Chinese Inventions, Discoveries, etc.

A list of some Chinese inventions, discoveries, etc. (from "Riding the Iron Rooster"):

• mechanical clock (Tang dynasty, lost and then reintroduced from Europe)
• first to make cast iron and soon after invented the iron plow
• Chinese metallurgists first to make steel
• crossbow
• first to notice all snowflakes have six sides
• umbrella
• seismograph
• phosphorescent paint
• spinning wheel
• sliding calipers
• porcelain
• stink bomb
• chain pump (1st centure A.D., still in use)
• kite (2000 years before one was flown in Europe)
• movable type
• devised first printed book ("Diamond Sutra", 868)
• possibly the printing press (Gutenberg got it from Portuguese, who got it from Chinese)
• suspension bridge and first bridge with segmented arch
• playing cards
• fishing reels
• whiskey
• first sailors to use rudders
• paper money
• fireworks
• lacquer
• first people to use wallpaper
• paper (including toilet)
• wheelbarow
• first design of steam engine
• poison gas
• mechanical pump
• compass
• gunpowder

Wow! And this list is not comprehensive.