6 votes

Technological stagnation

2 comments

  1. drannex
    (edited )
    Link
    I quite liked their take on the industrial revolutions. The first industrial revolution had a few major staples, as did the second, and we are so eerily early in the third that who knows what will...

    “We wanted flying cars, instead we got a supercomputer in everyone’s pocket and a global communications network to connect everyone on the planet to each other and to the whole of the world’s knowledge, art, philosophy and culture.”

    I quite liked their take on the industrial revolutions. The first industrial revolution had a few major staples, as did the second, and we are so eerily early in the third that who knows what will begin.

    So, making a very rough count of revolutionary technologies, there were:

    3 in IR1: mechanization, steam power, the locomotive
    5 in IR2: oil + internal combustion, electric power, electronic communications, industrial chemistry, germ theory
    1 in IR3 (so far): computing + digital communications

    Personally, I think IR3 will also have robotics, advanced manufacturing, and biotechnology (genetic editing, &c) will be the defining additionals.

    3 votes
  2. skybrian
    Link
    It seems pretty odd after 2020 to say that infectious diseases is solved, or to skip mentioning COVID-19 as the third-highest cause of death in the US. Looking worldwide there are other major...

    It seems pretty odd after 2020 to say that infectious diseases is solved, or to skip mentioning COVID-19 as the third-highest cause of death in the US. Looking worldwide there are other major challenges still to be solved like malaria and tuberculosis.

    Also, focusing on the speed of transportation is narrow-minded. Cost, safety, and environmental impact are important too, and that’s where most advances have been.

    3 votes