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.
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