What Did the Romans Think the Future Would Be Like?

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  • เผยแพร่เมื่อ 24 มิ.ย. 2024
  • From theories about the apocalypse to science fiction, the classical world produced some interesting theories about the future.
    Get $30 off your first order with Trade at www.drinktrade.com/toldin
    This video is the first part of a collaboration with John Michael Godier. For the second part, visit: • Futurism and Ancient H...
    Check out my other TH-cam channels, ‪@scenicroutestothepast‬ and ‪@toldinstonefootnotes‬
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    If you liked this video, you might also enjoy my book “Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants: Frequently Asked Questions about the Ancient Greeks and Romans.”
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    If you're so inclined, you can follow me elsewhere on the web:
    / toldinstone
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    Chapters:
    0:00 Seneca and the flood
    1:05 The past of the future
    2:02 Cyclical theories of history
    3:03 Technological progress
    3:58 Trade Coffee
    5:07 Romans and the Golden Age
    6:01 Anxieties about decline
    6:41 Early Christian ideas
    8:00 Conclusions

ความคิดเห็น • 728

  • @something7239
    @something7239 ปีที่แล้ว +1232

    Romans: The future looks bad.
    Modern: The future looks bad, but with technology.

    • @reptilesspurky937
      @reptilesspurky937 ปีที่แล้ว +30

      The future is more optimistic than ever if we can crack the genetic basis for looks and intelligence the only 2 things in this world worth a damn.
      God is a monster so but he never interferes possible soon we can gene edit super beautiful exotic specimen in the lab.
      After all if muscle mass is largely why wouldn't look and intellgence be.
      Im very glad to be alive today because im the gen paving the path forward for genetic revolution

    • @Arjibi
      @Arjibi ปีที่แล้ว +23

      @@reptilesspurky937
      Roaring Twenties and World War era: the future is dope, ngl

    • @CR7GOATofFootball
      @CR7GOATofFootball ปีที่แล้ว +22

      @@reptilesspurky937 The future looks terrible.

    • @laninthomasma8814
      @laninthomasma8814 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      Look around you and see if there's anything to contradict that.

    • @coder9928
      @coder9928 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@reptilesspurky937 lol. Only the billionaires will get this technology. They will make your descendents into dumb subhumans that are easily controlled; while the progeny of the rulers have intelligence and beauty. Optimism my ass

  • @archieames1968
    @archieames1968 ปีที่แล้ว +408

    Modern technology focused futurism is a relatively new concept because up until around the industrial revolution technology didn't really change as drastically and quickly as it does now.

    • @mikicerise6250
      @mikicerise6250 ปีที่แล้ว +61

      Really it was more starting in the Renaissance that steady technological progress became a noticeable thing, it was just markedly accelerated after the industrial revolution. The Spanish certainly did not sail to the New World on classical triremes, and things like gunpowder, Newtonian physics, the telescope and the printing press preceded the industrial revolution.

    • @jacopofolin6400
      @jacopofolin6400 4 หลายเดือนก่อน +13

      ​@@mikicerise6250 True but didnt change the lives of ordinary people like modern medicine, railways and cheap industrial goods

    • @lajohnson8588
      @lajohnson8588 3 หลายเดือนก่อน +9

      true. there isn’t any noticable difference between generations back then. meanwhile in the modern world. there is rapid advancement between the oldest generation and the youngest generation

    • @Lazare7782
      @Lazare7782 3 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

      @@lajohnson8588yeah, there can be a difference for people just 10 years apart, not 1000 years like the medieval period

  • @p0xus
    @p0xus ปีที่แล้ว +1049

    Its interesting to think of the impacts the Bronze Age Collapse had on these beliefs.

    • @joekyle6594
      @joekyle6594 ปีที่แล้ว +221

      Ooh, this is a really compelling point. The fact that Antiquity civilizations more or less rose out of an arguable apocalypse could certainly give people of the time the impression that they lived in the recovering ruins of destroyed and romanticized civilizations.

    • @p0xus
      @p0xus ปีที่แล้ว

      @@joekyle6594 It is, isn't it? I mean, the mythical founding of Rome itself is a story of Trojans fleeing the city of Troy from an effective apocalypse to found the city of Rome. I doubt this myself, but it was part of the foundation myth of the Roman people

    • @guifdcanalli
      @guifdcanalli ปีที่แล้ว +91

      @@joekyle6594 specially the greeks, for all means they were the descendants of the Mycenaeans, for sure the knowledge of the apocalypse they faced marked generations to come until the greeks later on

    • @AsiandOOd
      @AsiandOOd ปีที่แล้ว +12

      the romans wouldve had no idea about the collapse as they migrated from eastern europe. the farthest they know is back to 800 bc with hesiod and homer.

    • @guifdcanalli
      @guifdcanalli ปีที่แล้ว +61

      @@AsiandOOd The Romans absorved everything from the greeks, even tales about the end of the world, so even tho they didnt have the experience of the bronze age collapse they adopted the folk lore from the greeks who did experience the event

  • @Fulcum
    @Fulcum ปีที่แล้ว +726

    I love how you are able to bring us back to what they thought at that time just shows how different technology can make humans think

    • @Ottmar555
      @Ottmar555 ปีที่แล้ว +23

      Aka dialectical materialism 😉

    • @AverageAlien
      @AverageAlien ปีที่แล้ว +5

      we are as wrong now as they were then. We have stopped progressing technologically at some point in the 80s. We will not progress technologically for several thousand years now.

    • @vejovis1248
      @vejovis1248 ปีที่แล้ว +66

      @@AverageAlien Tf you're talking about. During the 80's u had to have 5 different tools to play music, write notes, make a call, calculate numbers, listen to the radio, now you have all 5 things in your pocket, your cellphone. The only way in which you could see another person's face that was in another contintent was either by a picture or a TV, now you can do it with the same device with minimum delay. Stop talking sh

    • @mnk9073
      @mnk9073 ปีที่แล้ว +17

      @@vejovis1248 Pretty sure he means "big" inventions like agriculture, the wheel, smelting, refining, the printing press, the steam engine, flying, antibiotics, nuclear power and spaceflight not the miniaturising and combining of already existing tech.

    • @candyman_315
      @candyman_315 ปีที่แล้ว +59

      @@mnk9073 The age old tradition of downplaying modern advancements for the sake of making a point.
      You can't ever be wrong if you refuse to be wrong!

  • @sophrapsune
    @sophrapsune ปีที่แล้ว +1419

    It is striking that the ancients were wise enough to regard progress and decay in terms of the virtues, and did not suffer from the modern presumption that technical advances necessarily made for a better world.

    • @Grothgerek
      @Grothgerek ปีที่แล้ว +106

      I' not a native english speaker, so I'm not sure if I understand your comment correct, but isn't the 'modern presumption' correct? If you look at history, then atleast till now, progress always improved our lives.

    • @eauegh7660
      @eauegh7660 ปีที่แล้ว +44

      @@Grothgerek until it doesn't, again.

    • @Grothgerek
      @Grothgerek ปีที่แล้ว +86

      @@eauegh7660 again?
      When did progress exclusively hurt us?

    • @eauegh7660
      @eauegh7660 ปีที่แล้ว +74

      @@Grothgerek Look at almost every metric in the world getting worse, it is happening gradually. Roman empire also existed for a long time before it fell, that doesn't mean it didn't progress up to a certain point.

    • @eauegh7660
      @eauegh7660 ปีที่แล้ว +18

      @@Grothgerek with every new advancement, comes a new set of challenges.

  • @perceivedvelocity9914
    @perceivedvelocity9914 ปีที่แล้ว +637

    I'm subscribed to both channels. I didn't expect this collaboration but I'm glad that it happened.

    • @ScoobyFermentation
      @ScoobyFermentation ปีที่แล้ว +9

      I would love to see a collaboration with Bart Ehrman!!!

    • @bobkeleher3455
      @bobkeleher3455 ปีที่แล้ว +10

      They're two of the only 3 TH-camrs I watch every piece of content from. The third is Stefan Milo.

    • @Nathan-jt8zt
      @Nathan-jt8zt ปีที่แล้ว +8

      @@bobkeleher3455 same, love these two and Stefan. If you’re into sciences and space, I’d recommended Anton Petrov.
      Another no bull channel.

    • @IJustNukedMcDonalds
      @IJustNukedMcDonalds ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Same, I am very pleasently surprised

    • @DevinDTV
      @DevinDTV ปีที่แล้ว

      same

  • @OptimusMaximusNero
    @OptimusMaximusNero ปีที่แล้ว +884

    Seneca before meeting Nero: "If there is one thing I can guarantee after a lifetime of study, it is that the world has a bright future ahead of it..."
    Seneca after meeting Nero: "F*ck this sh*t" *Proceeds to cut his wrists*

    • @MiScusi69
      @MiScusi69 ปีที่แล้ว +10

      Wait, how did he cut the second wrist? so, in the joke, Seneca invented a wrist-guillotine

    • @---pt8fk
      @---pt8fk ปีที่แล้ว +3

      @@MiScusi69 With his mouth, obviously

    • @MiScusi69
      @MiScusi69 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @@---pt8fk gotta try this

    • @THEtodd_83
      @THEtodd_83 ปีที่แล้ว

      lol

    • @GenericYoutubeGuy
      @GenericYoutubeGuy หลายเดือนก่อน +1

      Nah don’t promote wrist cutting bud

  • @TheGahta
    @TheGahta ปีที่แล้ว +34

    Somehow the idea of a cyberpunk rome setting feels interesting and fresh 😆

  • @Zenith2863
    @Zenith2863 ปีที่แล้ว +212

    You and Godier are a couple of my favorite people on TH-cam! This collab is so cool!

  • @puppieslovies
    @puppieslovies ปีที่แล้ว +76

    It's hard to imagine a world where people didn't really have an interest in technological advancement
    But I'd imagine if you only knew a couple hundred years of history and things didn't change much, you would assume things don't move forward so fast

    • @GenericYoutubeGuy
      @GenericYoutubeGuy หลายเดือนก่อน +2

      I’m surprised nobody got anything out of that epic universal flood prediction, cuz little did that ultra smart Roman philosopher know that his predictions had come true over 3,000 years before! But what he didn’t know in his prediction is that the next punishment won’t be a food!

  • @jackcannan9045
    @jackcannan9045 ปีที่แล้ว +79

    No way, can't believe you guys collaborated.. 2 of my favorite yet most topically distant channels

  • @ryanmbira3968
    @ryanmbira3968 ปีที่แล้ว +11

    Really fantastic video, a lot of videos could come out of this topic. Thank you as always, Dr. Ryan!

  • @mso82
    @mso82 5 หลายเดือนก่อน +4

    Your deadpan delivery combined with the subtle humor has made you one of my favorite history youtubers. I appreciate it!

  • @NavidIsANoob
    @NavidIsANoob ปีที่แล้ว +38

    What the hell? This is the last collaboration I expected, but I love to see it!! Two absolute powerhouse channels.

  • @n00b_n00b_
    @n00b_n00b_ ปีที่แล้ว +14

    This channel is amazing, it has the best answers to the most interesting questions nobody asks

  • @joomoo286
    @joomoo286 ปีที่แล้ว +51

    i never would have imagined this collab! amazing!

    • @AverageAlien
      @AverageAlien ปีที่แล้ว +1

      you all bots following a script or something?

    • @meatiest1989
      @meatiest1989 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@AverageAlien ong

  • @BonanzaRoad
    @BonanzaRoad ปีที่แล้ว +6

    Thanks for another fascinating video. I always look forward to seeing where your lectures will go next.

  • @DanMcLeodNeptuneUK
    @DanMcLeodNeptuneUK ปีที่แล้ว +19

    This is absolutely fascinating, the Greeks essentially saw themselves as a post apocalyptic civilization (in the sense of lost glory and knowledge) and theirs would be the last.

    • @Bklyn93
      @Bklyn93 4 หลายเดือนก่อน +2

      I tend to think the post Roman west prior to the Renaissance is like a post apocalyptic civilization

    • @greyfells2829
      @greyfells2829 4 หลายเดือนก่อน +5

      ​@@Bklyn93not quite as much as post-Bronze age civilizations. The bronze age collapse killed almost all scholars and permanently wiped out cultures. The fall of Rome was still survived by the church and Roman traditions. Even modern European states are heavily inspired by Greco-Roman culture and politics. The eagle is ever-present in national symbolism.

    • @swagmund_freud6669
      @swagmund_freud6669 3 หลายเดือนก่อน

      Only really in the west, not in the east.

  • @wardlindemann8607
    @wardlindemann8607 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    I’ve enjoyed your work for some time now. You don’t come across this subject very often. It was fascinating. I’m going to spend some more time reading up on it. Thank you.

  • @joshuadallal5043
    @joshuadallal5043 ปีที่แล้ว +5

    You just gained another Subscriber. I love JMG, this channel is just as good.

  • @tobygoodguy4032
    @tobygoodguy4032 ปีที่แล้ว +17

    And here I thought that you were going to tell us that the Romans were contemplating an all-empire dual lane inter-province chariot-ways complete with overpasses and ramps. 🤠

  • @crossfire7474
    @crossfire7474 ปีที่แล้ว

    Amazing collaboration between the channels I have subscribed to. Keep up the good work.

  • @williamrowland1003
    @williamrowland1003 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    Just bought your book today at a book store in Colorado! Couldn’t believe when I saw it irl

  • @cry2love
    @cry2love 3 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    Collaborarium of both channels is magnificent! Thank you ❤

  • @Shiresgammai
    @Shiresgammai ปีที่แล้ว +3

    Great work, gentlemen!

  • @Chewywrinkles
    @Chewywrinkles ปีที่แล้ว +4

    What an awesome collab

  • @jacob6672
    @jacob6672 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Didn’t see this collab coming but I can’t complain!

  • @EnigmaticEncounters420
    @EnigmaticEncounters420 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    Amazing Collab

  • @DragonTypeTrainer
    @DragonTypeTrainer ปีที่แล้ว +4

    Thanks for the video sir.

  • @Planemeld
    @Planemeld ปีที่แล้ว +6

    Oh man this is a dynamite collab, and my favorite quirky topic I previously only contemplated by myself 😍

  • @4zap7
    @4zap7 ปีที่แล้ว +15

    Love johns videos he covers the Fermi paradoxes possibilities more thoroughly than most and the event horizon podcast is amazing. Never thought I’d see him mentioned here

  • @danielintheantipodes6741
    @danielintheantipodes6741 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Thank you for the video!

  • @brady1045
    @brady1045 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    Super interesting topic!

  • @Wyattinous
    @Wyattinous ปีที่แล้ว +7

    I was just bingeing yours and other’s videos discussing Rome, couldn’t be happier that this popped up!

  • @Belenus3080
    @Belenus3080 ปีที่แล้ว +35

    This is a collab we didn’t deserve, but needed

  • @wrecker132
    @wrecker132 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    What a legendary collaboration!

  • @AndDiracisHisProphet
    @AndDiracisHisProphet ปีที่แล้ว +1

    wow, i would never have expected this collab

  • @robbabcock_
    @robbabcock_ ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Get two of the best youtubers to collaborate and you can't go wrong!

  • @frankmaston
    @frankmaston ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Fascinating video as usual Mr. Ryan :)

  • @WWCephas
    @WWCephas ปีที่แล้ว +3

    That was a very interesting subject. The artwork was fantastic as well, can you put a link to the sources possibly?

  • @cheydinal5401
    @cheydinal5401 ปีที่แล้ว +10

    1:49 Bronze Age ans Iron Age are brilliant

  • @ikillcommiesable
    @ikillcommiesable ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Unexpected dope colab right on

  • @meeb_consumer
    @meeb_consumer 3 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    It's amazing how the romans saw existence through a philosophical view. The cycle, the filling and emptying of the heart... Their interpretation of this play of matter and souls was amazing.

  • @JohnVance
    @JohnVance ปีที่แล้ว +9

    You know it's gonna a good one when it ends on a Thomas Cole painting

    • @dallassegno
      @dallassegno ปีที่แล้ว

      you know it's going to be good when you see it all the way through to the end. smh

  • @locomuchacho1
    @locomuchacho1 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Holy shit two of my favorite channels collaborating!!!!!

  • @jezusbloodie
    @jezusbloodie ปีที่แล้ว +6

    Omg two of my favourite lore spreaders in one video?! What a surprise

  • @cerberus6654
    @cerberus6654 ปีที่แล้ว +178

    Dr. G, that was intriguing. It seems to me that the only 'western' civilization that had a good sense (among its educated elite) of the depth of its time and a non-apocalyptic vision of the future was that of the Egyptians. It makes me wonder if the fairly secure agricultural reality of the Nile valley lead to this? To a certain extent so too did the early civilizations of the Tigris and Euphrates have a less apocalyptic sense of future. But elsewhere, where there was no 'hydraulic security' then it went off into the Twilight Zone. Thoughts?

    • @toldinstone
      @toldinstone  ปีที่แล้ว +60

      That's certainly possible. Unless - as in the case of the Christians - there's a religious motivation, it's hard to say exactly why a certain conception of the past develops. In the Greco-Roman case, an early interest in cosmology (tempered by a rather grim political past) seems to have encouraged the adoption of a cyclical outlook, but that's just speculation on my part.

    • @cerberus6654
      @cerberus6654 ปีที่แล้ว +38

      @@toldinstone I think you're absolutely right about the Greco-Roman combination of an interest in cosmology tempered by a grim political past (and throw in agricultural uncertainty). Look at the Aztecs. Grim political past and an obsession with cosmology allied with a sharp sense of agricultural uncertainty - that was not unwarranted - and you get their religious belief that 'we are all doomed', and it's coming soon.

    • @su2spinors
      @su2spinors ปีที่แล้ว +18

      we are calling Egyptian civilization western now?

    • @cerberus6654
      @cerberus6654 ปีที่แล้ว +12

      @@su2spinors Well it wasn't in China or Antarctica. And why do you think I put the word in parentheses?

    • @su2spinors
      @su2spinors ปีที่แล้ว +19

      @@cerberus6654 Object A isn’t object B so it must be object C.

  • @hateterrorists
    @hateterrorists ปีที่แล้ว +1

    You are only youtuber who's endorsements I never skip, out of respect of course. Hopefully somehow that gives you money.

  • @Benson_aka_devils_advocate_88
    @Benson_aka_devils_advocate_88 ปีที่แล้ว +22

    That was completely unexpected to hear John's name at the start of the video! He's an amazing writer and story teller. Two descriptors that you'd think would go hand in hand, but they don't!

  • @antoindearg5614
    @antoindearg5614 ปีที่แล้ว

    Excellent Dr, thank you for these videos, and due to the sheer brilliance of your advertising style, I may just consider Trade coffee. Keep it up mate.

  • @EmperorDank
    @EmperorDank ปีที่แล้ว +1

    This collab was a suprise to be sure, but a welcome one.

  • @MrWeebable
    @MrWeebable ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Fascinating question and video. Great choice to feature the Course of Empire paintings by Thomas Cole.

  • @ZiessRides
    @ZiessRides ปีที่แล้ว +2

    John Michael Godier sent me this way. Great video, got me to sub.

  • @stevenjames5874
    @stevenjames5874 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    YOOOO JmG and TOLDINSTONEEE I LOVE IT!!!

  • @serene-illusion
    @serene-illusion ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Now this is the 1am content I needed

  • @mm-yt8sf
    @mm-yt8sf ปีที่แล้ว +44

    i wonder if the romans kept track of when certain technologies were invented, or were they relatively far apart and isolated to guild knowledge so people didn't really make a big thing of it when something new/better appeared. if my life were lived much the same as my father and grandfather i guess the only things i'd think were changing would be those "darned good for nothing kids these days" 🙂

    • @AsiandOOd
      @AsiandOOd ปีที่แล้ว +7

      some of the big ones were known across the empire such as aqueducts. slowly diffusing technologies such as stirrups and silk production came from the east and took around 100 years to spread across the mediterranean sea. so it really depends on what type of technology and how influential it is.

    • @etaaramin9361
      @etaaramin9361 ปีที่แล้ว +9

      Interestingly, there was also a lot of state censorship of technology that often goes unmentioned. The emperors were almost universally opposed to technological developments that might create widespread economic upheavals. The absolute last thing they wanted to deal with was mass protests, or large bands of unemployed men. If a new technology would upset the economic order, it was often suppressed through intimidation or in some cases even murder.
      This is believed to be a large part of why Rome never underwent anything resembling an industrial revolution, despite having the necessary precursors. It's also a part of why the empire was so long lasting - they were slow to change away from a formula that appeared to be working.

    • @hedgehog3180
      @hedgehog3180 5 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

      Technology in the past usually developed over long periods of time and spread as it was adopted by different people so no one really “invented” it in the sense we'd think of today. Usually records will just mention where the author knows the technology from but not its actual origin.

  • @swindle2345
    @swindle2345 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    A crossover I never knew I needed

  • @AnonymousBosch3158
    @AnonymousBosch3158 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    I love both channels.

  • @leemon908
    @leemon908 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    Cool unexpected collab!

  • @STho205
    @STho205 ปีที่แล้ว +78

    Rome has never fallen. It has gone through decline and Renaissance. It has fragmented and coalesced and fragmented again....but it never fully fell.
    Rome and Constantinople simply moved. Constantinople became Moscow. Rome became Paris, London, then Berlin, then Washington.
    We still revere Roman ideals. We still simulate their games (without killing the atheletes). We still use their languages, their terms, their names. We still carve contemporary faces onto copies of their art. We still place copies of their buildings into our capitols and cities.
    We ARE Romans. We argue like Romans. We politic like Romans. We worship celebrity like Romans. We depend on and are addicted to luxury technology, but insist the simple natural life is better.

    • @rworrick8037
      @rworrick8037 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      This is an incredible point of view.

    • @scottiemail14
      @scottiemail14 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Couldn’t agree more. You would not be able to recognize it without knowing of Rome.

    • @LegioXXI
      @LegioXXI ปีที่แล้ว +14

      It even gos further: The eagle and fasces (and yes, its also where the word "fascism" comes from) are symbols still used by this day and are a claim of being a successor of Rome. Especially Germany, France and USA lose a lot of former roman symbols in flags, agency symbols, city insignias and many more. The german word "Kaiser" (=emperor) even directly comes from "Caesar", which in classical latin is pronounced almost exactly the same. Romes legacy is everywhere in western culture.

    • @Arch_Ariel
      @Arch_Ariel ปีที่แล้ว +6

      @@LegioXXI the "Tsar" in russian is from "Ceasar" too

    • @Calikid331
      @Calikid331 11 หลายเดือนก่อน +3

      I would add one more thing, religion! Roman Catholicism is the most practiced form of Christianity in the world by a big margin, even their religion is still around and going strong.

  • @jimferry6539
    @jimferry6539 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    Oooo this is an interesting topic

  • @PopeRecords
    @PopeRecords ปีที่แล้ว +7

    I didn't expect that kind of crossover, both Godier and Toldinstone?! That's crazy, I love both channels so much.

  • @fliegeroh
    @fliegeroh ปีที่แล้ว

    Marvelous video. Thanks.

  • @Bkuuzin
    @Bkuuzin ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Checking out the channel!

  • @donjezza
    @donjezza ปีที่แล้ว

    this was great!

  • @homelessman2257
    @homelessman2257 ปีที่แล้ว +16

    The roman/Greek interpretation of the golden age of early humanity is fascinating, any suggestions on further reading?

    • @DiocletianLarius
      @DiocletianLarius ปีที่แล้ว

      Mmm, I only know the original sources ("Works and Days" - Hesiod, and Ovid's "Metamorphoses"), but maybe you've already read them

  • @vermasean
    @vermasean ปีที่แล้ว +2

    JMG brought me here; both of your wonderful videos/series keep me here! 👍▶️🙌

  • @garywhite2050
    @garywhite2050 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    Outstanding 🔥👍

  • @JukeBoxDestroyer
    @JukeBoxDestroyer ปีที่แล้ว +1

    you vids are waaay too short, only because they're so so good.

  • @paulkoza8652
    @paulkoza8652 ปีที่แล้ว +18

    This takes my question one step further. My question is whether the ancients thought they were living in a modern age. This addressers the question of the future based upon their knowledge of the present and past.

    • @codetech5598
      @codetech5598 ปีที่แล้ว +13

      _"whether the ancients thought they were living in a modern age"_ No, they thought they had lost everything, being only refugees from Atlantis. All ancient civilizations thought they had lost something; the "Golden Age" was in the past.

    • @hotwheelsearl
      @hotwheelsearl ปีที่แล้ว +6

      I feel like every age is the modern age.

    • @JcoleMc
      @JcoleMc ปีที่แล้ว +5

      @@codetech5598 Feels kinda parallel to how the world sees its self now , everyone thinks the past was better and they somehow lost it .

    • @spaniel5657
      @spaniel5657 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@JcoleMc *everyone misses childhood (well most)

    • @greyfells2829
      @greyfells2829 4 หลายเดือนก่อน

      ​@@JcoleMcnot in this way though. Romans honestly believed that the old world was more advanced and more nice to live in. Most modern people understand that past ages were harder to live in, but still more morally upright.

  • @DanCooper404
    @DanCooper404 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    This collab? A surprise to be sure, but a welcome one.

  • @Scratchhh
    @Scratchhh ปีที่แล้ว +2

    amazing collab!!!

  • @aydanmull
    @aydanmull ปีที่แล้ว +3

    Best collab ever

  • @S3aCa1mRa1n
    @S3aCa1mRa1n ปีที่แล้ว +1

    The craziest combo ever dude Omg amazing

  • @georgemarian3563
    @georgemarian3563 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Outstanding

  • @kirby282
    @kirby282 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    OMG TWO OF MY FAV CHANNELS COLLAB AAAAAAAAHHHHH

  • @NickPoeschek
    @NickPoeschek ปีที่แล้ว +1

    A JMG collaboration is unexpected but very welcome!

  • @Sarke2
    @Sarke2 ปีที่แล้ว

    Very interesting, thank you

  • @Nightscape_
    @Nightscape_ ปีที่แล้ว +9

    Great video. After all these years of subscribing to John Michael Godier, Isaac Arthur, and other physics and science-based channels, I have nothing but optimism for the future of humanity among the stars and that each generation will be better off than the last. I am just happy I got to live at a time with indoor plumbing and electricity.

    • @Blackadder75
      @Blackadder75 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      the romans already had indoor plumbing..... (although it was not very effective)

    • @erik-ic3tp
      @erik-ic3tp ปีที่แล้ว

      Which other science channels? Channels like futurehistory10, Critically selected etc.?

    • @hieronymusvonlipschitz
      @hieronymusvonlipschitz ปีที่แล้ว

      Space travel is a pipe dream. There's nothing useful in space and even if long range effective space travel is invented it'll be restricted to the rich. We're not going to escape our problems "out there"

  • @daddykarlmarx6183
    @daddykarlmarx6183 4 หลายเดือนก่อน +2

    I wasnt expecting to see the tongue of Jebadiah Springfield in this video lol

  • @WilliamStoneContentZone
    @WilliamStoneContentZone ปีที่แล้ว +1

    2 of my favorite channels

  • @EminencePhront
    @EminencePhront ปีที่แล้ว +28

    So basically futurism itself is a technology, and one that didn't exist back then. The ability to imagine what could be is what fuels so much modern innovation and the lack of it is what held the ancient world back.

    • @mikicerise6250
      @mikicerise6250 ปีที่แล้ว +16

      The ancient world lacked a pool of billions of people from which to draw ideas, patent laws to incentivize invention, and an abolition of slavery to incentivize automation. These are the things that ultimately coalesced in early modern Europe to lead to the scientific revolution.

    • @UNSCPILOT
      @UNSCPILOT ปีที่แล้ว +5

      Then again, to some degree, some of that lack of futurism might have stabilized the culture a bit too.
      Our current era is a bit to quick to toss stuff aside in favor of "new" in very wasteful ways even when "old" is still working fine, we need to find some manner of balance to be sustainable.
      Even Native, supposedly less advanced, cultures understood that aggressively abusing your environment is a slow but certain death

    • @EminencePhront
      @EminencePhront ปีที่แล้ว +5

      @@UNSCPILOT Advanced cultures know about the dangers of abusing the environment better than primitive peoples. The reason that advanced cultures are doing more damage is because they have the capability to and that a minority of society does so in order to make money. Read "Collapse" to learn about primitive cultures that destroyed their economy.

    • @bud389
      @bud389 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      "What held the ancient world back" - You aren't too bright, are you? The ancient world was incredibly advanced, using technology we aren't even aware of today to build monoliths like the colossus of Rhodes, the Great Pyramid, and the amphitheater. They had running water with sewage systems still used today, heated floors, multi-tiered apartment complexes, and roads that lasted thousands of years. They weren't held back at all, in fact it's exactly the opposite; their genius and deeply sophisticated societies and engineering is what lead to their downfall due to their decadence, mixed with the masses of people clamoring to invade them and take it for themselves, very much akin to what is happening now.
      The ancient world was filled with philosophers and rulers imagining what "could be", it's what drove them to reach the apexes they did, and allowed them to create one of the longest lasting, largest empires on the planet.

    • @EminencePhront
      @EminencePhront ปีที่แล้ว

      @@bud389 I can picture your fedora flying off your head as you furiously typed up that response.

  • @apontel
    @apontel ปีที่แล้ว +5

    1:35 Come for Roman History, stay for the humour

  • @michaelgraalum381
    @michaelgraalum381 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    In antiquity the largest inhibitor of prosperity was war and politics rather than technology

  • @ricardofit5553
    @ricardofit5553 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    I play your videos before I go to sleep

  • @dionisos1991hel
    @dionisos1991hel 6 หลายเดือนก่อน

    Very interesting topic, especially for our modern societies.
    Is there any book that you adviced for the creation of this video? I would love to read more on the topic

  • @burhansarwar
    @burhansarwar ปีที่แล้ว +6

    Would you, or do you already have listed somewhere references for the artwork in your videos? The flood scenes were especially provocative

  • @fatcole1152
    @fatcole1152 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I almost threw my shoe at the TV because I mistook the cursor on the screen during the ad as a big bug from a distance

  • @matthewrouge
    @matthewrouge ปีที่แล้ว

    What's the painting towards the beginning? People and beasts in the rain. That's amazing!

  • @aisamsonreal
    @aisamsonreal ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Nice thumbnail! Midjourney?

  • @nicholas1173
    @nicholas1173 4 หลายเดือนก่อน

    Oh! Happy to see john here

  • @ScoobyFermentation
    @ScoobyFermentation ปีที่แล้ว +8

    This video gave me a great idea for another collaboration. I would love to hear you in a podcast interview Bart Ehrman. Please!!!

    • @toldinstone
      @toldinstone  ปีที่แล้ว +7

      If I could convince him to come on, he would be a fascinating guest

  • @ct6852
    @ct6852 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Reminds me of that Darron Aronofsky film Mother! And how the ending fits seamlessly with the beginning.

  • @dionadair8195
    @dionadair8195 ปีที่แล้ว

    The Greek Inventions/Roman Inventions comparison made me chuckle.

  • @supremereader7614
    @supremereader7614 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Wanna watch more. Great idea to work with John Michael Godier. You just need your own liiiiive signature.

  • @Ktotwf
    @Ktotwf ปีที่แล้ว +9

    JMG on toldinstone? Never even thought to hope for it!

  • @bobofthestorm
    @bobofthestorm ปีที่แล้ว +2

    Human Civilization used to be cyclical. Now we think that Human Civilization is linearly progressive.
    Be it hubris or optimism, we are so confident in the human potential that we now believe that greatness will always prevail. Stark contrast to mankind that came before who used to be very wary of that same human potential for ruin.

  • @OptimusMaximusNero
    @OptimusMaximusNero ปีที่แล้ว +6

    "Rome was chosen by the Gods as the Center of the World and that's it how it shall stay..."
    *Julius Caesar the night before the Ides of March, 44 B.C*

  • @inveterateforeigner2780
    @inveterateforeigner2780 หลายเดือนก่อน

    5:45
    that is an absolutely stunning painting

  • @TheHylianBatman
    @TheHylianBatman ปีที่แล้ว +1

    The future is always interesting to think about, but I've never really thought about others' perspectives on it.