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Greek philospher/scientist Thales discovers lodestones (stones with magnetic properties that always point toward a geographical pole)
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First reference to "iron fish" compass in China
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Tamil navigational books reference use of Chinese "iron floating fish" technology
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First reference to use of compass for sea navigation
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First written mention of the compass on the European continent
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first writing of navigational compass in Arab World
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Mediterranean trade accelerates due to introduction of compass
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North African Ibn Battuta becomes perhaps most advanced explorer to that date, using the compass to venture as far as Indonesia and Polynesia
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Use of the compass accelerates, and explorers, particularly European, begin to expand the boundaries of the known world using this navigational technology