# Who, in all of human history, has had the greatest impact upon modern society? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [May 17, 2012, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264 "2012-05-17T23:09:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 10:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/41 "2012-05-18T10:21:56Z")
> [@E-Sabbath](#): > > Well, the first question is who to exclude. Because, of course, Uggh, who invented fire, Aaagh, who invented the wheel, and Og, who invented Gods, win. > > Hm. Okk, who invented the lever, making the first spear-thrower, is right up there too. They’re all trumped by Zorh, who invented bashing people over the head with a big rock. ---
**Author:** ![IntelliQ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e99b99/32.png) [@IntelliQ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IntelliQ)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/42 "2012-05-18T12:26:41Z")
Since the OP didnt say invention or discovery, I’ll go with… human reproduction. :-p ---
**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/43 "2012-05-18T12:38:17Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Yeah…we don’t know her name (if she had one) but [‘Mitochondrial Eve’: Mother of All Humans](http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/100817122405.htm) might be a good candidate. Her contribution, even to just the human genome, is overstated. It is likely that outside of the mitochondria, she contributed no unique genes to modern humans, her contribution having been diluted to nothing in the intervening generations. The only reason we still have her mitochondrial DNA is because mitochondrial DNA doesn’t mix. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/44 "2012-05-18T13:07:22Z")
> [@gamerunknown](#): > > I don’t think any of Jesus’ basic principles are present in society. His name, yes, but none of his basic principles. Loving neighbours? Not resisting evil? Giving all of one’s money to the poor? His principles have been perverted, and his name has been used for evil purposes. The Crusades are a prime example. In that sense, his existence (if not his actual principles) have had an enormous impact. But I still say Aristotle. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/45 "2012-05-18T16:56:10Z")
I’m surprised. Measure For Measure’s list doesn’t include Edward Jenner. > **[Edward Jenner](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Jenner)** > > Edward Jenner, FRS FRCPE (17 May 1749 – 26 January 1823) was an English physician and scientist who pioneered the concept of vaccines and created the smallpox vaccine, the world's first vaccine. The terms vaccine and vaccination are derived from Variolae vaccinae ('pustules of the cow'), the term devised by Jenner to denote cowpox. He used it in 1798 in the title of his Inquiry into the Variolae vaccinae known as the Cow Pox, in which he described the protective effect of cowpox against In th... Properly invented vaccination. Seriously, let’s get some context here. Shall we break this into eras? Dark Pre-history, Pre-History to Pre-Greecian Golden Age, Greecian Golden Age, Post Golden Age to Rome, Fall of Rome to Pre-Enlightenment, Enlightenment, Post Enlightenment to Napoleonic Era, Post Napoleonic Era to Pre-WWII, WWII, Post-WWII to Modern Day, as a rough slice? Cause right now, Og is winning. Og SMASH. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/46 "2012-05-18T17:06:02Z")
Jesus and his disciples. Heck, he even recruited Paul after his ascension. So Paul needs to be added to the credit of Jesus. After all, he is just the PR and marketing guy. Next, Aristotle, edging out his teacher, mentor and rival Plato. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/47 "2012-05-18T17:08:54Z")
Isaac Newton. The world has changed more in the 500+ years since he lived than in the previous 5000+, largely because of his work. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/48 "2012-05-18T17:22:45Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Isaac Newton. The world has changed more in the 500+ years since he lived than in the previous 5000+, largely because of his work. Whoops! Make that 300+, not 500+. He was born the same year Galileo died (1642). Misspoke… :smack: ---
**Author:** ![norbie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7cd45c/32.png) [@norbie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norbie)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/49 "2012-05-18T17:24:36Z")
Philo Farnsworth ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/50 "2012-05-18T18:13:18Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Whoops! Make that 300+, not 500+. He was born the same year Galileo died (1642). Misspoke… :smack: We’ve packed a lot of history in since then, so you’re OK… it just seems like 500 years. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/51 "2012-05-18T18:20:04Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > It’s Aristotle. It’s Aristotle! But wait, Jesus is coming around on the inside. He’s picking up speed! Can he do it, YES! It’s Jesus by a nose!!! And the winner is…Beetlebaum! ---
**Author:** ![Crane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crane/32/3495_2.png) [@Crane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crane)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/52 "2012-05-18T19:29:43Z")
Religious figures are useful pawns for politicians, but do not have much impact on our modern world. Most societies have similar central mores. It is only the origin mythology that varies. Our world is dominated by technology. Although it’s development is a slow gradient, there are a few individuals who caused major dislocations: Leonardo Filius Bonacci - moved European mathematics from counting boards to Hindu/Arabic numerals. These numerals, combined with place value, allowed algorithms to be developed for direct calculation. Allan Turing - Recognized that using base 2 notation rather than base 10 would make computers practical. Lee Boysel - Created the first single chip microprocesser. From there it was downhill all the way to Video Games, PCs, Ipads and cell phones. Crane ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/53 "2012-05-18T19:36:55Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > We’ve packed a lot of history in since then, so you’re OK… it just seems like 500 years. 🙂 Hard to believe it’s been ONLY 300+ years, innit? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![gamerunknown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6bbea6/32.png) [@gamerunknown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gamerunknown)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/54 "2012-05-18T19:42:48Z")
[Charles Sanders Peirce](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logic_gate#History_and_development) has to get some credit for modern technology (I say that as someone that takes a more or less Zinnian view of history too). ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/55 "2012-05-18T19:43:12Z")
Time flies when you’re having fun. ---
**Author:** ![Crane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crane/32/3495_2.png) [@Crane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crane)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/56 "2012-05-18T19:51:23Z")
Pierce, perhaps, but most of those logic elements were implemented in mechanical systems long before Pierce. He just converted them to their electrical equivalents. Crane ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/57 "2012-05-18T19:53:48Z")
I think it’s silly to give the official inventor of a technology the sole credit for everything that technology changed. Take, say, the telephone. Alexander Graham Bell was the inventor of the telephone, right? And the telephone transformed society. So Bell was hugely influential. Except, Bell only got the patent on the telephone because he submitted it hours before Elisha Gray’s patent. In fact, when you look at most inventions, you’ll find that there were dozens of people working on the problem at the same time. Inventions only become possible when the preconditions for those inventions are present. Crediting Gutenberg with the print revolution is like crediting Steve Jobs for the smart phone. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/58 "2012-05-18T19:58:10Z")
If I was going to vote for a scientist it’d be Galileo, not Newton. Galileo is really the founder of modern science. His discoveries may not as be as all-encompassing as Newton’s, but as far as setting up the framework of how modern science has shaped the world, Galileo gets the credit there. His style of supporting scientific arguments is also superb. Newton arguably did more tangible stuff, so I can see why he’s a close 2nd, but he’s no Galileo. If I was going to vote for an ancient Greek, it’d be Archimedes and not Aristotle. Archimedes was possibly one of the smartest men to have ever lived, and did more to shape science and physical understanding of the world than Aristotle did, in my opinion. My opinion on this is not set in stone though and I’m not a classics major, so perhaps I underestimate Aristotle. I think Gutenberg probably gets my vote, but perhaps the guy who invented gunpowder also deserves due respect for shaping the world. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/59 "2012-05-18T20:07:35Z")
George Washington. As a general, President of the Constitutional Convention and then as President of the United States (leaving voluntarily at the end of his second term), did more than anyone else to help the U.S. win its independence and begin its rise to become the great power it is today. Washington was absolutely vital for the eventual development of modern representative democracy. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264/60 "2012-05-18T20:08:55Z")
I believe that Muhammad got my vote back in that game thread and still does today. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-in-all-of-human-history-has-had-the-greatest-impact-upon-modern-society/622264.md?page=4)