What Titanic Really Changed

The sinking led to sweeping reforms. The Safety of Life at Sea convention, first adopted in 1914, required lifeboats for every passenger, mandatory ice patrols, and 24-hour radio watches. The International Ice Patrol still monitors North Atlantic icebergs.

The Titanic also shattered the public's faith in technology as inherently safe. Before 1912, people believed engineering had conquered nature. The sinking proved that overconfidence can kill as surely as any iceberg.