Edison’s direct-current system used a low voltage of 110V and it could only be used in close proximaty to cities with power plants because the power loss was great during long-distance transmission. On the other hand, the alternating-current system, which was invented by Nikola Tesla in 1888, was widely used because it was able to reduce power loss, long distance transmission as it used higher voltages greater than 1,000V.

The emergence of electric energy and the internal combustion engine created the foundation for mass production and more factories were being built around many cities. With the invention of a light bulb, factories were able to operate day and night, and when Henry Ford introduced the conveyor belt system, productivity improved immensely.

Through specialization and mass production, the cost of production continued to decrease. However, the value of labor decreased as simple labor work became increasingly uniform and repetitive, and the workers were demoted to mere components of a large machine that are factories. In order to reduce a turnover rate, Ford implemented the policy that would double the normal wage to 5 dollars a day. Little by little the worker’s quality of life increased, and they were able to purchase automobiles without difficulty. Thus, the foundation for public consumption was created.

John Bardeen, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley of Bell Labs invented the transistor, which is the world’s first semiconductor. The transistor enabled production of products that were smaller with higher energy efficiency than using vacuum tubes.

Later, Jack Kilby and Robert Noyce invented the integrated circuit (IC) that combined complex electronic components on a single semiconductorwith a higher degree of integration, it could be develop into LSI, VLSI, and ULSI.

In the 1950s computers took up a lot of space, as much as a single room, and the number of its electronic parts reached about 200,000. In 1959, Jack Kilby and Robert Noyce developed the integrated circuit that has transistors, diodes, resistors, condensers, coils, and etc. on a silicon wafer as a single semiconductor.

Integrated circuits have been used not only in computers, but also in radios, televisions, cameras, and etc. It has enhanced the performance of and miniaturized electronics. As a result, electronic devices could also be available for at home use.

With the development of mechanical and electronic technology, automation technology was introduced to various industries. Industrial robots started being used on the production site and this resulted in mass production of goods of accurate products with uniform quality. Also, computer systems were applied in producing goods and this provided convenient and efficient control.

Such changes led to the automation of the production process and increase in efficiency, thus contributing greatly to increasing productivity.

In the near future, things that we previously believed to be only possible by humans will be done by artificial intelligence. In a future where we need to compete with artificial intelligence for a job, what are the competencies humans need to possess?