China is believed to be the home to umbrellas, which are still widely used in the country. The earliest umbrellas are known to have existed at least two thousand years ago, first made of silk and later popularly paper. The Chinese waxed and lacquered their paper parasols because oil repels water. In ancient times, the frames of the umbrellas were made of mulberry bark or bamboo. Red and yellow umbrellas were used by royal families, and blue umbrellas, by the common people.
Paper UmbrellasThe best oilpaper umbrellas are generally thought to be those from Fujian and Hunan provinces, with a good reputation for its delicate craftsmanship and vivid pattern. Their bamboo frames are treated against mould and worms. The paper covers are hand-painted with flowers, birds, figures and landscapes and then coated with oil so that they are not only practical but also pretty and durable. 
Chinese seismologists and archeologists have announced that they have created a replica of Didong Yi, the world's first seismograph. The announcement in Zhengzhou, capital of central China's Henan Province, also home to the seismograph's original inventor Zhang Heng (78-139 AD), came almost two months after the device passed relevant appraisal and examination by a scientific committee in April. Seven scientists in seismology, archeology and mechanical engineering from Chinese Academy of Sciences, the National Museum and China Earthquake Administration confirmed that the replica was a "historic step" towards complete reconstruction"We believe the newly restored seismograph model is the best at present," said Academician Teng Jiwen, a research fellow at the Institute of Geology and Geophysics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, China's top scientific research body."It represents our current utmost understanding of the ancient Didong instrument," said Teng, who was among the seven-member appraisal and examination panel.
A stirrup is a light frame or ring that holds the foot of a rider, attached to a saddle by a strap, often called a stirrup leather. Stirrups are usually paired and are used to aid in mounting and as a support while using a riding animal (usually a horse or other equine, such as a mule).[1] They greatly increase the rider's ability to stay in the saddle and control the mount, increasing the animal's usefulness to humans in areas such as communication, transportation and warfare. In antiquity, the earliest foot supports consisted of riders placing their feet under a girth or using a simple toe loop. Later, a single stirrup was used as a mounting aid, and paired stirrups appeared after the invention of the treed saddle. The use of paired stirrups is credited to the Jin Dynasty and came to Europe during the Middle Ages. Some argue that the stirrup was one of the basic tools used to create and spread modern civilization, possibly as important as the wheel or printing press.
The kite from WeiFang entered history abaout 1000 years ago and was part of the territory of the ancient Warrying Empires (475-221 o.o.t). The city of WeiFang had been a main centre of kite building since the Ming- and Qing-Dynasties. Since 1984 the city is hosting the largest international kite festival on earth. It usually takes place in the midst of springtime at the end of April. In 1988 WeiFang had been declared the Capital City of Kites. With the foundation of the World Kite Federation (WKF) a year later. With headquarters of the World Kite Federation and its long history of kite building and the largest kite festival on earth, the city of WeiFang is the legitimate global capital and homestead of kites. The clear and vivid history , natural beauty and manyfold variety of kites are illustrated in the reknown and unique WeiFang Kite Museum. Seen from a distance, the roof of this outstanding museum is resembling a centipede. You are cordially invited to visit the treasures of 2300 years of kite history.
-A compass is a navigational instrument for determining direction relative to the Earth's magnetic poles. It consists of a magnetized pointer (usually marked on the North end) free to align itself with Earth's magnetic field. The compass greatly improved the safety and efficiency of travel, especially ocean travel. A compass can be used to calculate heading, used with a sextant to calculate latitude, and with a marine chronometer to calculate longitude. It thus provides a much improved navigational capability that has only been recently supplanted by modern devices such as the Global Positioning System (GPS). A compass is any magnetically sensitive device capable of indicating the direction of the magnetic north of a planet's magnetosphere. The face of the compass generally highlights the cardinal points of north, south, east and west. Often, compasses are built as a stand alone sealed instrument with a magnetized bar or needle turning freely upon a pivot, or moving in a fluid, thus able to point in a northerly and southerly direction. The compass was invented in ancient China around 247 B.C., and was used for navigation by the 11th century. The dry compass was invented in medieval Europe around 1300.[1] This was supplanted in the early 20th century by the liquid-filled magnetic compass.[2] Other, more accurate, devices have been invented for determining north that do not depend on the Earth's magnetic field for operation (known in such cases as true north, as opposed to magnetic north). A gyrocompass or astrocompass can be used to find true north, while being unaffected by stray magnetic fields, nearby electrical power circuits or nearby masses of ferrous metals. A recent development is the electronic compass, or fibre, which detects the magnetic directions without potentially fallible moving parts. This device frequently appears as an optional subsystem built into GPS receivers. However, magnetic compasses remain popular, especially in remote areas, as they are cheap, durable, and require no electrical power supply.
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