Time for more of my favorite "Did you know" from history.com. This time it's Rome...

10 innovations that built ancient Rome

Me (Julie) at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas with a copy of Zenobia - Birth of a Legend.

I don't even need a passport to experience Rome from Zenobia's time. 

Did You Know?

Many ancient Roman innovations vanished for thousands of years after the fall of the empire. Roman technology was astonishingly ahead of its time, but well-kept trade secrets meant that countless inventions died with their owners. The most famous example is concrete, which disappeared for centuries and was not adequately reproduced until the invention of Portland cement in the early 1800s.

The full article can be found at: http://www.history.com/news/history-lists/10-innovations-that-built-ancient-rome

By Evan Andrews

The Western Roman Empire may have fallen more than 1,500 years ago, but its rich legacy of innovation and invention can still be seen today. The Romans were prodigious builders and expert civil engineers, and their thriving civilization produced advances in technology, culture and architecture that remained unequaled for centuries. From aqueducts to newspapers, find out more about 10 innovations that built ancient Rome.

1. Aqueducts

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The Romans enjoyed many amenities for their day, including public toilets, underground sewage systems, fountains and ornate public baths. None of these aquatic innovations would have been possible without the Roman aqueduct.

2. Concrete

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Many ancient Roman structures like the Pantheon, the Colosseum and the Roman Forum are still standing today thanks to the development of Roman cement and concrete.

3. Newspapers

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The Romans were known to contribute to public discourse through the use of official texts detailing military, legal and civil issues. Known as Acta Diurna, or “daily acts,” these early newspapers were written on metal or stone and then posted in heavily trafficked areas like the Roman Forum.

4. Welfare

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Ancient Rome was the wellspring for many modern government programs, including measures that subsidized food, education and other expenses for the needy.

5. Bound Books

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For most of human history, literature took the form of unwieldy clay tablets and scrolls. The Romans streamlined the medium by creating the codex, a stack of bound pages that is recognized as the earliest incarnation of the book.

6. Roads and Highways

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At its height, the Roman empire encompassed nearly 1.7 million square miles and included most of southern Europe. To ensure effective administration of this sprawling domain, the Romans built the most sophisticated system of roads the ancient world had ever seen. These Roman roads—many of which are still in use today—were constructed with a combination of dirt, gravel and bricks made from granite or hardened volcanic lava.

7. Roman Arches

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Arches have existed for roughly 4,000 years, but the ancient Romans were the first to effectively harness their power in the construction of bridges, monuments and buildings.

8. The Julian Calendar 

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The modern Gregorian calendar is modeled very closely on a Roman version that dates back more than 2,000 years. (*READ an article I wrote about the Julian Calender at http://geodepress.com/how-february-came-to-be/)

9. The Twelve Tables and the Corpus Juris Civilis

Subpoena, habeas corpus, pro bono, affidavit—all these terms derive from the Roman legal system, which dominated Western law and government for centuries. The basis for early Roman law came from the Twelve Tables, a code that formed an essential part of the constitution during the Republican era.

10. Battlefield Surgery

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The Romans invented many surgical tools and pioneered the use of the cesarean section, but their most valuable contributions to medicine came on the battlefield. Under the leadership of Augustus, they established a military medical corps that was one of the first dedicated field surgery units. These specially trained medics saved countless lives through the use of Roman medical innovations like hemostatic tourniquets and arterial surgical clamps to curb blood loss.

Zenobia loved to learn and expand her knowledge. Even though Zenobia spent most of her life trying to eradicate Roman control over her Syrian people, I think she respected the Romans many innovations. Especially since Palmyra, Syria (Tadmor in Arabic)  prospered under the Romans influence for many years.