Where did I damn all tech?
I just pointed out that tech doesn't exist in a vacuum.
It doesn't matter how noble the first rocketeers were, their toys ended up as weapons.
The existence of OSHA proves my point; we only got OSHA because things were so bad that workers started forming Unions, and the Unions had the power to force the government to start protecting the workers.
If you actually watched the video you'd see what I am saying.
[off topic]
"Discover What You Are Best At," by Linda Gail.
I never liked any of the jobs I'd ever had. Got injured on the job and had some time off to actually explore my options. Someone suggested this book and it changed my life. Six self administered tests to see what you do well already, and a list of jobs that use those skills.
I had a list of a dozen jobs that they said I might be a good fit for. Took a class to get certified and found I liked it right away.
How many people died designing the Internet? How many died to figure out how to land a rocket booster on a barge? How many people died figuring out mRNA vaccines?
A lot of people died designing the internet, because the original digital computers were created as a result of code breaking in WW2 and work done by the defense industry to make better missiles.
Same with space flight. You couldn't have landed that rocket without the V1 and V2 rockets the Nazis dropped on London.
You seem to have some idea that scientific progress can occur in an ivory tower, untouched by base ideas like money or war.
Like it or not, technology grows out of the larger society. If there's capitalism, capitalism will guide what gets built. Anything else is putting the cart before the horse.
Might want to catch a few episodes of this series that deals with the history of technology and how ideas become actual inventions.
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New York City is moving away from people paying for subway/bus rides with a pre-paid card or cash and going to a system where you pay with your credit card or smart wallet. Nice way to quietly monitor everyone's location and habits.
Sounds to me like we basically agree on the main point and are arguing terms.
People are going to discover/invent new tech; that's a given. The question is how fast it gets out of the lab and into people's hands.
Of course there's such a thing as too quickly. Plenty of railroad workers died because people didn't realize that there's a huge difference between falling off a horse running ten miles an hour and a train going thirty. How many people got sick because someone thought putting lead in gas was a swell idea? What about Thalidomide? Heck, people thought heroin would cure opium addiction.
Just because people are reckless doesn't mean that it's a good thing.
I'm sure we'll keep racing ahead, but don't confuse activity with progress.
Accurate timekeeping means you can navigate the deep ocean without hugging the coast.
You don't have to change a million peasants, just one aristocrat. Remember, they would import a boat load of wild animals from Africa for one show at the Circus. That kind of money could buy a lot of top workmen.
You don't need an entire railroad, just a few hundred Napoleonic rifles.
One watchmaker can train fifty more in a lifetime.
Take your example of the telescope. Imagine what one telescope would mean to an army of the time. You could send out scouts with signal flags that could be spotted a day's ride away.
You could bring plans for a high quality forge
I was affected. Haven't bothered to report since I wasn't seriously bothered. Might be different if I'd lost business or couldn't contact family
Without doing any research, the answer is "watchmaking tools." Equipment to make small things like watches, and revolvers and what ever you'd need to start a factory. A few things like microscope, binoculars.
They had good craftspeople on hand, just need a little push to start an Industrial Revolution.
Go to a brick and mortar store like Staples and try them out yourself.
The chair that suits one person will be agony another.
You have to find out for yourself.