What is the greatest invention EVER???

[CivLuvah]

What is the greatest invention man has ever invented. EVER?

 

[GoodGame]

I'd have to go with Nuclear power plants, but maybe the Large Hadron Collider as well.


If you really meant, "the most influential", I'd probably go with paper or moveable type printing.

 

[Brighteye]

Well, of these it's writing, but I'm not sure if that counts as one invention. It's like saying the industrial revolution was one invention.

 

[Aramazd]

Collectors Plates.

 

[AL_DA_GREAT]

I like that you wrote

toilet
paper

 

[Xeer]

Toilet paper.

Hah, didn't see AL DA GREAT's reply while I was writing mine!

 

[bhsup]

Autos and currencies, for purely selfish reasons.

 

[Birdjaguar]

For humanity: wheel, writing, printing press, steam engine and light bulb.

 

[LightFang]

The wheel, probably.

 

[Eran of Arcadia]

The technologies that led to the ability to make fire on demand.

 

[GoodGame]

The technologies that led to the ability to make fire on demand.

Mostly it's basic physics (friction, conservation of energy) and basic chemistry (ratios) and a lucky find of reagents.

 

[Eran of Arcadia]

And an understanding of said components.

I mean, how complicated is the wheel, after all?

 

[brennan]

The wheel: it gives you chariots.

Oh, wait this isn't the Civ I forum...

 

[El_Machinae]

Me, probably.

 

[Perfection]

Silly Putty

 

[Theige]

Stairs....

 

[Birdjaguar]

The wheel gave us and our belongings mobility
Writing gave us records and stories
The printing press gave us public literacy and mass communication
The steam engine gave us "horsepower"
The light bulb extended our days

 

[ParadigmShifter]

pi, or pies

 

[Onionsoilder]

Writing can't really be counted as one invention, since it went through many stages(cave paintings, glyphs, alphabet, standardized characters). That would be similar to having transportation as an invention(walking, wheel, animal powered, steam powered, combustion powered).

I would say that the printing press was the greatest invention. While other inventions were great, no other invention has changed the entire world so radically within the first 20 years since it's invention.

 

[Knight-Dragon]

Until we have a firm definition on 'invention' and 'greatest', this question can never really be answered...