Invention is a tricky thing that's more an offshoot of persistent endeavor than an outcome of planned effort.No one had in the past nor in future would predict that he would invent something.The very definition of invention means something new that no one had any prior knowledge of.Albert Einstein once remarked that If we knew what we were doing it wouldn't be research.All the creations that weren't extant at the beginning of civilization is invention else it would be termed discovery not invention.So cultivation was an invention as was scripts.A certain form of dance was an invention as was a musical instrument.Money was an invention and so was stocks, bonds.We tend to appreciate the inventions which are more current and underrate the one that's already part of our culture.So why would an invention of flying be more important than invention of chariot.Since all invention has same value, let's dig deep in history and find out who invented what.You know how futile an exercise that would be.Let's challenge Americans to stop using all inventions made before them and use only the ones made by them.Will they take that offer? Let's ask them to charge royalty for all inventions made by them in 20th century but pay the rest of the world for the inventions made prior to 20th century.Who would be richer? Were the 20th century inventions been even possible without the inventions that gone before it? How come we didn't invent aeroplane in stone ages instead of 20th cenury.Why a certain British guy discovered Laws of Graviation in 16th century instead of let's say 5000 years before.Is it because the invention of multiplication and division ( Indian origin ) came only sometime in 5th century and algebra ( Arabian ) few centuries after that.Newton said I could look forward because I stood upon the shoulder of giants ( Gallileo among one ).Same can be said about any new invention.It happened because it is built upon a prior invention which unfortunately isn't an invention any more. It's a fact, it's a knowhow.It's part of human knowledge.In due time every invention made in the world will be part of human knowledge and hence lose it's significance.Histroy doesn't stop being written at the 20th century.Mankind will survive and new civilizations, great countries will emerge in due time that will lead in spheres of science, art and everything and more importantly in human pursuit of relentless advancement in knowledge.What we can ill-afford as human being is to consider ourselves so superior as to cut ourselves off the rest of the world so as to not paprticipate in this grand juggernaut of knowledge advancement.It doesn't matter whether it's one individual or a group or a culture or a great empire the moment one closes the eyes to the rest of the world in hubris stagnation and inevitable degradation follows.History stands witness to this.
