History Of Technology
Measuring technological progress
Many sociologists and anthropologists have created social theories dealing with social and cultural evolution. Some, like Lewis H. Morgan, Leslie White, and Gerhard Lenski, declare technological progress to be the primary factor driving the development of human civilization. Morgan’s concept of three major stages of social evolution (savagery, barbarism, and civilization) can be divided by technological milestones, like fire, the bow, and pottery in the savage era, domestication of animals, agriculture, and metalworking in the barbarian era and the alphabet and writing in the civilization era.
Instead of specific inventions, White decided that the measure by which to judge the evolution of culture was energy. For White “the primary function of culture” is to “harness and control energy.” White differentiates between five stages of human development: In the first, people use energy of their own muscles. In the second, they use energy of domesticated animals. In the third, they use the energy of plants (agricultural revolution). In the fourth, they learn to use the energy of natural resources: coal, oil, gas. In the fifth, they harness nuclear energy. White introduced a formula P=E*T, where E is a measure of energy consumed, and T is the measure of efficiency of technical factors utilizing the energy. In his own words, “culture evolves as the amount of energy harnessed per capita per year is increased, or as the efficiency of the instrumental means of putting the energy to work is increased”. Russian astronomer, Nikolai Kardashev, extrapolated his theory creating the Kardashev scale, which categorizes the energy use of advanced civilizations.
Lenski takes a more modern approach and focuses on information. The more information and knowledge (especially allowing the shaping of natural environment) a given society has, the more advanced it is. He identifies four stages of human development, based on advances in the history of communication. In the first stage, information is passed by genes. In the second, when humans gain sentience, they can learn and pass information through by experience. In the third, the humans start using signs and develop logic. In the fourth, they can create symbols, develop language and writing. Advancements in the technology of communication translates into advancements in the economic system and political system, distribution of wealth, social inequality and other spheres of social life. He also differentiates societies based on their level of technology, communication and economy:
hunters and gatherers,
simple agricultural,
advanced agricultural,
industrial,
special (such as fishing societies).
Finally, from the late 1970s sociologists and anthropologists like Alvin Toffler (author of Future Shock), Daniel Bell and John Naisbitt have approached the theories of post-industrial societies, arguing that the current era of industrial society is coming to an end, and services and information are becoming more important than industry and goods. Some of the more extreme visions of the post-industrial society, especially in fiction, are strikingly similar to the visions of near and post-Singularity societies.
By period and geography
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Early technology
Agriculture preceded writing in the history of technology.
Olduvai stone technology (Olduwan) 2.5 million years ago (scrapers; to butcher dead animals)
Acheulean stone technology 1.6 million years ago (hand axe)
Fire creation and manipulation, used since the Paleolithic, possibly by Homo erectus as early as 1.5 Million years ago
(Homo sapiens sapiens – modern human anatomy arises, around 200,000 years ago.)
Clothing possibly 100,000 years ago.
Stone tools, used by Homo floresiensis, possibly 100,000 years ago.
Ceramics ca. 25,000 BC
Domestication of Animals, ca. 15,000 BC
Bow, sling ca. 9th millennium BC
Microliths ca. 9th millennium BC
Copper ca. 8000 BC
Agriculture and Plough ca. 8000 BC
Wheel ca. 4000 BC
Gnomon ca. 4000 BC
Writing systems ca. 3500 BC
Bronze ca. 3300 BC
Salt
Chariot ca. 2000 BC
Iron ca. 1500 BC
Sundial ca. 800 BC
Glass ca. 500 BC
Catapult ca. 400 BC
Horseshoe ca. 300 BC
Stirrup first few centuries AD
Stone Age
A variety of stone tools
During the Stone Age, all humans had a lifestyle which involved limited use of tools and few, if any, permanent settlements. The first major technologies, then, were tied to survival, hunting, and food preparation in this environment. Fire, stone tools and weapons, and clothing were technological developments of major importance during this period. Stone Age cultures developed music, and engaged in organized warfare. A subset of Stone Age humans developed ocean-worthy outrigger ship technology, leading to an eastward migration across the Malay archipelago, across the Indian ocean to Madagascar and also across the Pacific Ocean, which required knowledge of the ocean currents, weather patterns, sailing, celestial navigation, and star maps. The early Stone Age is described as Epipaleolithic or Mesolithic. The former is generally used to describe the early Stone Age in areas with limited glacial impact. The later Stone Age, during which the rudiments of agricultural technology were developed, is called the Neolithic period. During this period, polished stone tools were made from a variety of hard rocks such as flint, jade, jadeite and greenstone, largely by working exposures as quarries, but later the valuable rocks were pursued by tunnelling underground, the first steps in mining technology. The polished axes were used for forest clearance and the establishment of crop farming, and were so effective as to remain in use when bronze and iron appeared.
Although Paleolithic cultures left no written records, the shift from nomadic life to settlement and agriculture can be inferred from a range of archaeological evidence. Such evidence includes ancient tools, cave paintings, and other prehistoric art, such as the Venus of Willendorf. Human remains also provide direct evidence, both through the examination of bones, and the study of mummies. Though concrete evidence is limited, scientists and historians have been able to form significant inferences about the lifestyle and culture of various prehistoric peoples, and the role technology played in their lives.
Copper and Bronze Age
A late Bronze Age sword or dagger blade.
The Stone Age developed into the Bronze Age after the Neolithic Revolution. The Neolithic Revolution involved radical changes in agricultural technology which included development of agriculture, animal domestication, and the adoption of permanent settlements. These combined factors made possible the development of metal smelting, with copper and later bronze, an alloy of tin and copper, being the materials of choice, although polished stone tools continued to be used for a considerable time owing to their abundance compared with the less common metals (especially tin).
This technological trend apparently began in the Fertile Crescent, and spread outward over time. It should be noted that these developments were not, and still are not, universal. The Three-age system does not accurately describe the technology history of groups outside of Eurasia, and does not apply at all in the case of some isolated populations, such as the Spinifex People, the Sentinelese, and various Amazonian tribes, which still make use of Stone Age technology, and have not developed agricultural or metal technology.
Iron Age
An axehead made of iron, dating from Swedish Iron Age.
The Iron Age involved the adoption of iron smelting technology. It generally replaced bronze, and made it possible to produce tools which were stronger and cheaper to make than bronze equivalents. In many Eurasian cultures, the Iron Age was the last major step before the development of written language, though again this was not universally the case. It was not possible to mass manufacture steel because high furnace temperatures were needed, but steel could be produced by forging bloomery iron to reduce the carbon content in a controllable way. Iron ores were much more widespread than either copper or tin. In Europe, large hill forts were built either as a refuge in time of war, or sometimes as permanent settlements. In some cases, existing forts from the Bronze Age were expanded and enlarged. The pace of land clearance using the more effective iron axes increased, providing more farmland to support the growing population.
By 1000 BC 500 BC, the Germanic tribes had a Bronze Age civilization, while the Celts were in the Iron Age by the time of the Hallstatt culture. Their cultures collided with the military and agricultural practices of the Romans, leading those Europeans who were conquered to adopt Roman technological advances.
Ancient civilizations
Main article: Ancient technology
It was the growth of the ancient civilizations which produced the greatest advances in technology and engineering, advances which stimulated other societies to adopt new ways of living and governance.
The Egyptians invented and used many simple machines, such as the ramp to aid construction processes. The Indus Valley Civilization, situated in a resource-rich area, is notable for its early application of city planning and sanitation technologies. Ancient India was also at the forefront of seafaring technology panel found at Mohenjodaro, depicts a sailing craft. Indian construction and architecture, called ‘Vaastu Shastra’, suggests a thorough understanding of materials engineering, hydrology, and sanitation.
The Chinese made many first-known discoveries and developments. Major technological contributions from China include early seismological detectors, matches, paper, cast iron, the iron plough, the multi-tube seed drill, the suspension bridge, the parachute, natural gas as fuel, the magnetic compass, the raised-relief map, the propeller, the crossbow, the South Pointing Chariot, and gun powder.
An illustration of the aeolipile, the earliest steam-powered device
Greek and Hellenistic engineers invented many technologies and improved upon pre-existing technologies. Particularly the Hellenistic period saw a sharp rise in technological inventiveness, fostered by a climate of openness to new idea, royal patronage the blossom of a mechanistic philosophy and the establishment of the Library of Alexandria and its close association with the adjacent museion. In contrast to the typically anonymous inventor of earlier ages, ingenuine minds such as Archimedes, Philo of Byzantium, Heron and Ctesibius now remained known by name to posterity.
Ancient Greek innovations were particularly pronounced in mechanical technology, including the ground-breaking invention of the watermill which constituted the first human-devised motive force not to rely on muscle labour (besides the sail). Apart from their pioneer use of waterpower, Greek inventors were also the first to experiment with wind power (see Heron’s windwheel) and even created the earliest steam engine (the aeolipile), opening up entirely new possibilities in harnessing natural forces whose full potential came only to be exploited in the industrial revolution. Of particular importance for the operation of mechanical devices became the newly devised right-angled gear and the screw.
The compartmented water-wheel, here its overshot version, was invented in Hellenistic times
Ancient agriculture, as in any period prior to the modern age the primary mode of production and subsistence, and its irrigation methods were considerably advanced by the invention and widespread application of a number of previously unknown water-lifting devices, such as the vertical water-wheel, the compartmented wheel, the water turbine, Archimedes screw, the suction pump, the bucket-chain and pot-garland, the force pump, the suction pump, the double-action piston pump and quite possibly the chain pump.
In music, water organ, invented by Ctesibius and subsequently improved, constituted the earliest instance of a keyboard instrument. In time-keeping, the introduction of the inflow clepsydra and its mechanization by the dial and pointer, the application of a feedback system and the escapement mechanism far superseded the earlier outflow clepsydra.
The famous Antikythera mechanism, a kind of analogous computer working with a differential gear, and the astrolabe show great refinement in the astronomical science.
Greek engineers were also the first to devise automaton such as vending machines, suspended ink pots, automatic washstands and doors, primarily as toys, which however featured many new useful mechanisms such as the cam and gimbals.
In other fields, ancient Greek inventions include the catapult and the gastraphetes crossbow in warfare, hollow bronze-casting in metallurgy, the dioptra for surveying, in infrastructure the lighthouse, central heating, the tunnel excavated from both ends by scientific calculations, the ship trackway, the dry dock and plumbing. In horizontal vertical and transport great progress resulted from the invention of the crane, the winch, the wheelbarrow and the odometer.
Further newly created techniques and items were spiral staircases, the chain drive, sliding calipers and showers.
Pont du Gard in France, a Roman aqueduct
The Romans developed an intensive and sophisticated agriculture, expanded upon existing iron working technology, created laws providing for individual ownership, advanced stone masonry technology, advanced road-building (exceeded only in the 19th century), military engineering, civil engineering, spinning and weaving and several different machines like the Gallic reaper that helped to increase productivity in many sectors of the Roman economy. Roman engineers were the first to build monumental arches, amphitheatres, aqueducts, public baths, true arch bridges, harbours, reservoirs and dams, vaults and domes on a very large scale across their Empire. Notable Roman inventions include the book (Codex), glass blowing and concrete. Because Rome was located on a volcanic peninsula, with sand which contained suitable crystalline grains, the concrete which the Romans formulated was especially durable. Some of their buildings have lasted 2000 years, to the present day.
The engineering skills of the Inca and the Mayans were great, even by today’s standards. An example is the use of pieces weighing in upwards of one ton in their stonework placed together so that not even a blade can fit in-between the cracks. The villages used irrigation canals and drainage systems, making agriculture very efficient. While some claim that the Incas were the first inventors of hydroponics, their agricultural technology was still soil based, if advanced. Though the Maya civilization had no metallurgy or wheel technology, they developed complex writing and astrological systems, and created sculptural works in stone and flint. Like the Inca, the Maya also had command of fairly advanced agricultural and construction technology. Throughout this time period much of this construction, was made only by women, as men of the Maya civilization believed that females were responsible for the creation of new things. The main contribution of the Aztec rule was a system of communications between the conquered cities. In Mesoamerica, without draft animals for transport (nor, as a result, wheeled vehicles), the roads were designed for travel on foot, just like the Inca and Mayan civilizations.
Medieval and Modern technologies
Medieval Europe
Medieval counterweight trebuchet (reconstruction)
Main article: Medieval technology
European technology in the Middle Ages may be best described as a symbiosis of traditio et innovatio. While medieval technology has been long depicted as a step backwards in the evolution of Western technology, sometimes willfully so by modern authors intent on denouncing the church as antagonistic to scientific progress (see e.g. Myth of the Flat Earth), a generation of medievalists around the American historian of science Lynn White stressed from the 1940s onwards the innovative character of many medieval techniques. Genuine medieval contributions include for example mechanical clocks, spectacles and vertical windmills. Medieval ingenuity was also displayed in the invention of seemingly inconspicuous items like the watermark or the functional button. In navigation, the foundation to the subsequent age of exploration was laid by the introduction of pintle-and-gudgeon rudders, lateen sails, the dry compass the horseshoe and the astrolabe.
Significant advances were also made in military technology with the development of plate armour, steel crossbows, counterweight trebuchets and cannon. Perhaps best known are the Middle Ages for their architectural heritage: While the invention of the rib vault and pointed arch gave rise to the high rising Gothic style, the ubiquitous medieval fortifications gave the era the almost proverbial title of the ‘age of castles’.
Muslim Agricultural Revolution
Main articles: Muslim Agricultural Revolution, Inventions in the Islamic world, and Timeline of Muslim scientists and engineers
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From the 8th century, the medieval Islamic world witnessed a fundamental transformation in agriculture known as the “Muslim Agricultural Revolution”, “Arab Agricultural Revolution”, or “Green Revolution”. Due to the global economy established by Muslim traders across the Old World during the “Afro-Asiatic age of discovery” or “Pax Islamica”, this enabled the diffusion of many crops, plants and farming techniques between different parts of the Islamic world, as well as the adaptation of crops, plants and techniques from beyond the Islamic world, distributed throughout Islamic lands which normally would not be able to grow these crops. The diffusion of numerous crops during this period led, along with an increased mechanization of agriculture, led to major changes in economy, population distribution, vegetation cover, agricultural production and income, population levels, urban growth, the distribution of the labour force, linked industries, cooking and diet, clothing, and numerous other aspects of life in the Islamic world.
Muslim engineers in the Islamic world were responsible for numerous innovative industrial uses of hydropower, the early industrial uses of tidal power, wind power, and petroleum, and large factory complexes (tiraz in Arabic). The industrial uses of watermills were in widespread use since the 8th century. A variety of industrial mills were developed in the Islamic world, including fulling mills, gristmills, hullers, paper mills, sawmills, shipmills, stamp mills, steel mills, sugar mills, and windmills. By the 11th century, every province throughout the Islamic world had these industrial mills in operation, from al-Andalus and North Africa to the Middle East and Central Asia. Muslim engineers also developed crankshafts and water turbines.
A significant number of inventions were produced by Muslim scientists and engineers during this time, including inventors such as Abbas Ibn Firnas, Taqi al-Din, and especially al-Jazari. Some of the developments from the Islamic Golden Age include the coffee, hard soap, shampoo, nitric acid, alembic, valve, reciprocating, quilting, surgical catgut, windmill, inoculation, fountain pen, cryptanalysis, frequency analysis, quartz glass, modern cheque, explosive rockets and incendiary devices.
Renaissance
Main article: Renaissance technology
Dome of Florence Cathedral
Design for a flying machine (c.1488) by da Vinci
The era is marked by such profound technical advancements like the printing press, linear perceptivity, patent law, double shell domes or Bastion fortresses. Note books of the Renaissance artist-engineers such as Taccola and Leonardo da Vinci give a deep insight into the mechanical technology then known and applied. Architects and engineers were inspired by the structures of Ancient Rome, and men like Brunelleschi created the large dome of Florence Cathedral as a result. He was awarded one of the first patents ever issued in order to protect an ingenious crane he designed to raise the large masonry stones to the top of the structure. Military technology developed rapidly with the widespread use of the cross-bow and ever more powerful artillery, as the city-states of Italy were usually in conflict with one another. Powerful families like the Medici were strong patrons of the arts and sciences. Renaissance science spawned the Scientific Revolution; science and technology began a cycle of mutual advancement.
Age of Exploration
Main article: Age of Exploration
The sailing ship (Nau or Carrack) enabled the Age of Exploration with the European colonization of the Americas, epitomized by Francis Bacon’s The New Atlantis. Pioneers like Vasco de Gama, Cabral, Magellan and Christopher Columbus explored the world in search of new trade routes for their goods and contacts with Africa, India and China which shortened the journey compared with traditional routes overland. They also re-discovered the Americas while doing so. They produced new maps and charts which enabled following mariners to explore further with greater confidence. Navigation was generally difficult however owing to the problem of longitude and the absence of accurate chronometers. European powers rediscovered the idea of the civil code, lost since the time of the Ancient Greeks.
Industrial Revolution
Main article: Industrial Revolution
A Watt steam engine
The Iron Bridge
The British Industrial Revolution is characterized by developments in the areas of textile manufacturing, mining, metallurgy and transport driven by the development of the steam engine. Above all else, the revolution was driven by cheap energy in the form of coal, produced in ever-increasing amounts from the abundant resources of Britain. Coal converted to coke gave the blast furnace and cast iron in much larger amounts than before, and a range of structures could be created, such as The Iron Bridge. Cheap coal meant that industry was no longer constrained by water resources driving the mills, although it continued as a valuable source of power. The steam engine helped drain the mines, so more coal reserves could be accessed, and the output of coal increased. The development of the high-pressure steam engine made locomotives possible, and a transport revolution followed.
19th century
The preserved Rocket
The 19th century saw astonishing developments in transportation, construction, and communication technologies originating in Europe, especially in Britain. The Steam Engine which had existed since the early 18th century, was practically applied to both steamboat and railway transportation. The first purpose built railway line opened between Manchester and Liverpool in 1830, the Rocket locomotive of Robert Stephenson being one of the first working locomotives used on the line. Telegraphy also developed into a practical technology in the 19th century to help run the railways safely.
Other technologies were explored for the first time, including the Incandescent light bulb. The Portsmouth Block Mills was where manufacture of ships’ pulley blocks by all-metal machines first took place and instigated the age of mass production. Machine tools used by engineers to manufacture other machines began in the first decade of the century, notably by Richard Roberts and Joseph Whitworth. Steamships were eventually completely iron-clad, and played a role in the opening of Japan and China to trade with the West. Mechanical computing was envisioned by Charles Babbage but did not come to fruition. The Second Industrial Revolution at the end of the 19th century saw rapid development of chemical, electrical, petroleum, and steel technologies connected with highly structured technology research.
20th century
Landing on the Moon
20th Century technology developed rapidly. Communication technology, transportation technology, broad teaching and implementation of scientific method, and increased research spending all contributed to the advancement of modern science and technology. Due to the scientific gains directly tied to military research and development, technologies including electronic computing might have developed as rapidly as they did in part due to war. Radio, radar, and early sound recording were key technologies which paved the way for the telephone, fax machine, and magnetic storage of data. Energy and engine technology improvements were also vast, including nuclear power, developed after the Manhattan project. Transport by rocketry: most work occurred in the U.S. (Goddard), Russia (Tsiolkovsky) and Germany (Oberth). Making use of computers and advanced research labs, modern scientists have recombinant DNA.
The National Academy of Engineering, by expert vote, established the following ranking of the most important technological developments of the 20th century :
Electrification
Automobile
Airplane
Water supply and Distribution
Electronics
Radio and Television
Mechanised agriculture
Computers
Telephone
Air Conditioning and Refrigeration
Highways
Spacecraft
Internet
Imaging
Household appliances
Health Technologies
Petroleum and Petrochemical Technologies
Laser and Fiber Optics
Nuclear technologies
Materials science
21st century
The Mars Exploration Rovers have provided huge amounts of information by functioning well beyond NASA’s original lifespan estimates.
Main article: 2000s in science and technology
In the 21st century, technology is being developed even more rapidly, especially in electronics and biotechnology. Broadband Internet access became commonplace in developed countries, as did connecting home computers with music libraries and mobile phones.
Research is ongoing into quantum computers, nanotechnology, bioengineering, nuclear fusion (see ITER and DEMO), advanced materials (e.g., enhanced armor), the scramjet (along with railguns and high-energy beams for military uses), superconductivity, the memristor, and green technologies such as alternative fuels (e.g., fuel cells, plugin hybrid cars) and more efficient LEDs and solar cells.
The understanding of particle physics is also expected to expand through particle accelerator projects, such as the Large Hadron Collider the largest science project in the world and neutrino detectors such as the ANTARES. Theoretical physics currently investigates quantum gravity proposals such as M-theory, superstring theory, and loop quantum gravity.
Spacecraft designs are also being developed, i.a. under the Project Constellation (see Orion and Ares V). The James Webb Space Telescope will try to identify early galaxies as well as the exact location of the Solar System within our galaxy, using the infrared spectrum. The finished International Space Station will provide an intermediate platform for space missions and zero gravity experiments. Despite challenges and criticism, NASA and ESA plan a manned mission to Mars in the 2030s.
By type of technology
History of biotechnology
This section requires expansion.
Main article: History of biotechnology
To be incorporated into main article:
Timeline of agriculture and food technology
Hunter-gatherer
Agriculture
Food science
Genetically modified food
History of agricultural science
History of gardening
Biotechnology (timeline, etc.)
History of sushi
History of tea in China
History of civil engineering
This section requires expansion.
Main articles: History of civil engineering and History of construction
To be incorporated:
Civil engineering
Architecture and building construction
Bridges, harbors, tunnels, dams
Surveying, instruments and maps, cartography, urban engineering, water supply and sewerage
History of communication
This section requires expansion.
Main article: History of communication
To be incorporated:
Communications
Writing systems
Telecommunications
History of mobile phones
History of animation
History of broadcasting
History of radar
History of radio
Printing
Cinema
Radio
Television
Internet
History of computing
Main article: History of computer hardware
History of computing hardware before 1960
History of computing hardware (1960sresent)
History of computer hardware in Soviet Bloc countries
History of computer science
History of operating systems
History of software engineering
History of programming languages
History of artificial intelligence
History of the graphical user interface
History of the Internet
History of the World Wide Web
History of computer and video games
History of consumer technology
This section requires expansion.
Main article: History of consumer technology
To be incorporated:
Timeline of lighting technology
History of textiles and clothing
History of materials science
Family and consumer science
History of knitting
History of lensmaking
History of the chair
History of the umbrella
Manufacturing
History of electrical engineering
This section requires expansion.
Main article: Electrical Engineering#History
To be incorporated:
History of street lighting in the United States
History of energy technology
This section requires expansion.
Main article: History of energy
To be incorporated:
Energy (History, Use by humans, See also)
History of coal mining
History of perpetual motion machines
Timeline of steam power
Timeline of hydrogen technologies
Timeline of alcohol fuel
Timeline of nuclear fusion
History of materials science
This section requires expansion.
Main article: History of materials science
To be incorporated:
Timeline of materials technology
Metallurgy
Materials and processing
History of measurement
This section requires expansion.
Main article: History of measurement
To be incorporated:
History of time in the United States
Timeline of time measurement technology
History of medicine
Main article: History of medicine
This section requires expansion.
History of military technology
This section requires expansion.
Main article: History of warfare
To be incorporated into main article:
Military history#Technological Evolution
Category:Military history articles on history of specific technologies
History of nuclear technology
Main article: Nuclear technology#History
Manhattan Project
Atomic Age
Nuclear testing
Nuclear arms race
History of science and technology
This section requires expansion.
Main article: History of science and technology
History of telescopes
Timeline of telescopes, observatories, and observing technology
Timeline of microscope technology
Timeline of particle physics technology
Timeline of low-temperature technology
Timeline of temperature and pressure measurement technology
History of transport technology
This section requires expansion.
Main article: Historic transport
To be incorporated into main article:
Timeline of motor and engine technology
Timeline of photography technology
Timeline of rocket and missile technology
Timeline of communication technology
See also
Science portal
Related history
History of science
History of mathematics
History of philosophy
Related disciplines
Timeline of historic inventions
List of independent discoveries
Critique of technology
Technical education
Philosophy of technology
History of science and technology (field of study)
History of ideas (field of study)
Technology Dynamics (field of study)
Technology
Engineering
Mechanical engineering
Science and technology in Canada
Related subjects
High technology
Simple machine
Deindustrialization
Future of science and technology (speculative)
Futures Wiki, an external wiki
Emerging technologies
Futurology
Technological singularity
Technocapitalism
Technological change
Technological determinism
Technology forecasting
Robotics
People
List of engineers and list of inventors
Biography of inventors and explorers
Technical societies
Technocracy
Technology and society
Historiography of science and technology
Kranzberg’s laws of technology
Lexikon der gesamten Technik
Exploratory engineering
Historians of science and technology
Johann Beckmann
I. Bernard Cohen
Ruth Schwartz Cowan
John L. Heilbron
Thomas P. Hughes
Daniel Kevles
Melvin Kranzberg
Thomas Kuhn
Dylan Stiddle
Lewis Mumford
Joseph Needham
Abraham Pais
George Sarton
Charles Singer
W. Patrick McCray
W. David Lewis
Silvio A. Bedini
Paul Josephson
Harry Lintsen
Journals and periodicals in the history of science and technology
History of Technology
ICON
Technology and Culture
Transactions of the Newcomen Society
Notebooks
Marx’s notebooks on the history of technology
Research institutes
Bell Labs
Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, Berlin
Notes
^ http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/01/0114_040114_siberianhumans.html
^ Oleson, John Peter (2000), “Water-Lifting”, in Wikander, rjan, Handbook of Ancient Water Technology, Technology and Change in History, 2, Leiden, pp. 217302, ISBN 90-04-11123-9
^ Thomas F. Glick (1977), “Noria Pots in Spain”, Technology and Culture 18 (4), p. 644-650.
^ a b Andrew M. Watson (1974), “The Arab Agricultural Revolution and Its Diffusion, 700-1100″, The Journal of Economic History 34 (1), p. 8-35.
^ Andrew M. Watson (1983), Agricultural Innovation in the Early Islamic World, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 052124711X.
^ Maya Shatzmiller, p. 36.
^ Adam Robert Lucas (2005), “Industrial Milling in the Ancient and Medieval Worlds: A Survey of the Evidence for an Industrial Revolution in Medieval Europe”, Technology and Culture 46 (1), p. 1-30 .
^ Donald Routledge Hill, “Mechanical Engineering in the Medieval Near East”, Scientific American, May 1991, p. 64-69. (cf. Donald Routledge Hill, Mechanical Engineering)
^ Bosworth, C. E. (Autumn 1981), “A Mediaeval Islamic Prototype of the Fountain Pen?”, Journal of Semitic Studies XXVl (i)
^ “”Origins of the Fountain Pen “”. Muslimheritage.com. http://www.muslimheritage.com/topics/default.cfm?articleID=365. Retrieved September 18 2007.
^ Paul Vallely, How Islamic Inventors Changed the World, The Independent, 11 March 2006.
^ DiscoveryChannel.ca Colossal construction: The world’s nine largest science projects
References
Singer, C., Holmyard, E.J., Hall, A. R and Williams, T. I. (eds.), (1954-59 and 1978) A History of Technology,, 7 vols., Oxford, Clarendon Press,. (Vols 6 and 7, 1978, ed. T. I. Williams)
Kranzberg, Melvin and Pursell, Carroll W. Jr., eds. (1967)Technology in Western Civilization: Technology in the Twentieth Century New York: Oxford University Press.
Pacey, Arnold, (1974, 2ed 1994),The Maze of Ingenuity The MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass, 1974, [2ed 1994, cited here]
Derry, Thomas Kingston and Williams, Trevor I., (1993) A Short History of Technology: From the Earliest Times to A.D. 1900. New York: Dover Publications.
Brush, S. G. (1988). The History of Modern Science: A Guide to the Second Scientific Revolution 1800-1950. Ames: Iowa State University Press.
Bunch, Bryan and Hellemans, Alexander, (1993) The Timetables of Technology, New York, Simon and Schuster.
Greenwood, Jeremy (1997) The Third Industrial Revolution: Technology, Productivity and Income Inequality AEI Press.
Landa, Manuel de, War in the Age of Intelligent Machines, 2001.
Olby, R. C. et al., eds. (1996). Companion to the History of Modern Science,. New York, Routledge.
External links
Electropaedia on the History of Technology
http://www.fptt-pftt.gc.ca/success/century/1900_e.shtml This is a very good site for looking at Technology in the 1900s (20th century)
MIT 6.933J The Structure of Engineering Revolutions. From MIT OpenCourseWare, course materials (graduate level) for a course on the history of technology through a Thomas Kuhn-ian lens.
Concept of Civilization Events. From Jaroslaw Kessler, a chronology of “civilizing events”.
Ancient and Medieval City Technology
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Aztec, Inca, and Maya (DK Eyewitness Books)
$16.99
Full-color photos. Unravel the remarkable mysteries of the ancient peoples who built great palaces and pyramids, and developed an accurate calendar and a knowledge of astronomy without the benefit of telescopes or written language. …
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Age of Empires 2 Official Expansion: The Conquerors
$15.91
Five new civilizations, new wonders, new unique units, new multiplayer options, and gameplay tweaks make The Conquerors more than your typical expansion pack. It’s almost a full sequel. If you liked Age of Empires 2, you’ll love The Conquerors. Players can defend Spain as El Cid, rage across Europe as Attila the Hun, or fight to preserve an ancient way of life as Montezuma in new campaigns …
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Mayan Regular
$20
Download the Mayan Regular font for Mac or Windows in OpenType, TrueType or PostScript format.
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Maps
$13.32
No Synopsis Available
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