A guide to ancient accomplishments and inventions unearths the origins of modern creations, including computers in ancient Greece, plastic surgery in India in the first century B.C., and a postal service in medieval Baghdad

Ancient Chinese Inventions provides an illustrated introduction to the numerous scientific and technological inventions to which China can lay claim.

We live in an age in which one can easily think that our generation has invented and discovered almost everything; but the truth is quite the opposite. Progress cannot be considered as sudden unexpected spurts of individual brains: such a genius, the inventor of everything, has never existed in the history of humanity. What did exist was a limitless procession of experiments made by men who did not waver when faced with defeat, but were inspired by the rare successes that have led to our modern comfortable reality. And that continue to do so with the same enthusiasm. The study of the History of Engineering is valuable for many reasons, not the least of which is the fact that it can help us to understand the genius of the scientists, engineers and craftsmen who existed centuries and millenniums before us; who solved problems using the devices of their era, making machinery and equipment whose concept is of such a surprising modernity that we must rethink our image of the past.

Describes various issues in mythology and prehistoric and ancient history, from the Garden of Eden to the effects of meteor impacts, including tombs, writing systems, and the fall of civilizations, and suggests explanations.

Presents the history of early human innovations, from tools and cooking utensils to early transportation vehicles and contraceptives, along with photographs, diagrams, reconstructions, and maps.

A rich exploration of the importance of books and libraries in the ancient world that highlights how humanity’s obsession with the printed word has echoed throughout the ages • “Accessible and entertaining.” —The Wall Street Journal Long before books were mass-produced, scrolls hand copied on reeds pulled from the Nile were the treasures of the ancient world. Emperors and Pharaohs were so determined to possess them that they dispatched emissaries to the edges of earth to bring them back. When Mark Antony wanted to impress Cleopatra, he knew that gold and priceless jewels would mean nothing to her. So, what did her give her? Books for her library—two hundred thousand, in fact. The long and eventful history of the written word shows that books have always been and will always be a precious—and precarious—vehicle for civilization. Papyrus is the story of the book’s journey from oral tradition to scrolls to codices, and how that transition laid the very foundation of Western culture. Award-winning author Irene Vallejo evokes the great mosaic of literature in the ancient world from Greece’s itinerant bards to Rome’s multimillionaire philosophers, from opportunistic forgers to cruel teachers, erudite librarians to defiant women, all the while illuminating how ancient ideas about education, censorship, authority, and identity still resonate today. Crucially, Vallejo also draws connections to our own time, from the library in war-torn Sarajevo to Oxford’s underground labyrinth, underscoring how words have persisted as our most valuable creations. Through nimble interpretations of the classics, playful and moving anecdotes about her own encounters with the written word, and fascinating stories from history, Vallejo weaves a marvelous tapestry of Western culture’s foundations and identifies the humanist values that helped make us who we are today. At its heart a spirited love letter to language itself, Papyrus takes readers on a journey across the centuries to discover how a simple reed grown along the banks of the Nile would give birth to a rich and cherished culture.

Adam Hart-Davis, one of the nations favourite TV presenters, returns to our screens with a tour through the Top Ten developments of each of the great civilisations of the past. From the Egyptians to the Romans, Babylonians to the Arabs, Adam takes us on an epic history of the world, looking at some of the great legacies left to us by ancient cultures. What the Past Did For Us accompanies a major 9-part new format autumn show, in which Adam is the anchorman who leads us through the history of inventions while testing some of these in the studio. The accompanying book is an entertainingly written history of ancient cultures, capturing Adams enthusiasm for the subject. Adam tells the story of the Chinese inventors who came up with the mariners compass, paper money and gunpowder right through to the Ancient Indians who, according to Einstein taught us how to count as well as giving us the 12-month calendar year and 7-day week.