1.自行车

Bicycle (1861)
自行车（1861年）

The French vélocipède, invented in 1861 by Pierre Marchaux, is widely considered to be the first true bicycle. There are a billion bicycles now worldwide, twice as many as automobiles.
1861年法国人皮埃尔·马特乌斯发明了世界公认的第一辆自行车。现在全世界有10亿辆自行车，数量是汽车的两倍。

2.阿司匹林

Aspirin (1899)
阿司匹林（1899年）

The first recorded use of Aspirin-like remedies goes back to nearly 500 BC when Hippocrates, the "father of modern medicine," wrote about treating such symptoms as headaches, pains, and fevers using willow bark and leaves -- which contain salicylic acid.
有记载的首次使用类似阿司匹林的药物要追溯到公元前500年左右，被誉为“现代医学之父”的希波克拉底发现柳树皮和柳树叶可用于治疗头痛、身体疼痛和发烧，那是因为柳树皮和树叶中含有水杨酸。

The formula was perfected in 1899 by a French chemist who developed acetylsalicylic acid, which maintained the benefits of pure salicylic acid with less severe side effects. By 1899, Bayer was selling it around the world.
1899年，法国化学家研制出乙酰水杨酸，改进了之前的配方，在保留水杨酸作用的同时，减轻了严重的副作用。到了1899年，拜耳公司开始在世界范围销售阿司匹林。

3.车轮

Wheel (3500-3350 BC)
车轮（公元前3500年到3350年）

The invention of the wheel has been pivotal for technology in general, setting the foundation for future developments such as the water wheel, the cogwheel, and the spinning wheel. Modern descendants include the propeller, the jet engine, and the turbine. Pictured is the Wheel of the Etruscan chariot (ca. 530 BC)
车轮的发明对后世技术的发展有着举足轻重的作用，以后的水轮、齿轮和纺车等都是在车轮基础之上发明的。现在的螺旋桨、喷气发动机和涡轮机也都是车轮的派生物。图为伊特鲁里亚的战车车轮（约530公元前）。

4.胸罩

Bra (Early 1900s)
胸罩（20世纪初）

Mary Phelps Jacob was looking for an alternative to the ubiquitous and sometimes unisightly corset. She ended up creating a bra using a handkerchief and ribbon. Jacob was awarded a patent in 1914 and would later sell her business to Warner Brothers Corset Company for $1,500.
玛丽·菲尔普斯·雅各布希望能够改进当时妇女普遍穿戴的难看的束胸。最后她用手帕和缎带制造出了一副胸罩。雅各布在1914年获得了胸罩产品专利，之后她以1500美元的价格将这一专利权出售给华纳兄弟制衣公司。

5.马桶

Flush Toilet (1596)
抽水马桶（1596年）

Various versions of flushing toilets were used as far back as the 26th century BC in the Indus Valley, where the cities of Harappa and Mohenjo-daro had a flush toilet in almost every house, attached to a sophisticated sewage system. The true prelude to the modern flush toilet began in 1596 when Sir John Harington installed his version of a flush system for the Queen of England.
早在公元前26世纪，印度河流域的哈拉帕和摩亨佐达罗等城市的每个住家都已经用上了不同样式的抽水马桶。所有马桶都连接到一个先进的排污系统。真正的现代抽水马桶出现于1956年，约翰哈灵顿爵士为英国女王安装了他设计的抽水马桶。

6.温度计

Thermometer (16th Century)
温度计（16世纪）

The word thermometer (in its French form) first appeared in 1624 in La Récréation Mathématique by J. Leurechon, who describes one with a scale of 8 degrees. But each inventor and each thermometer was unique -- there was no standard scale. Finally in 1724 Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit produced a temperature scale which now (slightly adjusted) bears his name. Pictured is a classic Galileo model.
1624年，J·劳伊雷肖恩首次使用“温度计”一词来描述一支有8个刻度的温度计。但当时每个发明者都各行其是，温度计的计量单位没有统一标准。终于，在1724年，丹尼尔·加布里埃尔·华伦海特制定了统一的温度计量单位——现在以他名字命名的华氏温度。图为典型的伽利略温度计。

7.收音机

Radio (1895)
收音机（1895年）

Though guys like James Clerk Maxwell, Nikola Tesla, and Thomas Edison all made important contributions to the development of radio technology, it was Guglielmo Marconi who built a wireless system capable of transmitting signals at long distances in 1895.
虽然詹姆斯·克拉克·麦克斯韦、尼古拉·特斯拉和托马斯·爱迪生等人都为收音机技术的研发做出了重要贡献，但第一台能够远距离传输信号的无线系统，是由古列尔默·马可尼在1895年制造的。

8.纸

Paper (105 AD)
纸（公元105年）

Papermaking has traditionally been traced to China about 105 AD and is considered one of the country's four great inventions.
一般认为造纸术是中国人在公元105年左右发明的，造纸术被称作中国四大发明之一。

9.微波炉

Microwave Oven (1945)
微波炉（1945年）

The development of the microwave oven was one of those happy accidents. American engineer Percy Spencer was working for Raytheon building magnetrons for radar sets when he noticed that a Mr. Goodbar in his pocket started to melt. Spencer realized it had been the microwaves that had done the trick. The first food he deliberately cooked? Popcorn of course.
微波炉的发明源于一次快乐的“事故”。美国工程师珀西·斯宾塞为雷神公司的雷达装置制造磁控管时，发现口袋中的巧克力受热融化了。斯宾塞意识到这是微波导致的。他第一次用微波试验烹制的食物是什么？当然是爆米花啦！

10.电灯泡

Light Bulb (19th Century)
电灯泡（19世纪）

While Thomas Edison is often mentioned as the inventor of the light, historians Robert Friedel and Paul Israel cite at least 22 earlier inventors. Edison's version (pictured) was able to transcend others because of some key details, including finding an effective incandescent material and being able to achieve a higher vacuum and a high resistance.
人们常说电灯泡的发明者是托马斯·爱迪生，但历史学家罗伯特·弗里德尔和保罗·伊斯里尔至少能举出20人，在爱迪生之前就发明了电灯泡。爱迪生发明的灯泡之所以能够胜出，是因为一些关键的细节，包括更合适的白炽灯灯丝材质，灯泡能够实现更高的电阻和更好的真空状态。

11.回形针

Paper Clip (1867)
回形针（1867年）

According to the Early Office Museum, the first patent for a bent wire paper clip was awarded in the United States to Samuel B. Fay, in 1867. Despite the early patent, Fay's design never really took off; instead the Gem paper clip, which was never patented, took off in Great Britain. It's still the design we use today, producing 18 billion in the U.S. alone.
根据早期办公博物馆的资料，早在1867年，美国人塞缪尔·B·费就注册取得了弯曲金属回形针的专利。尽管很早就取得了专利，但他的设计从未被采用。反倒是后来从未申请专利的宝石回形针，在英国取得了商业上的成功。回形针的设计一直沿用至今，仅在美国一地就有180亿枚的产量。

12.指南针

Compass (1117)
指南针（1117年）

Before the compass, getting lost was more or less a guarantee. The discovery of Magnetic North allowed man to explore the world. The first incontestable evidence for the use of a compass as a navigational device appeared in Chinese records in 1117. Early compasses were typically constructed by floating magnetized needles in bowls of water.
指南针发明之前，人们时常迷失方向。地磁北极的发现，使人类的探索行动成为可能。指南针用于航海的最早记录见于1117年的中国。早期的指南针，就是将磁针悬于盛水的碗中。