Technology
hideTechnology is a broad concept that deals with an animal species' usage and knowledge of tools and crafts, and how it affects an animal species' ability to control and adapt to its environment. Technology is a term with origins in the Greek "technologia", "τεχνολογία" — "techne", "τέχνη" ("craft") and "logia", "λογία" ("saying"). However, a strict definition is elusive; "technology" can refer to material objects of use to humanity, such as machines, hardware or utensils, but can also encompass broader themes, including systems, methods of organization, and techniques. The term can either be applied generally or to specific areas: examples include "construction technology", "medical technology", or "state-of-the-art technology".
The human species' use of technology began with the conversion of natural resources into simple tools. The prehistorical discovery of the ability to control fire increased the available sources of food and the invention of the wheel helped humans in travelling in and controlling their environment. Recent technological developments, including the printing press, the telephone, and the Internet, have lessened physical barriers to communication and allowed humans to interact freely on a global scale. However, not all technology has been used for peaceful purposes; the development of weapons of ever-increasing destructive power has progressed throughout history, from clubs to nuclear weapons.
Technology has affected society and its surroundings in a number of ways. In many societies, technology has helped develop more advanced economies (including today's global economy) and has allowed the rise of a leisure class. Many technological processes produce unwanted by-products, known as pollution, and deplete natural resources, to the detriment of the Earth and its environment. Various implementations of technology influence the values of a society and new technology often raises new ethical questions. Examples include the rise of the notion of efficiency in terms of human productivity, a term originally applied only to machines, and the challenge of traditional norms.
Philosophical debates have arisen over the present and future use of technology in society, with disagreements over whether technology improves the human condition or worsens it. Neo-Luddism, anarcho-primitivism, and similar movements criticise the pervasiveness of technology in the modern world, opining that it harms the environment and alienates people; proponents of ideologies such as transhumanism and techno-progressivism view continued technological progress as beneficial to society and the human condition. Indeed, until recently, it was believed that the development of technology was restricted only to human beings, but recent scientific studies indicate that other primates and certain dolphin communities have developed simple tools and learned to pass their knowledge to other generations.
For more information about Technology, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with technology
Clean energy to grow into 1.6 trillion euros industry: WWF
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The clean energy technology sector will grow into a 1.6 trillion-euro (2.4 trillion-dollar) industry by 2020, becoming the third largest industrial sector after automobiles and electronics, WWF said Friday.
Solar power coming to a store near you
Dec 10, 2009 |
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(AP) -- Solar technology is going where it has never gone before: onto the shelves at retail stores where do-it-yourselfers can now plunk a panel into a shopping cart and bring it home to install.
GSM system about to be compromised
Dec 08, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Research scientists in California and elsewhere are deliberately setting out to compromise the mobile phone system used by around three billion people. The system uses Global System for Mobile ...
New techniques make carbon-based integrated circuits more practical
Dec 09, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Stanford engineers have built what they believe is a chip with the most advanced computing and storage elements made of carbon nanotubes to date by devising a way to root out the stubborn ...
Helpful or creepy? Overpersonalized Web sites may spook shoppers
Dec 10, 2009 |
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Michael Redding describes the get-to-know-you game between man and machine as a version of "Name That Tune."
Taiwan chip giant TSMC to enter solar energy
Dec 10, 2009 |
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Chip giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is planning its first foray into solar energy with an investment in the island's largest producer of solar cells, a spokesman said Thursday.
Philips electronic skin technology enables new chameleon-like ambience designs
Dec 09, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Philips Research has developed a novel color e-paper technology that opens up new design opportunities for personalizing electronic devices. This means that the color and appearance, of the ...
Microscopic gyroscopes, the key for motion sensing
Dec 09, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Tiny devices made possible by combining the latest advances in mechanical and electronics technology could be at the heart of next-generation personal navigation and vehicle stabilisation ...
Toshiba develops essential technology for spintronics-based MOS field-effect transistor
Dec 09, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Toshiba Corporation today announced that it has developed MOSFET cell based on spin transport electronics, or spintronics, an advanced semiconductor technology that makes use of the spin and ...
Life after silicon: Using exotic materials to help microchips keep improving
Dec 08, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The huge increases in the power and capacity of computers, cell phones and communications networks in the last 40 years have been the result of ever-shrinking silicon transistors. But silicon ...
A special kind of flight training
Dec 08, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A new generation of flight simulators will attempt to make air traffic safer.
IBM Introduces New System z Linux Solutions for Large-Scale Consolidation and Savings
Dec 09, 2009 |
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IBM today announced new Linux offerings for the System z mainframe to help clients run smarter and more efficient data centers that maximize the use of IT resources and reduce energy costs.
RIM to boost BlackBerry presence in China
Dec 08, 2009 |
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Research in Motion said Tuesday it planned to expand the China market for its BlackBerry smartphone to include consumers and small businesses, amid fierce competition in the world's biggest mobile market.
New technology helps scientists understand ancient fossils
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Dec 07, 2009 |
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Some of the world's oldest human bones and other ancient relics are studied here using some of the world's newest technologies.
