History of engineering

The concept of engineering has existed since ancient times as humans devised fundamental inventions such as the pulley, lever, and wheel.

Each of these inventions is consistent with the modern definition of engineering, exploiting basic mechanical principles to develop useful tools and objects.

The word "engine" itself is of even older origin, ultimately deriving from the Latin ingenium (c. 1250), meaning "innate quality, especially mental power, hence a clever invention.

[5] The lever mechanism first appeared around 5,000 years ago in the Near East, where it was used in a simple balance scale,[6] and to move large objects in ancient Egyptian technology.

[19][20][21][22] The earliest practical water-powered machines, the water wheel and watermill, first appeared in the Persian Empire, in what are now Iraq and Iran, by the early 4th century BC.

[25] Huan Tan's Xinlun is the earliest text to describe the trip hammer device powered by hydraulics (i.e., a waterwheel), which was used to pound and decorticate grain.

[26] Byzantines translated and preserved countless Greek manuscripts and also made contributions to engineering in the early medieval world.

[28] Islamic Golden Age witnessed advances of engineering knowledge, after translate the works of Greek, Persian, Roman, and Indian scholars.

The earliest practical wind-powered machines, the windmill and wind pump, first appeared in the Muslim world during the Islamic Golden Age, in what are now Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, by the 9th century AD.

[37] After translating the works of Hero of Alexandria, by Qusta ibn Luqa, the earliest programmable machines were developed in the Muslim world.

The first music sequencer was an automated flute player invented by the Banu Musa brothers, described in their Book of Ingenious Devices, in the 9th century.

[41] The development of this device gave rise to the Industrial Revolution in the coming decades, allowing for the beginnings of mass production.

The development of specialized machines and their maintenance tools during the industrial revolution led to the rapid growth of Mechanical Engineering both in its birthplace Britain and abroad.

[42][43] The work of James Maxwell and Heinrich Hertz in the late 19th century gave rise to the field of Electronics.