Modernity and the Acceleration of Time

Abstract

Two stages can be clearly distinguished in the history of economics. Until the mid-18th century, average global growth in the production of goods and services—what is normally called global economic growth—was very small and was driven almost exclusively by demographics and the colonisation of new lands. This situation changed radically with the Industrial Revolution. Firstly, economic growth gained pace in some European countries and then progressively spread to a large portion of the world, although with temporary slowdowns in some regions.