Thousands of years ago, a section of tree trunk was the first device used to convert sliding friction to rolling friction. Did that section of tree trunk then evolve into the first wheel? We do not know for sure when the wheel arrived, but the invention changed the application of energy. The earliest known wheel was used on the banks of the Euphrates sometime around 4000 B.C. It was a remarkably precise, symmetrical, and solid construction. Progressive stages of wheel development can be observed through many centuries. Prior to the arrival of Columbus, the Native Americans knew of the principle,...