The development of a European information society

The development of a society reliant on information is traced from the scientific revolutions of the mid‐seventeenth century. Throughout Europe (and later the world) this led to new methods of dissemination and control of published information, through libraries and other institutions, and more recently through the application of electronic technology. The term “information society” should not be restricted to an IT‐based culture: the roots are much deeper and the concept of information continues a long tradition.