Technology ("science of craft", from Greek τέχνη, techne, "art, skill, cunning of hand"; and -λογία, -logia) is the sum of techniques, skills, methods, and processes used in the production of goods or services or in the accomplishment of objectives, such as scientific investigation. Technology can be the knowledge of techniques, processes, and the like, or it can be embedded in machines to allow for operation without detailed knowledge of their workings. Systems (e.g. machines) applying technology by taking an input, changing it according to the system's use, and then producing an outcome are referred to as technology systems or technological systems.
The simplest form of technology is the development and use of basic tools. The prehistoric discovery of how to control fire and the later Neolithic Revolution increased the available sources of food, and the invention of the wheel helped humans to travel in and control their environment. Developments in historic times, including the printing press, the telephone, and the Internet, have lessened physical barriers to communication and allowed humans to interact freely on a global scale.
Technology has many effects. It has helped develop more advanced economies (including today's global economy) and has allowed the rise of a leisure class. Many technological processes produce unwanted by-products known as pollution and deplete natural resources to the detriment of Earth's environment. Innovations have always influenced the values of a society and raised new questions in the ethics of technology. Examples include the rise of the notion of efficiency in terms of human productivity, and the challenges of bioethics.
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Elon Reeve Musk FRS (; born June 28, 1971) is a business magnate, industrial designer, engineer, and philanthropist. He is the founder, CEO, CTO and chief designer of SpaceX; early investor, CEO and product architect of Tesla, Inc.; founder of The Boring Company; co-founder of Neuralink; and co-founder and initial co-chairman of OpenAI. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 2018. In 2018, he was ranked 25th on the Forbes list of The World's Most Powerful People, and was ranked joint-first on the Forbes list of the Most Innovative Leaders of 2019. As of September 2, 2020, his net worth was estimated by Forbes to be US$93.3 billion, making him the 5th richest person in the world. He is also the longest tenured CEO of any automotive manufacturer globally.
Amazon.com, Inc. ( AM-ə-zon) is an American multinational technology company based in Seattle, Washington, which focuses on e-commerce, cloud computing, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. It is considered one of the Big Four companies in the U.S. information technology industry, along with Google, Apple, and Facebook. The company has been referred to as "one of the most influential economic and cultural forces in the world", as well as the world's most valuable brand.
Netflix, Inc. is an American technology and media services provider and production company headquartered in Los Gatos, California. Netflix was founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California. The company's primary business is its subscription-based streaming service which offers online streaming of a library of films and television series, including those produced in-house. As of April 2020, Netflix had over 193 million paid subscriptions worldwide, including 73 million in the United States. It is available worldwide except in the following: mainland China (due to local restrictions), Syria, North Korea, and Crimea (due to U.S. sanctions). The company also has offices in France, United States, United Kingdom, Brazil, the Netherlands, India, Japan, and South Korea. Netflix is a member of the Motion Picture Association (MPA). Today, the company produces and distributes content from countries all over the globe.
Apple Inc. is an American multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, that designs, develops, and sells consumer electronics, computer software, and online services. It is considered one of the Big Tech technology companies, alongside Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and Facebook.
This is the list of mobile phone brands sorted by country, from that the brands originate.
Benjamin Franklin FRS FRSA FRSE (January 17, 1706 [ O.S. January 6, 1705] – April 17, 1790) was an American polymath and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Franklin was a leading writer, printer, political philosopher, politician, Freemason, postmaster, scientist, inventor, humorist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat. As a scientist, he was a major figure in the American Enlightenment and the history of physics for his discoveries and theories regarding electricity. As an inventor, he is known for the lightning rod, bifocals, and the Franklin stove, among other inventions. He founded many civic organizations, including the Library Company, Philadelphia's first fire department, and the University of Pennsylvania.
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- September 19, 2020 – Internet censorship in the United States, China–United States trade war
- Chinese technology company ByteDance announces a proposed joint deal with American corporations Oracle and Walmart to continue the operation of its video-sharing social networking service TikTok in the United States under the name Tiktok Global. U.S. President Donald Trump recognizes the proposal, having threatened to ban the service in suspicion of Chinese espionage should ByteDance have failed to reach a deal with an American firm. (AFP via The Hindu) (NPR)
- September 1, 2020 –
- American social media service Facebook announces it may block Australian users from sharing both local and international news stories on its platform, should the Australian government enact legislation that would require technology companies in the country to pay local news organisations. (The Japan Today)
- August 28, 2020 –
- American neurotechnology company Neuralink unveils a pig, named "Gertrude", that has been living with a brain-implanted chip for two months at an event in San Francisco. (Reuters)
- August 24, 2020 – Austria–Russia relations
- Austria expels a Russian diplomat following a report accusing the envoy of being involved in economic espionage after an Austrian who works in a technology company confessed that he carried out espionage for years on behalf of the Russian, who was his intelligence handler. (Al Jazeera)
- August 17, 2020 – China–United States trade war, Chinese espionage in the United States, Concerns over Chinese involvement in 5G wireless networks
- The United States Department of Commerce expands its sanctions on Chinese technological vendor Huawei by adding 38 of the company's affiliates to its "entity list", limiting Huawei's access into U.S. integrated circuits and other technology. The Trump administration has viewed Huawei as "an arm of the Chinese Communist Party's surveillance state." (AFP via The Independent)
- August 6, 2020 – China–United States trade war
- Invoking the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, U.S. President Donald Trump issues several executive orders barring firms and American citizens from trading and doing financial transactions with Chinese technology companies ByteDance and Tencent, effectively banning their respective apps TikTok and WeChat within the United States. The orders are set to go into effect in 45 days. (Reuters)
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