Late or Early Inventions

What do you guys think are inventions that were invented earlier on average (compared to other timelines), or later.

For example I think that the telescope was an late invention considering that all you had to do was to put two lenses in front of each other. It took roughly 600 years since the first eyeglass to the telescope.

An early one would be the atomic bomb. It was created just when the technology was getting revealed and discovered. If it wasn't for WWII, it would probably been delayed till the 50s, even to the 60s.

So, what do you guys think?
 
I agree, but usually there are pretty big historical reasons for why things were invented when they were. There would be a lot to change, for instance, if you wanted to make telescopes invented earlier, since you would have to undo the Dark Ages of Western science, which would probably entail Rome not falling somehow. That being said, though, and keeping in mind that I don't really know what it takes exactly to invent a telescope, it might be possible that another civilisation outside the West (like the Arabs or Chinese) could have invented one before the West did. So I guess it is possible, it just might entail pretty big things historically if you want to pull it off.
 
Telescopes need good clear glass and lens grinding. Neither requires high levels of scientific or technological knowledge. I would suggest that telescopes could have been invented in Roman times as a novelty and then reinvented in, say Arab egypt moving accross to europe about a thousand years ago.

I divide inventions into ones that predate their scientific theory, ones that accompany their theory and ones that follow the theory. Steam engines for instance predated the theory and could be built as soon as the required pressure vessals were possible and there was a need making it worth while.
The atomic bomb pretty much accompanied the theory needed to make it work while the theory of electricity was around for some time before anyone put together a useful motor.
 
Steam engines for instance predated the theory and could be built as soon as the required pressure vessals were possible and there was a need making it worth while.

Granted, but that means you need to have cannon, for the pressure-casting experience, and some heavy power needs. Pumping water is the big one, but steam needs to be self-evidently better than windmills.
 
the theory of electricity was around for some time before anyone put together a useful motor.

The electric motor requires more than a theory of electricity. It requires the theory of electromagnetism, a unification of the theory of electricity and the theory of magnetism. This was first being explored in the early 19th century. The principle of the electric motor was demonstrated in the early 1820's, concurrent with the early electromagnetic research. Maxwell succeeded in unifying the theory in 1861. Practical electric motors did not show up until the 1870's.

Just a quick primer, at the risk of going off topic: The electric motor is a device that applies a current to an element in a static magnetic field. The kinetic force produced by the action of the magnetic field on the electric current moves perpendicular to the current. Without an understanding of this, electric motors would never have moved beyond the stage of a simple parlor trick.
 
The electric motor requires more than a theory of electricity. It requires the theory of electromagnetism, a unification of the theory of electricity and the theory of magnetism. This was first being explored in the early 19th century. The principle of the electric motor was demonstrated in the early 1820's, concurrent with the early electromagnetic research. Maxwell succeeded in unifying the theory in 1861. Practical electric motors did not show up until the 1870's.

Just a quick primer, at the risk of going off topic: The electric motor is a device that applies a current to an element in a static magnetic field. The kinetic force produced by the action of the magnetic field on the electric current moves perpendicular to the current. Without an understanding of this, electric motors would never have moved beyond the stage of a simple parlor trick.

:D Absolutely. That is exactly my point, I was using the example to show that theory and practical applications are not always linked.

Since reading this I have been trying to imagine some way of getting Nuclear power without a full theory of how it works. Its bloody difficult but probably doable in the 1900's. The question is would this actually retard the atomic bomb?

Now for an invention that could be accelerated or retarded with significant effects how about the mouldboard plough? I would say it was probably a late invention in our world.
 
:D Absolutely. That is exactly my point, I was using the example to show that theory and practical applications are not always linked.

Since reading this I have been trying to imagine some way of getting Nuclear power without a full theory of how it works. Its bloody difficult but probably doable in the 1900's. The question is would this actually retard the atomic bomb?

The theory is required for the application to become practical. Early motors were toys. Early atomic bombs from before the theory would not be. Early invention is usually because someone experimentally discovered a phenomenon. In the case of motors, the result was, "Oh! Look at the pretty spinning thing!"

If someone discovered the nuclear chain reaction this way, the result would be no thought at all. The inventor, his lab, and probably all of his notes would be destroyed. Decades later, someone might have an idea of what happened after nuclear theory is developed. This is all highly unlikely because the only natural element that has been found to be fissionable is a rare isotope of Uranium. Mass spectroscopy, magnetrons, and several other advanced, specialized technologies would have to be accidentally developed. You would also have to accidentally build the Tennessee Valley Authority dams to provide power and accidentally build a town to refine the Uranium.

This sound like a great premise for a short comedy story. This could be interesting in the same way as The Nutty Professor.
 
Depends on how you look at things if its possible.

A strong case could be made that inventions only came along really when society/civilization/whatever was ready for them. See for instance Heron's steam engine.
 
Airships?

I mean, once you realise that hot air rises, it's not hard to get from that to hot air balloons of some sort.
 
A good idea, this thread. I even think that this applies for ideas, too!!

An idea that was rather late is nationallism, in my eyes.

An early idea is communism, Marx was way ahead with so many of his thoughts.
 

MrP

Banned
Airships?

I mean, once you realise that hot air rises, it's not hard to get from that to hot air balloons of some sort.

Aye, in that half-hearted idea of mine I had the Egyptians discover hydrogen by accident - and I even checked it all with Thande, who said it was thoroughly plausible.
 
Aye, in that half-hearted idea of mine I had the Egyptians discover hydrogen by accident - and I even checked it all with Thande, who said it was thoroughly plausible.

"This Fair Conjunction" would have had hot airships (or anemoi, as they're called ITTL) developed in the mid-16th century, following work by da Vinci. Imagine Tudor airships floating across the skyline of Madrid and you have the year 1600 of my TL. :D
 

MrP

Banned
"This Fair Conjunction" would have had hot airships (or anemoi, as they're called ITTL) developed in the mid-16th century, following work by da Vinci. Imagine Tudor airships floating across the skyline of Madrid and you have the year 1600 of my TL. :D

Excellent! :D :cool:
 
What about outrigger Canoes?

They drove the expansion of the polynesians from Tiawan to cover about 1/3 of the earth in a few hundred years. Earlier might see Magellan meeting a civilised (In the same way the Inca were civilised) people with a wide spread seaborne empire and settlements on the West Coast of America.

Later would see an empty pacific, New Zealand and perhaps an arab Madagascar.

Both would be interesting but I find it hard to believe there was a NEED of such an invention greater at that particular moment than any other in history or that the theory and engineering required did not exisit before then.
 
Inventions that came about much later than should have, IMO:

TNT, Minie ball or Nessler ball for muskets, the bicycle, asphalt roads, wind powered waterpump and the water tower, alcohol as disinfectant, the importance of boiling water, the Sterling engine, the kerosene lamp.
 
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