The document traces the evolution of media through four major ages: the Pre-Industrial Age (before 1700s) which saw the development of early communication tools like cave paintings and clay tablets; the Industrial Age (1700s-1930s) brought innovations like the printing press, newspaper, telephone, and motion pictures; the Electronic Age (1930s-1980s) was defined by the invention of radio, television, and computers; and finally the Information Age (1900s-2000s) witnessed the rise of the Internet and digital technologies including social media, smartphones, and wearable devices.

1. The Evolution of Media
The 20th
century was witness to the birth of what is arguably the most popular device in the history of mankind: the
television. TV is a communications technology that has revolutionized the delivery of information, entertainment and artistic
expression to the masses. More recently, we have all witnessed (and participated in) the birth of the Internet, a technology
whose potential makes TV pale into insignificance in comparison (although, it seems, TV isn't leaving us anytime soon).
These are fast-paced and momentous times we live in. I thought now would be a good opportunity to take a journey back
through the ages, and to explore the forms of (and devices for) media and communication throughout human history.

2. Pre-Industrial Age (Before 1700's)
In this age, People had learned or discovered fire, developed paper from plants, and forged
weapons and tools with stone, bronze, copper and iron.
• Cave paintings (35,000 BC)
• Clay tablets in Mesopotamia (2400 BC)
• Papyrus in Egypt (2500 BC)
• Printing press using wood blocks (220 AD)
2400 BC
2500 BC
35000 BC
220 AD

3. Industrial Age (1700s-1930s)
This is where people discovered the used of power steam, developed machine tools,
established iron production, and the manufacturing of various products (including
books through the printing press)
Newspaper (1640)
Typewriter (1800)
Telephone (1876) Motion Picture and
Photography Projection
(1890)
Printing Press for Mass Production
(19th
Century)
Motion Picture with Sound
(1926)
Punch cards (1750) Telegraph (1830)
1640 1750 1800 1830 1876 1890 19th Century 1926

4. Electronic Age (1930s-1980s)
In this age, People invented the transistor ushered in the electronic age. People
harnessed the power of transistors that led to the transistor radio, electronic circuits,
and the early computers. In this age, long distance communication became more
efficient.
1895
1941
1949-1951
1960
1968-1976
Radio (1895)
Television (1941)Large Electronic Computers-i.e.
EDSAC (1949) and UNIVAC 1 (1951) Mainframe computers - i.e. IBM 704
(1960)
Personal computers - i.e. Hewlett
Packard 9100A (1968), Apple 1 (1976)

5. Information Age (1900s-2000s)
This is where the Internet paved the way for faster communication and the
creation of the social network. People advanced the use of microelectronics
with the invention of personal computers, mobile devices, and wearable
technology. Moreover, voice, image, sound and data are digitalized. We are
now living in the information age.
• Web browsers: Mosaic (1993), Internet Explorer (1995)
• Blogs: Blogspot (1999), LiveJournal (1999), Word press
(2003)
• Social networks: Friendster (2002), Multiply (2003),
Facebook (2004)
• Microblogs: Twitter (2006), Tumblr (2007)
• Video: YouTube (2005)• Augmented Reality / Virtual Reality
• Video chat: Skype (2003), Google Hangouts (2013)
• Search Engines: Google (1996), Yahoo (1995)
• Portable computers and laptops (1980)
• Wearable technology (1961)• Smart Phones (1992)
1993
1992
1961
1980