Explain the importance of... and y they are beneficial to the world today?

Question

What is importance of these Chinese inventions and why are they beneficiaal to use today (what r they used for and why)
1. silk
2.magnetic compass
3.gunpowder
4.paper
Be Specific please!

I need at least 5 things for each

Answer 1

1. Silk was an important development in the textile industry, and early on, could only be imported from China. Recently and specifically silk stockings and other apparel for women became very important in women's fashions in the last century.
2. The magnetic compass allowed early travelers and seafaring navigators to secure the direction of their travels without having to look up at the stars of the night sky, or rely on the stars when they could not be seen on a cloudy night. Although today we have new technologies, like GPS, magnetic compasses remain an important source of verifying your position and direction.
3. Gunpowder allowed for a tremendous advantage to those who possessed it over their military adversaries. Rockets and other projectiles were more efficient and damaging to an enemy than any weapon that came before it and helped to protect, deter and prevent further attacks and invasions. Although explosives, like gunpowder, have caused untold deaths and injuries in wars and accidents over the years, they have also indirectly caused people, like Nobel, to seek new ways to promote peace and harmony, such as in the Nobel Peace Prize, and not pursure war.
4. Paper allowed for many improvements and increased efficiency in the publishing industries. Specifically, Europeans could begin to create books and leave behind the hard-to-store scrolls and parchment. With the advent of printing in Europe combined with the earlier invention of paper, Europeans could increase the communication of ideas and the publication of books, magazines and newspapers.

As far as five things for each, the following links can be found (as well as other links) after typing "chinese inventions" in Yahoo! search.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Chinese_inventions
http://inventors.about.com/od/chineseinventors/Chinese_Inventions.htm
http://chineseculture.about.com/cs/chineseinvention/
Wikipedia, about, and other websites give five or more things these items are used for today as well as five or more important developments in the history of each item.

Sorry, I don't have time to type out the five things for each, but these links should have them or lead to them.

Answer 2

1. silk - important because it's a renewable form of clothing. beneficial because it keeps your naughty parts covered.

2.magnetic compass - important because it helps tell direction based on the Earth's magnetic fields; beneficial because it helps you navigate when you have absolutely no landmarks.

3.gunpowder - important because it helps to produce a great amount of force. beneficial because it has helped ward of armies, produce projectiles which led to the invention of rockets, entertainment by producing fireworks and it's still used today for applications involving pushing nails into really hard objects (ie concrete)

4.paper - important because it gave us a means of documenting our knowledge in order to preserve it for future generation. beneficial because we can continue to relay information in its original form without losing meaning by translation that occurs from just passing things down from generation to generation through words.

Answer 3

*sigh*

Aren't these pretty self-explanatory?

But hey, sure, I'll humor you.

1) silk is usually used for clothing
2) navigation
3) firepower, used in firearms
4) writing material