What's the greatest invention since sliced cheese? Wait: Why is sliced cheese so great in the first place? Here are 14 inventions that REALLY changed the world -- cheese not included.

　　自從切片奶酪問世以來，最偉大的發(fā)明是什么？等等：為什么切片奶酪如此偉大呢？以下是實實在在改變了世界的14個偉大發(fā)明——當然不包括奶酪。

　　Bicycle (1861)

　　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.

　　自行車(1861年)

　　1861年法國的皮埃爾•馬少克斯發(fā)明的vélocipède是公認的第一輛自行車?，F(xiàn)在全世界有10億輛自行車，數(shù)量是汽車的兩倍。

　　Aspirin (1899)

　　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.

　　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.

　　阿司匹林(1899年)

　　有記載的首次使用類似阿司匹林的藥物要追溯到公元前500年左右，當時被稱為“現(xiàn)代醫(yī)學之父”的古希臘名醫(yī)希波克拉底寫道能用柳樹皮和柳葉治療頭痛、疼痛、發(fā)燒等癥狀。柳樹皮和樹葉含有水楊酸。

　　1899年一位法國化學家完善了這一配方，研制出了乙酰水楊酸(即阿司匹林)，在保留純水楊酸的功能的同時減少了副作用。到1899年拜耳公司已在世界各地廣泛銷售阿司匹林。

　　Wheel (3500-3350 BC)

　　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)

　　車輪(公元前3500年到3350年)

　　車輪的發(fā)明對于技術的總體發(fā)展至關重要，為未來的進一步發(fā)展，如水車、齒輪、紡車的發(fā)明奠定了基礎。車輪在現(xiàn)代的衍生物包括螺旋槳、噴氣式發(fā)動機和渦輪機。圖中是伊特魯里亞雙輪戰(zhàn)車的車輪(約在公元前530年)。

胸罩（20世紀初）　　Bra (Early 1900s)

　　Mary Phelps Jacob was looking for an alternative to the ubiquitous and sometimes unsightly 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.

　　胸罩(20世紀初)

　　瑪麗•菲爾普斯•雅各布在尋找一種能替代無處不在、有時很不雅觀的緊身胸衣的東西。最后她用手帕和緞帶制造出了一個胸罩。雅各布因這一發(fā)明在1914年被授予專利，之后她以1500美元的價格將這一專利權出售給華納兄弟緊身胸衣公司。

沖水馬桶(1596年)　　Flush Toilet (1596)

　　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.

　　沖水馬桶(1596年)

　　人們早在公元前26世紀就開始使用各種形態(tài)的沖水馬桶了，當時在印度河流域的哈拉帕市和摩亨佐-達羅，幾乎每所房子里都有一個抽水馬桶，馬桶和精密的下水道系統(tǒng)相連接?，F(xiàn)代抽水馬桶真正拉開序幕是在1596年，當時約翰•哈靈頓爵士為英國女王安裝了一個自己設計的沖水馬桶系統(tǒng)。

　　Thermometer (16th Century)

　　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.

　　溫度計(16世紀)

　　溫度計一詞最初是以法文La Récréation Mathématique的形式出現(xiàn)的，1624年J•勞伊雷肖恩首次用該詞來指代有8個刻度的溫度計。不過每個發(fā)明家和他們的溫度計都很獨特，也沒有標準的度量標準。最后在1724年丹尼爾•蓋布瑞爾•華倫海特制出了一種溫度度標，經(jīng)過略微改動后就是今天以他的名字命名的華氏溫度。圖中是傳統(tǒng)的伽利略溫度計的模型。

　　Radio (1895)

　　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.

　　收音機(1895年)

　　盡管詹姆斯•克拉克•麥克斯韋、尼古拉•特斯拉和托馬斯•愛迪生等人都為收音機技術的研發(fā)做出了重要貢獻，然而是古列爾默•馬可尼在1895年造出了能夠遠距離傳輸信號的無線系統(tǒng)。

　　Plow (6000 BC)

　　The domestication of animals such as oxen provided mankind with the pulling power needed to develop the first plows. They consisted of a frame holding a vertical wooden stick that was dragged through the topsoil -- and are still used in many parts of the world.

　　犁(公元前6000年)

　　馴化牛等動物為人類制造首批耕地用的犁提供了牽引力。犁由一個框架組成，框架上支撐著一根垂直的木棍，通過牛拉犁，木棍就可以劃過表層土壤。如今全球很多地區(qū)仍在使用。

　　Paper (105 AD)

　　Papermaking has traditionally been traced to China about 105 AD and is considered one of the country's four great inventions.

　　造紙術(公元105年)

　　造紙術可以追溯到大約公元105年的中國，被認為是中國古代四大發(fā)明之一。

　　Microwave Oven (1945)

　　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.

　　微波爐(1945年)

　　微波爐的發(fā)明是最巧妙的一起“事故”。當時，美國工程師珀西•斯賓塞正為雷聲公司的雷達裝置制造磁控管，他發(fā)現(xiàn)口袋中的巧克力受熱融化。斯賓塞意識到是微波導致的。那么他有意用微波烹飪的第一種食物呢？當然就是爆米花。

　　Microchip (1958)

　　In their half century of existence, microchips have practically taken over the world -- landing themselves in everything from computers to even humans.

　　微芯片(1958年)

　　在問世半個世紀以來，微芯片幾乎掌控了全世界，從計算機到人類，幾乎隨處都可見它的身影

　　Light Bulb (19th Century)

　　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.

　　電燈泡(19世紀)

　　人們經(jīng)常提到，托馬斯•愛迪生發(fā)明了電燈泡，而歷史學家羅伯特•弗里德爾和保羅•伊斯里爾提到了至少22種更早的類似發(fā)明。愛迪生的發(fā)明版本能夠從中勝出是由于一些關鍵的細節(jié)，包括找到了一種有效的發(fā)白熱光的材料，燈泡內(nèi)能夠達到較高程度的真空和高電阻。

　　Paper Clip (1867)

　　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 US alone.

　　回形針(1867年)

　　根據(jù)早期辦公室博物館的資料，能彎曲的金屬絲回形針的專利最早出現(xiàn)在1867年的美國，發(fā)明者是塞繆爾•B•非伊。但盡管他很早就申請了專利，他的設計卻從沒流傳下來。真正流傳下來的是從未注冊過專利的寶石牌回形針，在英國打開了市場。我們今天使用的回形針仍然是這一樣式，僅在美國一國每年的產(chǎn)量就達180億枚。

　　Compass (1117)

　　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.

　　指南針(1117年)

　　在指南針發(fā)明前，迷失方向是經(jīng)常發(fā)生的事情。磁北的發(fā)現(xiàn)讓人們可以探索世界。指南針作為導航設備使用的首個明確證據(jù)出現(xiàn)在1117年的中國。早期的指南針是在一碗水中放置一枚浮動的磁化針。