This is another techmix inspired by David Edgerton’s The Shock of the Old. These “old” and “new” tech juxtapositions are intended to help us remember that the technological timeline is not actually a relentlessly upward spiral. We use things invented long ago right alongside the latest gadget and never even notice it, except in the most extreme circumstances.

Carrier pigeons were actually an intensely useful form of communication for early aviators. Overall, 200,000 homing pigeons were employed during The Great War.

Image: Great War Primary Document Archive: Photos of the Great War