Introduction
Science and technology have historically shaped humanity in various dimensions. Research from the American Historical Association reveals that history, science, and technology have played an integral part in society for centuries. This can be revealed from the establishment of Neolithic farming, techniques for food storage, and technological development in weaving, printing, and electronics.
Technology has played a key role in the development of such inventions as gunpowder in the 13th century, printing development in the 15th century, steam engine invention in the 18th century, and development of various factories in the 19th Century and the latest development of nuclear power in the 20th Century. There is elaborate evidence that various choices have been made amongst competing techniques for the purpose of achieving desirable results (Long and Robert, 2013).
Meaning of science and technology
Impact of new and emerging technologies on IT and its applications is evident in various professional fields. The Third Wave observes that only three fundamental changes have taken place in society in the history of humankind: the agricultural revolution, the industrial revolution, and the information and technology revolution (Long and Robert, 2013). According to Long and Robert (2013), these profound social changes redefined the nature of civilization, including where and how we live and work, family structure, how we value education and health and even the validity of well-established scientific theories. By definition, advancement in technology has been identified to include advances in hardware and software production as well as new display technologies. These advances further incorporate software and systems ranging from social network applications and declarative interface languages. Such new technologies also have profound effects on learning modes, content creation as well as educational philosophies.
Scholarly specialists consent based on social construction and argue on the fact that success or failure of technologies depends largely on the nature of political strategies employed. Various technological designs are as a result of ambient social and cultural factors, which ultimately contribute towards shaping of society and culture. Technology has had an established relationship to labor, economics, political structure as well as organizational production processes (UNESCO, 1998). Additionally, technology plays a role in differentiating social status and construction of gender as well as influences future choices. Various problems the humankind is currently facing can be solved through holistic approach to science and technology, in which case the impact of technological interventions on individual groups, communities as well as environment should be carefully considered (Long and Robert, 2013).
Science and technology are also shaped by globalization where there is growing demand for interconnectedness within biophysical systems, as well as improved communications through the internet. Application of new technology in mobile phones has created the possibility of using Just-in-Time services for instance, learning services, where students obtain accurate information regarding specific tasks (Kruk and Grzonkowski, 2006). Presence of small screens provides interface and keyboard which are difficult to work with. Such technological adjustments have created a possibility of using eLearning services with greater expectations (CataliZorzini, 2013). Consequently, emergence of new technology has led to creation of new software which is capable of handling rapidly growing hardware technologies. Such improvements have enabled application of new technologies for the purposes of content management and deliveries (Kruk and Grzonkowski, 2006).
Conclusion
Influence of science on people’s lives is eminent with the current wholesale use of digital computer technology. The trend in privatization as applied in many countries may undermine public sector science which is involved in fundamental research and solutions to non-commercial enterprises. Other concerns are on social implications of private ownership and control of technology and there are ultimate implications on public scientific literacy and choices (Kruk and Davis, 2006).
References
Kruk, D., & Grzonkowski, G. (2006). Social Semantic Collaborative Filtering for Digital Libraries. Journal on Digital Information, 2.
Kruk, S., & Davis, M. (2006). Search Interface Based on Natural Language Query Templates. IADIS International Conference.
Long, P., & Robert, C. (2013). Society for the History of Technology. Web.
UNESCO (1998). The Role of Science and Technology in Society and Governance: Toward a New Contract between Science and Society. Report of the North American Meeting held in advance of the World Conference on Science. Web.
Zorzini, C. (2013). Technology’s impact on society in today’s generations. Inspired Mag. Web.