The Technology Zone Most of the things people use every day are technology. Examples of technology include pencils, bikes, light bulbs, clothes, cooking food Technology doesn t have to be complex or require electricity. But, technology must meet a human need.
The Technology Zone
The Technology Zone The way people meet needs changes with time. In pioneer days, food was prepared in a fireplace, so heavy pans were needed. Today, people can use plastic dishes to cook in microwave ovens. The need to prepare food hasn t changed, but the way people prepare food has.
The Technology Zone
The Technology Zone What needs do these technologies meet?
The Technology Zone
The Technology Zone
Meeting People s Needs Technology changes over time in response to people s needs. In the 1800s, long-distance communication could take weeks or months. The need for reliable communication increased as people moved west. As needs increase, new technologies develop faster.
Meeting People s Needs Through the 1800s, delivering a message cross-country went from taking 25 days via stagecoach, to one week via railroad, to minutes via telegraph.
Meeting People s Needs In 1915, cross-country telephone service began. Eighty years later, the first smart phone was developed.
Meeting People s Needs Stage coach 25 days 1858 Telegraph minutes 1881 Smart Phones 1993 1869 Railroads A week 1915 Telephone
Meeting People s Needs
Technology Risks and Benefits No matter what the technology, there are both risks and benefits. For example, cars allow personal freedom by letting you go almost anywhere and carry heavy items that you could not move on your own. However, cars use gasoline that is made from oil, a limited resource. They also cause air pollution and can be dangerous if not driven properly.
Technology Risks and Benefits
Meeting People s Needs
Technology Risks and Benefits
Technology Risks and Benefits Technology can have positive and negative effects. Positive effects, or benefits, are ways that technology fills a need. Negative effects are risks. This might include constant changes to technology or technology s negative impact on the environment.
Technology Risks and Benefits
Living Technology Engineered devices are sometimes used on living things. This connects engineering and biology. Engineers who work with living things are called bioengineers. The practice of applying the engineering design process to living things is called bioengineering.
Living Technology Bioengineering can design tools that prevent pollution, engineer plants to grow faster, or design scanners to look inside the body. Bioengineering can benefit the environment, health, and nutrition. Any product used to benefit organisms or their environment is an example of biotechnology.
Living Technology
Living Technology Some bioengineers design devices, such as artificial legs, skin, and hearts, that replace human body parts. These artificial body parts do the same jobs as the human body parts they replace.
Living Technology