--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The big change, the really radical change…" description: "\"The big change, the really radical change in communication, was in the late 19th century. The shift from sailing ships to telegraph is astronomical. Ev..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e0e/noam-chomsky-42_19th-century_the-big-change-the-really-radical-change_1812269.jpg" --- # The big change, the really radical change in… ![“The big change, the really radical change in communication, was in the late 19th century. The shift from sailing ships to telegraph is astronomical. Everything since then has been small increments, including the internet. So you don't have to wait for a letter to get to England in six weeks, you…” quote by Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e0e/noam-chomsky-42_19th-century_the-big-change-the-really-radical-change_1812269.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e0e/noam-chomsky-42_19th-century_the-big-change-the-really-radical-change_1812269.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e0e/noam-chomsky-42_19th-century_the-big-change-the-really-radical-change_1812269.jpg) > “The big change, the really radical change in communication, was in the late 19th century. The shift from sailing ships to telegraph is astronomical. Everything since then has been small increments, including the internet. So you don't have to wait for a letter to get to England in six weeks, you have almost instant communication. That was an enormous shift.” [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The 19th‑century shift from sailing ships to telegraph revolutionized communication, making later advances incremental compared to that breakthrough. **In simple terms:** Telegraph changed communication dramatically; later changes are smaller. Key Takeaway Recognize the impact of foundational tech shifts. Themes technology history communication Mood analytical historical Type observational educational When to use this quote - education - business - media - policy making Key Concepts innovation diffusion technological paradigm shift Questions to Reflect On - What modern tech could be a comparable breakthrough? - How do incremental changes shape society? A Different Perspective Later innovations may be overstated. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [19th century](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/19th-century/) [Big Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/big-change-588864/) [Big changes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/big-changes/) [Bigs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigs/) [Century](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/century/) [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Change Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change-communication-1817858/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Communication Enormous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication-enormous-2124475/) [Communication Late](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication-late-2124476/) [England](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/england/) [Enormous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enormous/) [Has beens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/has-beens/) [Including](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/including/) [Instant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instant/) [Instant communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instant-communication/) [Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet/) [Late](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/late/) [Letters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/letters/) [Radical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/radical/) [Radical change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/radical-change/) [Sailing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sailing/) [Sailing ships](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sailing-ships/) [Ships](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ships/) [Six](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/six/) [Telegraph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/telegraph/) [Waiting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waiting/) [Week](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/week/) ## Related quotes > [The big change, the really radical change in communication, was in the late 19th century. The shift from sailing ships to telegraph is astronomical.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-big-change-the-really-radical-change-in-communication-was-in-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“The colossal misunderstanding of our time is the assumption that insight will work with people who are unmotivated to change. Communication does not depend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-h-friedman/the-colossal-misunderstanding-of-our-time-is-the-assumption-that/) [Edwin H. Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-h-friedman/) > [The change between horse and buggy to automobile is a big change and there hasn't been a major change since.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-change-between-horse-and-buggy-to-automobile-is-a-big-change-and/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Just take ease of interchange between people. Your email is of course faster than letter - on the other hand the transition from sailing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/just-take-ease-of-interchange-between-people-your-email-is-of-course/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The major advances in speed of communication and ability to interact took place more than a century ago. The shift from sailing ships to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-major-advances-in-speed-of-communication-and-ability-to-interact/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [For too long, reporters for the big media outlets have been fixated on novelty, always moving too quickly onto the next big score or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arianna-huffington/for-too-long-reporters-for-the-big-media-outlets-have-been-fixated-on/) [Arianna Huffington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arianna-huffington/) > [I see battlefields that are under 24-hour real or near-real time surveillance of all types. I see battlefields on which we can destroy anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-westmoreland/i-see-battlefields-that-are-under-24-hour-real-or-near-real-time/) [William Westmoreland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-westmoreland/) > [The Internet has brought communities across the globe closer together through instant communication.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-fitzpatrick/the-internet-has-brought-communities-across-the-globe-closer-together/) [Mike Fitzpatrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-fitzpatrick/) > [Our electrically-configured world has forced us to move from the habit of data classification to the mode of pattern recognition. We can no longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/our-electrically-configured-world-has-forced-us-to-move-from-the/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [“The dangerous paradox of living in this age of instant communication is that the act of communication has become something of a virtue. Apparently,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-sheldon/the-dangerous-paradox-of-living-in-this-age-of-instant-communication/) [Mark Sheldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-sheldon/) > [In this age of instant communication, the phone battery life seems to take centre stage. 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Social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ban-ki-moon/you-are-already-leaders-your-ideas-your-actions-and-your-decisions/) [Ban Ki-moon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ban-ki-moon/) > [Sir, when two people have the extraordinary quality of this state, words are not necessary. Where that quality of love exists, words become unnecessary.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/sir-when-two-people-have-the-extraordinary-quality-of-this-state/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [Technology has just been the major progression of the last 15 years - instant communication. That stuff has gone so global. 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