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Technology And World Civilization : A Thousand Year History

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Technology in World Civilization: A Thousand Year History written by physicist and historian Arnold Pacey explains his unique “global view” of the evolution of technology differing from the common Eurocentric view of this topic dating back to Greek civilizations. The book is consisted of eleven chapters that chronologically depict the creative inventions in technology throughout several cultures across time in history, starting from the early days in 700 A.D. to the very recent historical events in the 1980’s. Technology in World Civilization: A Thousand Year History views the adaptation of technology from a different perspective by giving insight and excellent supporting criteria crediting the East with the innovative technology …show more content…

For example, Indian textile technology had an immense influence on Britain during the Industrial Revolution, but there was not any specific ‘transfer of technology.’ Rather, the British simply understood that Indians could spin, weave, and dye yarn to make colorful fabrics. As a result, the British modified this idea and adopted weaving into their culture, giving them the same results and ultimately creating a responsive, innovative invention for their society. Without a doubt, Pacey’s creative take and supporting examples, emphasizing the transfer of knowledge in innovation rather than the transfer of technology, depict the idea’s immense benefits that shaped the crucial inventions in history across cultures. Moreover, another crucial historical benefit to societies from Arnold Pacey’s argument in Technology in World Civilization: A Thousand Year History is the use of social interaction to create responsive inventions. The text defines responsive inventions as the result of interactions that lead to conversations resulting in incomplete information that fortunately sparks fresh ideas amongst individuals in the same or differing cultures. This phenomenon is accomplished through recipients of a new body of knowledge interrogating and then innovating the new ideas or technological inventions on the core basis of the individual’s own personal experiences and information regarding their local

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