To arrive at the edge of the world's knowledge, seek out the most complex and sophisticated minds, put them in a room together, and have them ask each other the questions they are asking themselves.
Published on Edge.org (https://www.edge.org)

Home >

1999 : WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT INVENTION IN THE PAST TWO THOUSAND YEARS? [1]

In the News [ 7 ] [2]
  |  
Contributors [ 108 ] [3]   |   View All Responses [ 108 ] [4]
[5]
Joseph LeDoux [5]
Professor of Neural Science, Psychology, Psychiatry, and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, NYU; Director Emotional Brain Institute; Author, Anxious
Professor at the Center for Neural Science, New York University

Inventions. My top runners in the area of physical inventions would have to be ways of harnessing energy, ways of moving around the world, and ways of communicating. And since the latter two depend on the first, I'd have to put my money on energy control and use.

But we've got lots of psychological and social inventions as well. I'd put the idea that all people are equal at the top of the list. This is an invention that we could make better use of.

Return to Table of Contents [3]

Links:
[1] https://www.edge.org/annual-question/what-is-the-most-important-invention-in-the-past-two-thousand-years
[2] https://www.edge.org/inthenews/what-is-the-most-important-invention-in-the-past-two-thousand-years
[3] https://www.edge.org/contributors/what-is-the-most-important-invention-in-the-past-two-thousand-years
[4] https://www.edge.org/responses/what-is-the-most-important-invention-in-the-past-two-thousand-years
[5] https://www.edge.org/memberbio/joseph_ledoux