Technology in the classic Greece

In this blog we are explaining how the classical culture was introducing technology to improve. In the current Broadband Society and cloud journalism, Internet is the great articulator. Information and knowledge guide production, as evidenced by large databases and industry 4.0.

In ancient Greece technology was developed throughout the 5th century BC. It extended until the Roman period. It even lasted a few more years. The inventions of the classical Greeks are many: screw, torsional catapult, gear, rotating mills, water body, shaft press, water clock, bronze casting techniques, steam to operate some experimental machines and toys, for example.

Peculiarly, some of the inventions saw the light towards the end of the Greek era, in order to improve weapons and war tactics. In the case of the water mill, he obtained a wholesale operation on the part of the Romans. The Greeks looked in topography and mathematics. Names like Archimedes and Herod of Alexandria reflect this.

Why did the Greeks fail to develop their technology? Well, because of the despised condition of those who did this job. In fact, manual work was underestimated. In this way, a scientific application could reduce social status. It can disincentive technological innovation. A peculiar situation To see the prestigious impact of technology, I recommend attending the DMTforum-XXVI Cable and Broadband Catalonia Congress (CNMC, ​​19 May). Come in!

Classic culture and technology: a nice couple!

When the expression "classical culture" is mentioned, one associates it with issues far away in time. Keep in mind that technology starts in parallel to human evolution. Thus, the Greeks developed skills in commerce and shipyards, and surpassed the Persians largely thanks to the naval power, forged in technology. The manual work depended on the slaves, the workers of the time that guaranteed productivity over possible new sources of energy. In fact, Greek and Roman education did not focus on manufacturing or physical work.

The technology sought to save on efforts, although the technological advances of the Greeks did not fully agree with theoretical knowledge. Heró de Alexandria (creator of the dioptra, a topography instrument), Ctesias, Ptolemy, Tales of Miletus (and their navigation triangulation systems) and the well-known Archimedes (inventor of the hydraulic spindle) investigated the principles of technology. Devices such as fire pumps, handles, levers, pulleys, toothed wheels, siphons, turbines or valves. The first map of the world corresponds to Anaximander.

In the case of the Romans, they applied the technology in organization and construction, creating systems of public works. The introduction of cement and the beginning of the arch allowed the Romans to build more than 70,000 km. of roads A well-enclosed Roman Empire, with the addition of aqueducts, sewers and bridges. The public toilets and the circuses gave a playful nature. The water mill and hydraulic wheels with upper and lower thrust allowed grinding, sawing and cutting marble. In the warlike area, the creation of the javelin and the catapult placed the Romans in a stage of advantage in the struggles.

In the case of the Romans, they applied the technology in organization and construction, creating systems of public works. The introduction of cement and the beginning of the arch allowed the Romans to build more than 70,000 km. of roads A well-enclosed Roman Empire, with the addition of aqueducts, sewers and bridges. The public toilets and the circuses gave a playful nature. The water mill and hydraulic wheels with upper and lower thrust allowed grinding, sawing and cutting marble. In the warlike area, the creation of the javelin and the catapult placed the Romans in a stage of advantage in the struggles.

Another perspective on the relationship between technology and classical culture, jumping into the 21st century, comes from the Internet spreading. In the classic environment we find the roots of the Broadband Society, the scientific theory coined by Dr. Joan Francesc Fondevila Gascón, international leader in communication and telecommunications and author of the scientific blog Telecomunicaciones y Periodismo, also leader in his field.

Access to texts and documentation is simpler thanks to the international broadband networks. How they evolve and how they can disseminate content is a fundamental aspect for students of the classical world. That is why it is highly recommended to attend the XXVI Cable and Broadband Catalonia Congress (2022). Classic culture and technology: a nice couple!

The nice Sicily

Sicily is like a magnet. Already in the eighteenth century, European aristocrats considered the cherry tree of the grand tour, with the confluence of the Azure coast and the ubiquitous mountain (Palermo, Tràpani, Nebrodi, Madonia and Peloritani mountains). The 3,323 meters of the Etna volcano impose.

They still resembled the effluvium of the Kingdom of Sicily, when the island was independent, as in the Greek era, that of Magna Grecia and Siracusa, the most beautiful of Greece, according to Cicero. However, Roma, the Vandals, the Byzantines, the Saracens, the Hohenstaufen, the Catalan-Aragonese and the Spaniards regularly controlled the island, eminently agrarian and with the Mafia as the underlying factor. The wars between Sparta and Athens, the Carthaginian incursions, the first Punic War, the Second Punic War and the conversion into the Roman province (the barn of Rome, for the spoils suffered) wander through a battle landscape similar to that of the slow football matches.

The attractions of Sicily make it a privileged place for tourism, which increasingly uses digital tools, thanks to the poetic landscape and archaeological sites such as Morgantina, the Valley of the Temples or Selinunte. Hostels proliferate on the island. Names such as Agrigento, Caltagirone, Cefalù, Piazza Armerina (Roman villa of Casale) Siracusa or Taormina synthesize the culture of the island. Churches and natural spaces make it attractive. Curious island evolution, like technological evolution, analyzed by XXV Cable and Broadband Catalonia Congress (CECABLE, Auditorium Blanquerna in Barcelona, ​​31 March-1 April 2020). Come in!