Science and Technology

I also find, especially in the Western world, that people are disconnected. Communication technology is supposed to connect people: it is beginning to connect people to machines, but not people to people. A young kid in U.S. knows how to deal with computer networks but does not know how to play with his next-door neighbour, so technology does bring in some level of problems. Some use technology, some abuse technology. The main idea behind technology has been to increase comforts, helps us in doing things outside of our body, but unfortunately for many developing countries technology is seen as something exotic fancy, foreign, alien and not necessarily problem solving. Technology is problem solving and there is technology in everything we do. Many of my friends in social science always criticize me saying” You are attacking” “Of course I am. That’s all I know”. “You look at things only form the view point of management and technology”. ”Well, that is the only pair of glasses I wear” But the same people use telephones computers, watch TV, and travel on aeroplanes without accepting the fact that they are indeed enjoying the fruits of technology in their day to day life.

I see the following important trends in technology based on what I have seen in the 20th century:

Ø Everything is being miniaturised, from micro-motors to micro-electronics.

Ø Ever technology is pushing for productivity, and efficiency in all sectors, and is used to increase these.

Ø Technology is being used to reduce cost. Only by reducing cost you can bring technology to the doorstep of many more people

Ø Technologies are becoming environment friendly. People are now becoming conscious of environment friendly technologies in everything they do. For example take the ‘Yellow Pages’. In the city of Chicago, there are about six million telephones and the telephone directories (three volumes) if stacked together, will be 1.5 feet in height. Just to print and distribute 8