Technology In World Civilization: The Compass, Paper Currency, Printing Press, Video Games And Digital Camera
In my opinion, the innovations that had the biggest impact on civilization throughout history is the compass, the printing press and the paper currency.
A compass is an instrument that is used to show direction. There are two types of compasses namely the magnetic and the non-magnetic compasses. It’s important as it gives us a sense of direction and is used to calculate bearings of locations. However, these compasses, especially the magnetic ones can have errors such as turning errors. Compasses have developed leading to the invention of the thumb compass, specialty compasses and the solid-state compasses. Thumb compasses are not marked and are transparent. Compasses have been used with mariners during their navigation with ships. Airplanes were also invented and they use the compass. The compass has improved the safety of using water and air for transport.
Paper currency is money that is in notes. In the ancient times, barter trade was the form of trade that was being used. People exchanged goods for other goods since paper currency did not exist. Over time, paper money was introduced and it greatly impacted trade. The central bank of a country regulates the flow of money. I feel like paper money is more convenient as it is portable and less bulky. It has led to promotion of investments in different companies. Paper money has made it easy determine the value of an item. Similarly, I think the printing press is very important in our lives. The printing press has facilitated the circulation of information. Magazines and books could be processed in bulk and be able to reach many people. It has aided printing of documents and books that are in soft copy and transforming them into hard copy.
In my opinion, the innovations that had the biggest impact on civilization within the past a hundred years include video game consoles and the digital cameras. A video game console is a computer that displays games using visuals. Video game consoles were invented by Ralph Baer in the year 1966. There are four types of consoles namely micro consoles, dedicated consoles, home video game consoles and handheld game consoles. Additionally, there are eight generations of consoles with varying complexity and bulkiness. A huge percentage of children and teenagers spend most of their time playing video games. Video games are dominated by males and only a few females engage in playing these games and this terms them unique. Personally, this technology has united me with people of diverse cultures as we interact during the games. Similarly, it has helped me pass time well instead of being idle and engage manning in criminal activities. Playing video games can increase the intellectual capability of a person as well as enhance their critical thinking. However, video games are expensive and not easily acquired. Some children have become addicts thus find no joy in engaging in co-curricular activities. Video games consume a lot of time and the people barely find time to study and engage in other activities. Some video games exhibit acts of terrorism and use of ammunitions in fights. This might prompt the players to engage in such at home which is dangerous.
The digital camera was invented by Eugene F. Lally in 1961. This technology has been used to capture images and can be manually controlled to meet the photographer’s specifications. The invention of the digital camera has enabled people capture high quality photographs. It’s also a source of income. Professional photographers who own digital cameras snap people at a fee. The income enables them to sustain themselves. Photography has gotten to another level where it violates moral values. Young people engage in provocative photography with erotic images.
