Technology is the result of accumulated knowledge and the application of skills, methods, and processes used in industrial production and scientific research. Technology is embedded in the operation of all machines and electronic devices, with or without detailed knowledge of their function, for the intended purpose of an organization.

The technologies of society consist of what is known as systems. Systems operate by obtaining an input, altering this input through what is known as a process, and then producing an outcome that achieves the intended purpose of the system.

The earliest and simplest form of technology is the development of knowledge that leads to the application of basic tools.

The prehistoric invention of shaped stone tools and the discovery of how to control fire increased the sources of food that were available to human beings.

The invention of the wheel led to the traveling technologies that helped humans to further increase the yield of food production, travel in less time, and exchange information and raw materials faster.

Humanity then progressed to the development of the printing press, the telephone, the computer, and then the Internet.

While innovations have always influenced the values of a society and have raised new questions in the ethics of technology, the advancement of technology itself has also led to the pursuit of new solutions for the previously discussed concerns of technological advancement.

For example, upcoming technology involves renewable resources being used in transportation, allowing humans to travel in space, for the technology itself to become more affordable and reliable, and for increased automation.

  Etymology

     The term "technology" rose to prominence in the 20th century in connection with the Second Industrial Revolution.

      The term's meaning changed in the early 20th century when American social scientists, beginning with Thorsten Veblen, translated ideas from the German concept of Technic into "technology." In German and other European languages, a distinction exists between Technic and Technologize that is absent in English, which usually translates both terms as "technology." By the 1930s, "technology" referred not only to the study of the industrial arts, but to the industrial arts themselves.

  Philosophy

      Technician

          Generally, the technician is the belief in the utility of technology for improving human societies. Taken to an extreme, technician "reflects a fundamental attitude which seeks to control reality, to resolve all problems with the use of scientific-technological methods and tools.

      Optimism

         Optimistic assumptions are made by proponents of ideologies such as transhumanism and singularly, which view technological development as generally having beneficial effects on society and the human condition. In these ideologies, technological development is morally good.

          Transhumanists generally believe that the point of technology is to overcome barriers, and that what we commonly refer to as the human condition is just another barrier to be surpassed.

       Skepticism and critics

           On the somewhat skeptical side are certain philosophers like Herbert Marcuse and John, Zoran,  who believe that technological societies are inherently flawed. They suggest that the inevitable result of such a society is to become evermore technological at the cost of freedom and psychological health.

        Many, such as the Luddites and prominent philosopher Martin Heidegger, hold serious, although not entirely, deterministic reservations about technology (see "The Question Concerning Technology"^[46]). According to Heidegger scholars Hubert Dreyfus and Charles Spinoza, "Heidegger does not oppose technology. 

     Appropriate technology

        The notion of appropriate technology was developed in the 20th century by thinkers such as E.F. Schumacher and Jacques Elul to describe situations where it was not desirable to use very new technologies or those that required access to some centralized infrastructure or parts or skills imported from elsewhere. The village movement emerged in part due to this concern.

      Optimism and skepticism in the 21st century

         Therefore, according to Bernstein, instead of focusing on technology and its hypothetical influences on current American increasing unemployment and declining wages, one needs to worry more about bad policy that fails to offset the imbalances in demand, trade, income, and opportunity.

     Complex technological systems

        Technology is often considered too narrowly, according to Hughes, "Technology is a creative process involving human ingenuity".  This definition's emphasis on creativity avoids unbounded definitions that may mistakenly include cooking "technologies," but it also highlights the prominent role of humans and therefore their responsibilities for the use of complex technological systems.

 Science, engineering, and technology

   The distinction between science, engineering, and technology is not always clear. Science is systematic knowledge of the physical or material world gained through observation and experimentation.  Technologies are not usually exclusively products of science, because they have to satisfy requirements such as utility, usability, and safety.

Future technology

    Theories of technology often attempt to predict the future of technology based on the high technology and science of the time. As with all predictions of the future, however, technology is uncertain.

      In 2005, futurist Ray Kurzweil predicted that the future of technology would mainly consist of an overlapping "GNR Revolution" of genetics, nanotechnology, and robotics, with robotics being the most important of the three. This future revolution has been explored in films, novels, and video games, which have predicted the creation of many inventions, as well as foreseeing future events.

      Such inventions and events include a government-controlled simulation that resulted from massive robotics advancements (The Matrix), a society that has rid itself of procreation due to improvements in genetic engineering (Brave New World), and a police state enforced by the government using data mining, nanobots, and drones (Watch Dogs).

    Humans have already made some of the first steps toward achieving the GNR revolution.