offer you to guess a riddle:
you do not get lost on the road,
Holding a box with a magnetic needle on the palm.
It will not deviate from the route
and lead to a designated point.
you can easily guess, of course, that this - the compass.This is a great invention that rightfully belongs to the category of four of the greatest inventions of mankind, preserved and used until today.Compass is the first navigation device, which helped navigators to navigate the high seas.
essence of the structure of the compass - magnetic needle mounted on a small rod and able to rotate freely in all directions.The arrow points to the North Magnetic Pole.In accordance with its location on a map plotted other objects that are in the world.Due to this, orienteering compass used not only for water, but also on land.
question of where the compass was invented and who invented the compass, does not have a precise answer.For a long time still it believed that the discovery based on iron magnetized direction, belongs to China.The similarity of the original compass used for orientation when driving through the desert.Superiority of the invention and the device in which country invented the compass, challenge the Indians, Italians, Arabs, French.All arguments and evidence contains inaccuracies mismatch.Unfortunately, extant judgments, records of the discovery only in the representation of scientists and assumptions about who invented the compass, but not the testimony of sailors.
In the third century BC, there were already the first description of the compass, which belongs to the Chinese scientists Hen Fei Tzu.It was the likeness of polished spoons with handle, which is mounted on a plate of wood or copper.The plate was designated direction of light.By placing a spoonful of magnetite so that the stem does not touch the plane, it began to rotate.The side light pointed to self-stalk after it stops denoting south.
There is a Chinese legend who invented the compass.During the reign of Bishop Huang was a great battle, in which the evil spirit with the help of witchcraft let loose a thick fog.In this position, the soldiers could not fight: they could not see anything around him, did not know where the rear, and where the front.The enemy suddenly appear out of the fog and deals a fatal blow.The situation was dire.Only one high official named Feng Hou was sitting in his chariot, and thought.He was looking for a way out of the situation.It was necessary to come up with something that would help to navigate toward the light.The man was very wise.Under the roar of battle, he fashioned a chariot and set her figure a little iron man, who always pointed his outstretched arm to the south, despite the fact, which turns the chariot.Feng Hou and is considered a legend of the inventor of the first compass.
magnetic device for determining the cardinal during the day was first mentioned in a Chinese book dated 1044 year.44 years slightly improved compass described in his work a Chinese scientist Shen Ko.Currently, this version is that the first inventors of the compass were just Chinese to question.Let's face one - the Chinese figured on the principle of the compass among the first.In the XI century in the stern of Chinese ships was already present compass.
Europe met marvelous invention because of the Arab merchants at the beginning of XXII century.Already in the XI century on all the ships merchants - Arabs have compasses.Then the compass was a bowl of water in which floated a wooden plank or a tube inserted into it with a magnetized arrow.(Arabic vessel compass was made in the form of iron fish, which when immersed in water have consistently shown to the north.) After the Arabs began to use a compass seamen Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, England.With the help of this compass you can find out where the north and south.Around this time, the compass guessed for the convenience of cover glass.
upgraded model of the compass invented Italian Flavio Gioia in the XIV century.For convenience, the determination of other parts of the world, he proposed to break the circle of the compass into sixteen parts.He also improved the function of rotation by adding studs under the arrow.
know exactly who invented the compass, we may no longer be able to.Too many doubts about this lately.One thing is clear: simple and very clever device helping to make humanity a giant leap forward in its development.
