Every year on Thanksgiving, we eat too much, feel momentarily grateful, and go to bed early to take advantage of Black Friday sales. Well, some do-others prefer to ignore the whole fiasco, and with good reason. But while you should definitely take a moment every day to be thankful for food, shelter, jobs and loved ones, you should also take a moment to be thankful for human ingenuity, the strength that the iPhone gave us, IV bags Made by heat sealing, and internal combustion engine. Given that we are constantly inundated with new technology, this may seem redundant, but there are actually a lot of technological and scientific advances that we see every day… and take for granted. Here are some that you can benefit from every day.

germ theory

The five-second rule may not be precise, but think: It wouldn’t even be possible without germ theory and the various experiments and medical advances that followed. If it weren’t for germ theory, you wouldn’t see heat-sealed bags in hospitals. You wouldn’t see Hazmat teams walking around contaminated sites in specialized RF-sealed suits. Germ theory has extended our lifespans, lowered our infant mortality rate, and made our little excursions into infectious disease mostly short-lived and non-fatal. Sure, science has yet to cure the common cold, but it can at least treat an ear infection.

Woven fabric

Do you know how durable your backpack is? The technology responsible for heat sealing the bags made it possible. In fact, any number of consumer goods, from tents to car seats, are made using coated fabric welding and other joining techniques. While you may think that advanced industrial processes like radio frequency welding are mind blowing, these products actually have a history that stretches back millennia, from the earliest hominins who realized that weaving fibers together can create durable, long-lasting and relatively light. (at least compared to stone and wood) containment vessels, not to mention clothing, bedding, and even waterproof products made from coated fabric. Advanced welding helped, but it is not the beginning and end of innovation.

Plastic

That said, don’t hit the RF weld. It has made almost all materials more versatile, even the most versatile material of all, plastic. With a history dating back to the late 19th century, plastic is now frequently derided as an environmental nightmare. Of course, it all goes back to human use: plastic can be quite harmless as long as it’s treated as a resource rather than a disposable material. It is of particular value in the medical industry, but can also be used to create coated fabrics; it can be welded into durable shapes and is imminently malleable. As for its environmental impact, it can be drastically reduced by recycling and developing degradable varieties, and most plastic companies invest heavily in both processes.