Vikings and the technological cutting edge

A recent study showed that about thousand years ago Vikings based their success in trade, crime, expedition and warship on a technical revolution allowing mass production of tar. The result should not have been a surprise as the use of wooden ships without a protectant against decay was not  - and neither is today - possible.

It should be noticed that the study demonstrated once more that big changes in the history of mankind have always derived from technological innovations. It was already so when agriculture was invented in Middle East, which fed an unforeseen population growth and resulted in migration of people to Europe, where previous hunter-gatherers were either displaced or assimilated to the new tribes.

Technological revolution was also the cause of development of towns and cities via industrialization and replacement of agriculture from its position as the heart of the society. Thereafter the economic and military power has been in the hands of those nations, which have had the most educated and skillful people. Thus, it should today be understood that the welfare depends essentially on the ability of people to gain education and technological skills.

I also noticed an opinion article, where a researcher working with loose money claimed on her poor and insecure position in the society, and threatened her readers with the aim to leave research by moving to other working environment. Considering this threat, the society should rather celebrate than be sorry, as the aim of researcher education is not only to raise people for universities,  but also to provide first class workforce to private sector. 

Therefore I am encouraging the person to make her first step as a top expert towards her new career; and to proudly show this in her application process for the new position. This opinion is based on the fact, that scientific education is essentially designed to make people more objective: to be able to see a difference between the facts and their hopes or ideologies. If and when this has been successful, these people can offer things, that are rarely available. And that should be useful in all fields of the labor market. 

Therefore also the private sector should take advantage of people with scientific education. By doing so, they would gain an edge ahead their most serious competitors in local and global scale. That should be understood by all company directors from high tech enterprises to those making business on marketing or human resources. 

Aiempia ajatuksia samasta aihepiiristä:
Viikinkien retket perustuivat teknis-taloudelliseen vallankumoukseen