Technology

From AnthroWiki
Revision as of 13:29, 27 August 2021 by Odyssee (talk | contribs) (Created page with "thumb|300px|Animation of a [[w:steam engine| with w:centrifugal governor in action.]] File:Powerloom weaving in 1835.jpg|thumb|300px...")
(diff) ← Older revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)
Animation of a steam engine with centrifugal governor in action.
A Roberts loom in a weaving shed in 1835. Textiles were the leading industry of the Industrial Revolution, and mechanized factories, powered by a central water wheel or steam engine, were the new workplace.

Technology ("the teaching or science of craft", from Greekτέχνη téchne "skill, artistry, craft" and -λογία -logia "teaching, learning, reason") in its broadest sense encompasses all the techniques, processes, methods, skills and theoretical knowledge to transform nature for a purpose by producing artistic, craft or industrial products, or to perform services in order to satisfy material as well as cultural needs. Moreover modern technology can be embedded in machines to allow for more or less autonomous operation without detailed knowledge of their workings.

Technology that is state of the art and uses the most modern processes is called high technology, cutting-edge technology or high tech for short. The philosophy of technology deals with the philosophical and the ethics of technology specifically with the ethical implications of technology and its relationship to man and the world or nature.

The history of technology is closely interwoven with human history. From the very beginning, technology was an essential and necessary part of being human, but for a long time it was limited to the narrowest needs. Technology experienced a first significant upswing with the first advanced civilisations of the Egyptian-Chaldean period, when humanity began to develop the sentient soul. A further advance was achieved in the Greco-Latin period. However, the great, almost explosive breakthrough of technology came only with our present consciousness-soul age, especially with the Industrial Revolution that began in the late 18th century and intensified from the middle of the 19th century. Technology itself became an essential and necessary driving force for the further development of the consciousness soul. Associated with this were far-reaching effects on the natural and social environment. In order to assess the risks to humans and the earth associated with rapid technological progress, the research field of technology assessment (TA) emerged in the USA in the 1960s and increasingly spread to Europe from the 1970s onwards.

Literature

References to the work of Rudolf Steiner follow Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works (CW or GA), Rudolf Steiner Verlag, Dornach/Switzerland, unless otherwise stated.
Email: verlag@steinerverlag.com URL: www.steinerverlag.com.
Index to the Complete Works of Rudolf Steiner - Aelzina Books
A complete list by Volume Number and a full list of known English translations you may also find at Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works
Rudolf Steiner Archive - The largest online collection of Rudolf Steiner's books, lectures and articles in English.
Rudolf Steiner Audio - Recorded and Read by Dale Brunsvold
steinerbooks.org - Anthroposophic Press Inc. (USA)
Rudolf Steiner Handbook - Christian Karl's proven standard work for orientation in Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works for free download as PDF.