section_path: History/Pre-modern
section_name: Pre-modern
paragraph_text: Pre-modern
  
  Innovations continued through the Middle Ages with the introduction of silk production (in Asia and later Europe), the horse collar, and horseshoes. Simple machines (such as the lever, the screw, and the pulley) were combined into more complicated tools, such as the wheelbarrow, windmills, and clocks. A system of universities developed and spread scientific ideas and practices, including Oxford and Cambridge.
  
  The Renaissance era produced many innovations, including the introduction of the movable type printing press to Europe, which facilitated the communication of knowledge. Technology became increasingly influenced by science, beginning a cycle of mutual advancement.