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@ -12,9 +12,9 @@ The [Universe](universe.md) began in [singularity](singularity.md) and started t
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The earliest known appearance of technology related to humans may likely be the use of **[stone](rock.md) tools** by hominids in Africa some two and a half million years ago (newest encyclopedia Britannica states even 3.3 million years ago) -- this is even before the appearance of modern humans, homo sapiens, that emerged roughly 600000 years ago. Learning to start and control **[fire](fire.md)** was another key invention of the earliest men; this probably happened hundreds of thousands to millions years ago, even before modern humans. Around 8000 BC the **[Agricultural Revolution](agricultural_revolution.md)** happened: this was quite a disaster -- as humans domesticated animals and plants, they had to abandon the comfortable life of hunters and gatherers and started to suffer the life of a farmer, full of extremely hard [work](work.md) in the fields (this can be seen e.g. from their bones). Around 4000 BC sailing ships were used on the Nile river. Permanent farmer settlements led to the establishment of first cities that would later become city states (as the name says -- something between a city and a state, i.e. greatly independent cities with their own laws etc.). Some of the first such cities were Ur and Uruk in Mesopotamia, since around 5000 BC. Primitive **writing** can be traced to about 7000 BC to China. **[Wheel](wheel.md)** was another crucial piece of technology humans invented, it is not known precisely when or where it appeared, but it might have been some time after 5000 BC -- in Ancient Egypt **The Great Pyramid** was built around 2570 BC still without the knowledge of wheel. Around 4000 BC **history starts with first written records**. Humans learned to smelt and use [metals](metal.md) approximately 3300 BC (**Bronze Age**) and 1200 BC (**Iron Age**). **[Abacus](abacus.md)**, one of the simplest [digital](digital.md) devices aiding with computation, was invented roughly around 2500 BC. However people used primitive computation helping tools, such as bone ribs, probably almost from the time they started trading. Babylonians in around 2000 BC were already able to solve some forms of **[quadratic equations](quadratic_equation.md)**.
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In Greece many city states, such as Athens, Delphi and Sparta formed -- Ancient Greek culture would be seen as the golden age of civilization that would lay foundations to everything we now take for granted; Greeks to some extent advanced technology (e.g. architecture) but especially cultivated [art](art.md), philosophy and [politics](politics.md) -- Athens are credited for inventing [democracy](democracy.md) (though an "early" version, they still had slaves and many classes of citizens without voting power). In 8th century BC Homer created the epic poems Iliad and Odyssey. In 6th century BC Pythagoras describes the [Pythagorean theorem](pythagorean_theorem.md). After 600 BC the Greek [philosophy](philosophy.md) starts to develop which would lead to strengthening of rational, [scientific](science.md) thinking and advancement of [logic](logic.md) and [mathematics](math.md). Some of the most famous Greek philosophers were [Socrates](socrates.md), [Plato](plato.md), [Aristotle](aristotle.md) and [Diogenes](diogenes.md). Around 400 BC **[camera obscura](camera_obscura.md)** was already described in a written text from China where **[gears](gear.md)** also seem to have been invented soon after. Around 300 BC Euklid wrote his famous *Elements*, a mathematical work that proves theorems from basic [axioms](axiom.md). Ancient Greeks could communicate over great distances using **Phryctoria**, chains of fire towers placed on mountains that forwarded messages to one another using light. 234 BC Archimedes described the famous [Archimedes screw](archimedes_screw.md) and created an **[algorithm](algorithm.md) for computing the number [pi](pi.md)**. In 2nd century BC the **Antikythera mechanism, the first known [analog](analog.md) [computer](computer.md)** is made to predict movement of heavenly bodies. Romans are known to have been great builders, they built many roads and such structures as the Pantheon (126 AD) and aqueducts with the use of their own type of **concrete** and advanced understanding of physics.
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In Greece many city states, such as Athens, Delphi and Sparta formed -- Ancient Greek [culture](culture.md) would be seen as the golden age of civilization that would lay foundations to everything we now take for granted; Greeks to some extent advanced technology (e.g. architecture) but especially cultivated [art](art.md), philosophy and [politics](politics.md) -- Athens are credited for inventing [democracy](democracy.md) (though an "early" version, they still had slaves and many classes of citizens without voting power). In 8th century BC Homer created the epic poems Iliad and Odyssey. In 6th century BC Pythagoras describes the [Pythagorean theorem](pythagorean_theorem.md). After 600 BC the Greek [philosophy](philosophy.md) starts to develop which would lead to strengthening of rational, [scientific](science.md) thinking and advancement of [logic](logic.md) and [mathematics](math.md). Some of the most famous Greek philosophers were [Socrates](socrates.md), [Plato](plato.md), [Aristotle](aristotle.md) and [Diogenes](diogenes.md). Around 400 BC **[camera obscura](camera_obscura.md)** was already described in a written text from China where **[gears](gear.md)** also seem to have been invented soon after. Around 300 BC Euklid wrote his famous *Elements*, a mathematical work that proves theorems from basic [axioms](axiom.md). Ancient Greeks could communicate over great distances using **Phryctoria**, chains of fire towers placed on mountains that forwarded messages to one another using light. 234 BC Archimedes described the famous [Archimedes screw](archimedes_screw.md) and created an **[algorithm](algorithm.md) for computing the number [pi](pi.md)**. In 2nd century BC the **Antikythera mechanism, the first known [analog](analog.md) [computer](computer.md)** is made to predict movement of heavenly bodies. Romans are known to have been great builders, they built many roads and such structures as the Pantheon (126 AD) and aqueducts with the use of their own type of **concrete** and advanced understanding of physics.
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44 BC Julius Caesar, the most famous leader of Ancient Rome, is killed. Rome has to be mentioned as at its time it was the biggest world superpower -- though it was a greatly corrupt, imperialist empire heavily based on work of slaves, Rome advanced technology in many ways, e.g. by inventing concrete, building roads and very long lasting aqueducts. They built monuments that would last for thousands of years, for instance the famous Colosseum.
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44 BC Julius Caesar, the most famous [leader](hero_culture.md) of Ancient Rome, is killed. Rome has to be mentioned as at its time it was the biggest world superpower -- though it was a greatly corrupt, imperialist empire heavily based on work of slaves, Rome advanced technology in many ways, e.g. by inventing concrete, building roads and very long lasting aqueducts. They built monuments that would last for thousands of years, for instance the famous Colosseum.
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Around 50 AD Heron of Alexandria, an Egyptian mathematician, created a number of highly sophisticated inventions such as a **vending machine** that accepted coins and gave out holy water, and a cart that could be "programmed" with strings to drive on its own.
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@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ Around the year of [our Lord](jesus.md) 1450 a major technological leap known as
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The year 1492 marks the **discovery of America** by Christopher Columbus who sailed over the Atlantic Ocean, though he probably wasn't the first in history to do so, and it wasn't realized he sailed to America until after he died (he thought he sailed to India). This is sometimes taken to mark the **end of Middle Ages** and transition to **Renaissance**. This was a time of increased interest in rationality, science and art; Renaissance saw man as a potent creation of God, who is capable of creating on his own rather than being mere blind, obedient servant of God. Great many polymath lived at this time, most notably **[Leonardo da Vinci](da_vinci.md)** (probably [gay](gay.md)) who was an excellent painter, explored human anatomy and even subjects such as astronomy and engineering. On one hand Renaissance brought beautiful art and new technology, on the other hand it further shifted society toward capitalism and selfish thinking, human became more self centered, [egoistic](egoism.md) and art became even more a matter of business -- for example the great painters infamously hired lesser artists to make copies of their paintings which were then sold almost like consumer products.
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In 1642 Blaise Pascal, a french mathematician/inventor/philosopher, invented *Pascaline*, a simple [mechanical](mechanical.md) calculator (however building on ideas dating back to antiquity), laying some very early foundations for automatic computation. (The [Pascal](pascal.md) programming language is named after him.) Shortly after Pascal another genius, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, further developed some basic theory (related e.g. to [binary](binary.md) system and [algorithms](algorithm.md)) that would much later on evolve into computer science.
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In 1642 Blaise Pascal, a french [mathematician](math.md)/inventor/philosopher, invented *Pascaline*, a simple [mechanical](mechanical.md) calculator (however building on ideas dating back to antiquity), laying some very early foundations for automatic computation. (The [Pascal](pascal.md) programming language is named after him.) Shortly after Pascal another genius, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, further developed some basic theory (related e.g. to [binary](binary.md) system and [algorithms](algorithm.md)) that would much later on evolve into computer science.
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During 1700s a major shift in civilization occurred, called the **[Industrial Revolution](industrial_revolution.md)** -- this was another disaster that would lead to the transformation of common people to factory slaves and loss of their self sufficiency. The revolution spanned roughly from 1750 to 1850. It was a process of rapid change in the whole society due to new technological inventions that also led to big changes in how a man lived his daily life. It commenced in Great Britain but quickly spread over the whole world. One of the main changes was the **transition from manual manufacturing to factory manufacturing** using machines and sources of energy such as coal. **[Steam engine](steam_engine.md) played a key role**. Work became a form of a highly organized slavery system, society became industrionalized. This revolution became highly [criticized](ted_kaczynski.md) as it unfortunately opened the door for [capitalism](capitalism.md), made people dependent on the system as everyone had to become a specialized cog in the society machine, at this time people started to measure time in minutes and lead very planned lives with less joy. But there was no way back.
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@ -92,7 +92,7 @@ August 12 1981 would see the released of **[IBM PC](ibm_pc.md)**, a personal com
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In 1983 **[Richard Stallman](rms.md) announced his [GNU](gnu.md) project and invented [free (as in freedom) software](free_software.md)**, a kind of software that is freely shared and developed by the people so as to respect the users' freedom. This kind of ethical software stands opposed to the [proprietary](proprietary.md) corporate software, it would lead to creation of some of the most important software and to a whole revolution in software development and its licensing, it would spark the creation of other movements striving for keeping ethics in the information age.
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1985: on November 20 the first version of the **[Windows](windows.md) operating system** was sadly released by [Microsoft](microsoft.md). This malware would become the mainstream desktop operating system despite its obnoxious design and would sadly forever stain computer technology with so called [Windows philosophy](windows_philosophy.md), irreversibly corrupting other mainstream technology as well. Also in 1985 one of the deadliest software [bugs](bug.md) appeared: that in [Therac-25](therac_25.md), a medical radiotherapy device which fatally overdosed several patients with radiation.
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1985: on November 20 the first version of the **[Windows](windows.md) "operating system"** was sadly released by [Micro$oft](microsoft.md). This malware would become the mainstream desktop operating system despite its obnoxious design and would sadly forever stain computer technology with so called [Windows philosophy](windows_philosophy.md), irreversibly corrupting other mainstream technology as well. Also in 1985 one of the deadliest software [bugs](bug.md) appeared: that in [Therac-25](therac_25.md), a medical radiotherapy device which fatally overdosed several patients with radiation.
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On April 26 1986 the **[Chernobyl](chernobyl.md) nuclear disaster** happened (the worst power plant accident in history) -- in north Ukraine (at the time under [USSR](ussr.md)) a nuclear [power plant](power_plant.md) exploded, contaminated a huge area with [radioactivity](radioactivity.md) and released a toxic radioactive cloud that would spread over Europe -- many would die either directly or indirectly (many years later due to radioactivity poisoning, estimated at many thousands). The Chernobyl area would be sealed in the 30 km radius. It is estimated the area won't be habitable again for several thousands of years.
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