Inside: Scientific developments in human history are a fantastic teaching tool. History has a huge impact on what we do today. Learning about our scientific past improves our scientific literacy skills, makes us appreciate how far we have come and it is fun for everyone to learn that our ancient ancestors were totally inventive and smarter than we might have thought.
Scientific developments in Human History provide a great teaching tool to get a lot of people interested in science. Science can be a hard topic to get people excited about because there is a lot of technical language involved. So, it’s not always easy to see what content is going to work for most people. Even those that love science and find a lot of success in the subject will have their strengths and weaknesses. And so, it’s fun to try and find a topic that will be entertaining for all.
One of those is scientific developments – and developments in human history, more specifically. Because it’s fun to see how far we have come with science and it always tends to be a hit.
Many ancient scientific developments were important in future developments of man. Without the invention of the wheel, we wouldn’t have the potter’s wheel. The development of spears and spear tips gave humans the ability to hunt efficiently. Better nutrition led to bigger brains which allowed us to create cooler stuff. Many ‘modern inventions’ are really reinvention. Ancient inventions were improved with better materials and technology. Deep well drilling and the electric battery were around well before modern times.
Photo credit: mararie on Visual Hunt / CC BY-SA
The Dark Ages (1000 CE to 1399 CE) were called that because knowledge and learning were discouraged. Surprisingly, this suppression did not put a stop to all discovery and invention.
Daniel Chodowiecki , Public Domain, via Wiki Commons
The 20th century saw huge advances in science. The airplane, radio and automobile allowed us to better explore the air and land. These inventions quickly gave rise to supersonic flight, wireless internet, alternative fuel and electric vehicles.
Image by David Mark from Pixabay
Understanding Scientific Developments of the Past
Kids understand the world as it is today. Those that have grown up in the digital revolution don’t always understand what the world was like without it. Going back to our ancient past and looking at where we started is an awesome way to give kids some perspective. “Necessity is the mother of invention.” What a great quote! It is important for kids and adults to understand our scientific past in order to appreciate the richness of our present life. And because our world has become so technical, it is important that both kids and adults develop strong scientific literacy skills. Learning about scientific developments of our past is a good part of that learning.
Appreciating The Contrast To Now
It’s safe to say that the science we know and love today is drastically different to what it was hundreds of thousands of years ago. This is particularly true in our tools and abilities. History has a huge impact on what we do today. Learning about our scientific past improves our scientific literacy skills, makes us appreciate how far we have come and it is fun for everyone to learn that our ancient ancestors were totally inventive and smarter than we might have thought.
For more information on the most important scientific developments in human history, take a look at the infographic below.
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I’m Teresa Coppens, science geek, book nerd, educator, coffee lovin’ mom with a coconut aversion. My entire family is crazy about science including my cats! I am passionate about the weird and unusual. Here in my cabinet of science curiosities get your science geek on. Grab a cup of your favorite brew, get comfortable at Science Alcove and learn to love your inner science geek!
