1. Education
In many ways, technology has profoundly changed education. For one, technology has greatly expanded access to education. In medieval times, books were rare and only an elite few had access to educational opportunities. Individuals had to travel to centers of learning to get an education. Today, massive amounts of information (books, audio, images, videos) are available at one’s fingertips through the Internet, and opportunities for formal learning are available online worldwide through the Khan Academy, MOOC, podcasts, traditional online degree programs, and more. Access to learning opportunities today is unprecedented in scope thanks to technology.
Opportunities for communication and collaboration have also been expanded by technology. Traditionally, classrooms have been relatively isolated, and collaboration has been limited to other students in the same classroom or building. Today, technology enables forms of communication and collaboration undreamed of in the past. Students in a classroom in the rural U.S., for example, can learn about the Arctic by following the expedition of a team of scientists in the region, read scientists’ blog posting, view photos, e-mail questions to the scientists, and even talk live with the scientists via a videoconference. Students can share what they are learning with students in other classrooms in other states who are tracking the same expedition. Students can collaborate on group projects using technology-based tools such as wikis and Google Docs. The walls of the classrooms are no longer a barrier as technology enables new ways of learning, communicating, and working collaboratively.
2. Robotics and automation
Robotics is a field of engineering that deal with design and application of robots and the use of computer for their manipulation and processing. Robots are used in industries for speeding up the manufacturing process. They are also used in the field of nuclear science, sea-exploration, servicing of transmission electric signals, designing of biomedical equipments etc. Robotics requires the application of computer integrated manufacturing, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, biological mechanics, software engineering.
Automation and Robotics Engineering is the use of control systems and information technologies to reduce the need for human work in the production of goods and services. In the scope of industrialization, automation is a step beyond mechanization.
3. Communication
For as long as humans have been on this planet, we’ve invented forms of communication—from smoke signals and messenger pigeons to the telephone and email—that have constantly evolved how we interact with each other.
One of the biggest developments in communication came in 1831 when the electric telegraph was invented. While post existed as a form of communication before this date, it was electrical engineering in the 19th century which had a revolutionary impact.
Now, digital methods have superseded almost all other forms of communication, especially in business. I can’t remember the last time I handwrote a letter, rather than an email at work, even my signature is digital these days. Picking up the phone is a rare occurrence too—instead, I FaceTime, Zoom, or join a Google Hangout.
4. Healthcare
Many innovative leaps in health technology have been made in the centuries people have been practicing medicine, yet few have had as much widespread influence or impact as digital technology. Dramatic improvements in networking and computers have not only expanded options for medical treatments, but have also transformed how clinicians perform their jobs.
Although forward thinkers started discussing the possibility of using computers in medicine as early as the 1960s, computers were initially too expensive and unreliable for medical practices to rely on. As technology improved and costs came down, policies and data standards were created to encourage healthcare organizations to adopt new technology not just for medical equipment, like diagnostic imaging machines, but also for everyday record keeping. Paper medical records were digitized and mostly replaced with electronic health records (EHR) that help make it easier for health data like test results or diagnoses to be accessed efficiently and securely.
5. Transportation
The transportation systems around which the modern world has been built are on the verge of a significant transformation. Intelligent transportation systems (ITS) are making driving and traffic management better and safer for everyone.
New transportation technologies are emerging to meet these challenges, including connected and autonomous vehicles, alternative fuels, keyless fleet management and traffic analytics, as well as local zoning and planning policies that support transit-oriented development. New technology for on-road communications will dramatically change how vehicles operate and provide information and capabilities for better, real-time traffic management — if the necessary network infrastructure is in place.
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