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit, Hero of Alexandria | An instrument for measuring temperature (Fahrenheit, mercury). | ||
| 1729 | Electrical conduction | A substance’s ability to conduct current (Gray). | ||
| 1731 | Sextant John Bird, Abu-Mahmud Khujandi | An instrument for measuring the altitude of celestial bodies. | Octant | |
| 1731 | Octant John Hadley, Thomas Godfrey | Hadley’s reflecting angle gauge — the forerunner of the sextant. | Davis quadrant | Sextant |
| 1736 | Graph theory Leonhard Euler | The mathematics of vertices and edges; the Königsberg bridge problem (Euler). | ||
| 1738 | Lift | The force created when air flows around a wing. | ||
| 1738 | Venturi effect (Bernoulli’s principle) | A flow’s pressure drops where its speed rises. | ||
| 1745 | Capacitance | The ability of conductors to store charge; the capacitor is based on it. | ||
| 1759 | Bimetallic strip | Two strips of metal that bend when heated (Harrison). | ||
| 1760 | Photometer | A light meter. | ||
| 1761 | Latent heat | Heat is absorbed during evaporation and released during condensation (Black). | ||
| 1761 | Marine chronometer John Harrison | Harrison’s precise clock for finding longitude. | Pocket watch | |
| 1777 | Torsion balance | Measuring tiny forces (Coulomb, Cavendish). | ||
| 1779 | Photosynthesis | Plants turn light into chemical energy (Ingenhousz). | ||
| 1785 | Diffraction grating | Splitting light into a spectrum with fine lines (Fraunhofer). | ||
| 1788 | Feedback control | A controller compares the result with the goal and corrects the process. | ||
| 1800 | Electrochemical reaction | A chemical reaction in which electrons flow through an external circuit — the basis of batteries. | ||
| 1800 | Infrared radiation William Herschel | Invisible heat radiation (Herschel). | ||
| 1800 | Direct current | A current flowing in one direction. | ||
| 1801 | Wave interference | Waves adding up to reinforce or cancel each other (Young). | ||
| 1801 | Ultraviolet | Radiation shorter than violet (Ritter). | ||
| 1802 | Electric arc | A discharge in a gas between electrodes (Petrov, Davy). | ||
| 1808 | Atomic theory | Matter is made of atoms (Dalton). | Electron, Atomic nucleus | |
| 1808 | Polarization of light | The orientation of a light wave’s oscillations (Malus). | ||
| 1814 | Spectroscope Joseph von Fraunhofer | An instrument for splitting light into a spectrum (Fraunhofer, 1814); spectral analysis — Kirchhoff and Bunsen (1859). | ||
| 1814 | Planimeter | An instrument for measuring areas. | ||
| 1814 | Spectral lines William Hyde Wollaston | Fraunhofer lines; the “fingerprints” of elements. | ||
| 1820 | Electromagnetism | An electric current creates a magnetic field (Ørsted’s experiment), and a field acts on a current. | Magnetism | Electromagnetic induction |
| 1820 | Galvanometer | An instrument that detects current by the deflection of a needle. | Multimeter, Ammeter, Voltmeter, Electrocardiograph | |
| 1821 | Thermocouple | A junction of different metals that produces a voltage when heated (Seebeck). | ||
| 1821 | Stopwatch | A watch for timing intervals. | ||
| 1822 | Fourier transform | Breaking a signal down into harmonics. | Discrete cosine transform | |
| 1824 | Thermodynamics | The science of turning heat into work; the Carnot cycle. | Watt steam engine | |
| 1824 | Greenhouse effect | A shell transparent to light traps heat radiation (Fourier). | ||
| 1824 | Persistence of vision | The illusion of motion when frames change quickly. | ||
| 1827 | Electrical resistance | A conductor opposes current; Ohm’s law relates current and voltage. | ||
| 1831 | Electromagnetic induction Michael Faraday | A changing magnetic field induces a current in a conductor (Faraday). | Electromagnetism | Electromagnetic waves, Maxwell’s equations |
| 1834 | Vapour-compression cycle | A refrigerant evaporates, absorbing heat, and condenses under pressure (Perkins). | ||
| 1838 | Stereoscope | A device for a 3D image from two pictures (Wheatstone). | VR headset | |
| 1839 | Camera | A device that captures an image through a lens onto a light-sensitive medium. | Camera obscura | Smartphone camera, Photolithography, Digital camera |
| 1839 | Photovoltaic effect Antoine César Becquerel | A current arising in a material under light. | ||
| 1839 | Daguerreotype Louis Daguerre | The first practical photographic process, on a silvered plate. | ||
| 1839 | Cell theory Matthias Jacob Schleiden, Theodor Schwann | All organisms are made of cells (Schleiden, Schwann). | ||
| 1841 | Joule heating | A current passing through a resistance releases heat. | ||
| 1842 | Doppler effect Christian Dopplerr | A change in wave frequency when the source moves. | ||
| 1847 | Conservation of energy | Energy is neither created nor destroyed; it changes from one form to another. | ||
| 1848 | Micrometer William Gascoigne, Christiaan Huygens | A measuring tool built on a precise screw (Palmer). | Vernier caliper | |
| 1848 | Absolute zero Guillaume Amontons | The lower limit of temperature (Kelvin). | ||
| 1851 | Eddy currents | Currents induced in a conductor by an alternating magnetic field (Foucault). | ||
| 1852 | Gyroscope Léon Foucault | A fast-spinning rotor that keeps the orientation of its axis (Foucault). | ||
| 1854 | Boolean algebra | The algebra of logic over true/false values; the basis of digital circuits. | ||
| 1854 | Binoculars | A double telescope with prisms (Porro). | Telescope | |
| 1855 | Bunsen burner Robert Bunsen, Peter Desaga | A laboratory gas burner. | ||
| 1857 | Kinetic theory | Heat is the motion of molecules (Clausius, Maxwell, Boltzmann). | ||
| 1861 | Weather forecast | Storm warnings (FitzRoy); numerical forecasting in 1950. | ||
| 1864 | Centrifuge | Separating mixtures by spinning. | ||
| 1865 | Maxwell’s equations | A unified theory of electromagnetism. | Electromagnetic induction | |
| 1865 | Entropy | A measure of irreversibility (Clausius). | ||
| 1865 | Laws of heredity | Mendel’s laws. | DNA double helix | |
| 1877 | Cryogenics | Producing low temperatures; liquefying gases (Cailletet, Pictet). | ||
| 1880 | Piezoelectric effect Пьер Кюри, Jacques Curie | A crystal under pressure produces a voltage and vice versa (the Curie brothers). | ||
| 1880 | Shutter | A mechanism that lets in light for a set time. | ||
| 1880 | Ultrasound | Sound above the threshold of hearing. | ||
| 1881 | Interferometer | An instrument based on the interference of light (Michelson). | Theory of relativity | |
| 1885 | Photographic film | A flexible film with a light-sensitive emulsion (Eastman). | ||
| 1886 | Alternating current | A current that periodically reverses direction; the Tesla–Westinghouse system. | ||
| 1887 | Petri dish Julius Richard Petri | A flat dish for growing microbes. | ||
| 1887 | Photoelectric effect | Light knocking out electrons (Hertz, Stoletov; explained by Einstein). | Quantum mechanics | |
| 1888 | Electromagnetic waves Heinrich Hertz | Propagating oscillations of the electromagnetic field; proved experimentally by Hertz. | Electromagnetic induction | |
| 1889 | Standard kilogram | A platinum–iridium cylinder; since 2019 defined through the Planck constant. | ||
| 1892 | Dewar flask | A vacuum vessel for liquefied gases. | Vacuum flask | |
| 1895 | X-rays Wilhelm Röntgen | Penetrating radiation (Röntgen). | ||
| 1896 | Radioactivity | The spontaneous decay of nuclei (Becquerel, the Curies). | Nuclear fission | |
| 1896 | Weather balloon | A balloon with instruments (Molchanov’s radiosonde, 1930). | ||
| 1897 | Electron Joseph John Thomson | An elementary negatively charged particle (Thomson). | Atomic theory, Cathode-ray tube | |
| 1903 | Tsiolkovsky rocket equation | Relates a rocket’s speed to its fuel mass. | ||
| 1905 | Theory of relativity Albert Einstein | Einstein’s special (1905) and general (1915) theories. | Interferometer | |
| 1905 | E = mc² Albert Einstein | The equivalence of mass and energy. | ||
| 1906 | Gyrocompass | A compass built on a gyroscope (Anschütz). | Compass | |
| 1906 | Amplitude and frequency modulation | Ways of putting a signal onto a carrier wave (Fessenden, Armstrong). | ||
| 1907 | Electroluminescence | A substance glowing under an electric current. | ||
| 1911 | Cloud chamber Charles Thomson Rees Wilson | Particle tracks in supersaturated vapour. | Bubble chamber | |
| 1911 | Atomic nucleus | Rutherford’s experiment. | Atomic theory | |
| 1911 | Superconductivity | The disappearance of resistance at low temperature (Kamerlingh Onnes). | ||
| 1912 | X-ray crystallography | Determining structure from X-ray diffraction (Laue, the Braggs). | ||
| 1913 | Isotopes | Atoms of one element with different masses (Soddy). | ||
| 1913 | Echo sounder | Measuring depth with sound (Behm). | Sonar | |
| 1914 | Hydrophone | A microphone for water. | ||
| 1915 | Sonar Walter Guyton Cady, Paul Langevin | Detecting objects by reflected sound (Langevin). | Echo sounder | |
| 1917 | Stimulated emission | A photon triggers the emission of an identical photon (Einstein). | ||
| 1919 | Mass spectrometer | Separating ions by mass (Aston). | ||
| 1920 | Accelerometer | An acceleration sensor; MEMS versions are found in phones and airbags. | ||
| 1920 | Radio navigation | Finding a position from radio beacons (LORAN). | GPS (satellite navigation) | |
| 1920 | Ground effect | A wing gaining lift near a surface. | ||
| 1923 | Planetarium | A projector of the starry sky (Zeiss). | Orrery | |
| 1925 | Quantum mechanics | The theory of how particles behave at small scales. | Photoelectric effect | |
| 1928 | Plasma | An ionized gas. | ||
| 1928 | Geiger counter Walther Müller, Hans Geiger | Detects ionizing radiation. | ||
| 1929 | Van de Graaff generator Robert J. Van de Graaff | A high-voltage generator with a belt. | Electrostatic machine | Particle accelerator |
| 1929 | Polarizing filter | Polaroid (Land). | ||
| 1930 | Retroreflector | Reflects light back towards its source. | ||
| 1930 | Dielectric heating | Heating water molecules with an alternating electric field. | ||
| 1931 | Photographic flash | A pulsed gas-discharge lamp (Edgerton). | ||
| 1931 | Electron microscope Ernst Ruska, Макс Кнолль | A microscope that uses a beam of electrons (Ruska). | Microscope | |
| 1931 | Exposure meter | A light meter for photography. | ||
| 1931 | Band theory | Explains conductors, insulators and semiconductors. | ||
| 1932 | Particle accelerator | Accelerates particles with electromagnetic fields (Lawrence’s cyclotron). | Van de Graaff generator | World Wide Web |
| 1932 | Cyclotron | An accelerator on a spiral in a magnetic field (Lawrence). | Large Hadron Collider | |
| 1932 | Neutron James Chadwick | A neutral particle of the nucleus (Chadwick). | ||
| 1935 | Radar Christian Hülsmeyer | Detecting objects by reflected radio waves. | Microwave oven | |
| 1937 | Radio telescope | An antenna for receiving cosmic radio emission (Reber). | ||
| 1938 | Strain gauge | A sensor of deformation by a change in resistance. | ||
| 1938 | Nuclear fission | A uranium nucleus splits, releasing energy and neutrons (Hahn, Meitner). | Radioactivity | |
| 1938 | Nuclear magnetic resonance | Nuclei absorbing radio waves in a magnetic field (Rabi). | ||
| 1940 | P–n junction | The boundary between semiconductors of different conductivity types. | ||
| 1942 | Chain reaction | Fission neutrons cause new fissions. | ||
| 1945 | Geostationary orbit | An orbit where a satellite hangs over one point (Clarke). | ||
| 1948 | Bit and information theory | A quantitative measure of information (Shannon). | ||
| 1950 | Doppler radar | A radar that measures speed from the Doppler shift. | ||
| 1952 | Bubble chamber Donald Arthur Glaser | Particle tracks in a superheated liquid (Glaser). | Cloud chamber | |
| 1953 | DNA double helix James Watson, Francis Crick | The model of DNA’s structure (Watson, Crick, Franklin). | Laws of heredity | |
| 1954 | Maser Charles Hard Townes, James Power Gordon | The microwave forerunner of the laser. | Laser | |
| 1955 | Atomic clock | A clock paced by transitions in caesium atoms. | Quartz clock | |
| 1960 | Laser | A source of coherent light (Maiman; Basov, Prokhorov, Townes). | Maser | |
| 1960 | Infrared thermometer | A non-contact IR thermometer. | ||
| 1961 | Superconducting magnet | An electromagnet with a superconducting winding. | ||
| 1961 | Lidar Hughes Aircraft Company | A rangefinder that measures distances with laser pulses. | ||
| 1963 | Heat pipe | A tube with an evaporating liquid that carries heat (Grover). | ||
| 1972 | Discrete cosine transform | The basis of image and video compression (Ahmed). | Fourier transform | |
| 2008 | Large Hadron Collider | The largest accelerator (CERN). | Cyclotron | |
| 2015 | LIGO | A laser interferometer that detects gravitational waves. | ||
| Friction | A force that resists the relative motion of surfaces. | |||
| Heat transfer | Moving heat by conduction, convection and radiation. | |||
| Gravity flow | The movement of a liquid under the force of gravity. | |||
| Reflection of light | The angle of incidence equals the angle of reflection. | |||
| Compressed air | Air under pressure as a carrier of energy. | |||
| Capillary action | A liquid rising in narrow channels. | |||
| Sound wave | Pressure oscillations in a medium. | |||
| Angular momentum | A rotating body conserves its angular momentum. | |||
| Torque | A measure of the turning effect of a force. | |||
| Convection | Heat carried by currents of a heated medium. | |||
| Counterweight | A weight that balances a load or stores potential energy. | |||
| Refraction of light | A change in the direction of light at the boundary between media. | |||
| Drag | A force that resists a body’s motion through a medium. | |||
| Inclined plane | A simple machine that trades a longer path for less force. | Screw | ||
| Thermal expansion | Bodies expand when heated. |