Medieval Innovations hrsbstaff中世纪的创新hrsbstaff.ednet.ns.pptVIP

Medieval Innovations Making Work Easier New ways of farming developed during Middle Ages. Farmers began using a 3-field rotation for planting (1st field=wheat or rye in autumn, 2nd field=oats, beans, peas, vegetables, 3rd field=unplanted for a year). Helped people to be self-sufficient. Gun powder Gunpowder was brought to Medieval Europe by warriors returning from the Middle East. Invented by the Chinese, it exploded unpredictably and injured soldiers who used it. By the 1400s, it had improved and many soldiers were now fighting with cannons and small guns. Bullets pierced armour, and castle walls couldn’t withstand these weapons, so they were no longer a place of safety. Printing Press In the early 1400s, Germans inventors began to experiment with ways to make books with machines rather than by hand. Johannes Gutenberg made a printing method called movable type that was similar to a system being used in China. It was made of individual blocks of wood into which letters and punctuation marks were carved. A printer arranged the letters to spell the words on each page, the letters were coated in ink, and paper was pressed down onto the type. This meant more books could be printed, it was was less expensive and way faster, and more accessible to people. Some Problems with The Printing Press There were some reasons why books didn’t always spread quickly : low literacy rates; books were cheaper, but were still too expensive for most; books were produced in a wider range of topics, but many were still not relevant to many people’s lives. Exploration to Other Lands Navigation is the science of guiding a ship. Before the 1500s, it was done by sight, hugging the coast, knowledge of routes, and landmarks. Many tools were invented or improved during the Middle Ages which changed navigation. New instruments included compasses, log lines, quadrants, astrolabes, and traverse boards. By using celestial navigation (using the position of the stars and the sun), sailors had