The Roman Empire and Its Engineering Achievements

Roman Technology and its Impact

Roman technology incorporated engineering practices that supported their civilization and made expansion of the Roman military and commerce achievable for a long duration (753 BC- 476AD). The Roman Empire was the most technologically advanced society of the antiquity, with some of the progressive concepts forgotten during the duration of the middle age and late antiquity. As time went by, the developments were rediscovered during the commencement of the modern era in areas such as construction materials, transport technology and civil engineering. The Romans were highly successful in their craft largely due to borrowed ideas from Celts and Etruscans.

Renowned Engineering Advancements

Romans were renowned for their engineering advancements and successes, despite some of them not being their original discoveries. An example is the technology on delivering water that emerged from the East but was transformed by Romans into an expertise inconceivable by Greece (Mays). The architecture used in Rome was majorly influenced by Greek and Etruscan origins. Roads were common during the period but the Romans perfected their craft to an extent that a majority of their works is still in use until today. Their accomplishments go way beyond many other civilizations of their period and their structures have withstood the test of time to motivate others especially during the Renaissance. Furthermore, their contributions were highlighted by many authors in their works as a validation on their ingenuity and superiority.

Evidence

Before Rome transitioned into an empire, the city advanced between the 8th and 4th centuries borrowing a leaf from Greeks and Etruscans. While the Romans were intellectually sophisticated individuals, they were clever enough to take advantage of the already available knowledge and resources. Instead of beginning from scratch, they developed the already existent technology of the place they subdued. Roman architects absorbed a great deal from Etruscan art and design besides having considerable respect for both Greek and sculptures and structural design. Moreover, they learnt from Egyptian pyramid designs and stonework. While Romans many have not done extremely well in arts, most of the time commissioning artists and using unused scraps of architecture from pacified territories to enhance their buildings, they stood out in structural engineering making some of the most durable structures known. In most instances, their structures were built using the concept of the arch (Lancaster).

Invention of the Arch

The Romans were in no way the original inventors of the arch. It is evident from its use before their time by the Mesopotamians. Nevertheless, they were the first to perfect the art and exploit its full potential in design aspects of structures. The arch dates back to a long period probably during the second Millennium and the Romans made use of it in the beginning of the 6th Century. It was from the Etruscans that the Romans learned the technique of the arch. They honed and sharpened their skills for years and applying the idea on every imaginable architecture. After a long period, they were able to find something that worked for them and suited their needs, and expanded its use to domes and vaults.

Engineering Advancements

Besides the arch, their engineering technology helped them develop materials and techniques that revolutionized bridge and aqueducts construction, perfected their ancient weapons and came up with new ones and developing of machines that took advantage of the power of water (Lancaster). The accomplishments generated much wealth and prosperity for the empire. Additionally, it enabled them improve the daily lives of their citizens and that of the nation’s dominance in Europe and the Mediterranean for centuries.

Integration in Society

The Roman Empire was well known for its amazing feats in relation to engineering practices that are still in use until today or have heavily influenced contemporary machinery (Lancaster). Advances in engineering were some of the most crucial factors that played a leading role in the control of the empire in Europe. It is evident in how the ideas reinvigorated society thus allowing for a new civilization to prosper with advancement in transport, hence connecting many areas that were inaccessible.

Roads and Hydraulics

Concerning that, as a major in engineering, history played a crucial role in shaping engineering aspects. Ideas and practices that were discovered during ancient times have continued to influence the modern society in many ways. They provide guiding principles and a framework that determine the mode of operation. With reference to that, some of the areas underscoring the importance of Roman engineering are evident in the construction of roads and in the field of hydraulics.

Roman Roads

Since the Roman Empire was extensive, they had to come up with an efficient way of traveling. The result was a complex and efficient system of roads. The roads spanned thousands of kilometers. To facilitate their construction, they were developed using a crushed layers of stone, sand, mortar and paver stones. The paver stones were inclined to drain off water thus making them immune to changes in weather conditions. Engineers opted for finding solutions to obstacles along a road route rather than redirecting them. Consequently, the move had a large impact on road designs that led to the development of tunnels and bridges. Many of the roads used by Romans were developed during ancient times.

Hydraulics and Aqueducts

The other significant development relating to road was on the establishment of a technological relationship with water. The Romans were popular for developing aqueducts but at the same period began using hydraulics for industrial surroundings and powering machines (Mays). Aqueducts came as a means of providing access to water, a move that had never been witnessed before. The idea provided access to water for many people hence improving on hygiene. Similar to roads, if engineers came across any challenge from water sources, they built siphons to deal with the problem rather than altering the route.

Hydraulics and Machines

Still on the same subject, hydraulics was the other area shaped by history. As well as constructing aqueducts, the Romans were the first people to take advantage of the power of water in engineering and construction (Mays). Hydraulic mining was part of a method extensively used to pave way for aqueduct systems an example being Dolaucothi in Britain where gold was extracted. A hushing approach was used to reach the ore where powerful waves of water were unleashed to brush away soil and expose the bedrock. Until today, the method is still in use on alluvial tin ores.

Invention of Machineries

Besides that, the Romans also invented machineries such as the treadmill and tread-wheel crane (Wilson). The mill was used to manufacture flour or as a sawmill. The Hierapolis sawmill is among the earliest known example of a crank and connecting rod mechanism. A rope would attach to a pulley, similar to the modern day timing belt and rotated on a spindle using a wheel. The apparatus used a bearing that was crucial for the development of taper roll bearings in the 19th Century. The mentioned examples provide some of the legacy associated with Roman engineering. They were of superior quality thus explaining the reason for their longevity. Some of the greatest technological advancements came into existence during the Roman rule and their uses are still relevant.

Significance and Legacy

Impact on Humanity

The ingeniousness of the Roman engineering has never been lost ever since it came into existence. Even today, people are still amazed by the superior engineering skills that the people possessed that allowed them to extend their influence and rule over an extended period. The advancement was highly regarded during its duration as the people did everything possible to ensure its secrecy thus facilitating domination. Citizens of regions conquered by Rome were the beneficiaries of the innovation through fresh water supply, roads linking the territories to the empire and building of bridges over impassable rivers. The new areas were easily persuaded into acceptance of the Romans once they saw the developments and acknowledged the impact on their life.

Improvement in Quality of Life

With reference to that, there were aspects that influenced the advancement and how it shaped out over time. Based on that, some of the evident strengths were the improvement on the quality of life. Water was easily supplied to towns in addition to making the mode of travel easier. Furthermore, weapons made strengthened the military making them able to subdue any domain. Nonetheless, there were weakness and conflicts that arose due to the developments. Romans over ambition based on their superiority ideology led to their downfall. The expense of controlling new areas became exorbitantly high besides issues dealing with concentration of power considerably affected them. Moreover, the opening up of new areas facilitated exploitation and under development leading to frequent rebellions.

Humanity’s Betterment

People recognize the fact that Romans were advanced in comparison to their time of existence. The state of affair was mainly due to their superior abilities and innovations that made it easier to conquer and mitigate a revolt allowing them to maintain their influence for long. There is no doubt that Romans significantly contributed towards humanity through the betterment of life. In addition, their greatness was a direct result of the fact that they had excellent architects and engineers.

Student Position

Due to Roman engineering, humans are better off since the impact of their development is great. The construction of tunnels and bridges made it possible for connectivity between two distant locations (Lancaster). There was the creating of solutions to handle complex environmental challenges that were earlier on thought of being impossible to overcome. As a result, bridges were built over water sources and tunnels resulted in areas with rugged terrain. The discovery of concrete made it efficient and easier to come up with sustainable structures. Structures that were built by Romans during the ancient times lasted for a long period. They were of superior quality and withstood the test of times. Furthermore, habitable units for people were built thus providing them with shelter.

Improved Exploration and Resource Extraction

The other benefit was that exploration activities were improved due to the discoveries (Lancaster). People were able to extract resources that were below the earth’s surface in an easier and safer way. The technology made work easier and faster therefore saving on time and labor. Moreover, distribution channels and waterways came into existence that provided a framework of sharing the limited resources. Machines and other tools came up that affected several industries such as agriculture, construction and manufacture of weapons.

In Conclusion

The Roman engineering practices played a fundamental role in shaping human history. The influences spread over time with no possibilities of ever fading away since there are no better developments to challenge their basis. In my major, they influenced design principles and contemporary machinery principles used. What’s more, the quality of human life and the environment were improved.

Works Cited

Lancaster, Lynne. “Roman engineering and construction.”The Oxford Handbook of Engineering and Technology in the Classical World. 2008.

Mays, Larry, ed. Ancient water technologies. Springer Science & Business Media, 2010.

Wilson, Andrew I. “Machines in Greek and Roman technology.”The Oxford handbook of engineering and technology in the classical world. 2008.