DISCUSS THE

HISTORICAL
PERSPECTIVE OF
TECHNOLOGY IN
RELATION TO:
1. FIRE

INTRODUCTION
Fire is universally accepted as important to human
life, with myriad expressions and uses in the
modern world . It was regarded by Darwin as the
greatest discovery made by humanity . Although
open fire tends to be built out of Western
technology, it persists in many forms as hidden
fire, as in the internal combustion engine. Fire has
underpinned the development of all modern
technologies—from ceramics, to metal working, to
the nuclear industry.
The use of fire was another basic technique mastered at some
unknown time in the Old Stone Age. The discovery that fire
could be tamed and controlled and the further discovery that
a fire could be generated by persistent friction between two
dry wooden surfaces were momentous. Fire was the most
important contribution of prehistory to power technology,
although little power was obtained directly from fire except
as defense against wild animals. For the most part, prehistoric
communities remained completely dependent upon
manpower, but, in making the transition to a more settled
pattern of life in the New Stone Age, they began to derive
some power from animals that had been domesticated. It also
seems likely that by the end of prehistoric times the sail had
emerged as a means of harnessing the wind for small boats,
beginning a long sequence of developments in marine
transport.
 The control of fire by early humans was a critical technology
enabling the evolution of humans. Fire provided a source of
warmth and lighting, protection from predators (especially at
night), a way to create more advanced hunting tools, and a
method for cooking food. These cultural advances allowed
human geographic dispersal, cultural innovations, and changes to
diet and behavior. Additionally, creating fire allowed human
activity to continue into the dark and colder hours of the evening.
 The deep importance of fire, and the longstanding nature of
human interactions with it in the past, are both beyond doubt.
The vanishing act of early fire ensures that it remains difficult to
investigate, so that widely varying views remain both about its
first take-up and subsequent use, but recen-tly a changed
perception has emerged. First, there is an increasing recognition
of a need to move beyond simple‘presence/absence’ judgements
about archaeological hearthsas an index for the ‘when’ of human
fire use.
Regular human–fire interactions could long
precede fixed hearts in settlements. Second, an
understanding is emerging that fire use is not a
single technology or process, but that several
scales of use, and probably several intensifying
technologies, evolved over a long period,
intertwined, and sometimes eventually became
bound together.
2. TOOLS
The basic tools of prehistoric peoples were determined by the materials at their
disposal. But once they had acquired the techniques of working stone, they
were resourceful in devising tools and weapons with points and barbs. Thus, the
stone-headed spear, the harpoon, and the arrow all came into widespread use.
The spear was given increased impetus by the spear-thrower, a notched pole
that gave a sling effect. The bow and arrow were an even more effective
combination, the use of which is clearly demonstrated in the earliest
“documentary” evidence in the history of technology, the cave paintings of
southern France and northern Spain, which depict the bow being used in
hunting. The ingenuity of these hunters is also shown in their slings, throwing-
sticks (the boomerang of Australian Aboriginal people is a remarkable surviving
example), blowguns, bird snares, fish and animal traps, and nets. These tools
did not evolve uniformly, as each community developed only those instruments
that were most suitable for its own specialized purposes, but all were in use by
the end of the Stone Age.
 Inaddition, the Neolithic Revolution had contributed
some important new tools that were not primarily
concerned with hunting. These were the first
mechanical applications of rotary action in the shape of
the potter’s wheel, the bow drill, the pole lathe, and the
wheel itself. It is not possible to be sure when these
significant devices were invented, but their presence in
the early urban civilizations suggestssome continuity
 with the late Neolithic Period. The potter’s wheel,
driven by kicks from the operator, and the wheels of
early vehicles both gave continuous rotary movement
in one direction. The drill and the lathe, on the other
hand, were derived from the bow and had the effect of
spinning the drill piece or the workpiece first in one
direction and then in the other.
Developments in food production brought further refinements in tools.
The processes of food production in Paleolithic times were simple,
consisting of gathering, hunting, and fishing. If these methods proved 
inadequate to sustain a community, it moved to better hunting grounds or
perished. With the onset of the Neolithic Revolution, new food-producing
skills were devised to serve the needs of agriculture and animal
husbandry. Digging sticks and the first crude plows, stone sickles, querns
that ground grain by friction between two stones and, most complicated
of all, irrigation techniques for keeping the ground watered and fertile—
all these became well established in the great subtropical river valleys of
Egypt and Mesopotamia in the millennia before 3000 BCE.
EVOLUTION OF HAND TOOLS

Between a stone knife and a modern saw there are many

differences; a trivial difference is their production time gap,
thousands of years, and absolutely there are deep technological
differences. But both objects basically serve the same purpose,
and the saw cannot exist without the prior existence of the other.
Both are examples, distant in time, of hand tools which man has
devised as an extension and improvement of the basic ones.
In principle, historians consider “hand tools” as those utensils that
require the human force for their operation, and only this. At the other
end of this spectrum, “power tools” refer to those tools that use a
source of energy other than human force; either hydraulic, pneumatic,
electrical, or even the energy produced by a combustion engine.

The date of creation of the first hand tool is much more uncertain, since
it is lost in the mists of time: at some point in the Neolithic age, when
someone thought of using a heavy stone to sharpen and shape, a flint
stone, the mallet was born; the basic hand tool, which uses the most
primary mechanism: the vertical force.
Tools based on vertical force are called tools of the first
family. The mace (a wooden block or a stone applied to the
end of a handle) and the nail are the oldest representatives of
this first family, from which, by evolution, we come to the
different types of hammer. The application of mechanical
energy represents the next evolutionary leap: pneumatic tools,
such as the pneumatic hammer.
Then come the tools of the second family, whose most arcane
representatives are the awl and the needle. They are the cutting
tools. The awl and needle evolved into the knife, which
evolved into cutting weapons (swords, daggers, foils, etc.). In
the more specific field of tools, the knife is the genesis of
scissors (a combination of two knives), and applying teeth to
the edge which increased its penetration capacity in cutting,
helped to create first saws.
HANDTOOLS
 The third family is lever tools. The lever is one of the most
simple tools, and its origin also dates back to prehistoric times
but its daily use, in the form of a crankshaft, has been
documented since the third millennium BC, on cylindrical
seals found in Mesopotamia, although the oldest surviving text
which the lever is found within ‘The Synagogue’ or
‘Mathematical Collection’, an eight-volume work written by
Pappus of Alexandria around the year 340BC .Archimedes was
also the inventor of the screw. Archimedes’ definition of the
lever was very precise and is still valid: a mechanism that its
function is to transmit a force with a displacement, composed
of a rigid bar that can rotate freely around a fulcrum. It can be
used to amplify the mechanical force that is applied to an
object, to increase its speed or the distance traveled, with a
proportion to the applied force.
 Among the lever tools, a breakthrough is the shovel, with a handle and
a concave blade to pierce the ground, with an edge to exert pressure
from the foot. The shovel was a great advance for the performance of
agricultural tasks, and from it derive the rake, the hoe and even the
plow. The pliers also belong to this family, as does the wrench. Some
of the hand tools can be inscribed in more than one family: this is the
case of the ax (from which the shear evolves), whose action is based
simultaneously on the vertical force, like the tools of the first family,
and also based on cutting, like those of the second.

 
 The man later discovered the rotational movement of a body around
an axis, which gave rise to the tools of the fourth family: the roller, the
wheel and, later, the gears and pulleys. The earliest known rotating
tools are chariot wheels found in tombs at Ur, in Mesopotamia,
around 2900 years BC. Nowadays, rotation is an essential element in
the operation of a multitude of power tools and a hand tools of all
families, (electric drills, circular saws, etc).
THE FIRST POWER TOOLS
Power tools are tools that work with an electric drive. The
invention of power tools has pushed the tool development a lot,
because with power tools, then and now, a lot of work could be
done in the first place, or at least faster and more efficiently. It is
not surprising that some believe the first power tool was made
in ancient Egypt, but the first modern power tools were
developed in the second half of the 19th century. During this
time the first workshops for electrical machines and the general
electricity company were founded. From then on, rapid tool
development took its course.
 It was after invention of the electricity that potential of new
power source for driving tools led to a transformation in tools
industry. Just 16 years after the invention of electricity, first
power tool fabricated. The first modern power tool was a
combination of an electrical motor and a hand drill; the result
was a heavy 7.5kg drill. German company C&E Fein, the
inventor of first power tool, developed first version of its drill
in 1989. The bulky drill required multiple operators and was so
slow. Although this power drill was a cumbersome and
difficult-to-use drill, it kept its superiority for the next 20 years
until 1910. In this year, Duncan Black and Alonzo Decker,
improved the Fein drill with using an automatic pistol. Their
pistol-grip trigger-switch power drill was easy-to-use and much
lighter than C&E Fein version. These superiorities helped them
to take over the market for a seemingly long period of time.
 New developments made power tools lighter and more
efficient in the next years. But the improvements were not just
in these aspects, power tools also changed from the safety
point of view a lot. Before the thirties, power tools were cased
in metal housings. This metal housing often led to injuries and
electrical shocking during work. After using different materials
and so many trial and errors, it was Bosch that offered the first
plastic body power drill in 1957. However, again it was Black
& Decker that fabricated the first cordless power tool in 1961.
Since that time, a lot of inventions and novelties have done, but
mostly all of those improvements are related to power to
weight ratio and safety issues. You can get more information
about history of power tools referring the article: “power tools
invention history”
THE FIRST PNEUMATIC TOOLS

The term pneumatics has something to do with

compressed air. The term pneumatics comes from the
Greek pneuma which means breath. The first pneumatic
tools date back to 2,500 BC. through the use of blowing
springs. The first mechanical compressor, the manual
bellows, was invented around the middle of the third
millennium BC and the standing bellows was not used
until 1,500 years BC. This happened when the smelting
of the Copper and Tin (Bronze) alloy became a stable
production process, as recorded in some Egyptian
tombs.
 
 Greek mathematician and inventor Ktesibios (285 BC– 222
BC), was the first one who dealt with pneumatics and its study.
More than two thousand years ago, he built a compressed air
catapult, based on a pneumatic cannon that, manually
reassembled, compressed air in the cylinders. When firing, the
expansion restored the stored energy, thus increasing its range.
All of the great historians wrote about him but, sadly, all his
works have been lost.
   As one of the major applications of this power source, the
wind (Eolic energy) was transformed into mechanical energy
through windmills allowing various actions such as grinding.
On the other hand, perhaps sailing was the oldest form of using
this type of energy. From the seventeenth century, the
systematic study of gases began, and this led to the
technological developments in different applications of
compressed air.
TODAY’S TOOLS

 Today there are myriad types of tools and they do not

stop evolving. While some classics such as pliers,
screwdrivers and hammers are tried and tested and only
improved in detail, there are many new devices,
especially in the field of power tools, whose technology
is impressive. The engine performance and the various
functions as well as the user-friendliness of these devices
are improved from time to time. While many traditional
brands that were active in the early days of power tools
have remained in the market to this day and continue to
offer high-quality tools, new companies like RONIX try to
expand technologies and find new solutions. In any case,
the history of tools is not yet finished.
 
 Today, the evolution of hand tools mostly has to do with the
improvement of their driving force, less and less dependent on
human power and increasingly on mechanical forces. Also,
there are other forms of power sources in which electrical
energy stands out as the most used, although not the only one
(for example some types of saws and cutting tools, still use
mostly the energy produced by an internal combustion
engine). The current evolution of tools is in the direction of
being more technologic, as well as more autonomy and
independence to its energy sources (the appearance of
lithium-ion batteries, with more power and longer service life,
has been a giant step in this regard). But what does not change
is the basics: the tools continue to be, and will for sure.
 The latest technologies have made it possible to abandon
cables while maintaining the comfort, low weight and
usefulness of the devices. The novelty in the power tool market
has to do with the diversification of cordless tools. This has
been driven by the improvement of lithium batteries, which
allow larger tools to have a cordless version, thus facilitating
their transfer and maneuverability. The competition in
developing products and making new tools continues, and
Ronix as one of the top companies in the tool market tries to
offer the best.
3. TRANSPORT
Transport, again, followed earlier precedents, the sailing ship emerging as a
seagoing vessel with a carvel-built hull (that is, with planks meeting edge-to-
edge rather than overlapping as in clinker-built designs), and a fully
developed keel with stempost and sternpost. The Greek sailing ship was
equipped with a square or rectangular sail to receive a following wind and
one or more banks of oarsmen to propel the ship when the wind was
contrary. The Greeks began to develop a specialized fighting ship, provided
with a ram in the prow, and the cargo ship, dispensing with oarsmen and
relying entirely upon the wind, was also well established by the early years
of Classical Greece. The Romans took over both forms, but without
significant innovation. They gave much more attention to inland transport
than to the sea, and they constructed a remarkable network of carefully
aligned and well-laid roads, often paved over long stretches, throughout the
provinces of the empire. Along these strategic highways the legions marched
rapidly to the site of any crisis at which their presence was required. The
roads also served for the development of trade, but their primary function
was always military, as a vital means of keeping a vast empire in subjection.
TRANSPORT IN MEDIEVAL PERIOD
 Medieval technology made few contributions to inland
transport, though there was some experimentation in bridge
building and in the construction of canals; lock gates were
developed as early as 1180, when they were employed on the
canal between Brugge (now in Belgium) and the sea. Roads
remained indifferent where they existed at all, and vehicles
were clumsy throughout the period. Wayfarers like Chaucer’s
pilgrims traveled on horseback, and this was to remain the
best mode of inland transport for centuries to come.
The vital steps in this evolution were, first, the combination of the
traditional square sail, used with little modification from Egyptian times
through the Roman Empire to the Viking long boats, with the triangular 
lateen sail developed in the Arab dhow and adopted in the Mediterranean,
which gave it the “lateen” (Latin) association attributed to it by the
northern seafarers. This combination allowed ships so equipped to sail
close to the wind. Second, the adoption of the sternpost rudder gave
greatly increased maneuverability, allowing ships to take full advantage of
their improved sail power in tacking into a contrary wind. Third, the
introduction of the magnetic compass provided a means of checking
navigation on the open seas in any weather. The convergence of these
improvements in the ships of the later Middle Ages, together with other
improvements in construction and equipment—such as better barrels for
carrying water, more reliable ropes, sails, and anchors, the availability of
navigational charts (first recorded in use on board ship in 1270), and the
astrolabe (for measuring the angle of the Sun or a star above the horizon)
—lent confidence to adventurous mariners and thus led directly to the 
voyages of discovery that marked the end of the Middle Ages and the
beginning of the expansion of Europe that has characterized modern
times.
4. COMMUNICATION
 While transport technology was evolving toward these
revolutionary developments, techniques of recording
and communication were making no less momentous
advances. The medieval interest in mechanical
contrivances is well illustrated by the development of
the mechanical clock, the oldest of which, driven by
weights and controlled by a verge, an oscillating arm
engaging with a gear wheel, and dated 1386, survives in
Salisbury Cathedral, England.
 Even more significant than the invention of the mechanical clock
was the 15th-century invention of printing with 
movable metal type.  Johannes Gutenberg, was producing a
sufficient quantity of accurate type to print a Vulgate Bible about
1455. It is clear, however, that this invention drew heavily upon
long previous experience with block printing—using a single block
to print a design or picture—and on developments in typecasting
and ink making. It also made heavy demands on the paper
industry, which had been established in Europe since the 12th
century but had developed slowly until the invention of printing
and the subsequent vogue for the printed word. The printing press
 itself, vital for securing a firm and even print over the whole page,
was an adaptation of the screw press already familiar in the
winepress and other applications. The printers found an enormous
demand for their product, so that the technique spread rapidly
and the printed word became an essential medium of political,
social, religious, and scientific communication as well as a
convenient means for the dissemination of news and information.
5. CLOTHING
 It is not certain when people first started wearing clothes,
however, anthropologists estimate that it was somewhere
between 100,000 and 500,000 years ago. The first clothes were
made from natural elements: animal skin, fur, grass, leaves,
bone, and shells. Garments were often draped or tied; however,
simple needles made out of animal bone provide evidence of
sewn leather and fur garments from at least 30,000 years ago.
When settled neolithic cultures discovered the advantages
of woven fibers over animal hides, the making of cloth,
drawing on basketry techniques, emerged as one of
humankind's fundamental technologies. Hand and hand
with the history of clothing goes the history of textiles.
Humans had to invent weaving, spinning, tools, and the
other techniques needed to be able to make the fabrics
 used for clothing.
Some human cultures, such as the various peoples of the
Arctic Circle, traditionally make their clothing entirely of
prepared and decorated furs and skins. Other cultures
supplemented or replaced leather and skins with cloth:
woven, knitted, or twined from various animal and
vegetable fibers including wool, linen, cotton, silk, hemp,
and ramie.
 
 Although modern consumers may take the production of
clothing for granted, making fabric by hand is a tedious and
labor-intensive process involving fiber making, spinning, and
weaving. The textile industry was the first to be mechanized –
with the powered loom – during the Industrial Revolution.
 
 Different cultures have evolved various ways of creating
clothes out of cloth. One approach simply involves draping the
cloth. Many people wore, and still wear, garments consisting
of rectangles of cloth wrapped to fit – for example, the dhoti
for men and the sari for women in the Indian subcontinent,
the Scottish kilt, and the Javanese sarong. The clothes may
simply be tied up (dhoti and sari) or implement pins or belts to
hold the garments in place (kilt and sarong). The cloth remains
uncut, and people of various sizes can wear the garment.
 Another approach involves measuring, cutting, and sewing the
cloth by hand or with a sewing machine. Clothing can be cut
from a sewing pattern and adjusted by a tailor to the wearer's
measurements. An adjustable sewing mannequin or dress
form is used to create form-fitting clothing. If the fabric is
expensive, the tailor tries to use every bit of the cloth
rectangle in constructing the clothing; perhaps cutting
triangular pieces from one corner of the cloth, and adding
them elsewhere as gussets. Traditional European patterns for
shirts and chemises take this approach. These remnants can
also be reused to make patchwork pockets, hats, vests, and
skirts.
 In the thousands of years that humans have been making
clothing, they have created an astonishing array of styles,
many of which have been reconstructed from surviving
garments, photographs, paintings, mosaics, etc., as well as
from written descriptions. Costume history can inspire current
fashion designers, as well as costumiers for plays, films,
television, and historical reenactment.
 QUESTION TWO

DISCUSS THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 IN REGARDS TO THE HOME

AND TECHNOLOGY.
A. TECHNOLOGY
 The COVID-19 pandemic altered our world in many ways
including the acceleration of digital transformation. Here we
discuss the five technology megatrends of our times and how
their adoption was accelerated by the reality of trying to
sustain business as well as live and cope in a COVID-19-
impacted world.
 While many were juggling at-home schooling of children and
professional responsibilities amid stay-at-home orders because
of COVID-19, the digital transformation accelerated. Here are
five of the biggest technology trends of our times and how the
coronavirus pandemic accelerated their adoption. This
acceleration changed how businesses operate and compete as
they emerge out of the pandemic in the following ways:
 1. Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Even before COVID, artificial intelligence helped organizations
engage with customers and automate and enhance business
processes. We have more data than ever before and AI allows us
to make sense of the data faster. During the COVID pandemic,
when time was of the essence, AI helped public health officials
predict infection rates as well as ICU demand and capacity.
As we start to emerge from lockdown, AI is helping companies
understand economic trends, as well as their competitors and
customers.
2. Robotics, Drones and Vehicle Automation
 The next mega trend that accelerated during COVID-19 is the use of
robotics, drones and vehicle automation. Of course, AI is a massive
enabler to these technologies. To ensure compliance with social
distancing, China used drones to monitor its population. If a violator was
spotted, Spot would approach and play a recorded message to remind
them of the mandates for social distancing and large groups.
 Another way robots, drones and vehicle automation were put to use is to
ensure resiliency of the supply chain. During COVID, many companies
experienced disruptions to their supply chains. In order to avoid that
situation in the future in the event of future pandemics, they are
beginning to explore how to minimize human involvement in the supply
chain where possible. As a result, the use of robots for deliveries and
automating trucks and ships throughout supply chains is being tested.
 
 In healthcare, robots have been used to deliver medicine, complete
patient intake and even for surgery. Mako robotic systems have been
used to complete more than 300,000 hip and knee replacement
surgeries.
3. The As-a-Service and Cloud Revolution
One of the ways that makes companies adaptable to market
conditions is the ability to dial up or down their services through
as-a-service platforms and through the cloud. We now have as-a-
service solutions for artificial intelligence, robotics, machine
learning and other technologies.
 For example, during COVID, Zoom saw very high demand for
its service as people were working remotely but still needed to
conduct business. Zoom was able to accommodate this huge
spike in demand because they scaled up with their cloud
provider. Cloud gives you the ability to scale up and down as
necessary.
 Today it’s possible to lease robotic devices for a number of
different uses including for security, warehouse picking and
assembly lines through robotics-as-a-service providers such as
Google, Amazon and Honda.
 4. Faster Networks and 5G
While we were forced to work from home during the pandemic,
many companies realized positive outcomes and even after
COVID-19 is behind us we’ll still need stable wireless networking.
The number of devices needing to be connected wirelessly will
continue to grow as will the varied streams of data. The fifth
generation of the internet, 5G will transform things and it will be
so much faster than 4G.
 5. Extended Reality (Augmented, Virtual and Mixed Reality)
 When shops weren’t open due to COVID-19, those that had
virtual reality were able to sustain better during the pandemic
than those who didn’t. There are many ways extended reality
including augmented, virtual and mixed reality help enhance
the customer experience.
 
 In education, extended reality can make a powerful impact
and make lessons more engaging. As an example, students can
feel immersed in a history lesson or feel like they are walking
down the streets of Ancient Rome or in another person’s
shoes.
THE HOME

Positive impacts of Covid-19 to the home. They are as follows:

 More utilisation of the internet for sharing ideas, new knowledge, filtering
knowledge gaps, news messages, etc. This may open up more avenues to reduce the
stress level of the people.
 People learnt about social distancing and its rules, conditions and procedures.
Especially, how painful it is but useful within the family and the community. Also,
they adapt themselves to the situation whilst contemplating the difference between
a normal situation and a pandemic situation.
 As a result of social integration, families and communities engage in a high level of
social cohesion or social conscience to face the difficult situation. Hence, everyone is
getting used to a common lifestyle, sharing and caring for others, especially the
elderly people.
 The death of an elderly or chronically ill person results in a reorganization or reunion
of the family unit. Though it is not an easy task to bear the psycho-social factors,
finally they come to certain common conclusions.
 More utilization of the internet for sharing ideas, new knowledge, filtering
knowledge gaps, news messages, etc. This may open up more avenues to reduce the
stress level of the people.
The negative impacts of covid -19 towards the home are as follows:
 The pandemic situation has spread as a global pandemic disease
which is creating fear, stress, stigma, minimizing social networks, etc.
 High rate of deaths due to various illnesses or complications of
diseases occurring amongst the patients, especially the elderly who
are affected by COVID-19.
 Dismantling the family relationship and intimate relationships with
relatives, neighbors, various communities, etc. These conditions may
lead to interpersonal conflicts and domestic violence in the family.
 Losing the knowledge, experience, and services of the elderly would
mean that the next generation would not be able to share them for
their betterment.
 Downward trends of family economic conditions and several lower
hierarchy social classes facing unbearable economic hardships due to
lack of daily or monthly earnings. Though there are market
accessibility and supply chain network even under the limitation of
social mobility, they do not possess the purchasing power.
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