It struck me the other day. Nothing is genuinely new.

Hold on, let me explain.

ITEM…	INVENTED…	AND NOW…
Medicine	Herbs, blood-letting, magic…	Science (when it works)
Oil lamps for lighting	China (?), 481–221 BC Fuelled by plant or animal oils	Electric lighting partly fuelled by… oil
Income Tax	Pitt the Younger (UK prime Minister), 1799 To fund the Napoleonic Wars as a “temporary” measure	Permanent income-sharing by individuals with national governments across the planet (even though the Napoleonic Wars are long over…)
Telephone	Alexander Graham Bell, 1869	Smartphones
Flight	Wright brothers, 1903	Moon flight, commercial airlines, and private jets
Television	John Logie Baird, 1926	Color, Stereo, LCD’s…
Computer	Charles Babbage’s manual Difference Engine in 1822 * Electronic Digital Computer during World War 2, 1939-1943	AI
Housing	By cave-dwellers	Constructed living enclosures
Cars	Karl Benz, 1866 (petrol)	EV’s
AC electricity	Tesla, 1887	All-electric lifestyles
Bombs	Gunpowder, China, 11th century	Nuclear weapons
Agriculture	c. 11,700 years ago	Fertilizer and genetic-tinkering
Steam Engine	James Watt, 1793 (Perfected others’ coal-powered prototypes.) * Evidence of isolated steam-driven engines exists throughout classical history	Coal, oil, nuclear, and some solar/wind
Trains	Richard Trevithick, 1804 (steam train)	Electric trains (with catering and “facilities”)
Clothing	Between 11,700 and 10, 500 years ago	Mail order and retail malls
Cameras	Joseph Nicéphore Niépce, 1816	Smartphones
Selective Breeding	Ancient cultural (and “aesthetic”) mating rules and practices	Genome editing/CRISPR

So most features of our everyday lives were invented in the 18th or 19th century or much, much earlier. Sure, we’ve enhanced and improved things, but essentially there’s nothing truly new. It’s all upgrading old stuff.

Comment below and let me know of anything TOTALLY NEW invented since WW2 that really is not based on the enhancement of earlier inventions or practices.