The era of verbal communication began with the development of language. Language, which probably came into use about 35,000 B.C. in the Cro-Magnon period, enabled humans to more readily communicate with one another. The age of telecommunication began with Morse?s telegraph and was perpetuated by Marconi?s wireless: Telecommunication predominated among forms of communication until the advent of the computer in 1946. The impact of each of these developments was greater than many now consider to have been the case. The development of writing for example, led to ability to maintain historical records and develop libraries. Generations were freed from having to relearn that which had been learned before and could dedicate themselves to adding to the knowledge of humankind. The telephone and telegraph were no less significant and history probably will proclaim the computer as the preeminent scientific advance of the twentieth century.