When you think of a vending machine, things like snacks, sodas, or even pharmaceutical supplies may come to mind. But you might be surprised to know that the first ever vending machine actually dispensed holy water. Yep, people back then would insert a coin and receive just the right amount of holy water from temples in Egypt.
While the vending machine might seem like a fairly modern invention, it’s actually believed to have been around since the first century. It’s one of many historical inventions that were way ahead of their time. Bored Panda was intrigued to know what other creations have been around longer than we thought, so we took a deep dive through the passage of time to find out. From flying cars to ancient earthquake detectors to automated doors, it turns out the world has been filled with futuristic inventions far longer than we realized.
#1 An Ancient Earthquake Detector
Today, seismologists use sensitive equipment to record tectonic movements deep within the Earth and analyze this data to predict earthquakes. Although seismometers are becoming more advanced each year, accurately predicting earthquakes is still an inexact science. More than 2,000 years ago, however, an ancient Chinese inventor, Zhang Heng, made the world’s first seismoscope which proved to be incredibly accurate. Called the Houfeng Didong Yi, Zhang Heng’s seismoscope was made in the shape of a jar with eight tubes extended from a circle of dragon heads on the exterior of the jar. When the device detected an earthquake, a small ball fell out of one of the dragon’s mouths and into the mouth of a toad figure affixed to the base of the jar. The toad indicated the direction the seismic wave was traveling.
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123points
#2 An Early Motorised Scooter
The Autoped was an early vision of today's scooters. This was a personal transport system originally developed in 1915. It boasted a 155cc air-cooled engine and a top speed of 20 mph. This scooter was well ahead of its time and included some neat design features that wouldn't look out of place on a similar modern device. It came with both head and tail lamps, a horn, and even a toolbox. It was also possible to fold the steering column down to make it easier to store. The Autoped might well have come about as a necessity due to wartime fuel rationing but it wouldn't catch on at the time - not something that can be said now. Another design well ahead of its time.
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117points
#3 18 Year Old Inventor, H. Day, Wearing Headphones Attached To A Wireless Device Under His Top Hat, May 1922
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92points
I had a random shower thought the other day... "Why do we say it's the best thing since sliced bread," if there have been so many more incredible and useful inventions since that bulky bread-cutting contraption was introduced to the world?
Seeing as I'm one who loves a good rabbit hole, I then ended up doing a deep dive into the origins of sliced bread. As it turns out, bread itself has been around for about 15,000 years.
According to scientists, our ancient ancestors were baking before they learned to farm properly. But it took thousands more years before humans were blessed with a machine that could cut perfect, equal slices of bread.
#4 Vending Machines
Today’s vending machines are typically stocked with unhealthy snack options, like candy bars, sodas, and chips. The first vending machines, however, dispensed a product that was good for your soul. These vending machines from the 1st century dispensed holy water. Hero of Alexandria, a Greek engineer, mathematician, and inventor built a box with a series of levers. When the user inserted a coin, it triggered the levers to open a valve and pour out a small amount of holy water.
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89points
#5 Transatlantic Telegraph Cables
The United States and Great Britain were able to communicate electronically via undersea cable - in 1858! Before then, it took ten days to communicate between the continents by ship.
For reference, that's three years before the American Civil War. You know, when everyone still rode horses.
It's two years before Louis Pasteur proved that germs caused disease. That's right, we had trans-continental electronic communications BEFORE it was common knowledge that germs caused disease!
DEFINITELY ahead of its time.
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85points
#6 Piano Especially Designed For People Who Are Confined To Bed. Great-Brittain, 1935
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83points
When we say "the best thing since sliced bread," we're going back to July 6, 1928. It was on that day that the very first automatically sliced commercial loaves of bread hit the shelves in the United States. It wasn't a baker or an engineer who invented the bread cutting machine, but rather a jeweler called Otto Rohwedder.
#7 Roman Concrete
Roman concrete, or opus caementicium, incorporated volcanic ash, making it incredibly durable. Structures like the Pantheon and aqueducts stand as testaments to its strength.
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78points
#8 The Microcar: Great For Small People And NYC Parking, Horrible In Any Other Situation
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75points
#9 Parachute
Leonardo da Vinci sketched a parachute design in the margin of his sketch book with the following text:
If a man is provided with a length of gummed linen cloth with a length of 12 yards on each side and 12 yards high, he can jump from any great height whatsoever without injury.
In 1617, the first successful parachute jump was made from a tower in Venice.
If a man is provided with a length of gummed linen cloth with a length of 12 yards on each side and 12 yards high, he can jump from any great height whatsoever without injury.
In 1617, the first successful parachute jump was made from a tower in Venice.
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71points
#10 Archimedes’ Screw
Designed by Archimedes, this device lifted water for irrigation. Its simple yet effective mechanism is still used in modern engineering for moving water and materials.
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69points
#11 Wireless Electricity
You know how we get radio, cell service, wi-fi, and television from signals that are broadcast through the air? Back in the early 1900s, genius inventor Nikola Tesla envisioned a system that would transmit electricity wirelessly through the air … free for anyone to use. He did more than just envision it. He conducted experiments and built a prototype to demonstrate the feasibility of his plan. Tesla’s Wardenclyffe Tower, located in Shoreham, New York, was supposed to provide free, wireless electricity, however Tesla ran out of money. He was unable to secure funds to bring his idea to fruition.
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66points
We might have received sliced bread even earlier were it not for nature saying, "No!" In 1917, a fire destroyed his prototype and blueprints. On top of that, bakers called B.S. They believed factory-sliced loaves would get moldy fast—or break apart.
But Rohwedder was determined. In1928 he rebuilt his “power-driven, multi-bladed” bread slicer. And fortunately, his friend Frank Bench had faith in him. And Chillicothe Baking Company tested his machine for all the world to see.
#13 An Experimental Tracked Air Cushion Vehicle
In the mid-1960s to the late years of the 1970s, French engineers were looking to create new transportation machines that included the Aérotrain, an experimental Tracked Air Cushion Vehicle. This machine was essentially a hovertrain and a variation of the maglev train design. It was designed to ride on an air cushion above the track and thereby avoid all resistance in order to reach unprecedented top speeds. In 1969, a rocket-equipped prototype achieved a record speed of 262 mph. The design faced numerous challenges, not least of which was the need for elevated guideways wherever the train was set to travel. Sudden changes in wind pressure could also cause problems. The project was eventually scrapped due to a lack of funds.
61points
#15 Central Heat
The Greeks did not have central heat in the same way that we have it today, but they were undoubtedly pioneers in the field of keeping homes warm. The system utilized by the ancient Greeks was first found in the Temple of Ephesus in 350 BC. The Ancient Greeks termed this system hypocaust, which means “under burnt.” While the Temple of Ephesus was the earliest building known to have this method of central heating, Vitruvius attributed the invention of central heating to Sergiu Orata in 80 BC. The practice remained in use through Ancient Rome. In Ancient Rome, it was found in hot baths and public buildings, and in the homes of the very wealthy because of the high cost. The hypocaust was created by making a structure under the floor of the building. The floor of the building was raised on pillars called pilae stacks. These pillars would have a layer of tiles above them which would be covered by a layer of concrete and then the floor tiles used for the building. A furnace would be lit and it would feed hot air and smoke into the space between the ground and floor of the building. The hot air and smoke then rose through the clay or tile flues that made up the walls of the building before traveling out through outlets in the roof. In this way, the system could also be used to heat multiple floors of a building. The system was very labor intensive and expensive to maintain. There would be a need for a s***e or a laborer to constantly maintain the fire at just the right level for the comfort of the people within the building. There were also designs of bronze ventilators which could be used to regulate the temperature.
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58points
As they say, they rest is history... and today, not only do we have sliced bread, but a whole bunch of innovative inventions we might never have been able to live without. Some are featured on this list. Others aren't. We use them and don't even realize we are taking them for granted!
Let us know in the comments which inventions you are thankful for, and what, in your opinion, is better than sliced bread...
#16 Chariot With Navigation System
In our times, a car with a navigation system is nothing surprising. However, when 2,000 years ago, during the Three Kingdoms period, the Chinese inventor Ma Jun created a chariot with a built-in compass for Emperor Ming-di, it was a real wonder. There was no magnetic compass in the inventor's creation, so he had to come up with an alternative. On the chariot's roof, he attached an arrow, which, through a complex system of gears, could always point in one direction. At the beginning of the journey, when the cardinal directions were precisely known, it would be oriented to the south. Then the chariot would move, and every time it turned, the mechanism rotated the arrow to ensure it always pointed in the designated direction. It was purely mechanical with no magnetic compass - the Chinese only began using those in the 11th century. To create such a device, Ma Jun had to invent a differential gear and a reduction mechanism. According to historical records, these navigational chariots were used until the year 1300, and were essential for long journeys and reconnaissance expeditions.
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57points
#17 Television Goggles
In 1963, avid inventor and tech enthusiast Hugo Gernsback was photographed by Life Magazine showing off his "teleyeglasses" - a precursor to modern head-mounted displays.
Apparently, the idea of television eyeglasses came to the inventor in 1936, but it wasn't until the 1960s that advancements in tech made his vision possible. The television goggles used small cathode-ray tubes for the display and included a separate screen for each eye, much like modern VR headsets. The large antenna made this device look alien-like and it was certainly well before its time.
57points
#18 Why It's Called "Moving Up" In The Company. Electric Elevator Desks In Prague, 1937
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56points
#19 Revolving Book Case, From Page 202 Of History And Description Of The Crystal Palace And The Exhibition Of The World's Industry In 1851
This piece of furniture certainly looks interesting. However, an upright bookshelf could fit the same number of books, take up much less space, and not require muscles to operate. Presumably, the appeal of a revolving book case is its novelty and design, in which case this one fits the bill.
55points
#20 The Antikythera Mechanism
In 1901, sponge divers found a strange device off the coast of the Greek island of Antikythera in the Aegean Sea. The device is a wooden box with a complex system of gears and a hand crank. Analysis on the device showed that it dates back to the 1st or 2nd centuries BCE. As out-of-place as it seems, the Antikythera Mechanism is an ancient analogue computer that predates Apple Computers by centuries. Most experts believe that the Antikythera Mechanism was used to predict astronomical positions, like eclipses.
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54points