History of Technology Term Papers Third Industrial Revolution

Technological progress, which is able to change the face of the society we live in, is happening rapidly in the industrialized nations of the world. Not only do technological advances merely raise the levels of existing discrete technologies, but also they include transformations in a variety of fields that are changing our understanding of technology. The technological advance that has been made since 1970 is so astonishing that it is believed by many industrial historians that the time we live in now should be called the period of the Third Industrial Revolution. Such examples of new technologies as personal computers and satellite communication systems are already indispensable in modern world. What is more, many of the elemental technologies that are being developed by modern science have such an astounding potential that it just impossible to foretell where they will take us. Two great technological revolutions have already occurred in the modern age. Industrial historians agreed that the First Industrial Revolution was brought about by James Watt’s invention of the steam engine in 1776. Steel played an extremely important role at that time, as people learned how to manipulate this material. To put it differently, new discoveries in materials technology served as a base for the First Industrial Revolution. As for the Second Industrial Revolution, it exploded about a century later. To be more specific, it started in the 1870s, when electrical energy started to be used, including heat, light, locomotive power, magnetic power and sound. Thus, new discoveries in energy technologies served as a base for the Second Industrial Revolution.