In a diverse world, like my Drifting Amalgams universe, it’s reasonable to create cultures and planets that have different levels–and types–of technology. But what does this look like in practice? And what happens when low tech meets high tech?
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What does Technology mean for the Culture?
I’ve talked about the importance of cultural values before, so it’s probably no surprise that they’re part of this talk on technology. In short, cultural values influence technological advancement. Values inform the timbre and direction a people’s technology takes. Amish, for instance, have the same access to technology that you do, but they choose when to partake. Because: Philosophical differences.
So, the first deciding point when I think about ascribing a technology to one of my peoples is “What’s important to them?” Are they an advancement-for-advancement-sake kind of people? Maybe they’re more interested in technology needed for survival: Things like fire to keep away predators or wheels to transport resources to get through a tough winter.
To some extent, this is also a question of luxury: Does the culture have the luxury to advance their technology, or are they too busy just getting through the day?
Relatedly, how old is the culture. If a culture is relatively long-lived and is strongly interested in advancing technologically, it’s more likely to have made significant advancements. By contrast, a young civilization that is less interested in technology may be equipped with the basics but nothing more revolutionary.
What Resources are Available on the Planet?
The importance of resources to produce technology is something we sometimes take for granted. Think: silicon. What if our planet didn’t have an abundance of sand?
Metals and other building materials, too, are plentiful on Earth …but not necessarily so on other planets. Fuels are another factor. Fossils are needed to make fossil fuels. A bright, yellow sun is helpful for solar energy. Plentiful water is great for many other reasons.
And, yes, people from other planets are likely to innovate with the resources they have. But the challenge here is to think about what that looks like from a narrative perspective. If a planet that I’ve created has a red dwarf star, no mass extinction event, and little wind, what’s powering their cities or vehicles? If metals are at a premium, what are structures and spaceships made out of? How have other planets’ inhabitants made use of the resources that are plentiful on their native ground?
How is Technology Affected by Different Environments and Gravities?
Varied environments is another idea I’ve talked about before–especially in my chat about considerations for spaceships.
Gravity and climate are difficult enough to account for when advancing technology. Working in an environment one’s accustomed to is, at least, a known factor. But what about when a technology designed for one planet moves to another planet? Will windy planets full of sand cause instruments to malfunction. Can sensors see through thicker or thinner atmospheres? Are instruments only calibrated for certain gravities?
Again, this is something that can be worked around. In fact, thinking about the rich environments that may be encountered in a narrative makes for an interesting thought experiment. Not only do I think through known factors, but I think about unknowns. For example, what if a space vessel veers off course? A landing or orbiting of an unexpected astral body can be interesting as well.
How do People View Different Technologies?
And finally: The people factor.
I start by saying that technology includes more than what we commonly think about. Some of the most basic technological advances are wheels or common medicinal herbs.
So, let’s say a community or culture that has stone-age technology encounters a space-faring peoples. What if the space-faring peoples use metal and have artificial intelligence?
What does someone who only uses stone think about metal? How does that person’s brain make sense of what they’re seeing? And what do they liken this experience to?
There’s something exhilarating about putting myself in the shoes of someone who is encountering something for the first time. And there’s something exciting about creating a universe with many different ways of doing things.
Until next time, keep creating.
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