Inventions I nventions are new ideas that solve problems or prove useful to us. Thousands of years of brilliant brainpower have resulted in things and ideas that have transformed people’s lives. Even in the modern world, people keep coming up with new ideas and inventions. *Thomas Edison (1847–1931) was an American master of invention, patenting 1,093 ideas in his lifetime, including batteries and light bulbs. The Great Thomas Edison … Hand axe - The hand axe was the first stone tool in prehistoric times. People dug for flint, which they shaped into handcrafted axes to cut meat, chop wood, scrape skins, and protect themselves. Hand axes were used for more than a million years. Wheel - The wheel was invented more than 5,000 years ago in Mesopotamia (part of modern-day Iraq). Wooden discs were attached to animal carts to carry heavy loads. Later, wheels became...