So goes the technology of the world

It's not always straightforward to distinguish between how a particular piece of technical innovation functions and the way it impacts the environment in which it exists. Certainly, Guttenberg's invention of movable type has had a significant impact on the subsequent creation and distribution of ideas and innovations but we don't often much discuss how it impacted the structure of society, the relationships between men and women, children and parents, employers and employees - even our sense of mortality.