<h1>Prehistoric Miners Innovated Wheel Technology Through Gradual Design Improvements in Copper Extraction Processes</h1> Researchers used computer simulations to explore the wheel's origin, suggesting it emerged around 6,000 years ago in Carpathian mountain mines. The study proposes that miners gradually evolved the wheel from wooden rollers through incremental design improvements, driven by mechanical advantage. The transformation was not a single invention but an evolutionary process of small modifications that ultimately created the wheel's familiar shape, enabling more efficient transportation of copper ore.