Map Monday, Luddites and computers, who knew?

For many of us computers and electronic devices in general are nearly ubiquitous. We can’t imagine life without them. Many of our children have never known life without them. A common worry among many is that our youth are becoming addicted to our electronic devices. They’re anti-social attitudes driven if not caused by their tethering to virtual realities via their smart phones.

In fairness, this Luddite like attitude is not surprising nor is it new. In fact, the very word Luddite derives from a secret 19th century society of English textile workers. The original Luddites feared the mechanization of textile production. To protect their craft and livelihood they took to violence and destroyed machinery in mills. The English parliament responded by passing the Frame Breaking Act of 1812, which made the destruction a capital crime. This harsh treatment effectively ended the original Luddites.

What’s the connection?

In some respects the modern computer can trace its roots to textile mechanization. While they were mechanical rather than electronic, the automated looms were at the forefront of automation. In an ironic twist Ada Lovelace, the daughter of a staunch Luddite defender became the first computer programmer.

A century after the Luddites disappeared, the first analog electronic calculating computers appeared. Less than a generation later digital computers were developed using vacuum tube transistors. These ‘tubes’ rapidly found their way into our lives. I can still remember tube testing machines in hardware stores where you could test your TV’s tubes.

The reign of the vacuum tube didn’t last long. During the last forty years of the 20th century they were replaced by silicon based transistors, integrated circuits, and microprocessors. The rapid improvement in speed and processing power became known as Moore’s Law. Named after the co-founder of Fairchild Semiconductor and CEO of Intel, Gordon Moore, it states that computing power (as measured by the number of transistors per chip) doubles every two years.

Some may quibble with the specifics, but Moore was essentially correct. The increased power in an ever shrinking piece of silicon is the foundation for much of our modern world. Expanding from their humble mechanical predecessors, integrated circuits can be found in virtually every industry. They power industrial robots, computer-aided design, and even our cars. They’ve also worked their way into the now nearly indispensable personal computing devices. While no one would ever misconstrue this blog as essential, it wouldn’t exist without modern computer technology.

Digital Divide

All of that said, it’s easy to forget that there are 7.7B people on this planet and not all of them enjoy the same access to these life altering products. Which of course brings us to our featured map courtesy of the United Nations and cartographer Derek Boogaard.

Digital divide and luddites

As always thanks for reading.

Armen

Note to pay the bills:  While there are no computers in the Warder series, it has more than a fair share of magic and mayhem. If the though of a James Bond-like thriller in a fantasy setting interests you, please check out a summary of the series here or find links to purchase books here.

4 thoughts on “Map Monday, Luddites and computers, who knew?

  1. Always enjoy your Monday contribution. You find the most fascinating topics.

    1. Thanks Rick. I appreciate those with the patience to continue reading the meanderings of my thoughts.

  2. Cathy says:

    Always enjoy your post. I’m curious on the date of the map.

    1. Cathy, I remember reading it was from 2016, but the creation date appears to be 2006. That said, I suspect it was originally made in 2006, but has been updated – although I can’t find the date to verify that. Even so best case it’s three years old, but it could be more than a decade. Apparently things do last forever on the internet – no doubt the Luddites are looking down (or up as the case maybe) and laughing at me.

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