I actually enjoy reading this book somewhat, it could turn out to be the easiest 200 pages for a class textbook. It's different in it's discussion about technology in that it explains the process of invention. Which is something I tend to forget about. Windows came out with Vista, and I never even thought about the trial and error process over years Windows went through to create the new program. When I think about the next awesome technological advancement it's hard to not picture it as a sudden breakthrough or revelation by one person. I guess that is because when something is invented and is available for the public, it is sort of thrown at us instantly. From the movie, "National Treasure" I liked the line..."When Thomas Edison discovered the light bulb, he didn't fail 1000 times, he just found 1000 ways not to make a light bulb." In history class grade school, we are taught about the fact something was invented, and it's impact, but not the evolutionary process. I had no idea the first "successful" telegraph started as a signaling system of coded positions of wooden arms. Also, if the process for transferring simple signals through electricity was so difficult...I want to know more about transferring voice. How does a telephone exactly work? How do you think of something like that? How is my voice decoded in waves and reproduced almost instantaneously miles away in an audio form? It drives me crazy to think about inventing something so complex, but simple today.
I just found it awesome to see how many years, and how many people it took to create what we consider a simple mechanism. In today's time, a child in elementary school has the means to creat a simple telegraph. What will tomorrow's time laugh at us for, or be in awe about the simplicity of what we considered complex? Will the blackberry be huge in size, or primitive in capabilities?
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A thought has occurred to me at odd intervals over the years, if we really were thrown on an island with nothing but the resources of what is around us, how would I live? The shows like Lost or Survivor may pop into some minds, but more likely this is probably a left over thought from Lord of the Flies. Like Taylor, I forget to think about how the simple (or completely mind boggling complex) things that make life so much easier to live with were made. And I agree that The Victorian Internet was amazing to read because it showed not only a more personal side to those we’ve always read about in history books, but also because it showed us how things that we use in everyday life were invented (step-by-summarized-step).
If I was ever in a stranded island situation, I don’t think I would be able to survive because I am so used to having things given to me in their final stages that it would blow my mind to be surrounded by resources but no restaurants to order a pre-slaughtered, thinly sliced, cooked cow in which to put between two breads with some sliced tomato, lettuce, and pickles. We’ve specialized our jobs so much in society, that we don’t even realize it.
I tend to agree about the details of the telephone- the book didn't really tell much about it. I mean, obviously that is because it was a book about the telegraph, but they did give it a fair amount of explanation since it was a related invention. It wouldn't have taken up too much space to talk about how exactly the telephone works. I also think you have a very valid point about what will be thought about our technology. I mean, we look back and wonder at the inventions then, and never stop to think about what will be said about us. I think our technologies will definitely be things of the past, but I (thankfully) can't picture a child creating a cellphone in school. But then again, neither did they...
I found the book to be incredibly informative. I especially loved that part at the end when the comparison between our internet and the telegraph comes up. It shows all the similarities between them. I found this incredibly interesting because as I have learned that the past repeats itself. I would say that all this future technology is like a repeating upgrade. So I imagine the "next internet" as something that uses the concept of the internet but is acctually an advancement of which we cannot fathom. As for the island thing I would say that I would just call longhorn delivery for my food to be flown over.... only joking...
I find it pretty interesting we tend not to think about the influence technology has upon us in our daily lives. We kinda just accept it as a natural thing, when really its very unatural. We just get used to the augmented enviroment technology provides and think of it as normal. I mention this because I thought it funny that, in the era of the telegraph, social nuances developed. Things like wire fruad, wire-romance, even telegraph nerds. All of these things can be found in our own lives: electronic fruad is huge today, so is the e-romance business. And who can deny the advent of the computer geek, a major force in the world today. So, the more things change, the more they stay the same; we just figure out new ways to do them.
I find it pretty interesting we tend not to think about the influence technology has upon us in our daily lives. We kinda just accept it as a natural thing, when really its very unatural. We just get used to the augmented enviroment technology provides and think of it as normal. I mention this because I thought it funny that, in the era of the telegraph, social nuances developed. Things like wire fruad, wire-romance, even telegraph nerds. All of these things can be found in our own lives: electronic fruad is huge today, so is the e-romance business. And who can deny the advent of the computer geek, a major force in the world today. So, the more things change, the more they stay the same; we just figure out new ways to do them.
I also found this to be an informative and intriguing read. It is difficult to imagine the invention processes for all that is thrown out at us that is why it was really eye-opening to see the long evolution of the telegraph technology through years of trial and error to reach a point of widespread use and access. This can really be said of all technologies as we usually adopt the finished product and not the previous technological drafts where the concept was still being refined. It was also interesting to see the interactions between inventors adn their discoveries often happening at the same period but in different places without even being exposed to another's discovery. But then it was funny to imagine the ignorance of someone like the forgettable fraud who failed to recognize failures of the technology that have already been ruled upon before investing in a worldy venture towards widespread use with essentially a erroneous draft.
I find the entry to be interesting. A very interesting point that was brought up was that it will perhaps not be the invention of a single individual that will lead us to the next big technological advancement, but a culmination of various peoples' ideas and its application. Also, the quote about Thomas Edison seems to further echo my view. Today, it will, in most cases not be the genius of one individual and the valiant failed attempts that lie therein that will change the face of technology, but a collaborative effort of such like-minded people who can work on simple principles of application to make life simpler and communicative information, simper!
I don't think I really think about the evolution of things either. When a new product is out, I am happy. I have never given thought to all the trial and error that has had to occur for me to be using the new device. The way the telegraph progressed was pretty wild. From sound, to light, a select few people put thought into the quickest way to convey information, and eventually they ended up with sending specific messages over long wires. Imagine if no one had harnessed the technology of the wire until 40 years later... Would we still be without computers as we have them today? I do not think that the wired world that we have today would have come as far if the telegraph had not been invented when it was.
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