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2700 BCE
Tea
The Chinese made tea from tea leaves and boiling water. They used tea as medicine. Lu Yu made a book on how to make tea. -
800 BCE
wood block
There was an entire woodblock printing industry in China. Printers turned out religious
and other works on scrolls. -
250 BCE
Compass
The Chinese made the first compass with lodestone. Earth is like a giant magnet with north and south poles. -
50
Porcelain
Porcelain is a fine type of pottery. Porcelain is made by combining clay with the minerals quartz and feldspar. The Chinese were making porcelain of great beauty. -
150
Paper
The Chinese probably made paper by hemp and then the bark of the mulberry tree. Then Chinese used rags. -
Period: 300 to 1400
Chinese History
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401
paddle wheel
As you push your paddle through the water, the boat moves
forward. The Chinese got this idea by arranging a series of paddles in a wheel. -
618
improve bridges
The Chinese also found ways to improve bridges.
The new Chinese bridge used arches that were a smaller part, or segment, of a circle. This made the bridges broader and flatter than
semicircular arches could. -
750
Mechanical Clock
It was a very accurate clock. It had a wheel that made on complete turn are the sun. Dripping water helped the wheel to turn. -
850
gunpowder
The chines created gunpowder. The Chinese created the first weapon that used gunpowder called a flamethrower.