Greatest Inventions Ever

[hackenslash]

Written language. Without writing humanity can not accurately record and later disseminate knowledge. Without it we would live in a linguistic 'ground hog day' perpetually reinventing the ideas of the previous generation and not being able to build on that learning, which would make progress impossible. Without the written word we could not 'stand on the shoulders of giants.' as Newton put it. Imagine trying to remember and disseminate quantum theory or special relativity without the written word. It would be impossible.

Almost word-for-word the response I was going to give when I saw the thread title.

[Tank]

Written language. Without writing humanity can not accurately record and later disseminate knowledge. Without it we would live in a linguistic 'ground hog day' perpetually reinventing the ideas of the previous generation and not being able to build on that learning, which would make progress impossible. Without the written word we could not 'stand on the shoulders of giants.' as Newton put it. Imagine trying to remember and disseminate quantum theory or special relativity without the written word. It would be impossible.

Almost word-for-word the response I was going to give when I saw the thread title.

[ForTheLoveOfAll]

This fire breathing robotic horse.

[elliebean]

This fire breathing robotic horse.

FTLOA wins
/thread

[ForTheLoveOfAll]

This fire breathing robotic horse.

FTLOA wins
/thread

Score!  

[Tanker]

The harnessing of fire.

While I know it's not an invention technicly neither is figuring out a round rolling shape reduces friction and increases the weight you can haul AKA the wheel. The ability to use fire took use from being cold and dirty primitive people barely above apes in development, to a species that has the ability to remake nature as they needed. New foods and tools the ability to be warm in cold climates (like most places not in Africa) to push back the dark and scare away the predators that must have consummed our ancesters with fear every night of their lives. The ability to heat water to purify it, or boil out salt for use, or burn the land to encourage new growth or a wall of fire to scare a large herd right where you want them for larger amounts of food. Soap how long do you think is was before some fat dripped in lye rich ashes and someone notices how well it cleaned? Glass ever build a fire on the beach? One of the first "elements" was fire, primitive Physisics and Chemestry helped come about from pondering our early tool. Ect Ect Ect. Without that first step of fire absolutly nothing we have now could have been acomplished. I can think of nothing that does not come eventually to fire if you look for a "why".

Even the written word my number 2 invention would never have come about without the security and lessiure a that fire brings.

Just my $.02

[rawrdog822]

Soda can tab.  Yeah that's right.  I said what you all think, but cannot say.

[terranus]

I would like to change my previous answer to "BBQ Potato Chips". That is all.

[darkcyd]

Indoor plumbing. Trust me. Its indoor plumbing, until you've shat outside in the snow.

[Willow]

The bicycle.  It's quick and reliable and cheap and environmentally friendly and fun.
Vaccination, sanitation, contraception, communication are pretty essential, but my bike is an item that I own and maintain, and is elegant, and functional.

[hismikeness]

Lots of good choices in this thread. I haven't read all of it, but here are some that may or may not have been mentioned previous:

Wikipedia. It's got to be said... the pooling of the world's knowledge is pretty big.
Wolfram Alpha. Still early, but could be huge.
Hydraulics. Big time important to build big things.
Telescope/Microscope. Both opened up huge new wings of the science museum.
Spork. BOOM
WiFi/Bluetooth. I couldn't have my current computer set up the way it is without both.

[Sweetdeath]

The camera!
I cherish my memories enstilled in photographs so very  much.
It's an incredible invention with many benefits.

[original_gender]

Maybe the butt, or a sink? I also think the sandwich format is particularly cunning, as it does not necessarily call for the use of utensils.

Soda can tab.  Yeah that's right.  I said what you all think, but cannot say.

The tab is good, true, but the fact that the can itself is not solid saves manufacturers a tremendous amount of overhead; the hollow space is better than the tab, because it does not threaten one's budget vacuum cleaner like tabs do when discarded post-consumption.

[The Magic Pudding]

Maybe the butt, or a sink? I also think the sandwich format is particularly cunning, as it does not necessarily call for the use of utensils.

Ye but fruit does a similar thing, and it keeps longer.
Maybe it's not an invention though.
How about a stick I use to knock an orange out of a tree?
Hmm, that might not be seen as invention either.
How about if I knock a few unhelpful rough bits of my stick?
Yes the domesticated stick, saviour of mankind.

[fester30]

Maybe the butt, or a sink? I also think the sandwich format is particularly cunning, as it does not necessarily call for the use of utensils.

Ye but fruit does a similar thing, and it keeps longer.
Maybe it's not an invention though.
How about a stick I use to knock an orange out of a tree?
Hmm, that might not be seen as invention either.
How about if I knock a few unhelpful rough bits of my stick?
Yes the domesticated stick, saviour of mankind.

It can also be useful to threaten those damn kids down the street making all the noise with their rock music.  In a pinch, you can burn it for heat to cook food, or to use as a torch to light your way in the darkness.