Printing

Printing has been a vital element in the development of civilisation, especially in Europe where the spreading of ideas, religion and cultural phenomena was speeded up by the invention of the printing press. The printing press allowed the copying of texts to be made far cheaper and hence put information out into the public realm.

The importance of the press is regarded by some to be as important as the internet today, sparking an 'information revolution' that led to advances in science, warfare and political theory as well as many other fields. To argue that printing drove these changes can be considered folly; however, it is unlikely that the ideas would have spread as wide or as quickly without its invention.