Technology in World Civilization: A Thousand Year History
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Technology in World Civilization: A Thousand Year History Edîtor's Note: For a change of pace, this • Nomadic peoples, with their focus on month 's Historical Note reviews a book on the animal husbandry and wandering, never history of technology, Technology in World developed the technology of agricultural Qvilization: A Thousand Year History, by implements, nor any of the adjuncts such Arnold Pacey (MTT Press, 1990, 225 pages, as irrigation Systems or water-powered ISBN: 0-262-16117-6, $19.95). machinery. They did, however, learn how to make machinery such as large looms portable. "People cannot adopt technologies from other cultures unless they hâve the skills • Silkworm cocoons must be steeped in necessary to modify, adapt, and develop hot water before the silk strands can be unthem to suit their own purposes." This raveled...which, unfortunately, kills the precious silkworm and increases the cost thème is brought out again and again in the book, Technology in World Civilization,of further silk production. which is a history not only of the develop• Cotton production and cloth manufacment of technology, but also of its dissémiture in Africa was in part caused by the nation. spread of Islam, which required the inhabitants (who normally wore little more than In his third book, Arnold Pacey, author of The Culture of Technology and The Maze ofa loincloth) to dress completely from neck Ingenuity, covers a full millennium of tech- to ankle. nological development, describing the • Islamic armies developed a proto-gun transfer of ideas and inventions from culweapon called the "fire-lance," which was ture to culture, while keeping the various little more than a barnboo, wood, or métal societal différences and customs and écotube filled with gunpowder, toxic Cheminomie pressures firmly in his thoughts. cals, and shrapnel. Carried at the end of a Technology in World Civilization is an informlance shaft and ignited, the "fire-lance" ative college-level book, written clearly but would fume and sputter sparks and fragdensely, with 40 black-and-white illustraments like a Roman candie for up to five tions throughout the text. minutes. Pacey's perspective is truly global, trac• Movable métal type was actually used in ing in broad strokes how ideas and techKorea as early as 1234, two centuries before nology develop. For example, "...sigGutenberg created his movable type in Eunificant différences between European and rope. In 1294 Iran employed Chinese Asian technology arose from the greater printers to produce expérimental paper stress on mechanical invention in the West money...but despite this, Islamic society as compared with the emphasis on largedid not adopt printing until about 1720, scale hydraulic works in much of Asia." His long after other parts of the world had derefreshing outlook is not obsessed with pended on it. Western developments to the exclusion of • On the American continents, not only other cultures. Such a balanced view is had the natives not discovered the wheel, perhaps the author's greatest achievebut the
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