Technology Definition & Meaning

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. Technology is the application of scientific knowledge to the practical aims of human life or, as it is sometimes phrased, to the change and manipulation of the human environment. Recent years have brought about a rise in social media’s cultural prominence, with potential repercussions on democracy, and economic and social life. Early on, the internet was seen as a “liberation technology” that would democratize knowledge, improve access to education, and promote democracy.

• The CoE is a new breakthrough in the academic world to support national and international industries.
• Automation had resulted in a need for fewer workers, a process known as technological unemployment.
• It was partly inspired by Jacques Ellul’s The Technological Society.
• Tools and machines need not be material; virtual technology, such as computer software and business methods, fall under this definition of technology.
• The invention of engines enabled factories to build machines that mass-produced objects.

The first two-wheeled carts were derived from travois and were first used in Mesopotamia and Iran in around 3,000 BCE. The earliest known use of wind power is the sailing ship; the earliest record of a ship under sail is that of a Nile boat dating to around 7,000 BCE. From prehistoric times, Egyptians likely used the power of the annual flooding of the Nile to irrigate their lands, gradually learning to regulate much of it through purposely built irrigation channels and “catch” basins. The ancient Sumerians in Mesopotamia used a complex system of canals and levees to divert water from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers for irrigation.

This flaking produced a sharp edge on the core stone as well as on the flakes, either of which could be used as tools, primarily in the form of choppers or scrapers. The use of tools by early humans was partly a process of discovery, partly of evolution. Early humans evolved from a race of foraging hominids which were already bipedal, with a brain mass approximately one third that of modern humans.

Distance learning among individuals is aided by video conferencing applications. Their biggest challenge might have nothing to do with the technology. This disconnect from the reality of the VR market was highlighted in a recent interview with gaming legend John Carmack, the former chief technology officer for Meta’s VR unit. The government is developing innovative technologies to improve the safety of its soldiers. October 7, 2022 • Musk says he’d loosen rules against spreading misinformation, allow former President Donald Trump back on Twitter, shake up the company’s business model and find new revenue sources.

The accessibility features Apple and Google include in their mobile software can help people of all abilities get more from their devices. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. We’ve created a new place where questions are at the center of learning. Britannica is the ultimate student resource for key school subjects like history, government, literature, and more. Some subcultures, like the off-the-grid movement, advocate a withdrawal from technology and a return to nature. The ecovillage movement seeks to reestablish harmony between technology and nature.

Panther Life

We are honoured to recognise our connection to Wurundjeri Country, history, culture and spirituality through these locations, and strive to ensure that we operate in a manner that respects and honours the Elders and Ancestors of these lands. Swinburne students attended a special address by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy via live video link, followed by a student Q&A with the President. The new $9 million ARC Centre for Next-Gen Architectural Manufacturing will help address the massive amounts of waste and carbon emissions created by the construction industry.

Each student should be able to design, implement, and evaluate a computing-based solution to meet a given set of computing requirements in the context of the program’s discipline. Each student should be able to analyze a complex computing problem and to apply principles of computing and other relevant disciplines to identify solutions. Able to communicate Visual Communication Design prototype alternative solutions independently or groups in verbal form, graphical, written, and communicative models with analog or digital techniques by selected appropriate communication rules. Able to analyze level of material utilization efficiency and time in the production process of each selected alternative solution prototype of Visual Communication Design, without changing the essence and aesthetic design.

For communications technology, see broadcasting; computer science; information processing; photography; printing; photoengraving; typography; telecommunication. For the processes and products of other manufacturing industries, see adhesive; clothing and footwear industry; dye; explosive; floor covering; forestry; chemical industry; man-made fibre; surface coating; papermaking; soap and detergent; textile. For medical applications of technology, see diagnosis; therapeutics; drug; medicine, history of; pharmaceutical industry.

Technology’s central role in our lives has drawn concerns and backlash. The backlash against technology is not a uniform movement and encompasses many heterogeneous ideologies. Major figures of techno-utopianism include Ray Kurzweil and Nick Bostrom. Techno-utopianism has attracted both praise and criticism by progressive, religious, and conservative thinkers. A bathtub virtually identical to modern ones was unearthed at the Palace of Knossos. Several Minoan private homes also had toilets, which could be flushed by pouring water down the drain.