What was the bottleneck that caused 3 centuries to pass between Gutenberg recreating the 4 century old movable type Chinese printing press, and the bulk of scientific discoveries? I know the basics of the industrial revolution were metallurgy, cyclical power safety with steam boiler pressure regulation (Watt), and the discovery that a lathe screw is capable of cutting a more accurate lathe screw. I don’t know anything about the cultural evolution that made the age of discovery relevant, accessible, or most importantly made it stick.
Idk, but I recently learned that there was a 300 year gap in new inventions in Ireland after they invented whiskey. Then 300 years later they codified chemistry, probably to make better whiskey.
It took a slow runup like all things and it stuck because it worked. Science begat technology which improved living standards, not just in a rarified way but universally and was very evident. In turn technical advancement shone a light back onto science as its enabler. The new discoveries were not only intellectual like those in the arts they altered the practicalities and aspirations of common life within all classes of society. A thing science continues to do unlike any other pursuit of humanity and it is relevant and sticks for this reason.
What was the bottleneck that caused 3 centuries to pass between Gutenberg recreating the 4 century old movable type Chinese printing press, and the bulk of scientific discoveries? I know the basics of the industrial revolution were metallurgy, cyclical power safety with steam boiler pressure regulation (Watt), and the discovery that a lathe screw is capable of cutting a more accurate lathe screw. I don’t know anything about the cultural evolution that made the age of discovery relevant, accessible, or most importantly made it stick.
Idk, but I recently learned that there was a 300 year gap in new inventions in Ireland after they invented whiskey. Then 300 years later they codified chemistry, probably to make better whiskey.
War might be a good answer
It took a slow runup like all things and it stuck because it worked. Science begat technology which improved living standards, not just in a rarified way but universally and was very evident. In turn technical advancement shone a light back onto science as its enabler. The new discoveries were not only intellectual like those in the arts they altered the practicalities and aspirations of common life within all classes of society. A thing science continues to do unlike any other pursuit of humanity and it is relevant and sticks for this reason.