What Is Technology?
Technology refers to human endeavors to shape the world through engineering, design, craft and other skills. It also refers to the products of those endeavors, such as utensils, machines and software. Technology has long been a powerful force in humanity’s history. It’s been a driver of invention, economic advancement, and civilization. Like language, ritual, commerce and the arts, technology is an intrinsic part of a culture. It both shapes and reflects that culture’s values and priorities.
Technology enables businesses to operate more effectively and efficiently. It increases productivity, allows for scalability and helps streamline customer sales and employee processes. It is important for businesses to embrace and understand the value of technology.
It has also been a driving force in globalization. In the past, communicating with people across the globe was slow and labor intensive. Now, with the development of satellite technology, communication is fast and simple. The Internet is one of the greatest technologies of our time, and it enables us to communicate, share information and do business worldwide in ways that were not possible before.
All technological systems are prone to side effects, both expected and unexpected. This is true of both large technologies, such as nuclear reactors and agriculture, as well as the everyday technology that is commonplace in our homes and offices. A refrigerator’s tiny leak of a gas used to cool its internal system, for example, may have unpredictable consequences for the earth’s atmosphere.