Papyrus
The first form of paper was made by the ancient Egyptians around 3000 BC. It is constructed from the medulla of a paper reed found in the delta where the Nile river drains into the Mediterranean. Susceptible to cracking, papyrus was most often used as a scroll and was eventually replaced by parchment in the centuries around Christ’s time.
Papyrus was critical to the development of media throughout history. Not only did it provide a canvas for ancient authors to write on, papyrus also allowed writing to be easily transported and stored in libraries.
Destruction of the Library of Alexandria
Founded around 300 BC, the first known international library and university represented the peak of ancient knowledge. The library was destroyed sometime between 48 BC and 642 AD. Whether its destruction was caused by Julius Caesar, Emperor Aurelian, Emperor Theodosius I, or by Muslim conquest, this event was a major setback to the world of science and civilization.The ancient Library of Alexandria held many secrets that hadn't been rediscovered until many centuries after it disappeared into ruin. It has been said that if this library was never destroyed, we might be a thousand years more advanced than we are today.
The Mysterious Fate of the Great Library of Alexandria
Rosetta Stone
A black granite fragment of a larger piece containing 3 identical texts written in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics, another ancient Egyptian writing called Demotics, and ancient Greek. Originating around 200 BC, it was eventually rediscovered by a French soldier during Napoleon’s 1798 campaign in Egypt.This artifact is significant in that it is possibly the first time a language has been translated in history, bridging the linguistic gap between ancient Egypt and Greece. If it had not been rediscovered in 1798, we may still not know the hieroglyph's true meaning.
In 1821, a blind Frenchman named Louis Braille created a system by which the blind could communicate in writing. Braille uses 6-dot cells, or characters, in which different dots are raised to represent letters and punctuation. Today, Braille is used in books, signs and bank notes. Recently, Nokia has made cell phone application that translates text messages into Braille.Braille is historically significant in that it introduced the world of literature to the blind. No longer would the blind need a helper to read for them. Now the blind could read signs and buttons by simply running their fingers over them. Braille also opened the door for blind authors to write independently.
Celebrating 200 Years of Braille
Ballpoint Pen
In June of 1938, a Hungarian newspaper editor named László Bíró developed a pen that had a small ball rolling freely in a socket. This pen used newspaper printing ink that dried very quickly and eliminated ink smudging, revolutionizing the way we write by hand.Without the ballpoint pen, we may still be using feathers or sharp fountain pens to write. Think of all the paper we have saved from the ravages of smudging, and all the trees that needn't be cut down to replace smudged paper in the wastebasket. Also consider that today's gel pens would not be made possible without the invention of the ballpoint pen.
Ballpoint Pen History - Invention of the Ballpoint Pen
