Utopia

Utopia

From my existing knowledge Utopia is the dream of a perfect world but the definition of Utopia is an ideal community or society possessing a desirable perfection. In terms of design people, artist and designers are always trying to create the perfect image or form of art.

The information I found on utopia was the definition and the search for perfection, movies with Utopian ideas, music like Within Temptation, resorts throughout South Africa and an online game.

The context helped with distinguishing between information that is relevant and irrelevant because I was searching for the definition of utopia and chose what was relevant to this assignment. I chose what seemed to be relevant to utopia and other websites perception of utopia. The other websites information is about a movie, music and other topics.

The game website because you can build your own society, battle and connect with other player's societies. Utopia and utopianism were the only words required for this topic.

Images

Images are based on landscapes on what Utopian cities and the artists perspective of Utopian ideals

Digital painting of landscape and phenomenas that don't usually go together

Facebook game encouraging you to make your own Utopia

Utopian cave with everything someone would need

Utopian city on the moon overseeing th Earth, very Surreal and Mystical

Marvel Comics Utopia, where the X-Men live and are trying to build a new home for the mutants

Movie Poster, the title of the movie is clearly an oxymoron because there's nothing Utopian about this camp

Futuristic Utopian city. Full of grand exaggerated skyscrapers and designs

Album cover, the search for perfection in music.

Search for Utopia through scents

Digital painting of a Utopian space city

Top 10 Search Results for Utopia

Utopia - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UtopiaShare

Utopia is an ideal community or society possessing a desirable perfection. The word was coined in Greek by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book Utopia, ...

Utopia Chapel - Heroldsbaai

www.utopiavillage.co.za/

Utopia village presents Utopia Chapel Heroldsbay, George, Garden Route, South Africa.

Utopia Nature Resort | Cottages / Chalets Buffelspoort

www.sleeping-out.co.za/md/Utopia-Nature-Resort/1068

Accommodation We offer accommodation in A-framed chalets. Each has been tastefully decorated to make our guests feel at home. Located in ...

Utopia - Home

utopia-game.com/Share

In Utopia a good team is stronger than the sum of its parts. ... Utopia is free to play , no downloads are required and you don't need to be online all the time to ...Utopia (book) - Utopian and dystopian fiction - Utopian socialism - Category:Utopias

Utopia (1951) - IMDb

www.imdb.com/title/tt0042210/

 Rating: 5.3/10 - 953 votes

Heading for a newly inherited island, the boys are shipwrecked and marooned on an atoll which has just emerged from the sea... See full summary »

Directed by Léo Joannon. Starring Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, Suzy Delair.

Welcome to Utopia in Africa

www.utopiainafrica.co.za/

UTOPIA IN AFRICA provides a serene setting for guests to enjoy the beauty of the Mpumalanga region, within minutes of the centre of Nelspruit. A boutique bed ...

Utopia Nature Resort, Maanhaarrand, South Africa

www.roomsforafrica.com › ... › North West accommodation

Within Temptation - Utopia (feat. Chris Jones) - YouTube

www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEIvlihb2Ms

Latest video off of Within Temptation 's "An Acoustic Night at the Theatre"-album. This album will be released on October 30, 2009. Directed by Oscar Verpoor...

Utopia | Define Utopia at Dictionary.com

dictionary.reference.com/browse/utopia

an imaginary island described in Sir Thomas More's Utopia (1516) as enjoying perfection in law, politics, etc. 2. (usually lowercase) an ideal place or state. 3.

Utopia Group of Cinemas

www.utopolis.lu/ - Translate this page

Les horaires des cinémas Utopolis, Ciné Utopia et du CDAC en un clin d'œil. Cinénews, événements, séances spéciales, vente en-ligne, jeux-concours...Accommodation and reservations at Utopia Nature Resort, in Maanhaarrand,

Surrealism

Surrealism

Surrealism was founded in Paris, 1924, by a group of artists and writers who were influenced by Sigmund Freud, and written by André Breton. Surrealism is a sandbox of the human subconscious mind. The word ‘Surrealism’ was coined by writer Guillaume Apollinaire in 1917. Surrealism, according to Apollinaire, is ‘truth beyond realism’. In 1924, Andre Breton adopted the word in his work ‘The Manifesto of Surrealism’.

After the World War I, artists and intellectuals were looking for an escape against the harshness of reality. They wanted to reform the world their own way, and Freud has provided them a strong influence; by tapping into the unconscious aspect of our brain

Artists were very interested with the subconscious; with dreams, hallucinations and trances, as described in Sigmund Freud’s works. The group, along with Andre Breton, made artworks, poetry and sketches under hypnosis and automatic writing. Often they produce surreal, dream-like and unconscious works. In the words of Salvador Dali, Surrealism is said to be the symbolic language of the subconscious; truly a universal language, it doesn’t depend on education, culture or intelligence.

The Surrealism art movement had a great impact in art, literature, culture and even extending to politics. Surrealism is a creative act of effort towards liberating the imagination. It is as energetic as it is subtle; Surrealism is still alive and growing until today. Many artists around the world are influenced by Surrealism styles, ideas and techniques.

Surrealism taught the world to see art not merely visually and literally; but to appreciate it in a subconscious level as well. Today, surrealism is a familiar form of art that continues to grow globally. It’s easy for artists to show their creativity through Surrealism, because the style provides them more freedom to convey their feelings and thoughts through the canvas. Surreal art can be dreamy or gritty; or it can be optimistic or depressing.

Surrealism has taught the world not only to see things literally and visually but it also helps one to appreciate it in a subconscious level. The style, surrealism, provides an artist with the freedom to express them in feeling thought through the canvas or substrate.

Avengers movie is the collaboration of Marvel superheroes

God of War , a PS3 exclusive game, is the story of Kratos trying to find redemption for his past and battling the Olympian Gods for his future and revenge.

Contemporary interpretation of Mario, the Nintendo mascot, the Super Mario Bros. games

Utopias and Manifestos

Group work: Digapeng Mothibe, Vanlida Dias, Eunice Ushe, Paulo Mbunga

Manifesto Definition

According to Merriam-Webster online dictionary a manifesto is a written public declaration of the intentions, motives, or views of the issuer, be it an individual, group, political party or government. It often is political in nature, but may present an individual's life stance. Manifestos relating to religious belief are generally referred to as creeds.

The Futurist Manifesto, written by the Italian poet Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, was published in the Italian newspaper Gazzetta dell'Emilia in Bologna on 5 February 1909. It started an artistic philosophy, Futurism, which was a rejection of the past, and a celebration of speed, machinery, violence, youth and industry; it was also an encouraging of the modernisation and cultural innovation of Italy. The Italians were among the first to identify and place their own claims upon these new ways of perceiving and acting. Marinetti took a group of Italian painters to Paris to show them how they should be painting and particularly expose them to Cubism.

Marinetti highlights a very interesting point about human nature which is the need for struggle. In literature, all stories require struggle, some kind of conflict for it to be interesting, whether the struggle is internal or external. Revolutions bring about change but are often violent. In that respect he is right; however this view is on the extremist side. He doesn’t simply state violence as a necessary evil. In this manifesto, it seems as if he views it as purely the greater good. Marinetti’s utopia basically wants the public to embrace new ideas, technologies, art and progressive ways of thinking.http://www.wendtroot.com/spoetry/folder6/ng63.html 

De Stijl, Dutch for "The Style", also known as neoplasticism, was a Dutch artistic movement founded in 1917. In a narrower sense, the term De Stijl is used to refer to a body of work from 1917 to 1931 founded in the Netherlands. Proponents of De Stijl sought to express a new utopian ideal of spiritual harmony and order. The architecture of the De Stijl artists was made up of geometric shapes including sphere shaped windows and triangular chairs. Both their art and architecture was considered very radical and even to nowadays standard would seem radical. However the architecture that they produced was incredibly successful. Colour wise, the De Stijl artists used primary and bold colours which creates a very striking look and style.

During the Immature period the artists displayed mainly paintings and sculpture. They formed together to create the De Stijl magazine

De Stijl supported pure abstraction and universality by a reduction to the essentials of form and colour; they simplified visual compositions to the vertical and horizontal directions, and used only primary colors along with black and white.http://www.allbuyart.com/art-movement-Destijl.asp (de stilj)

Two Surrealist Manifestos were issued by the Surrealist movement, in 1924 and 1929. The first was written by André Breton, the second was supervised by him. The promoters of the surrealist movement, in their desire to appeal to the unconscious and to set surrealism along the path of greatest freedom, have already begun to organize a Bureau to unite all those who are interested in expression where thought is freed from any intellectual worries; all those who are closely or remotely concerned with surrealism will find all the information and documentation relative to the surrealist movement.http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/174115.html(surrealist)

The utopian version of surrealism proposes a gathering of the greatest possible number of experimental elements, for a purpose that cannot yet be perceived. All those who have the means to contribute, in any fashion, to the creation of genuine surrealist documents, are urgently requested to come forward: let them shed light on the genesis of an invention, or propose a new system of psychic investigation.

The contemporary game we chose for this assignment is Assassin’s Creed series. Assassin’s Creed is game about assassins versus the Templars fighting for ancient artifacts and control of the people. Assassins trying to free them and the Templars trying to control them, the story follows Desmond and a machine called the Animus. Through this machine accessing his DNA, Desmond can live the memories and activities of his ancestors. Through this machine and struggle between the two sides they fight to find the ancient artifacts and the truths of ancient times.

The two sides different opinions and perspectives of utopia. Assassins are trying to free the people and prevent a cataclysmic event before the end of 2012, while the Templars are trying to control them and keep them in their illusion. The attitude this game shows is that if you have tyrants trying to control everything you can overcome them with unity. It deals with issues such as brotherhood, responsibility, leadership, conspiracy and commitment to a higher cause. As the assassins say “Nothing is true, everything is permitted” which they are willing to do whatever it takes to free themselves physically, socially, politically and mentally, for the greater good.

Technology has affected and helped us in many ways, it affects most people nowadays. Technology has made people interact with each a lot easier and quicker, everything is almost instant now from emails, texts, websites, podcasts, cellphone and television. Everyone is basically interconnected with each other. It affects most things in life; urbanisation keeps moving people to more social and most popular places like malls and wi-fi zones. People do not believe in religion as much as in old times as it isn’t as relatable to today’s problems. Since people can are very visual and the internet provides literally millions of pictures and videos which has made want to share those moments and imitate the people and things we like, especially celebrities.

H. G. Wells’ proposal for social reform was the formation of a world state. One of his earliest and most ambitious attempts at portraying a world state was A Modern Utopia, in 1905. In this book two travelers fall into a space-warp and suddenly find themselves upon a Utopian Earth controlled by a single World Government. Wells' idea of a perfect world would be if everyone were able to live a happy life. This book is written with an intimate knowledge of former ideal commonwealths and is a conscious attempt to describe a utopia that is not utopian.

For thousands of years philosophers and thinkers have dreamed of utopian societies in which people can live in perfect harmony and peace with one another.  As mankind has progressed through the millennia, from ancient times through medieval times, the renaissance, and the industrial revolution and up to the present day, civilization has been evolving.  As people live their lives for their brief moment in history, the general desire is leave things better then they started.  Better off implies some direction from bad to good, correcting the flaws that exist, until none remain.  The end result would be perfect society, a utopia. This is contemporary utopia.  http://rabareview.com/2011/04/18/utopian-societies-identifying-the-problems-of-today

Manifesto

·         Time waits for no one so we must use it wisely

·         Never forget the past as it will lead us to a future

·         Don't waste your time on jealousy

·         Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth; it’ll be gone before you know it.

·         Your body is the greatest instrument you’ll ever own

·         Understand that friends come and go, but hold on to a precious few.

·         Don’t rely too much on technology as it is fragile

·         Have patience with the people you care about

·         Being stuck in the past will prevent you from building a future

fjFuturist Manifesto by Filippo Tommaso Marinetti;

http://einar_garibaldi.lhi.is/manifesto_futurista.pdf

hDe Stilj Manifesto;

http://www.gwu.edu/~art/Temporary_SL/177/pdfs/DeStijl.pdf

sSurrealist Manifesto by Andre Breton;

http://www.bobbybelote.com/!!teaching/ARTS343/readings/Breton-SurrealistManifesto(excerpt).pdf

World War II and Atom Bomb

World War II – Atomic Bomb

The First Blast:

Suddenly, at 5:29 a.m., the morning calm was broken by an enormous flash that lit up the surrounding mountains and could be seen as far as 150 miles. At the same time, an enormous explosion rumbled across the desert as a huge orange fireball, expanding into a pulsating red as it cooled, began shooting upward at around 360 feet per second. This was quickly followed by a swirling mushroom-shaped cloud that reached an estimated 50,000 to 70,000 feet above ground zero. Called the Trinity Test, this 18-20-kiloton blast was the culmination of years of research and development that ushered in the so-called Atomic Age.

Early Development and Experiments:

The development of the Atomic Bomb was actually the result of a convergence of political and scientific events beginning in the 1930s. The advances in understanding the nature of the atom and its role as a source for immense amounts of energy coincided with the rise of fascist governments in Europe. These parallel activities aroused much fear that Nazi Germany could become technologically capable of developing a weapon that used the recently discovered nuclear fission techniques.

The earlier experiments of the 1930s were instrumental in discovering methods for spitting the uranium atom. These discoveries pointed out that splitting the nucleus of a single uranium atom was possible by bombarding the atom with neutrons. By splitting the atom’s nucleus large amounts of energy, equivalent to 200,000,000 electron volts, could be released as well as additional neutrons, a process called nuclear fission. This release of nuclear energy was the conversion of about .1 percent of the mass of the uranium atom into energy, as previously postulated by Albert Einstein.

Fears of Germany Splitting The Atom First:

There was also the possibility that these additional freed neutrons, under specific conditions, could trigger a nuclear chain reaction which had the potential of releasing even greater amounts of energy. It was this scenario that prompted wide spread fears within the scientific community that grave consequences could result if Nazi Germany became the first to use this new nuclear technology.

My grandfather's experience of A-bomb by Kanae Ichinose1st June,1998. http://www.coara.or.jp/~ryoji/abomb/e-index.html

My grandfather went to his office on the day.

He was in the second floor standing before a window on his back. He suddenly felt a strong flash of light.  He looked back and saw the building crushing down next by next just like a domino. Next moment, he found nothing around him in sight.

Luckily, as he was in between the two window frame, he was not rushed by the wall and barely survived. He had his back scared by glass fragments. But he was still lucky. His colleague and a female clerk looked like crushed between the wall, their hair, blood, and flesh were stuck to the wall.

He feared about the rumor that if he stayed in the incinerated city, he would be killed by American army. He took hand of an unfamiliar person nearby and evacuated to a hill side to hide for a week or so. On the way of evacuation, they saw a river dammed up corpse and still squirming in bloodshed for life. It was a hell on earth itself.

After several days he returned home only to find flattened ruins. He looked for something of remnant but found nothing except once called a radio. He picked it up in silence. Then he got on a train and went back to Tsukumi only with the radio.

My grandmother received then time 10 yen as her husband's insurance. The radio had been used by my father in his boyhood calling it "A-bomb radio." More than fifty years have passed since the war was over. My grandfather goes to A-bomb center in Beppu city every once a year for medical inspection. My father and uncles also go there every four years for the same purpose. My grandfather can by no means erase this experience from his memory. We also should not deteriorate the memory forever.

Protesters against nuclear war, wastes and weapons

Nuclear effects on the climate has protesters angry and moving

A real life nuclear bomb

The effects of a nuclear fallout

This is encouraging natural energy instead of nuclear energy

Anime

Illustration

In 1853, when commodore Matthew C. Perry convinced the Japanese to open trade with the West their country had already been isolated for two centuries. All things Japanese is called Japonisme, this was a late-nineteenth century Western mania. When the Japanese had open ports to trade with the West, Japanese artifacts began stream into Europe, and several books about Japanese art and ornament were being published throughout the 1800s. With all the beautiful artifacts of Japanese tradition, artists from the West were presented with a new way of visual literacy. They were enriched with a new way to their use of colour and a new way of design.

Anime is the Japanese word used for animation. It is basically an abbreviation for animation and how they animate their cartoons and mangas. Within anime there is a wide range of anime for different age groups. There are different names associated with the different types of animation for boys or girls. Shounen is the name used to refer to anime which is marketed at boys which of course include action, harem anime and mechas, such as Dragonball Z.

One of the original and most popular animes of all time! Many other fighting have stolen the Goku main character archetype. Main character is stupid, eats a lot but is a fighting genius.

Manga is a Japanese word which in English means “comics/cartoons”, which are sometimes called komikku. In the West manga is referred to as comics which are created in Japan or by Japanese artists, but these comics have a pre-history in earlier Japanese artwork. In Japan, people of all different age groups read manga. The medium includes works in a wide range of genres which include: action-adventure, romance, games, historical drama, comedy, science fiction and fantasy, mystery, horror and business.

This is the most popular manga in Japan at the moment and manga's are also becoming more popular in the Western world.

The way in which everyone can be able to read manga shows the versatility and variety of manga, there are age restrictions just like American comics. The fact that older people also read this type of manga helps them to reflect upon happenings in the world and learn new things and become known to more creative ways of relaxation in whichever way people want to unwind. Manga is read by everyone regardless of age and gender and convenient because they use public transport often.

Otaku refers to people with obsessive interests. From the research which I have read about otaku, it refers to a person who has an obsession or a expensive hobby. These people, otaku, spend many hours and a lot of effort on everything which their hobby or obsession entails. The time, money and effort which are spend on these obsessions give these people a sense of belonging and they would be more able to talk about their hobby due to the fact that they are so well informed about everything that the hobby includes.

Otaku's are the epitome of what collectors are! They love anything related to the animes and mangas they watch and read

Through being this inform about a hobby helps you to connect with other people who have the same obsession which occupies most of their time effort and space. The way in which these people occupy themselves with is watching DVDs about anime, manga and they become so entwined with this hat they become to feel complete with their obsession and end up isolating themselves from any existence or form of life. After all communication with others is just as important as intercommunication.

Kawaii is also a Japanese term which means “pretty, charming, darling, lovely, cute, dear, pet”. This is commonly used by manga or anime fans. Another Japanese word that should not be confused with is “Kowai” which is entirely the total opposite of cute, pretty and all things nice. It means scary. So be careful not to confuse the one for the other. This type is usually targeted at the pre-teen audiences.

Mostly for the female populace and impossibly cute!

Photography

Photography

In this exercise we were to collect and comment on different examples of photography.

Fashion photography

It is a genre of photography that displays clothing and other fashion items and are most often used in advertisements and fashion magazines as well in exhibitions. Unlike commercial photography, which focuses more on clothes and accessories, fashion photography is actually all about the mood and the style of the image. The clothes are just used to convey a certain life style within the image, as shown in the examples the models are shown with thick eyeliners, dramatic eye shadows, interesting hairstyles etc. Lighting plays a very important role in these photographs and it’s a complex process to give that dramatic feel to the image. These images are mostly found in Vogue, Elle and Vanity Fair magazines.

Art photography

These photographers are taken in a more creative vision of the photographer as an artist. It stands into contrast with photo journalism. it is quite difficult to define because beauty is in the eye of the beholder when it comes to the artistic value.

Art photography tends to have a subject matter that focuses on natural elements, human forms, landscape and architecture. For many years finding images was the norm nowadays photographs have been staged and because of digital cameras the artists now have the unlimited ability to manipulate images in whichever way they wish as seen in examples.

 

Documentary photography

It is a genre of photography that consists of visual documentation of significant and historical past events. It is mostly covered in professional photojournalism, but it can also be used for academic, artistic and even mature purposes. The photographer's goal is to present the factual events of people, places or events in a truthful and objective manner.

Scientific photography

Scientific photographers usually have background knowledge in biology, chemistry, engineering or medicine; these people are known to have Bachelor of Arts in scientific photography. They work in scientific teams and are employed by universities and research facilities or for artistic purposes. The photos taken in this area of photography are mostly those that cannot be seen with the naked eye or images of hidden aspects of the world around us.  They use aerial, close up, high- speed photographs.

Pictures are worth thousand words and that is true because they can show things that people haven't seen, couldn't comprehend, evidence and moments in time captured forever in a single moment. Photography has various effects on people because it invokes feelings whether it's a child soldier holding an AK-47, a war zone, sports or whatever the purpose of the photo is. Photos also sell products , encourage people, instill fear or bring joy.  We cannot stop time but photography helps us remember, to ensure we never forget, not just for nostalgia but for learning.

Collapse of Space and Time Continuum

The function of and impact of speed in communication and transport on contemporary culture and lifestyle

Group work: Digapeng Mothibe, Vanlida Dias, Eunice Ushe, Paulo Mbunga

Focus on: finding historical examples of images, representations and other references.

The Industrial Revolution

The Industrial Revolution occurred first in England in 1760 and went through the year until 1840. This was a time of radical social and economic change in the land and also in the world. Prior to the invention of the steam engine in the 1780s, animal and human labour was the primary source of energy. During this period, people’s sense of dominion over nature and faith in the ability to exploit the earth’s resources for material needs created a heavy confidence. Man had finally triumphed over nature. Because the rise of energy, people converted from an agricultural lifestyle to an industrial one.

Before the 19^th Century, dissemination of information thought books and broadsheets was the main, and only, purpose for typography. But due to the rapidly changing lifestyles of the urban folks, the communication needs of the urban and industrialized society produced a rapid expansion of jobbing printers, advertisements and posters. These advertisements and posters were a direct result of the machination of the city at that time. Businesses were now situated in one place, unlike before were they were far part in the country side, and need to stand out and get customers. Larger scale visual impact and new tactile and expressive characters were employed. The use of typography changed from being a private assets to more commercial. Competitors began to design text that demanded peoples’ attention. Fonts that shout ‘LOOK AT ME!’ . These fonts were:

 

1. Display Letters. Thomas Cotterell. This type was seen as huge for the eighteenth century    designers.

2. Fat Face: Designed by Robert Thorne in 1821. This type has contrast and its weight has been increased by expanding the thickness of the heavy strokes.

This type was much smaller than the display letters type which allowed then to have more space to put more things in one advertisement of book.

Sans-serif font designed by William Caslon IV. This type

Later became a very major element in graphic design wide.                                                                                         

         

Because of the development of these type faces, adverts were more interesting because of the variety of fonts that advertisers began to use. This was the same for books. Books now had navigational and access aids which looked different from the rest of the content within the book and this help with making books easier to read and use. We still use these navigational aids today.

    

Due to the variety and growth in the type used, more advertisement were put out and this meant more competition. This pushed companies to be more elaborate with their advert designs. They eventually adopted a ‘more is more” approach to design. Innovations I typography led to quicker printing and commercialisation of typography. In 1800, Charles Stanhope created a printing press which allowed for 200 sheets to be printed per hour. But ten years later, F. Koeing patented a steam-powered printing press which printed double the sheets in the same amount of time. By 1814, Koeing was able to print a copy of The Times. By now printing speeds had increased to 1 100 sheets per hour. Because of the printing speed, newspapers could reach subscribers several hours earlier, which meant that information was able to spread at a much quicker rate than what it had a few years earlier.

Because newspapers where becoming one of the quickest ways of spreading information, pictorial images remained a handwork process until the arrival of photography. Photography began with Joseph Niepce, who by 1826 produced the first photographic image. By 1839 an new type of photograph emerged. It was much clearer and more detailed that the Niepce photograph a few years earlier.

It was names the daguerreotype photograph (Above). 

Advancements in photography came when William H. F. Talbot managed to increase the light sensitivity of the paper used for photography. This new photography became known as the calotype photograph.

With the all the improvements in photography, advertisers were now able to include the use of imagery to further entice the viewer into buying their product. Photography also became useful in newspaper. Journalists began to use photography to “solidify’ their story. A way to provide actually proof of a story. These photographs also helped with the sales of newspapers because people were, and still are, attracted first by the images used and only then would they read the article.

Communication aids during the Victorian era can be seen as a direct reflection of the time and the stage of complete change and almost confusion in the city.

Once something is created, the process does not stop there. The invention begins to alter the way people lived and influences the way they will live. Technologies prescribe how people interact with each other. Progress was the buzz word of this time and changes were occurring everywhere. Because of all the advancements in communication, things were able to speed up and change rapidly.

TRANSPORTATION

Before the major technical transformations brought forward by the industrial revolution at the end of the 18th century, no forms of motorized transportation existed. Transport technology was mainly limited to harnessing animal labour for land transport and to wind for maritime transport. The transported quantities were very limited and so was the speed at which people and freight were moving. Horses were used to carry heavy loads and they were also useful because they were able to go for much longer distances with these loads than humans.

The economic importance and the geopolitics of transportation were recognized very early, notably for maritime transportation since before the industrial revolution, it was the most convenient way to move freight and passengers around. Great commercial empires were established with maritime transportation. Initially, ships were propelled by rowers and sails were added around 2,500 BC as a complementary form of propulsion. By Medieval times, an extensive maritime trade network, the highways of the time, centred along the navigable rivers, canals, and coastal waters of Europe (and also China) was established. Shipping was extensive and sophisticated using the English Channel, the North Sea, the Baltic and the Mediterranean where the most important cities were coastal or inland ports (London, Norwich, Königsberg, Hamburg, Bruges, Bordeaux, Lyon, Lisbon, Barcelona, and Venice). Trade of bulk goods, such as grain, salt, wine, wool, timber and stone was taking place. By the 14th century galleys were finally replaced by full-fledged sail ships (the caravel and then the galleon) that were faster and required smaller crews. 1431 marked the beginning of the European expansion with the discovery by the Portuguese of the North Atlantic circular wind pattern, better known as the trade winds. A similar pattern was also found on the Indian and Pacific oceans with the monsoon winds.

The factors that have led to the remarkable economic, technological and social changes. Four of them appear to be prevalent and interdependent:

•    The scientific method. Mostly the outcome of changes that took place in the 17th century, often named the "Age of Reason", it triggered a rational approach to the laws of nature (physics, chemistry, engineering, etc.).

•    Capital markets. Institutions such as banks able to gather capital pools and invest them in economic ventures. The process of capital accumulation and allocation became increasingly rational.

•    Communications and transport infrastructure. The setting and development of mechanized transport systems supporting the distribution of resources and the setting of comparative advantages.

It was during the industrial revolution that massive modifications of transport systems occurred in two major phases, the first centred along the development of canal systems and the second centred along railways. This period marked the development of the steam engine that converted thermal energy into mechanical energy, providing an important territorial expansion for maritime and railway transport systems. Much of the credit of developing the first efficient steam engine in 1765 is attributed to the British Engineer Watt, although the first steam engines were used to pump water out of mines. It was then only a matter of time to see the adaptation of the steam engine to locomotion. In 1769, the French engineer Cugnot built the first self-propelled steam vehicle, along with being responsible for the first automobile accident ever recorded. The first mechanically propelled maritime vehicle was tested in 1790 by the American Inventor Fitch as a mode of fluvial transportation on the Delaware River. By 1807, commercial steam boat services were inaugurated. This marked a new era in the mechanization of land and maritime transport systems alike.