"The Industrial Age is over. The computer,
	    not the engine is the dominant machine in
	    today's business world." - Dr. Eric Steinhart,
		William Patterson University  

As we enter the 21^st Century, it is becoming clearer that information is driving society. The assembly line is slowly becoming a model of the past as society enters a new era. An age where data, information, and how people interact with that information, has revolutionized business and the economy, not to mention social interactions. The Industrial Age advanced society away from its agricultural roots toward a more productive industrial society. In its process it paved the way for the Information Age. Although the Industrial Age and the Information Age are closely linked, they represent two separate changes in society.

The Industrial Revolution began in England around 1760. With it came an inundation of new building materials, such as cast iron, steel, and glass. The Industrial Revolution in America can be categorized into four stages. First came the "Textile Cycle," which established the processes of constructing and operating factories. Second, the "Cycle of Railroads" created a massive transportation infrastructure which connected the nation. The cycle was accelerated by the Civil War, when the industrial North defeated the agricultural South. Then came urban expansion, followed by the construction of a national highway system. Prior to the Industrial Revolution a network of roadways was not necessary. There were very few cars to necessitate large roads. Everything changed with the assembly line.

Some scholars believe that "The metaphor of the Industrial Age was the assembly line." The assembly line concept, which involved using interchangeable standardized parts and training workers in only one aspect of production, was the pinnacle of the Industrial Age. Its aftershocks created increases in productivity, a large expansion in the American industry, and raised the standard of living for Americans.

The Industrial Age was characterized by standardization, synchronization, and centralization. By economic and societal measures, the Industrial Age was a huge success, but its advancement could not last forever. The 1970's, thanks in part to the advent of computers, served as a transitional period from the Industrial Age to the Information Age. The 1970's saw a period of mass decline in industrial production, especially in iron, steel, rubber, and even assembly line-based items, such as: textiles and automobiles.

As industry began to decline, the service sector grew to eventually overtake it. Service workers began to earn more, especially computer technicians, engineers, and managers. As the author Alvin Toffler wrote, we were entering the "Third Wave." According to Toffler, the "First Wave" brought a change from hunters and gatherers to an agricultural society. The "Second Wave," also know as the Industrial Age, advanced society from an agricultural society to an industrial one. Toffler's "Third Wave" described the shift from an industrial to an information-based society. Toffler argued that each wave is "characterized by historic and unprecedented upheavals in the collective social, political, intellectual, cultural, and economic fabric of civilization." Given that this pattern exists, it is clear that the Industrial Age is different from the Information Age.

The Information Age is a complete "180 degree departure from Industrial Age models." Where as the Industrial Age and its assembly line forced standardization, the Information Age, with its computers, allows for customization. It became easier to store, sort, and organize data, which led to the ability to learn more from the data. Businesses became "flatter" and new flat organizational charts replaced the old hierarchies. Decentralization replaced centralization as businesses rapidly expanded outwards to form a new global economy . Members of society were able to purchase cell phones, fax machines, computers, and Internet services at affordable prices. People were now able to instantly communicate, or share information. The only comparable event in the recorded history of communications was Gutenberg's printing press. But the advent of the printing press was only a bump on the path toward the Information Age, not its starting point. The networking of computers is the defining characteristic of the Information Age.

Some people believe that they can find any piece of information on the Internet, and they are probably right. The worldwide computer network, known as the Internet, allows for instantaneous communication and exchange of thoughts, ideas, data, and capital to anywhere in the world. The 1990's explosion onto the Internet shows how rapidly society is grasping the Information Age. In 1990, an average American was estimated to go on the Internet a total 2 hours per year. In 2000 that estimate is now closer to 43 hours. And in 1999, an estimated 34%, or 67,228,000 adult Americans, have access to the Internet.

Although the Information Age has been a revolution, it has not come without problems. Social informatics researchers have discovered a "productivity paradox," where the implementation of better technological systems has not provided a constant increase in productivity. The most accepted explanation of the paradox deals with the inefficiency of business: Both in allocation of resources and the lack of properly educated employees.

For good or bad, the Information Age has come and the Industrial Age has gone. The Industrial Age helped create the current boom that is the Information Age, but it cannot take credit for the 'virtual' revolution in society. It is believed that "The Information Age will have one hundred times the impact on the individual, than did the industrial revolution." Hard to comprehend, considering we have not yet reached the crest of the 'Third Wave.'