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Which Invention Is Most Important?

From a simple sheet of paper to the most advanced smartphone, many inventions have changed how people communicate. But which of these has had the greatest impact?

January 8, 2024

Papyrus Paper

Invented in Egypt around 3000 B.C.

Tolga TEZCAN/Getty Images (paper); Shutterstock.com (plant)

The oldest known papyrus document is about 4,600 years old.

Each day, you probably use paper in many ways without giving it much thought. You might even be reading this article on paper.

But when it was invented more than 5,000 years ago, paper was revolutionary. Back then, many people carved their writings into stone, wood, or tablets made of clay.

Ancient Egyptians had a better idea. They came up with a way to make paper using strips of a plant called papyrus. Their invention was lightweight and strong. It gave people a simpler way to record and share their ideas and the news of the day.

Papyrus was just the beginning of using plants to make paper. Today, our paper is mostly made from trees.

Printing Press with Movable Type

Invented in Germany around 1439

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Some modern printing presses can print about 160,000 pages per hour.

Imagine if you had to copy your favorite book entirely by hand. In the early 1400s, most books were still created that way. That made them extremely rare—and expensive.

“One book could cost as much as a house,” explains historian Ada Palmer.

But then Johannes Gutenberg came along. He developed a printing press with individual metal letters that could be rearranged and reused many times. The letters were set in place to spell words and coated with ink.

A piece of paper was placed over them and pushed down to make the imprint.

In time, Gutenberg’s printing press could make about 250 pages an hour. Books became much more affordable as a result. More people gained access to knowledge and ideas. The explosion in learning led to many more important innovations.

Telephone

Invented in the United States in 1876

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There are about 8.5 billion cell phones worldwide—more than the number of people on Earth.

For centuries, most communication was done in person or in writing. It wasn’t uncommon to wait days, weeks, or even months to hear from someone who didn’t live nearby.

Staying in touch got a lot easier after Alexander Graham Bell introduced the telephone to the world in 1876. For the first time, people could have conversations in real time over long distances.

“The telephone introduced a new way of living where it was possible to connect with people at any time, instantly, whenever you’d like,” explains historian Josh Lauer.

Eventually, phones enabled businesses to expand too. They could open new offices in distant cities and reach more customers.

Today’s phones do much more than make calls, of course. They enable us to communicate in many other ways—text messages, email, video calls, and social media.

Internet

Invented in the United States in the 1960s

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On average, internet users spend nearly 7 hours a day online.

It may be hard to picture a world without the internet. You’d have to search through books, magazines, and newspapers to do research. You couldn’t play video games with a friend in another state. And there would be no YouTube, TikTok, or FaceTime.

The internet was created in the 1960s as a way for government researchers to share information. It wasn’t until the early 1990s that the World Wide Web became available to the public.

Today, the internet is a major part of how we live, learn, and work. With just a few taps on a keyboard, people near and far can stay in touch, share information, conduct business, and so much more. The internet has made the world seem a lot smaller.