Page 67 - SST Class 05

About 1500 years ago, the Chinese made wooden blocks. They cut into these to write
letters or make pictures in reverse, inked them and pressed them against the paper.
This was how printing came into being. It was a time-consuming and labour-oriented
effort.

John Gutenberg of Germany thought of making a device which could make printing
easy. In the year 1455, he made movable metal types, which were fixed on the moulds.
After inking, they were pressed on paper, this was how an imprint was produced. This
resulted in the development of letter-press technology . After this, the printing press
was invented by which the moulds were pressed on paper. This enabled a large
number of books to be published. The Bible was the first book to be printed.

In the beginning, sheepskin was used in place of paper, but later, paper was found to
be more convenient. Earlier, this printing press was operated by manpower, but
gradually, electricity was introduced. This technique is still used, but with the advent
of modern technology, it has declined to a great extent. The printing press was the
primary idea on which the idea of modern printing technology is based.

In the beginning of the printing press, it took a long time to produce a few books. With
modern printing machines, a very large number of copies in different sizes and colours

can be printed in a small time. The computer has greatly helped in further augmenting
the quality of printing and designing. Laser scanning, electronic and offset printing
etc., have made books a common commodity. You can find books on the internet,
many of which are free of cost. These books are called e-books . If you write a book, you
can put it up online for readers. Those who cannot read books or who have no time to
read books, they can listen to books as they are now available in electronic devices.
Such books are called talking books .

Script for the Blind

The books came into being, but unfortunately, the blind could not enjoy this
advancement. Louis Braille , a blind French boy, wanted to read books. He thought
how he could read. As blind people feel things by touch, Braille too worked on this
concept. In 1820, he developed a script
called the Braille script. It consists of
raised dots on the paper. In it, different

sets of dots represent different numbers
and letters. A blind person can read a
Braille book by running his fingers along
the dots. This proved to be a great gift
for the blind people. Presently, a large
number of books are published in the
Braille Script. Louis Braille Braille Script

Growing Knowledge 67