Progress Trap
Progress Trap
In his 2004 book, A Short History of Progress, award-winning novelist, historian, and essayist, Ronald Wright explores the seemingly inevitable pattern of progress and imminent disaster that so defines the history of civilization. Wright laments upon the “progress trap” (Wright 31) as that of an absolute agent of downfall; one that we, as humans, bring upon ourselves. What began as simple moral improvements made in small civilizations has, with the introduction of science and technology, quickly advanced to more intricate material progressions, causing a “seductive trail of successes that [will] end up in a trap.” (Wright 5) Wright defines these newfound progress traps as created by three main factors: specialization, …show more content…
(Wright 42) With the introduction of a more reliable food supply came many positive changes, such as larger populations and cities, and larger, more stable civilizations. The Farming Revolution also resulted in the mode of nourishment that the economy and world still stands upon today. However, it also brought about many traps, namely the extreme and inescapable rise in poor dental hygiene, as well as the world 's current addiction to …show more content…
The Faming Revolution, which came as a result of the extinction of many previous food sources, can be accredited with this enormous increase. With the introduction of farming came the introduction of sugar, which then sparked the Industrial Revolution. Over a short period of time, the world went from an agriculture-based economy to a machine-based economy, successfully altering the production of food from small-scale and natural to large-scale and highly processed. As technology advanced, more and more highly-processed, sugary foods became readily available to the public, such as soda and candy. The consumption of such alters the natural pH of saliva in the mouth, making it more acidic, dissolving minerals in tooth enamel and causing cavities (Evolutionary Theory of Dentistry 975). The softened nature of such highly-processed foods also causes a misalignment of the teeth, which is found presently in nine out of every 10 adolescents in the United States. With the growing amount of sugars in normal diets, we are also creating favorable situations for bacteria to grow and flourish, making more and more humans susceptible to systemic diseases such as diabetes. With the introduction of farming, and thus, sugar, to
In his 2004 book, A Short History of Progress, award-winning novelist, historian, and essayist, Ronald Wright explores the seemingly inevitable pattern of progress and imminent disaster that so defines the history of civilization. Wright laments upon the “progress trap” (Wright 31) as that of an absolute agent of downfall; one that we, as humans, bring upon ourselves. What began as simple moral improvements made in small civilizations has, with the introduction of science and technology, quickly advanced to more intricate material progressions, causing a “seductive trail of successes that [will] end up in a trap.” (Wright 5) Wright defines these newfound progress traps as created by three main factors: specialization, …show more content…
(Wright 42) With the introduction of a more reliable food supply came many positive changes, such as larger populations and cities, and larger, more stable civilizations. The Farming Revolution also resulted in the mode of nourishment that the economy and world still stands upon today. However, it also brought about many traps, namely the extreme and inescapable rise in poor dental hygiene, as well as the world 's current addiction to …show more content…
The Faming Revolution, which came as a result of the extinction of many previous food sources, can be accredited with this enormous increase. With the introduction of farming came the introduction of sugar, which then sparked the Industrial Revolution. Over a short period of time, the world went from an agriculture-based economy to a machine-based economy, successfully altering the production of food from small-scale and natural to large-scale and highly processed. As technology advanced, more and more highly-processed, sugary foods became readily available to the public, such as soda and candy. The consumption of such alters the natural pH of saliva in the mouth, making it more acidic, dissolving minerals in tooth enamel and causing cavities (Evolutionary Theory of Dentistry 975). The softened nature of such highly-processed foods also causes a misalignment of the teeth, which is found presently in nine out of every 10 adolescents in the United States. With the growing amount of sugars in normal diets, we are also creating favorable situations for bacteria to grow and flourish, making more and more humans susceptible to systemic diseases such as diabetes. With the introduction of farming, and thus, sugar, to