How Did The Caravel Change

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The caravel was developed in the late 1400’s and used nearly for the next 300 years. It has been described as having a gently sloping bow and single stern castle. It carried a mainmast and a mizzen mast that was generally lateen-rigged.1 Although the caravel had already been in use for hundreds of years, it developed into an incredibly fast, easily maneuverable vessel by this time, which was noticed and used by many renowned people, especially during the Portuguese and Spanish voyages. Two of Christopher Columbus’s ships, the Nina and the Pinta, were caravels and he often discussed how he liked the Nina’s great speed, maneuverability, and safety. All caravels were developed differently and changed throughout time to keep up with the changing …show more content…

The new arrangements made it more viable for exploration, trading, warfare, and even piracy. The caravel added a new level to the world of navigation. It revolutionized transportation and made it possible for explorers, fishermen, and merchants to expand their horizons, by allowing them to have the ability to travel further and faster. Caravels led to the possibility to sail down to the coast of Africa and return to Portugal, which began the colonization of the Atlantic Islands – a precedent for the New World. As an early explorer Columbus used and relied on landmarks while sailing, which led to inaccuracy of location and direction. Some later explorers would use the stars, which still was not the best option. Technology began to increase and the compass, sextant, and barometer were invented, navigation improved greatly. While it is unclear who invented the compass or when, its first use can be traced back to China since they were the first to discover lodestone, which is an iron metal that always faces north when on a flat …show more content…

People became more understanding of one another’s culture. More books of a secular nature were printed and scientists working on the same problem in different parts of Europe especially benefited, since they could print the results of their work and share it accurately with a large number of other scientists. By the 1600 's, this process would lead to the Scientific Revolution of the Enlightenment, which would radically alter how Europeans viewed the world and universe. While the printing press was a highly positive invention, it created so negativity. It took book copying out of the hands of the Church and made it much harder for the Church to control or censor what was being written. Even today the printing press still is around and people will always have new ideas to write about, something to say, people to reach with their messages. Without the printing press the continuing education of today’s society would not be where it is. The innovation of the printing press is quite possibly responsible for the largest spread of education materials in history. It has advanced and spread knowledge and molded public opinion in a way that nothing before the