science

The Shock of the Old

The Shock of the Old is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand The Shock of the Old rather than just read about it. In short: The Shock of the Old is a book written by the British historian David Edgerton and published in 2006. In The Shock of the Old, Edgerton points out that invention is not the same as implementation, and when technology is discussed as a historical subject undue emphasis is placed on initial invention, which Edgerton defines as the moment someone first has the idea for a particular device or concept, and innovation, wh…

Key takeaways

The Shock of the Old belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect The Shock of the Old to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of The Shock of the Old from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Shock of the Old is a book written by the British historian David Edgerton and published in 2006. In The Shock of the Old, Edgerton points out that invention is not the same as implementation, and when technology is discussed as a historical subject undue emphasis is placed on initial invention, which Edgerton defines as the moment someone first has the idea for a particular device or concept, and innovation, which Edgerton defines as the first use of a particular technology. Edgerton advocates viewing technological history in terms of objects, which have a tangible and personal effect on the lives of individuals, rather than vague concepts of what any particular technology actually is. The book's title alludes to the 1980 television series The Shock of the New.

External links The Shock of the Old reviewed at The Guardian Unlimited website.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with The Shock of the Old

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what The Shock of the Old claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to The Shock of the Old before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about The Shock of the Old ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of The Shock of the Old

In research: The Shock of the Old appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses The Shock of the Old in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: The Shock of the Old is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 2006 non-fiction books, History books about scientific discoveries, History of inventions, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for The Shock of the Old outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study The Shock of the Old in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what The Shock of the Old means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain The Shock of the Old out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is The Shock of the Old in simple terms?

Why does The Shock of the Old matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study The Shock of the Old?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on The Shock of the Old.