Period six- toilet

A toilet is a sanitation fixture used primarily for the disposal of human waste. They are often found in a small room referred to as a bathroom. Ancient civilizations used toilets attached to simple flowing water sewage systems included those of the Indus Valley Civilization and also those of the Romans and Egyptians. Although the first version of flush toilet system, which is widely used nowadays was designed in 1596 by John Harington, such systems did not come into widespread use until the late nineteenth century.

Toilet began with a simple flushing system and eventually transformed into multi-purpose bidet toilet. This evolution is an evidence of the technological advancement and rising living standard of human. Effective sanitation system led to the decrease of diseases caused by the lack of hygienic awareness. I think toilet can be considered as one of the most important items that is used by most people in developed countries in a daily bases. The use of toilet is a symbol of a civilized society that is organized in which it has a integrated sewage system.

Before the arrival of toilet, ancient civilizations often dumped their human waste randomly on the road and therefore caused the widespread of diseases such as cholera and diarrhoea. People didn’t understand the negative impacts of the germs and the life expectancy was relatively low. Nevertheless, after the toilet was widely adapted, people had less health concerns and the standard of living of the societies increased. Toilet is a significant artifact that marks one of the greatest turning point in the world history in which human became more civilized.

SPICE

Interaction between human and the environment- demography and disease: When the living condition improves, population increases due to higher life expectancy. Human waste is processed through the sewage system before being thrown into the environment and therefore reduced environmental pollution.

Cultural- science and technology: Toilet is a scientific innovation that was invented when ancient people finally realized the importance of a effective sewage system. This symbolizes the start of a more modern and advanced society.

Economic- trade and commerce: In the modern era, companies sought to make profit by improving the traditional flush toilet and transform it into multi-purpose toilet that includes additional features that makes sitting on a toilet a more enjoyable experience.

Stamp, J. (2014, June 20). From Turrets to Toilets: A Partial History of the Throne Room. Retrieved from

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/turrets-toilets-partial-history-throne-room-180951788/?no-ist

Period six- online shopping

Online shopping is a form of electronic commerce which allows consumers to directly buy goods or services from a seller over the Internet using a web browser. An online shop evokes the physical analogy of buying products or services at a retailer or shopping centre. Purchases can be paid via credit cards and other source of online banking account. The categories of products is wide and included all source of goods such as food, clothing, furniture etc. I think online shopping can be considered as one of the most important artifacts in the 21th century in which it creates a more convenient method for consumers to purchase goods.

The evolution of shopping originated from the ancient period when consumers bought products in concentrated trading area such as markets. Markets eventually expanded and became larger trading centres that involved a wider variety of goods. The development of shopping accelerated after the formation of department stores. Products are now organized into categories and searching for products becomes a lot more efficient.

Finally, the arrival of online shopping enabled consumers to shop without even physically leave their bed. This is a significant evidence of the advancement of world-wide transportation technology. Moreover,

companies gain more profit as the expenses of maintaining actual stores reduce.

SPICE

Economic- Industrialization: The transition from actual stores to online stores is a proof of further industrialization. As internet became extremely convenient, the relationship between producer and consumer changed from face to face to electronically contact.

Cultural- Science and technology: To Online shop, all you need is to click on the computer and the electronic system will deliver your order to the company. Products can now be shipped from one side of the world to the other side in less than a few days thanks to the advanced transportation system.

Aldrich, M. (2011). The Michael Aldrich Archive - History of Online Shopping. Retrieved from

http://www.aldricharchive.com/shopping_history.html

Period six- fridge

Domestic fridge is a machine for keeping things cold. It is sometimes called a fridge or an icebox. People put food and drinks in it, to keep those items cold or good (unspoiled) for a longer time. The history of artificial refrigeration began when Scottish professor William Cullen designed a small refrigerating machine in 1755 although it wasn’t widely used. The first refrigerator to see widespread use was the General Electric "Monitor-Top" refrigerator introduced in 1927.

Before the invention of the refrigerator, ice houses were used to provide cool storage for most of the year. Placed near freshwater lakes or packed with snow and ice during the winter, they were once very common. However, after the arrival of fridges, food can be preserved for a longer period of time without relying on the nature. The refrigerator increased the efficiency of the icebox while ending the problem of melting ice in the kitchen. The invention of the refrigerator raised the quality of life for many people in the new urban cities that were emerging at the beginning of the 20th century, simply because it offered people the opportunity to eat better foods.

The widespread of fridges allowed people to buy and store fresh food products in a safer environment. As a result people were able to consume better foods for example fresh produce, eggs, and meats. Moreover, the mass production of fridges in the assembly line contributed to the economic prosperity as a wide range of industries required fridges. Fridge plays a significant role in our daily life in which food becomes easy-reached and it makes our life more convenient.

SPICE

Interaction between human and the environment- science and technology: the invention of fridges extend the duration of food and replace the traditional ice houses. We can tell from the invention that people at the beginning of 20th century already had an excess of food in which a better way of food preservation was needed.

Social- The quality of life improved due to the mass migration from rural to urban areas encouraged by better foods.

Economy- Fridge industries made a large amount of profit due to the widespread of fridges in both industries and individual houses.

left: the first refrigerating machine 

right: modern fridge

History of Refrigeration. (2015). Retrieved from

http://www.peakmechanical.ca/history-of-refrigeration.html

Period five- automobile

A car is a vehicle used to transport passengers. Cars usually have four wheels and an internal combustion engine. The earliest automobiles recorded were actually steam engines attached to wagons in the late 18th century. The steam engines were heavy and therefore the wagon was slow and hard to control. Better and faster steam cars became common late in the 19th century.Karl Benz invented the modern automobile. He used a four-stroke type of internal combustion engine to power his "Motorwagen". He began to sell his production vehicles in 1888.

During the period of industrialization, the first affordable automobile called Ford Model T was massively produced and people could then travel to any places that they wish without relying on public transportation. The automobile industry gained a huge amount of wealth as  the demand for cars increased when people discovered its convenience. The arrival of car also signified a greater damage to the environment in which carbon dioxide is directly polluting the air.

Automobile represents a turning point in the history of transportation technology. Not only did it enabled faster travel and more convenient transportation, it accelerated the pollution to the environment. However, despite its negative impact, automobile does makes trade, commerce, and transportation a lot easier compared to ancient technology such as lateen ship and camel saddles. I think it is an artifact that must be included in period five due to its significant contribution since the industrialization until today.

SPICE

Interaction between human and environment- technology: The negative impact of automobile is that it pollutes the environment by spreading CO2 into the air. Resolution such as the invention of electronic automobile is taking place to decrease the damages caused by steam cars.

Cultural- With the widespread of automobiles, people could travel to more places and the interaction between people in different region increased.

Economic- industrialization: Automobile is definitely one of the most important inventions created during industrialization that changed the way people and goods move.

left: Ford Model T (source: wikipedia)

right: modern car

The Impact of the Automobile on the 20th Century. (2015). Retrieved from

http://l3d.cs.colorado.edu/systems/agentsheets/New-Vista/automobile/

Period five- Theory of Special Relativity

The theory of Special Relativity explains how to interpret motion between different inertial frames of reference— that is, places that are moving at constant speeds relative to each other. Einstein says it's impossible to determine if you're moving unless you can look at another object. It also shows that measurements of distance and time depend on how fast you are travelling. This means that if someone your age goes into space for ten years and travels millions of miles, that person will come back looking two years younger than you!

The highlight of the theory is that it marked the beginning of modern physics, the post-Newtonian conception of physics that deals with the underlying structure of the smallest particles in nature. The discovery of special relativity is significant in the way in which scientists began to study on the more fundamental concept of physics instead of the more large-scale and easy-to-observed ideas such as force. This suggested that technology had took a further step towards advancement, which allowed more intricate scientific study.

The applications to nuclear energy production and synchronization of the global positioning system (GPS) satellites around the earth indicate an effect of relativity on our day-to-day activities. The military and combat today of nuclear warheads and nuclear-powered submarines rely on relativity through GPS. However, GPS enables not only the Department of Defence, but also the commuter who has just taken a wrong turn and the couple searching for a restaurant.

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Cultural- science and technology: The theory of Special Relativity changes the way human had been viewing the world around them. When a person is “running”, the observer can be considered as the one that is “running” and the runner can be considered as the motionless one. This idea amazed me and led to further study of the movement and motion of human.

Interaction between human and the environment- technology: The invention of GPS makes traveling in unfamiliar area a lot easier and it’s more efficient than traditional maps. Moreover, the GPS function in electronic products allow people to find them when they are lost. GPS is also a helpful tool used by the police to locate criminals.

Robbins, D. (2015). Einstein's Special Relativity.

Retrieved from http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/einsteins-special-relativity.html

Picture source: www.redorbit.com

Period four- joint stock company

Joint-stock company is a business entity where different stocks can be bought and owed by shareholders. Each shareholder owns company stock in proportion, evidenced by his or her shares (certificates of ownership). Back in the 1700s, joint-stock companies were established by powerful nations in developing countries for the exploitation of trade. Originally, the company was economic based only but they eventually became more influential and began to involve in the country’s politics.

The emergence of joint stock company had significant impact during the period. Among the companies, the British East India Company was the most influential one during the 18th century. It was sponsored by the British government and were granted spice trade monopoly in the East Indies. As the company dilated, it started to involved in India’s politics and acted as an agent of British imperialism in India from the early 18th century to the mid-19th century.

Nowadays, joint stock company is an association of individuals in a business enterprise with transferable shares of stock,much like a corporation except that stockholders are liable for the debts of the business. This is a significant transformation in which people can now invest the company that they believe would make a profit from it as long as they pay for the stock. This enables a variety of people to participate in economic activities instead of limited the investment to only the members of social elites.

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Political- empires: The idea of gaining control of a territory by setting up trading post led to the formation of several trading-post empire. The influences such as language and culture brought by mother countries can still be observed in their colonies nowadays. An example is that English still remains as a dominant language in India.

Economic- capitalism: The unequal share of stocks between the shareholders is an example of capitalism. The more share a person owns, the more profit will be gained by that person. But on the other hand, the more money the person will lose if the company is not well-functioned.

E. (2015). East India Company | English trading company. Retrieved from

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/176643/East-India-Company

Period four- Gunpowder

Gunpowder technology originated in China, which the Chinese used to fight the Mongols. After the thirteenth century, the Chinese domination of gunpowder technology ended and the technique was passed along the ancient silk road to Europe and Islamic world. This led to the formation of the three gunpowder empires and moreover, the later on widespread imperialism is also a result precipitated from the gunpowder technique.

Gunpowder contributed largely to the expansion of certain empires and the death of innocent people during the period. The emergence of the gunpowder empires: Safavid, Ottoman and Mughal, was made possible by the gunpowder weapons that enabled the empires to conquer nearby territories, such as cannon. Moreover, European empires that adopted the technology began to set up colonies in the New World by defeating local citizens using gunpowder weapons.

Besides its impacts during the period, gunpowder weapons are responsible for the massive negative impacts throughout world history. Wars became more destructive as weapons advanced and caused more damages. It also increases the tension between nations as war turns into larger scales and more naitons are involved. Eventually this situation led to the arms race.

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Political- empire: The spread of gunpowder technology acted as the catalyst of the formation of the Ottoman, Safavid and Mughal empire. By using gunpowder weapons, the Muslims could easily conquer nearby territories that had relatively less advanced military power.

Political- Nations and nationalism: Gunpowder weapon marks the start of modern military technique in which stronger nations invented destructive weapons in order to demonstrate the nation’s power. This is due to the sense of nationalism and eventually the tension between nations merged into significant wars that caused millions of human death.

Economic- trade and commerce: Gunpowder technology was spread from China to Europe via the Silk Road during the earlier time period; Nowadays, gunpowder is sometimes sold by illegal merchants who sought to make profit.

Whipps, H. (2008, April 06). How Gunpowder Changed the World. Retrieved from

http://www.livescience.com/7476-gunpowder-changed-world.html

Picture source: www.medievalists.net & tlaststand.wikia.com

Period four- Heliocentric Theory

The heliocentric model is a theory observed by Copernicus that places the Sun as the centre of the universe, and the planets orbiting around it. The heliocentric model replaced geocentrism, which is the belief that the Earth is the centre of the universe, as new invented technology allowed the scientists to approach new discovery.

The idea of sun instead of Earth is at the centre of universe challenged the Roman Catholic church, who had a powerful force at that time period and suppressed Copernicus’ thought. In opposition to the religious belief of geocentric theory, the heliocentric theory is an evidence that people were moving towards enlightenment thinking in which people began to stressed scientific evidences instead of vogue religious believes.

The heliocentric theory plays an important role in world history not only because of its significant discovery of the universe but also its challenge towards traditional ideas, which led to the later on period of enlightenment.

SPICE

Interation between human and the environment- technology: The discovery of the actual structure of the universe is a huge step-forward in the realm of astronomy. It also proves that the technology at that time period was advanced enough to support the observation of universe.

Cultural- Belief system: The biggest challenge faced by the Heliocentric theory was the opposition of Roman Catholic church, who believed in every everything claimed by God. However, the fact that the heliocentric theory eventually replaced geocentric proves that the era of scientific thinking had begun as religious influence weakened.

Left: heliocentric model

Right: geocentric model

Cessna, A. (2009, June 22). Heliocentric Model. Retrieved from

http://www.universetoday.com/33113/heliocentric-model/

Picture source: en.wikipedia.org

Period three- Epic of Sundiata

Sundiata Epic is an epic poem of the Malinke people and tells the story of the hero Sundiata Keita, the founder of the Mali Empire and the rise of the Mali Empire in the thirteenth century. The influence of Islamic belief is extensively stated in the epic in which Mansa Musa, the successor of Sundiata,launched an elaborate pilgrimage to the holy city, Mecca. Although the arrival of Islam did not completely replace the existing religion, as a large group of merchants and rulers accepted the religion, Mali was placed within the network of Islamic nations and trade patterns.

The epic was handed down by the generations orally by griot poet,  unlike the ancient sumerian’s Epic of Gilgamesh, which was recorded in cuneiform on twelve stone tablets. This suggested the different methods of record keeping in Mesoamerica and Africa throughout the change of time.

The Sundiata Epic is an excellent example of the tension between the traditional religious role of West African king and the growing influence of Islam in Africa. The arrival of Islam is largely due to the increase of trade and commerce. It also reflects the changing views of the regional audience. As the region became more Islamic, so did the portrayal of Sundiata.

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Political- empires: the epic describes the process of the formation of Mali empire. The empire began to prosper when they came to control the gold and salt trade. An example that illustrated the wealth of the empire was Mansa Musa’s elaborate pilgrimage to Mecca, which accompanied gold, thousands of people and camels.

Cultural- religion: Due to Islamic influence brought by the merchants through interregional trade, and the adoption of Islam by the ruler of Mali Empire, the empire became one of the most powerful Sudanic empire. This artifact is important in which it demonstrates how influential a religion could be to affect the development of a massive empire.

Sullivan, M. (n.d.). The Epic of Sundiata. Retrieved from

http://www.socialstudies.org/system/files/publications/se/6204/620403.html

  Picture source: worldofthemerry.wordpress.com

Period three- Compass

The magnetic compass was first invented as a device for divination as early as the Chinese Han Dynasty (since about 206 BC) and later adopted for navigation by the Song Dynasty Chinese during the 11th century.The use of a compass is also recorded in Western Europe and in Persia around the early 13th century. Earlier compass was made of lodestones and later ones were made of iron needles.

Zhang He’s voyages during the early Ming Dynasty is an example that benefited from the compass. He reestablished the Chinese tributary states and elevated the Chinese maritime power. The invention eventually led to the later Age of Discovery by enabled the Europeans to travel across the Atlantic to the New World.

The significance of this artifact is that it proven the existence of scientific thoughts in which people began to study science, trying to apply science to technology. The largely increase maritime voyages followed up by the spread of compass is the best proof.

SPICE

Political- Empires: Colonies were set up by empires due to the sudden increased of oversea discovery. Thanks to the compass! People gained more understanding about the geography of Earth and the idea of maritime travel spread among the world.

Economic- trade and commerce: As oversea empires were created, the mother countries set up trading post in their colonies. Goods were exchanged between the Old and New World while cultures and ideas spread among different civilizations.

  

C. (2003). Four Great Inventions of Ancient China -- Compass. Retrieved from

http://www.chinaculture.org/gb/en_aboutchina/2003-09/24/content_26519.htm

Picture source: commons.wikimedia.org

Period three- Printing

The evolution of printing began with the invention of woodblock printing to the movable type printing. Woodblock printing is a technique for printing text, images or patterns using carved stamps that was adopted widely throughout East Asia. Nevertheless, due to its time and energy consuming features, the movable type printing invented by a Chinese man called Bi Sheng eventually replaced woodblock printing. Each piece of movable type had one Chinese character on it, which was carved in relief on a small block of moistened clay. After the block had been hardened by fire, the movable type became hard and durable and could be used wherever required.

This printing technique contributed enormously to the increasing educated rate of common people in which more books were printed and reading was no longer a privilege limited to the elite class. Besides its social impact, the printing technique also accelerated the spread of culture and ideas, which eventually led to the later on development of enlightenment thinking. The invention of printing is a huge step forward in the process of evolution of record keeping, which transformed the ancient stone carving, quipu and oral tradition to a more convenient form.

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Social- social and economic classes: The increasing amount of population that were able to read shorten the social gap between the upper and lower class citizens. The easier access to knowledge promoted further education of common people.

Cultural- religion and ideology: The printing technique caused the mass production of books including the Bible. This led to the Protestant Reformation led by Martin Luther in which people could now gained access to the Bible and they began to question the authority of priests. Moreover, the invention of printing also promoted cultural diffusion that spread among the world.

C. (2003). Four Great Inventions of Ancient China -- Printing. Retrieved from

http://www.chinaculture.org/gb/en_aboutchina/2003-09/24/content_26509.htm

Picture source: www.absolutechinatours.com

Period two- Lateen ship

Lateen sail, the triangular sail that was of major importance to medieval navigation. The ancient square sail permitted sailing only before the wind; the lateen was the earliest fore-and-aft sail. The triangular sail was affixed to a long yard or crossbar, mounted at its middle to the top of the mast and angled to extend aft far above the mast and forward down nearly to the deck. The sail, its free corner secured near the stern, was capable of taking the wind on either side, and, by enabling the vessel to tack into the wind, the lateen immensely increased the potential of the sailing ship.

Based on the theory, lateen ship was most likely originated from Persia or Arab in which Muslim sailors were responsible for introducing the lateen sails to the Mediterranean. Following its widespread in Mediterranean, it endured a massive diffusion in the Indian Ocean Basin. Commerce and trade were boosted by the sail that cooperated with the monsoon wind. The invention of lateen ship represents the new discovery of technology and the further understanding of the environment. Human could now expand on the structure of the lateen sail and process it into a more advance transportation tool.

SPICE

Interaction between human and the environment- technology: the unique structure of the lateen sail that allows it to go against the wind combined with the advantage of the monsoon wind enabled the sail across the ocean to be more convenient.

Cultural- science and technology: The lateen sail fixed the flaws of the earlier square sails in which now sail towards any direction without being disturbed by the wind.

Economy- trade and commerce: Lateen ship contributed to the prosperity of the Indian Ocean and Mediterranean trade commerce by enabled more efficient sailing.

Lateen sail | sail. (2015). Retrieved from

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/331395/lateen-sail

Picture source: oarnorthwest.com & www.britannica.com

Period two- The Great Wall of China

The Great Wall was built since 300BCE on the northern border of the country as the great military defence project of successive Chinese Empires, with a total length of more than 20,000 kilometres. It was initially built by the legalist emperor Shi Huangdi during the Qin Dynasty and was continuously built by his successors. The Great Wall begins in the east at Shanhaiguan in Hebei province and ends at Jiayuguan in Gansu province to the west. Its main body consists of walls, horse tracks, watch towers, and shelters on the wall, and includes fortresses and passes along the Wall.

Its main purpose during ancient Chinese era was to defence the empire against the nomadic invaders. Demonstrating the empire’s military might is another reason of this mass construction that took away many peasant workers’ lives.

The Great wall is one of the most significant architecture in world history that served for different purpose throughout the change of time. Not only did the Great Wall secured the Chinese Empire, it represents an outstanding example of the superb military ,architecture, technology and art of ancient China. The Great Wall is currently an UNESCO site that attracted hordes of tourists throughout the year.

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Political- Empires: The Great Wall shows the military might of the Chinese Empire in which the government could afford to construct such a massive architecture that stretches throughout the empire.

Cultural- architecture: The Great Wall is the only work built by human hand on this planet that can be seen from the moon. Being well-designed, the Great Wall consisted of  walls, horse tracks, watch towers, and shelters on the wall, forcefully defend the empire.
Economic- The Great Wall is one of the most popular tourist site in China that brought economic prosperity to the surrounding area.

U. (1992). The Great Wall. Retrieved from http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/438
picture source: favload.com & www.1uptravel.com