2.3 Technology and Cultural Change

By the end of this unit you should have developed a knowledge and understanding of:

• how socio-economic influences have helped to shape product design and manufacture

• major developments in technology and how they are shaping product design and manufacture

• the social, moral and ethical responsibilities of designers and manufacturers

• key technologies which have developed through the 20th Century

• the product life cycle and how designers refine and re-develop products during their life cycle

Introduction

Continuous technological development has had a significant impact upon the way we live and the way society and commerce operate. Many of the technologies we take for granted today are built upon inventions or discoveries so old that we often take them for granted.

Things like electricity, radio waves, microprocessors etc. The supply of electricity cabled overland resulted in increased urbanisation and allowed for the development of an industrialised society. That same electricity allowed for the development of long-distance communication.

First it was the telegraph but that gave way to the telephone and then the radio.

In this section we will look at a range of products that have evolved significantly over the last century, but you should be familiar with developments in technology in general. However, the examination often addresses the following technologies:

• the radio

• the telephone

• the television

• the computer

• the battery

All of these technologies have evolved into more complex and convergent technologies such as tablets and smartphones, so you should be familiar with the historical technologies associated with those and consumer electronics in general.