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The author of this series of articles is aware that this is a provocative headline. The article has become so long and complex in content that we have divided it into three parts, which will be published simultaneously. This means that you can read the next parts immediately after finishing this one. Once you have read the articles to the end, you will understand why we chose these particular words and that they are correct and indeed appropriate.
Part 1: Introduction and historical overview
When you read, hear or see anything about Elon Musk in the media these days, it's almost always negative headlines. Insane, populist, right-wing extremist and worse. Prominent users are leaving platform X, formerly Twitter, in droves. The only strange thing is that the number of users isn't falling. Quite the contrary. And, if you believe the media, no one is buying a Tesla anymore. The share price has indeed plummeted. But Elon Musk doesn't seem to care. The man is beyond the stage where a short-term drop in profits throws him off track. He thinks long term. Very long term. And he has a plan that is likely to work out – despite all the doom and gloom.
As we know, the line between genius and madness is blurred. Make up your own mind. Give the facts a chance and don't believe everything you read, hear or see on television.
In order to understand the future – and what lies ahead for us all – it makes sense to first take a look back at history. „Only those who know where they come from know where they are going,“ as Theodor Heuss, the first President of the Federal Republic of Germany, once said.
It has always been individuals who have advanced humanity with their inventions and discoveries. Thomas Edison, Nikola Tesla, Johannes Gutenberg and many others. Will Elon Musk one day be part of this elite club of inventors as a „visionary of integration“? Will he even outshine them all? A look back:
The 10 most important inventions of mankind – in chronological order
1. Taming fire – unknown primitive man
Controlling fire enabled humans to protect themselves against the cold and wild animals for the first time. It was the basis for cooking, community and ultimately civilisation. Without fire, there would be no heat, no metal, no cars, no humanity as we know it.
2. Agriculture – probably developed independently in several regions around 10,000 BC.
With the systematic cultivation of plants and domestication of animals, humans were able to settle down and build complex societies. Agriculture made population growth, cities and the division of labour possible.
3. The invention of the wheel – inventor unknown, probably Mesopotamia, approx. 3500 BC. Chr.
The wheel revolutionised transport, trade and mechanics. It was one of the first technologies to harness physical principles to save energy. To this day, the wheel remains a central element in every machine and vehicle.
4. Writing – first cultivated by the Sumerians, approx. 3200 BC. Chr. (cuneiform script)
Writing made it possible for the first time to preserve knowledge across generations. It was the prerequisite for law, administration, science – and ultimately for history itself. Without writing, there would be no books, no contracts, no cultural history. And no internet either.
5. The compass – probably China, 11th century AD. Chr.
The compass was essential for global navigation, voyages of discovery and worldwide trade. It made navigation at sea reliable and brought cultures into contact with each other, with all the opportunities and conflicts that entailed. Without it, there would be no globalisation.
6. Printing with movable type – Johannes Gutenberg, around 1440 AD.
Gutenberg made knowledge available to the masses and ended the elites' monopoly on information. Printing ushered in the Age of Enlightenment and is considered the catalyst for science, education and democracy. It changed the world more profoundly than almost any other invention.
7. The steam engine – James Watt (further developed from 1765 onwards)
It was the driving force behind the Industrial Revolution and fundamentally changed work, mobility and the economy. The steam engine heralded the machine age and enabled progress at an unprecedented pace. It stands at the dawn of modernity.
8. Electricity – many pioneers, etc. a. Alessandro Volta, Michael Faraday, Thomas Edison, late 18th to late 19th century
Electricity is the invisible force behind almost everything: light, communication, production, data processing. Harnessing it was the key to a new era – from the light switch to the digital world. It is the nervous system of civilisation.
9. The computer – Charles Babbage (precursor), Alan Turing (theory), Konrad Zuse (Z3, 1941)
Computers changed the way we think, calculate and communicate – and today, they also change the way we live. They laid the foundation for all digital systems and are at the heart of the modern information society. Without them, digitalisation would be unthinkable.
10. The Internet – etc. a. Vinton Cerf, Robert Kahn, Tim Berners-Lee (WWW, 1989)
Today, the internet connects billions of people and provides information in real time. It is the global brain of humanity – boundless, fast, omnipresent. No other invention has changed communication behaviour and access to knowledge so comprehensively.
With point 10 of this list, we have arrived in the present. From now on, we will turn our attention to the exciting future. All future developments and inventions will be technology-based. Read parts 2 and 3 of this series of articles on the inventions of mankind.
These are the links to all three parts of the series of articles:
