In order to understand today's technology, we should not ignore the stages that humanity has gone through and the inventions and products that it has tried to make to make things easier in these stages. All of these were created for the phenomenon of technology and arise from individual human needs. Historically, the concept of technology has been used for centuries and today. Etymologically, it is stated that it is formed by the combination of the Latin words Techne, meaning "art and craft based on skilled labor" and Logos, meaning "mind, word and speech". Starting from stone tools, including the pens and notebooks we use in their simplest form today, all the machines and software that shape production, all kinds of products that will make human life easier are technologies and fall within the concept of technology.
The Modernity process and its impact on the world, which continued with the Renaissance enlightenment period, when the world was under the influence of Europe, the curiosity of the thinkers of that period, and the works they published spread all over the world and affected the development processes of technology. The period that started with the First Industrial Revolution and was supported by discoveries; With the increase in social struggles, in other words revolutions, in the 18th and 19th centuries, societies were further shaped by technology.
The concept of technology is actually in the first steps of human history, with humanity transitioning to settled life thousands of years ago; It started with the transition to the Neolithic period and the agricultural society. In this process, also called the "neolithic revolution" or "agricultural revolution" by some historians, human beings domesticated "plants, animals and fire" and took the first step of a civilization process that would last thousands of years by moving to settled life. Agriculture, which was the main activity of traditional societies from this date until the 18th century, formed the basis of shaping civilizations, political structures and social life. The Industrial Revolution, whose beginning is roughly dated to the second half of the 1700s, overturned and reshaped the economic, political and social structures that had been formed over thousands of years, and formed the basis of the present day (Aktükün, 2018). Particularly in the second half of the 17th century, with the industrial revolution and the discovery of steam engines and the increase in the use of machinery, the period took the period to a different dimension. Although machines were used in previous periods, the increase in the use of iron ore, blacksmithing and steam power supply in this period led to an increase in the use of more diversified machines such as cranes, mills and textile machines. Machines made of wood began to be made of iron. The use of steam energy as power in these machines took social struggles to a different dimension. Therefore, it had important social and political consequences. With migration from villages to cities, the number of working class in cities gradually increased. This situation intensified the interaction between the capital class and the working class with the ever-increasing number of workers. This period can be considered an important crossroads in terms of understanding the power created by technology and the people who create and use this phenomenon. In a way, the increase in global expansionism among societies and the fact that resources have become an economic value have caused the phenomenon of capital to come to the fore and capital and social isms to be put before people as an ideal and choice. For years, humanity has struggled with each other in the light of these reasons. This struggle continues today.
When we look at the present and the future, the technological products we interact with in daily life are constantly renewing, updating and continuing to develop. This dynamic cycle shaped societies and their habits. "Art, craft and intelligence", especially in information and communication technology, have reached higher levels, paving the way for the beginning of a new ideal for humanity and for people to hold on to it. Especially today, products in information technology have removed the boundaries between people and created an environment accessible to everyone on a digital basis. Therefore, this development; It emerged as a new dimension within the phenomenon of globalization, which increased in the second half of the 20th century. Perhaps, knowingly or unknowingly, humanity has created a new ism with the new technological products it has created within the scope of digitalization, and has embraced the ideal of Digitalization. He has now moved to the stage where he can share his thoughts, desires and demands with a finger movement on his mobile device and interact as a result. The interaction force at this stage became a more effective force than the steam power that was the result of the first industrial revolution. Although this utopian situation in the new era, in which it is said that we are living in a period where knowledge and information values are increasing, sounds nice, it is argued that its consequences may cause a dystopian process. In a process where the concept of technology is so effective, humanity is naturally entering into a new enlightenment and transformation. While the hope is expressed that this transformation will intensify with the good aspects of technology, it is said that societies can move towards a very different process in the new era where information interaction will be intense. It is stated that technological products such as artificial intelligence, internet of things, block chain, virtual reality and augmented reality, and machine learning have started to affect humanity and daily human life. Perhaps, in this period of digitalization, it is considered certain that there will be no migration from villages to cities like the migrations that occurred after the first industrial revolution, but new global digital working classes will form, living and working in their own locations. It is argued that human resources involved in digital processes can affect economic processes.
All this information stands before us as an indicator of how much the technologies created by humans have affected their lives and shaped their future, from the historical process of technology to the present day. It is thought that this process can affect societies at any time. As a thinker said; Could the current state of the universe be the result of the past and the cause of the future? Looking at the historical process, the state of today's technologies in the 21st century; It seems likely that the result of technologies created centuries ago will be the cause of future technologies and will lead to a new enlightenment and transformation.
Comments