Technology
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This article is about the use and knowledge of tools. For the Russian band, see Technology (band). For other uses, see Technology (disambiguation).
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By the mid 20th century, humans had achieved a mastery of technology sufficient to leave the atmosphere of the Earth for the first time and explore space.
Technology (from Greek τέχνη, techne, "art, skill, cunning of hand"; and -λογία, -logia[1]) is the making, modification, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems, and methods of organization, in order to solve a problem, improve a pre-existing solution to a problem, achieve a goal, handle an applied input/output relation or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, including machinery, modifications, arrangements and procedures. Technologies significantly affect human as well as other animal species' ability to control and adapt to their natural environments. The term can either be applied generally or to specific areas: examples include construction technology, medical technology, and information 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 Earth's 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.
Contents [hide]
1 Definition and usage
2 Science, engineering and technology
3 History
3.1 Paleolithic (2.5 million – 10,000 BC)
3.1.1 Stone tools
3.1.2 Fire
3.1.3 Clothing and shelter
3.2 Neolithic through classical antiquity (10,000BC – 300AD)
3.2.1 Metal tools
3.2.2 Energy and transport
3.3 Medieval and modern history (300 AD —)
4 Technology and philosophy
4.1 Technicism
4.2 Optimism
4.3 Skepticism and critics of technology
4.4 Appropriate technology
5 Technology and competitiveness
6 Other animal species
7 Future technology
8 See also
9 References
10 Further reading
Definition and usage
Current Event Ethics in Technology Management 407 July 25th, 2013 An article titled, Down’s syndrome cells ‘fixed’ in first step towards chromosome therapy, talks about current research aimed toward correcting the genetic fault that causes Down’s syndrome. This technological breakthrough has allowed researchers to prevent Down’s syndrome in mice, by silencing the extra chromosome 21 in early embryos (Sample, I. 2013). The technology could theoretically work in humans but this brings about…
Running head: Technology and human resources Manage Ethics and Guidelines Laurie Rodriguez University of Phoenix November 29, 2012 Ethics is born Ethics plays a very important role in a company’s function. In fact the moment that…
Genetically Modified Foods Highly Unethical Ethics within a business is a topic in which many people tend to disregard. There can be many reasons supporting or not supporting the decisions that business firms or individuals make based on their actions either within the business or to someone else. Ethics can be defined as a “branch of philosophy dealing with values relating to human conduct, with respect to the rightness and wrongness of certain actions and to the goodness and badness of the motives…
Ten Point Code of Ethics for Information Technology Professionals By James Malveaux, Jr. 1. Has IT professionals use every precaution to prevent given out any access to passwords, personnel identifications or other sensitive information to can be used in the database systems. The importance of this is to keep sensitive…
computers in 1939, Information technology systems and managing information has become the driving force behind many of the advances the society has gone through over the past 70 years. In today’s world, information technology (IT) has touch just about every part of our lives. The impact technology has had upon society today cannot be measured. In fact, it has had such an impact that if it were wiped out then the human race would be thrown back into the ‘Dark Ages’. Technology has had such an impact on…
Ethics are a part of life that every person will at some point be exposed to and expected to obtain some level of ethics and morality. Technology is also an aspect of the daily lives of the majority of the world and especially the United States. Technology can be positive or negative but it is the responsibility of its user that determines whether it will be positive or negative. The 20th century was arguably the century the brought about the most technological advances across the globe. Ford Motor…
Cross Cultural Perspectives Brian K ETH/316 December 21, 2012 Cross Cultural Perspectives Ethics are the product of a society’s culture so it is natural there will be different responses to similar ethical scenarios. Beekum, Stedam, and Yamamura (2003) suggest these differing conclusions will lead to conflict where one side perceives the outcome is ethical whereas the other does not. Another possible outcome is that one side may not even see a decision even being morally significant…
The four functions of management are planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. There are a numerous amount of factors that impact these four functions of management. The internal and external factors include: globalization, technology, innovation, diversity, and ethics. Internal/ External Factors of the Hershey Company The Hershey Company has seen a decline in product sales this year. This decline in sales is a prime example of the external factor that the current state of the United Sates economy…
Therefore, personal ethics are different for each one of us. However, when we work in a professional career, we have our own work character to reflect on. What is professional ethics? “Professional ethics concerns the moral issues that arise because of the specialist knowledge that professionals attain, and how the use of this knowledge should be governed when providing a service to the public” (Chadwick 1998). Today, Librarianship is a profession that has a code of professional ethics to help us to…
two textbox references, two website references and one other type of reference which will be a YouTube video. 1. Amanda Sinclair. (1993). Approaches to organisational culture and ethics. Journal of Business Ethics. 12 (1), 1. 2. Tariq Ashraf. (2004). the International Information & Library Review. Information technology and public policy: a socio-human profile of Indian digital revolution. 36 (4), 309–318. 3. Jennifer Francis and Katherine Schipper. (1999). Have Financial Statements Lost Their Relevance…