The last 100 years

[GrumpyPom]

Why has technology accelerated so much in the last 100 years?
when you consider the atom was only thought about approx 100 years ago but now we have nuclear technology.
Same with flying, the Wright brothers flew a few feet a hundred years ago now we can put craft on Mars.
Everything seems to advance so quickly now.

[hc4361]

Electricity and the combustion engine.

[VHG]

>Electricity and the combustion engine.

Then most importantly the valve, that evolved into the transistor, that became the microchip.

Almost every device nowadays has microchips in them, from your watch, TV, phone, DVD player, washing machine, fridge, car etc etc

Once you have devices this small with so much power almost anything is possible.

[VHG]

I think also money comes in to it.

Once countries and goverments became so rich they were able to throw money into projects like the V1 and V2 rockets Germany had during WW2, then the space race, computer development, then things like CERN and the Hadron Collider.

CERN required many countries to combine their money into this huge expensive project, something no single country could probably afford.

[society]

"Why has technology accelerated so much in the last 100 years"

People using their brains more :-)

[whiskeryron]

Could a possible answer be due to forward developement in the human race ?
Starting with cave drawings etc.

[piggynose]

bigger financial incentives me thinks