2/12/2024 0 Comments World of warships italian ships![]() It was just the high cost and complexity of the twentieth-century artillery technology that turned out to be a trap in innovation. In this case, there seems to be a continuing conformity with the ‘cultural circles’, though this is an illusion. And it became possible to design artillery with the performance of the previous generation, but much easier and simpler to produce, and hence less expensive. For example, advances in development of propellant powders and artillery materiel in the beginning of the twentieth century was applied to create a new generation of artillery for high muzzle velocities and therefore, better ballistic performance. Because of the high cost, hardly anyone, even the richest state, could afford to evolve artillery by trial and error or aesthetics, but had to develop and strictly adhere to a certain doctrine, referred to in the literature as ‘technology policy’. It turned out that the nature of technical innovations varies, which is most clearly demonstrated by the evolution of naval artillery. The twentieth-century data brought about some changes in this coherent theory. Thereafter, the innovation in the military sphere virtually ceased, and the Muslim states thus missed out on the developments in gunpowder weapons. For instance, in the twelfth century, Saladin's Moslems perfected the horse archer regarding it as the ultimate weapon. Nor is there any doubt that a continual innovation became the key to survival. Also there is no doubt that the level of innovation is ‘cumulative’ each subsequent military innovation is much more effective than the previous one. When analyzing ancient and medieval data, it is easy to notice that progress in technical areas, especially in military technology, could give the possessors of these innovations a decisive advantage over other nations, contribute to the conquest and exploration of new territories, and insure a certain domestic tranquility. ![]() Probably, one can find the most original presentation of this relationship in Theory of Cultural Circles by Fritz Graebner ( Methode der Ethnologie see Graebner 1911). But nevertheless, there is an undeniable connection between social evolution and technical innovation. In recent years the phrase ‘technical innovation’ has been widely used in the literature or for various purposes. ![]()
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