All people live in a society, but fewer live in a civilization, and the difference between the two is the degree of innovation found in each. Since 1950, the West has been a civilization and may be considered to comprise the 35 countries that are members of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.
Important innovations brought forth in the West in the past 70 years have been in science and technology, to be sure, but also in social, political and cultural institutions and practices. All told, when historians a thousand years from now look back on the hundred years from 1950 to 2050, they will call it the finest Golden Age ever experienced by humankind.
Lexpert Technology columnist George Takach writes at lexpert.ca. Follow @Lexpert on Twitter. Lexpert is published by Thomson Reuters.