Human nature seeks to study the world and its transformation. The ability to consciously create something new has determined the role of man in the history of the Earth. The consequences of a love of knowledge and innovation are technologies that make life easier for many people.
Definition and characterization
Let us define the technological revolution: this is a general term that combines a sharp jump in the development of production methods and an increase in the role of science in the life of the state. This phenomenon is characterized by qualitatively new technologies that increase the level of production, as well as qualitative changes in all areas of society and human activity. With each new technological revolution, people with the specific skills necessary for a new production method have an increasing demand.
Foreign concepts of human development
The question of the rate of development of scientific progress in the history of mankind has been considered more than once. This problem has been studied from different angles, and the most popular are several theories.
The author of the first foreign concept of technological revolutions is Alvin Toffler, a philosopher, futurologist and sociologist from the United States. He created the concept of post-industrial society. There were three industrial-technological revolutions, according to Toffler:
- The Neolithic, or agrarian revolution, which began immediately in several regions of the planet, represented the transition of mankind from gathering and hunting to agriculture and animal husbandry. Spread across the planet unevenly. Earlier than others, the Far East began to develop along the path of the Neolithic revolution, during the tenth millennium BC.
- The industrial revolution that originated in England in the 16th century. It was accompanied by a transition from manual labor to machine and factory production. It was accompanied by urbanization and the introduction of new technologies. It was during the industrial revolution that a steam engine, a loom was created, various innovations in the field of metallurgy were introduced. Science, culture and education occupy a more important role in society.
- The information or post-industrial revolution that began in the second half of the twentieth century. It is caused by the development of technologies and their enhanced participation in all areas of society. A distinctive feature is a multiple increase in various sources of information. The process of industrial robotization begins, the role of human physical labor falls, the demand for highly specialized professions, on the contrary, grows. Entry into the post-industrial era implies a change in all areas of society.
The second concept of human development was put forward by Daniel Bell, an American sociologist. Unlike his colleague, Toffler, Bell shared the stages of human development by the principle of inventing a specific subject or a certain level of scientific development. Bell identified three types of scientific and technological revolutions:
- The invention of the steam engine in the XVIII century.
- Advances in science in the 19th century.
- The invention of the computer and the Internet in the 20th century.
Domestic concept of human development
The following concept of human progress was developed by Anatoly Ilyich Rakitov, a Soviet and Russian philosopher. She divided the history of mankind into five stages, depending on the level of ability to disseminate information. Information Technology Revolution:
- Creating communication languages.
- The introduction of writing in human society in the VI-IV millennium BC. They appeared immediately in several regions: China, Greece and Central America.
- Creation of the first printing press. It was designed in the 15th century and allowed the development of typography, which served as an impetus for progress.
- The invention of the telegraph, telephone, radio in the late XIX-early XX centuries. This made it possible to transmit information at a distance as soon as possible.
- The invention of the computer and the Internet in the second half of the 20th century. This ensured an unprecedented growth in the information sphere, opened access to knowledge practically anywhere in the world, provoked the growth of human information needs and ensured their satisfaction.
Features of the post-industrial society
Scientific and technological progress contributes to the accelerated development of all spheres of humanity. The main feature of the third technological revolution, during which society enters the post-industrial era, is the constant development of technology, expressed in the almost complete absence of reactionary forces in the field of scientific knowledge. Thanks to this factor, nothing impedes progress. Another characteristic of the third technological revolution is active investment in the creation of environmentally friendly resources. The development of technologies harmless to the ecology of the planet becomes a priority. Important is the fact of the constant creation of new methods of production and processing of products.
Science and progress
Many transformations are taking place in the scientific field. Technological development generates the active interaction of many sciences among themselves. The tasks that mankind sets for itself in the name of progress can be solved by using all the scientific potential that it possesses. The consequence of such global goals is the active interaction of sciences, which, it would seem, will always be far from each other. Many multidisciplinary sciences are being created that are actively revealing their potential during the technological revolution. The increasingly important role is beginning to take the humanities, such as psychology and economics. Separately, new disciplines are developing, for example, informational ones. With the beginning of the third technological revolution, more and more specialized or even new professions appear.
Industrial revolution
The industrial or industrial-technological revolution is a change in the society of the technological structure that affects the methods of production. It is she who deserves special attention, since thanks to her the emergence of factory production took place and an impetus was given to scientific development. At the same time, it is this revolution that is one of the most unfair to society. The subject matter is the technological map of the industrial revolution, achievements and problems.
The merits of the industrial revolution
- Partial automation of production and the replacement of manual labor. The role of man in the production of goods has become more important, but now the main work was performed by machines specially created for one job. Man only began to control these machines, monitor their performance and adjust their tasks.
- Change of outlook. The technological revolution, as described above, greatly influenced almost all spheres of society. Thanks to the growth of industry, processes have begun to seek to destroy some ideological rudiments that are useless in modern times. Society has become more free-thinking, less conservative.
- Scientific progress. The development of production has allowed us to spend more on science and culture. The emergence of new ideologies that promote the development of mankind and the creation of a new one, the creation of new technologies that are immediately introduced into the industrial process, as well as the growing role of education and literacy.
- The emergence of world leaders. Leading states appear in the world, which are a stronghold of scientific progress and culture. It was they who in many ways moved progress forward. The world leaders at that time were the largest states in Europe, in which the revolution happened several centuries earlier than in other countries.
- The growth of living standards. The industrial revolution ensured the growth of commodity circulation and capital, which contributed to an increase in the standard of living of society. Together with technological progress, this allowed a person to live much better than his ancestors.
