Chinese Inventions

Disease prevention by using poisonous smoke

99

The Chinese burned a chemical that gave off a poisonous
smoke. They believed that the smoke would destroy whatever was causing the disease.

Mechanical Clock

800

The Chinese developed the first mechanical clock in about the 8th
century. The new clock was more accurate than earlier timekeeping devices, such as sundials and hourglasses. The Chinese devised a wheel that made one complete turn every 24 hours. Dripping water made the wheel turn. Every quarter hour, drums would beat; and every hour, a bell would chime. The sounds let people know what time it was.

Gunpowder

850

Gunpowder was first made by alchemists. The alchemists were mixing natural ingredients together to find a way to make people live forever. 850 C.E

Game Cards

850

Game cards were invented in China in about the 9th century. Printers used woodblock printing to make the cards from thick paper. Famous artists drew the designs that appeared on the backs
of the cards.

Paper Money

850

Paper money was invented by the Chinese in the late 8th or early 9th century. Before that time, coins were the only form of currency. Like game cards, paper money was printed with wood blocks

Flamethrowers

950

Early flamethrowers contained gunpowder mixed with oil.

Inoculate

950

Inoculation is a way of stimulating a person’s immune system to fight a particular disease. It works by exposing the person to a disease-carrying substance. To inoculate people against smallpox, Chinese physicians took a small part of a scab from an infected person and made it into a powder. Then they inserted the powder into the nose of the person they wanted to immunize, or protect against the disease.

Steaming Clothes

1000

A Chinese monk recommended steaming the clothes of sick people. He believed that the steam would prevent others from becoming
ill. The idea was sound, because hot temperatures kill many germs.

Porcelain

1000

Porcelain is made by combining clay with the minerals quartz and feldspar. The mixture is baked in a kiln, or pottery oven, at very high temperatures. The resulting pottery is white, hard, and waterproof.

Artillery Shells

1200

These exploded after being hurled at enemies by a war machine called a catapult. The sound of the exploding shells confused the enemy and terrified their horses.