New technology is not limited to the past 100 years



Prof. I. Rudowsky BUS 50.8/CIS9.5 MW2

Short Paper #2 Due: Sept 23, 2009

New technology is not limited to the past 100 years. Back in 1440, Johannes Guttenberg invented the movable type printing press and the world hasn’t been the same since. For this short paper assignment (3-4 pages) discuss this technology from the perspective of the time period it appeared in. Make sure to include answers to the questions below and add any additional material you feel is important to the topic. Do not just answer the questions below- as you write your paper address these topics within it.

• Who was Johannes Guttenberg? What was his background?

• What led up to his inventing the printing press?

• What had others before him done in terms of printing presses? Who, when?

• What was his contribution to the technology? Was it evolutionary or revolutionary?

• What was the major method of printing in Europe prior to his invention?

• To what extent would the prior method(s) be supplanted (a) in the short term and (b) long term?

• Who was Guttenberg’s competition?

• Was he able to prevent others from stealing his ideas?

• What types of material did he initially print on his press?

• How much faster was it than existing printing methods?

• What were the social implications of his invention? How did it impact literacy, politics, economics, and religion? Was it accepted, rejected? By whom and for what reasons?

• Was Guttenberg a success or a failure? How and in what ways?

• With 570 years of hindsight, what advice would you now give Guttenberg to take the most advantage of his invention?

List your sources (web sites, journals, magazines, books etc). Do not plagiarize but digest the ideas and facts and put them in your own words.

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