BDO

Someone (and I wish I could remember who) once proposed that a subjective but useful measure of a historical figure's importance is their "fertility", in the sense of the number of other people they inspire. Philosophers are probably fond of this one, for obvious reasons.

I'm surprised that the same criteria isn't more often implied to technology. (Well, it is, but usually subconsciously, not explicitly.) The Internet, yeah, but really all of the most important inventions of the past 500 years or so have been related to communication, transportation, or both. Increasing contact between people is the single most important thing any invention can do, because it spawns still more inventions.

I was pondering this while trying to figure out why the Stargate, an archtypal Big Dumb Object, manages to be such an enduringly popular fictional artifact that you can hang an entire TV series from it. I'm guessing it's just the logical next step along the continuum of communication and transportation - and for extra bonus points, it's both at once. Making it the most useful plot device ever.