Traces the history of invention from the beginning of civilization through the twentieth century, and discusses how each innovation met a critical need and also opened the door for the next breakthrough.
Note
Civilization has many facets, but how man lives depends very much on what he can make. The object of this book is to arouse wider interest in the way in which technological factors have shaped - and continue to shape - human history. Technological achievements have not only filled our material needs, but also expanded our spiritual and cultural horizons. The book shows how inventions have revolutionized the way artists, craftsmen, philosophers and even theologians have seen and explained our world. At the beginning of civilization inventors were anonymous - we don't know who made the first wheel or smelted the first copper - but as the story unfolds inventions can be attributed to particular individuals or companies who were sensitive to social and economic opportunity, up to the modern day where it is only major companies who can afford the research and development costs to venture further into the unknown.
Bibliography, etc. Note
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Formatted Contents Note
The beginnings of civilization The agricultural revolution Domestic life Transport Building construction Power and machinery Metals and metal-working The technology of war From the rise of Islam to the Renaissance Paper and printing Shipping and navigation The beginning of mechanization The birth of the chemical industry Architectural development The arts of war The dawn of the modern world Prime movers New modes of transport Mining and metals Household appliances The changing pattern of agriculture The early 20th century Military technology and the First World War Sources of energy New channels of communication Transport: the rise of road and air New building techniques The rise of the chemical industry The post-war world Medicine and public health New aspects of agriculture and food New materials Computers and information technology New military technologies The shrinking earth Into the future.