How-To Geek   The First Steam Engine Was Known As What? A
Newcomen Dynamo A Watts Box A Mill Engine An Aeolipile  Amswer:
An Aeolipile  Although the 18th and 19th centuries might be
known as the Age of Steam, thanks to the rising use of steam
engines and their influence on transport and commerce, the roots
of the steam engine reach much further back.  The first recorded
instance of a steam engine dates all the way back to the first
century AD writings of Hero of Alexandria. He wrote of a rocket-
style engine that converted water into steam and used the steam
to spin a sphere outfitted with two crook-necked nozzles. The
name, Aeolipile, translates to “the ball of Aeolus”–Aeolus was
the Greek god of wind.  There is no evidence that the Aeolipile
was ever put to any practical use and is believed to have served
simply as a temple wonder–a device intended to inspire awe and
curiosity in the observer.