Since the beginning of humanity, mankind has developed increasingly sophisticated ways to communicate with each other over long distance. This short report will summarize the main milestones in the evolution of communication and determine thee trends seen throughout.

The first method communication was cave paintings, which were used to depict animals and situations of the time. These paintings have been dated back as far as 30,000 BC. These paintings slowly developed into carvings, which were then changed into pictograms, and then developed into the complex language and the written word which is so fundamental in modern history (Startt & Sloan). The first known methods of telecommunications are the use of drums used in Africa and South America in 6000BC, and smoke signals used in North America and China, which are thought to originate at around 3000BC. The use of smoke signals, in which a fire is lit and the smoke is manipulated to develop different messages, is perhaps the first thought that crosses peoples mind when they think of the first methods of communication. The smoke was often used to signal the presence of enemies, but it was developed into being able to convey complex messages (Johnson).

The first delivery service of written notes was developed by the Ancient Egyptians in 2000BC, but this was a slow method due to the fact that the person traveled on foot to deliver the message (Tavani).

Relay beacons were the next important method of communication and were used in the Middle Ages, from the 5th to the 15th century. These consisted of a long chain of towers in which fires were lit, usually located on the tops of hills or buildings, and when the fire was lit, the message was then passed on the next beacon, which lit their fire, and so on. Long distances could be covered with this method, but due to the binary nature of the beacons (on or off), the method could only be used to convey one, pre-agreed, important message, usually that an opposing army had been spotted and was advancing (Gerasenko 110).

The trend of fire as a use of communication died out in the late 1800s as the invention of the telephone and the television eventually came. These ideas were then developed into the mobile telephone, and then the smartphones that are so popular today, and allow people to communicate with anybody in the world almost instantaneously. There is still a trend of fire, however; the manufacturing of the smartphone requires energy, which is created by the burning of coal, mostly. So fire still does play a part in the development of communication.

Why did communication develop so extensively? The development of communication really advanced along with the technological advancement seen over the past couple of decades, which has been almost exponential. For example, the internet was only made available to the public in 1991. Since then, it has become widespread, with 50 billion devices expected to be connected to the internet by 2020. This massive growth in communication has shaped the world around us to be greater connected and allows people to gain knowledge from and talk to any person in any country.

What does the future hold for communication? It is hard to see communication becoming any more widespread in the future, but in recent years, with the development of video chat, and even virtual reality, it is possible that in the future avatars that can be placed anywhere in the world will allow people to become fully immersed into any society anywhere in the world, fully allowing all forms of communication between all areas, countries and nationalities (Rosedale 48). We have truly come a long way from smoke signals.