| The [[south-pointing chariot]] was invented in [[History of China#Ancient China|ancient China]]. It was the first known geared mechanism to use a [[differential gear]]. The chariot was a two-wheeled vehicle, upon which is a pointing figure connected to the wheels by means of differential gearing. Through careful selection of wheel size, track and gear ratios, the figure atop the chariot always pointed in the same direction.
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| c. 500 BC
| {{Importance section|date=September 2023}}[[Vyakarana|Indian grammarian]] [[Pāṇini]] formulated the [[Sanskrit grammar|grammar of Sanskrit]] (in 3959 rules) known as the [[Ashtadhyayi]] which was highly systematised and technical. Pāṇini used [[Meta (prefix)|metarule]]s, [[Transformation (mathematics)|transformation]]s, and [[recursion]]s with such sophistication that his grammar had the computing power equivalent to a [[Turing machine]].{{Citation needed|date=May 2010}} Pāṇini's work was the forerunner to modern [[formal language theory]], and a precursor to its use in modern computing. The [[Panini–Backus form]] used to describe most modern [[programming languages]] is also significantly similar to Pāṇini's grammar rules.{{citation needed|date=May 2010}}
