technology

technology

Application of knowledge to the practical aims of human life or to changing and manipulating the human environment. Technology includes the use of materials, tools, techniques, and sources of power to make life easier or more pleasant and work more productive. Whereas science is concerned with how and why things happen, technology focuses on making things happen. Technology began to influence human endeavour as soon as people began using tools. It accelerated with the Industrial Revolution and the substitution of machines for animal and human labour. Accelerated technological development has also had costs, in terms of air and water pollution and other undesirable environmental effects.

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Applying a systematic technique, method or approach to solve a problem. Much of today's technology implies the use of computers. See high tech.

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(jargon)

technology - Marketroid jargon for "software", "hardware", "protocol" or something else too technical to name. The most flagrant abuse of this word has to be "Windows NT" (New Technology) - Microsoft's attempt to make the incorporation of some ancient concepts into their OS sound like real progress. The irony, and even the meaning, of this seems to be utterly lost on Microsoft whose Windows 2000 start-up screen proclaims "Based on NT Technology", (meaning yet another version of NT, including some Windows 95 features at last). See also: solution.