In the past century, we have made a lot of progress. Since technology advances exponentially, that progress was more than we have ever done before.

So much is happening right now that in the coming century, the world will have changed ten times over. That is why we cannot stop talking about all the cool new technologies that are being developed right now.

Therefore, we seldom stop and think about all the things we have already achieved and the breakthroughs that we have made ever since we were cave dwelling people, that have become the defining moments of our history.

Today, let’s talk about these breakthroughs that have all contributed in helping us reach where we are today.

1. Controlled Use of Fire

The earliest evidence of controlled use of fire by the early human species dates back to around 600,000 years. Claims are made for even older use but no definitive evidence has been found.

The ability to control fire must have sparked a new era of innovation in those days. Imagine the awe of the first early human who realised that fire could be controlled and used for so many different purposes.

It helped the early human species the ability to cook food, stay warmer at night, protect themselves from wild predators, spread to colder regions of the planet initiating our global expansion.

2. Invention of the Wheel

Wheels are something that we use everywhere today and they are so common that we hardly give them any thought. Can you even imagine what life was like in a world that had no wheels?

Well, you would be surprised to know that the invention of the wheel only happened around 3500 BC. By that time we had already started making metal alloys, sailboats and even designing musical instruments. So, compared to others, the invention of the wheel was a fairly recent one and we had had to make do without them for quite a long time.

The wheel’s invention sparked an entirely new era of human transportation and helped trade flourish between the many, many civilisations of the world. Just think about it, without a wheel, you wouldn’t have a car, a bike or even an airplane!

3. The Printing Press

Today, we proudly say that we are living in the information age where anything we want to know about can be accessed right in the palm of our hands through our smartphones. One could say that information has become the backbone of our civilisation.

Therefore it is difficult to imagine a time when that was not possible. In fact, before Gutenberg introduced printing in Europe, which kickstarted a printing revolution, information must have been really hard to get. That is why the printing press is regarded as the most important invention of the second millennium.

Printing, though modernised, is still very much in use today and it is only now that we are beginning to go paperless in some areas of our activities. Imagine a world where you couldn’t print! Science surely couldn’t have advanced so fast.

4. Electricity

This one is just a no brainer. Most of the things that we do today requires electricity. The whole world runs on computers which require electricity. Without it, all the smartphones, tablets and other electronic devices would be just useless. Such a world is simply unimaginable to today’s generation.

And yet, it was not too long ago that we had no concept of electricity, or at least of the use of it. Much of the work to understand the principles of electricity and to use it for our benefits, happened in the 18th and 19th century and it was only after that, that electricity became a part of the common household and everything was changed forever.

It kickstarted the technological revolution as it enabled radios, telephones, light bulbs, industrial machines and later, computers, televisions, and pretty much the entire consumer electronic landscape.

5. Telescope

The telescope’s invention pretty much revolutionised astronomy and it helped us do away with archaic understandings and beliefs about the universe and establish facts and real information, once and for all.

Before the telescope, it was a general consensus that the Earth was at the centre of the universe and everything revolved around the Earth. But since then, we have come to our senses and have now looked at galaxies that are as old as 13 billion years!

The thing is, we are an explorative species. We are the seekers and the telescope has been one of the most important tool to help us understand the world beyond our horizon. Telescopes are literally our eyes to the universe without which, we would be like frogs in a well.