Economy and Technology Part - 1
Contents
- Introduction
- Relationship Between Economy, Technology and Society
- Definition of Economy
- Definition of Technology
- Economy and Society
- Development of Technology in Pre-modern Societies
- Simple Societies
- Pastoral Societies
- Peasant Societies
- Growth of Cities
- Development of Technology in Modem Societies
- The Industrial Revolution
- Models of Development
Introduction
The relationship between the economy, technology, and society will be examined in this post. We will research how technology has evolved in rural, pastoral, agrarian, and urban societies. We'll also study the industrial revolution and a number of other economic topics. This starts a conversation about technology, working relationships, and work ethics. The other issues covered in this article include unionism, machine use, and job creation.
Relationship Between Economy, Technology and Society
People who are struggling to survive can be found in all societies. They make use of items found in nature, such as wood, stone, mud, grass, metals, etc., in their struggle for survival. to design equipment and other inventions that would meet their needs. The economy of that society is defined by how well people's material, physical, and social needs are met. We will now explain what the terms economy and technology are and how they relate to particular types of societies.
Economies are defined.
Definition of Economy
Everywhere in the world, people have needs that can only be met by using material possessions and other people's services. Humans depend on the economic system, which is based on the provision of goods and services, to satisfy these needs. A biological want is any need that is connected to one's physical health. It's necessary for people to eat, drink, regulate their body temperature, protect themselves, and take care of injuries and illnesses. These needs must be met with the aid of material possessions, including food, water, clothing, shelter, weapons, and medical care, as well as other people's cooperative services. The preservation of social ties and the accessibility of material goods and services are also dependent on social wants. Special attire, body adornments, and/or tools are used to signify specific social roles by individuals. For instance, a doctor is required to use specific medical equipment, wear specific clothing, and work in a clinic equipped with an X-ray machine, exam table, etc. The doctor would be unable to perform his or her duties effectively without these supplies and the assistance of nurses and technicians. By exchanging them with others, people can also strengthen social solidarity by using material goods and services. For example, gifts at religious and social gatherings reaffirm family ties.
Definition of Technology
In general, technology has been compared to practical arts. These disciplines include mining, agriculture, animal husbandry, gathering by hunting and gathering by fishing. to the production of building materials, transportation, the delivery of food, power, heat, and light, among other things. Additionally, it consists of medical and military technology as well as communication methods. Technologies have been defined as collections of aptitudes, know-how, and methods for producing, utilizing, and carrying out useful things. Instead of focusing on psychological and social processes, it primarily examines biological and physical processes. They stand in for the cultural practices that human communities have developed to deal with the physical and biological environment, which includes the human biological organism itself. International Encyclopedia of Social Sciences, Vol. 15) .
Economy and Society
In addition to being influenced by social norms, a society's economy also depends on the technological advancements that have been made there. When we look at how human societies have evolved from simple, pastoral to agrarian and modern industrial societies, this fact becomes abundantly clear. However, before we continue to discuss the evolution of technology in pre-modern and modern societies, we would like to clarify that goods and services do not always satisfy the biological and social needs of people. Individuals must be able to create and acquire the necessary resources and material goods through some organized system of behavior. By defining some fundamental areas of activity, like production, distribution, and consumption, the economic system creates this organization.
Development of Technology in Pre-modern Societies
Generally speaking, sociology in general and the study of technological change are related. changes in culture. Through various stages, human societies have progressed from simple societies to modern industrial societies, and tools and techniques have kept pace with this development.
Simple Societies
People in simple societies made do by living in mountains, deserts, and other arid environments. by going on a hunt and gathering food. They hunted with basic weapons like the bow and arrow, wore animal skins as clothing, and occasionally used domesticated dogs to assist them. Two significant discoveries that occurred at this time led to the gradual replacement of the hunting lifestyle with more complex new forms of economic organizations. These discoveries included (a) domesticating animals like cattle and (b) the development of agriculture. Considering these agricultural discoveries. Animals were domesticated, which led to other scientific advancements and mechanical creations.
Agriculture led to the private ownership of land. However, there are many agricultural people whose land is owned by the clan. This is evident when we study the hunting cultures of the tribals who have plots assigned to each family from this communally owned land. The crops belong to the individual families working on the same plot. In such cultures, generally plough was not used. lnstead a digging stick called the hoe was used. Therefore, this culture is also called hoe-culture.
In lndia we see tribal people practicing 'jhum' cultivation. Each season new plots were cultivated and the old one left fallow. This was possible when population was less and forest lands were more.
Pastoral Societies
In contrast to life in the wild state of nature and the erratic nature of agricultural crops, domesticating large animals ensured a constant supply of food. As a result, there are numerous pastoral tribes in Africa, India, and other places. Cattle herds represent not only wealth that can be exchanged and traded but also food. In contrast to hoe-cultures, pastoral peoples tended to have more males than females because this task was exclusively performed by men. The use of animals like elephants, horses, and camels influenced the creation of military tactics. They were also used for quick transportation.
Peasant Societies
Large-scale agriculture brought stability, which paved the way for the construction of permanent homes. Agriculture is correlated with stable handicrafts like pottery making. Hair, wool, and cotton weaving came into existence. Crops, pottery, cloth, and baskets all contributed to the development of significant amounts of property. These crafts required advanced abilities, which prompted further specialization. This early stage of agriculture thus laid the groundwork for exchange.
Rise of Agricultural Surplus
The domestication of animals and the invention of the hoe were all part of settled agriculture. As tools and methods advanced, more land was put under cultivation, and crop yields rose. The norm changed to individual ownership. This implies that a family owns a piece of property, and by family in this context, we may also mean a sizable group of kinspeople.
Emergence of New social Institutions
Wealth in society began to be primarily based on land. Due to men's desire for wealth, large landholdings developed in areas where there was a surplus of labor through the process of purchase, marriage alliances, and force. Kinsmen, slaves, serfs, and sharecroppers all participated in this labor in various locations. As a result, social classes like the landed aristocracy and peasantry emerged. The powerful landowners competed with one another for wealth and influence, and the wealthiest and most influential took over the judicial and military branches of government.
The wealthy families occasionally supported religious, artistic, and architectural endeavors. This was the beginning of feudalism. Family control was taken away from these oppressive single-family hegemonies gradually and occasionally by revolution. As a result, states were created. Villages evolved into towns, and towns into cities, and cities into metropolitan areas, etc. as trade and commerce expanded. Ogburn and Nimkoff 1968.
Division of Labour
The expansion of handicrafts resulted in rising property values and a rise in the need for labor. The discovery of metals like copper, tin, gold, silver, and iron resulted in the creation of tools, weapons, priceless ornaments, and other items. Only a select few individuals had mastered the art of creating these metals because they were relatively uncommon. Specialization subsequently emerged. The division of labor in society was also influenced by industrial agriculture. In some societies, like that of India, it was in the form of caste, which involved a complex system of classifying individuals into various occupational groups based on their place of birth.
Growth of Cities
food surpluses, handicrafts, etc. are all increasing. Development of trade and commerce. Rapid transportation enabled the growth of urban centers, or cities, which gave rise to industrial urban cultures. In urban areas, people purchase their food from the market rather than growing it themselves. As a result, the market economy grew and trade and commerce flourished. Capitalism, which we adopted from the British during their protracted rule in India, replaced feudalism gradually in Europe. The Industrial Revolution in Britain served as the primary catalyst for the growth of capitalism in Europe and America. Let's look at a few of the technological advancements made during this revolution.
Development of Technology in Modem Societies
One way to explain the industrial revolution, which started in England in the second half of the eighteenth century, is to emphasize how many inventors made it possible. So, the techniques for spinning yam were improved by Richard Arkwright in 1768 and James Hargreaves in 1764, respectively, with the invention of the Spinning Frame. The steam engine was created in the 1780s by James Watt, who paved the way for its use in coal mines and textile mills and enabled England to boost its industrial output. Although the contributions made by these outstanding individuals to England's industrial development are commendable, the social conditions present at the time are more significant. The industrial revolution would not have happened if social conditions did not encourage the use of these inventions in industrial production. For example, Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), a famous Italian painter, was also rumored to have been an extraordinary engineer and architect who invented new weapons and even drew airplanes at one point. But because the social and economic climate at the time was insufficient for his ideas to be put to use practically, most of his drawings remained on paper.
The Industrial Revolution
To increase their knowledge of science and engineering so they could use it to boost industrial production, the industrial workers and craftsmen in England during the Industrial Revolution formed scientific societies. Similar to how significant technological advancements in the U.S. S. A. They were attributed to the social and economic circumstances present in that nation at the time during the nineteenth century. It was there that machinery was discovered and put to use in agricultural universities and engineering colleges due to the abundance of vast agricultural lands and the lack of laborers to work on them. Apart from these factors, some people believe that the American culture's freedom and support for entrepreneurship was the single most significant contributor to the nation's technological advancement. In America, a free market fostered individual mobility. If they worked hard enough and had a good idea to sell, people starting out with little money could become extremely wealthy. Anyone with enough inventiveness could experiment with their ideas and benefit from their inventions by obtaining a legal right over the use of their invention through the law of patents.
Models of Development
Though the U. S. A. Japan offers one development model while the United States offers another. The Japanese government has actively promoted industrialization since 1868, the year of the Meiji Restoration, by sending its young men to western nations to learn about modern science and technology and by establishing a number of industrial facilities. The economy of Japan. Since the 1950s, the ic miracle has been particularly amazing. As the first nation from Asia to rank among the top ten richest countries in the world, Japan. In a number of industries, including electronics, iron, and steel, the Japanese have emerged as technological leaders. automobiles and shipping. Many American industries have been unable to compete with the Japanese, who are constantly enhancing and modernizing their products. The experience of Japan prompts some very intriguing queries about the role played by social factors in recent years in promoting industrial and technological development.
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