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by leipert
2107 days ago
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> with the exception of the Internet, which didn't change physical space. Well, I would argue a lot changes due to the internet, physically. Apart from the infrastructure needed for it, it surely has an impact on commerce. Larger and smaller stores vanish, the shopping experience of many changed drastically. Due to information being accessible all time and from around the world it has an impact on libraries, print related industries. I am sure that there are even more examples. |
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Someone from 1900 who suddenly showed up in 1960 would have much more to learn about household electrification and individual transportation[1][2] (and would definitely have to change their sartorial tastes).
I'm typing this on a writing desk in a room with bookshelves. The internet vastly decreases the latency of our correspondence and vastly increases the amount of reference material to which I have access, but what we're doing isn't qualitatively much removed from what Erasmus or Montaigne presumably did with colleagues in their spare time.
[1] An amusing anecdote from a biography of the Irvine family: the younger members all adapted to the motor vehicle readily enough (1880-1920 having only been 40 years), but one of the older ones, instead of turning the key off, insisted on stopping cars by putting them in high gear and turning them uphill, treating them as if they were runaway broncs.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irvine_Company
[2] At least, assuming they do any of that stuff themselves. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=he4WPvKGGR0 is set ca. 1970 (despite precociously using Zoom?) but they still (1:06) have household help.