Technological change is sweeping the world and changing the world we know. Technological change is also known as “The Fourth Industrial Revolution” because it is arguably the greatest change to the world since the dawn of the first civilization. Technological change includes such things as information technology, computer science, and the electronics industry.
What is Technology? Technology is the total set of human skills, techniques, and systems utilized in the achievement of specific goals, including scientific research, manufacturing, technical analysis, and the development of new products. In other words, everything that human beings use to build tools, carry out their day-to-day activities, and maintain their physical existence is technically known as Technology. There are three main categories of Technological Advancements:
The first category, technological systems, refers to the developments and discoveries that directly impact human behavior and improve the quality of life for humans. These include such things as the telephone, television, computer, digital writing machines, and the electric bulb. The second category, soft technologies, refers to those innovations which indirectly affect humans in their daily lives, as well. Examples include clothes, food preparation, shelter, personal technology, and entertainment. The third category, hard technological systems, encompasses the entire spectrum of technological advancements affecting the human condition, ranging from the development of automobiles to space travel.
How do Technological Systems and Soft Technologies influence the world? Technological change is having profound effects on society and the global economy. Technological advances have dramatically altered how people live their lives and how they conduct business. As a result, jobs that were once held by people in computers are now being taken over by computer specialists, people who perform a variety of services involving the use of new technologies. Additionally, because many jobs are being eliminated by technological advances, more people than ever before are finding themselves unemployed.
Technological change has also caused a great deal of wealth creation, income opportunities, and new wealth Distribution. Because new technologies allow people to do things that would not have been able to be done before, new industries spring up to meet the demand for these goods and services. For example, transportation has become much more refined since the invention of the automobile, and new manufacturing processes have allowed people to buy products at a much lower cost than they could previously. Additionally, as society becomes more technologically advanced, people are able to produce more products at a lower cost than they could have in previous generations, creating more wealth.
The pace of technological change has surprised and delighted scientists and other researchers throughout history. One of the most important reasons for this is that people tend to want new things. Even when something is very old and established, it is often looked upon as something that needs to be improved upon. When something is not used or reinvented, however, it tends to remain relatively stagnant because people assume that it will never be used again. As a result, an old style piece of technology is forgotten, while newer, more innovated technologies are plastered all over the place.