From Tortoiseshell to Pixel: The Millennial Evolution and Future Prospects of the Text Carrier
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In this era of information explosion, you may have become accustomed to using mobile phones, computers to obtain information anytime and anywhere, and even transfer text from one screen to another without thinking, just imagine what the world would be like without these carriers? In the era when there was no paper, how did people record and disseminate their ideas and culture? Today, we are going to embark on this journey of writing that spans thousands of years, from the ancient tortoiseshell animal bones, through the era of bamboo slips, to witness the revolution of paper, to the advent of the digital age, and finally to look forward to how the future of the text carrier will evolve, follow me, together "through" history
A mysterious symbol of tortoiseshell bones
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In ancient times, almost all cultures carried a veil of mystery, imagine people lighting fires in the dark, placing pieces of tortoise shells or animal bones on the fire to roast, and with a faint light, they used tools to mark intricate symbols on these surfaces, which conveyed important information, such as the results of divination or rituals
Speaking of this, a little reminiscent of Taiwan's "god culture", just like the people at that time, hoping to communicate with the gods through these nicks, tortoiseshell beast bones carry not only words, but also a kind of awe of mystery and hope for the future, tortoiseshells and beast bones are large in size, difficult to write, but also limit their influence in information transmission
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From heavy to light: the rise of bamboo slips
Out of the shadow of the tortoiseshell animal bones, the bamboo slips came into being, this new "little partner" to our ancient literati brought a more lightweight writing experience, the production process of bamboo slips is not a joke, material selection, cutting, heating, every process must be taken seriously, for fear of a little mistake
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The content recorded with bamboo slips has gradually increased, from daily trivial matters to philosophical thoughts, bamboo slips have become an important carrier for literati to express wisdom, history has reached this stage, such classics as "Analects" and "Shangshu" have been passed down through bamboo slips, I don't know if you have found it, the ancients can really "do things", in that era of information blockage, bamboo slips have allowed a lot of knowledge to be preserved, and also paved the way for later cultural prosperity
Bamboo slips also have a "short board", the slenderness of the bamboo makes it not wear-resistant, a heavy rain, moth-eaten, may also make a huge work in vain, the limitations of the writing space are even more worrying, imagine that you want to use the bamboo slips to copy a "Xinhua Dictionary", how much bamboo is incredible!
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A magnificent turn in writing technology: the birth of paper
At a time when bamboo slips gradually became "insufficient", Cai Lun began his experiments, from tree bark to hemp to cloth and fishing nets, the ancient "material scientist" kept trying, hoping to find more convenient materials for writing, and after some efforts, Cai Lun's papermaking technology finally came out, a groundbreaking innovation that made people feel like they had seen the light of day
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The birth of Cai Hou paper, really brought subversive changes to the ancient society, paper, lightweight, low price, writing is relatively handy, people began to use paper to record life, spread culture, in the past those bulky bamboo slips were almost abandoned, at this stage, the popularization of books and the preservation of traditional culture are closely linked, paper has become an important booster of cultural development
Cai Hou paper is not impeccable, you see, the paper is easy to get wet, easy to tear, these problems are also a reminder that the development of science and technology requires continuous innovation and improvement, like scientists, Cai Lun's invention paved an important cultural road for later generations, and this road became wider in the future printing and book publishing
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The wave of digitalization: from paper to pixels
After entering the digital age, everything seems to have been overturned, the electronic screen has become the mainstream way for us to obtain information, the dissemination of knowledge, the preservation of culture has become unprecedentedly convenient, just a light, a few seconds of information can fly into the eye, the digital age has given us unlimited possibilities, but at the same time it also raises some new questions such as whether the flood of information will lead to the shallowness of knowledge?
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At this time, let's not forget that the digital age has made writing more personalized and convenient, various social media, blogs and online courses have sprung up, and words are no longer just symbols on paper, but exist in our lives in new and diverse ways, this transformation has given new life to 150 ancient Chinese characters, and the continuation of civilization has been revitalized in the digital age
The Carrier of Words: Infinite Possibilities
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What will the text carrier of the future look like? As technology continues to advance, new technologies such as virtual reality and augmented reality will also be combined with text, enriching our ways of expression even more, imagine how cool it feels to see words and images floating in the air with your glasses
We need to be vigilant against new problems such as information overload and digital divide, and how to balance the convenience brought by technology with the real experience of life will be the next topic that must be considered
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Thousands of years of time, the text carrier carries not only words, but also the crystallization of human wisdom from generation to generation, from tortoiseshell to bamboo slips, and then to the paper and digital age, all stages of writing have witnessed the development of human civilization, in the future, we look forward to the text can continue to serve the society in a richer and more personalized way, to borrow an old saying, "words are gold", no matter what carrier, can convey wisdom and emotion of the text, will never be outdated