NATURE OF TECHNOLOGY

Technology is defined as “purposeful intervention by design”

Technological practice – the activity through which technological outcomes are created and have
impact in the world

Technolgical outcomes
 Products
 Systems, processes, methods, techniques
 Enhance human capabilities and possibilities
 Change the made world in a ways that have positive and/or negative impacts on the social and
natural world

Characteristics of technology
1. Purposefulness of technological practice
 Technological practice is purposeful and productive in nature
 Basic purpose of technological practice: to find solutions to human problems (Problems related
to human survival needs (e.g. food, shelter, defense), desires/aspirations (knowledge, art,
control)
 Technological outcomes are arrived at through a deliberate process of design, decision making,
production and manufacturing rather than by evolution (as in the natural world) or chance.
 Technological practices include:
o brief development planning practices
o resource management practices
o the designing, construction, processing and evaluation practices
o manufacturing practices (bring technological outcomes in the marketplace as
products/systems)
 Technological practice is directed at developing a fit-for-the-purpose outcome/product

2. Technological outcomes extend human capabilities

 Technology enhance our human capabilities (e.g. sensory capabilities, physical abilities)
enabling the human body to go beyond what “natural” functioning would otherwise permit
 It gives us capabilities to change our world to suit us better/to make our life easier.

3. Technology is a socially embedded activity

 All technology exists within a historical context, influenced by and influencing society and
culture.
 Every technological outcome is designed in and for a particular time and physical and social
location
 The social world of culture, politics, and ideologies, together with the natural world, collectively
influences technological development.
 Through its creation of the made world, technology has a profound and complex influence on
the social and natural world.

4. Creative and critical thinking, and functional and practical reasoning in technology
 Creative and critical thinking helps technologists to develop and explore initial design
concepts, refine and select those that are feasible, and transform these into products
 Through these levels of thinking, technologists learn from the past, push boundaries, and
imagine future possibilities
  Reasoned decision-making in technology depends on both functional and practical reasoning
 Functional reasoning focuses on how and why things work
 Practical reasoning
o focuses on what can be justified in terms of social and ethical standards or norms; what
should or ought to be done
o It is concerned with what is good or bad and what is right or wrong
o It reflects the social and cultural mores and values of the particular society, environment, and
era
o It is necessary if people are to view technology as beneficial for humanity, and not a law unto
itself

5. Technology can produce results that are complicated and unpredictable

 With technology, expect the unexpected.
 While good technological practice is based on the best available knowledge and on reasoned
decision making, unforeseen issues always surface during practice and/or implementation.
 These results can be unexpected benefits, unexpected costs, or unexpected risks to different
social groups at different times

6. Technology’s different impacts

 Technological practices and outcomes are of different value to different people, and in different
places and times
 The worth of a technological development needs to take into account historical precedents and
a multiplicity of social, cultural, and political perspectives

7. Disciplinary knowledge of technology

 Technology is a discipline in its own right, with its own body of knowledge and skills
 Technological vs. scientific knowledge

Technological knowledge Scientific knowledge

Acceptable when it supports the Acceptable when it provides the most
successful functioning of a technological successful explanation for a
outcome phenomenon
Purpose: to intervene in the world Purpose: to explain the world

8. Codified knowledge of technology

 Aspects of technological knowledge are often codified or translated into rules or regulations
 may consist of
o codes of practice,
o codes of ethics,
o intellectual property codes,
o codes of standards,
o acceptable tolerances, etc.
 a safeguard for technologists to remind them of their responsibilities
 gives them access to knowledge and procedures that have been tested over time and shown to
support successful technological development

9. Collaboration in technology
 Technology is becoming increasingly interdisciplinary, so successful outcomes typically require
a great deal of collaboration between people and across disciplines.