528: The vast majority of the population is uneducated. Only a few men associated with the church are educated in the ancient languages of Greek and Latin.

1889: The King James Bible, an English edition that was finished in 1611, is in many homes and is a primary text for teaching children to read. School is not mandatory and is only attended regularly by a minority of children.

Today: School attendance has been required in the United States for nearly a century, up to the age of 16 in most states.

528: During the Middle Ages, little machinery exists, which means that all physical work has to be done by hand.

1889: The past hundred years have brought an industrial revolution, with machines making it possible to create things on a grander scale than was ever imaginable before.

Today: America is in a post-industrial age: most jobs that require physical...