The Riddle of the Compass: The Invention that Changed the World - Essay Example

The compass is an invention that does not figure largely in our lives today. Even when it comes to mapping and direction finding, things such as GPS location and tracking tools may take out all of the guesswork when it comes to navigation on land or the sea. However, just a few hundred years ago the compass was a critical piece of equipment for any long-distance traveler and vitally important for navigation at sea (Aczel, 2001). The development of this tool has an interesting history that extends across the world and across time.

This is because the credit for the invention of the compass is shared by both the Chinese and the Europeans who seem to have independently developed the compass as a navigational aid (Aczel, 2001). The Chinese invented the first working compass and the idea for this technology was brought by Arab traders through the Middle East to Europe.

It does beg the question that what technology that we see to be ‘magical’ today would be considered archaic but individuals living on the planet a thousand years from now?