Unit 1 History of Technology Session 01 PDF

Unit 1 History of Technology Session 01 Introducing Historical Studies in Technology Aim This course attempts to present a brief sketch of the progression of technology from ancient times. It is a shared story in many regions of the world in that it responded to the local situations and conditio...

Unit 1 History of Technology Session 01 Introducing Historical Studies in Technology Aim This course attempts to present a brief sketch of the progression of technology from ancient times. It is a shared story in many regions of the world in that it responded to the local situations and conditions and finally gave rise to modern technology as we know of today. We would also look at the traditional Sri Lankan technological forms that had supported the local civilization over thousands of years. The student would be involved in a historical journey through different stages of this story from a technological point of view. At the end of the course we hope that the student gains broad insight to evaluate on his or her own the claims about science and technology in its various forms. It is hoped that this would open the minds of the student to the possibilities of technology in this country and elsewhere and to form independent opinions on their own as practitioners of technology. Contents 1.1 Why study the History of Technology 2 1.2 History of Technology of Sri Lanka 4 1.3 Course Outline 5 1.4 Narrative Style and Content 6 1.5 Methodology and how to study 7 1.6 Conclusion 8 1.7 Learning Outcomes 9 1  Unit 1 History of Technology 1.1 Why Study the History of Technology? We live in a world created through technology. Everything around us happens to represent some outcome of a technological achievement of our forefathers who had thought out better ways to do things for humankind. In general what we assume to be technology today, has all been the result of a systematic progression of ideas over the past several thousand years. What is now commonplace today, food, clothing, medicine, electricity, telecommunication, consumer goods, transportation etc. has evolved over a period of time taking many little steps to do so? Many of these things were not there in their present form even hundred years ago. The foundation for such innovations has been laid over centuries in different continents while interacting with each other throughout. It is easy to forget that all this technology has come in small steps. When we study about a particular branch of technology, such as engineering, we learn about many facts and theories as they are understood to be correct now. Therefore, the significance of the gradual changes these ideas have gone through in the hands of the practitioners of these trades becomes hidden behind the wealth of information we are burdened with at present. It is not easy to accept that such knowledge has come as the result of ordinary people like us, finding the time and the energy to think about little things and spending their lives solving them. It is also not easy to accept that these developments can or could have originated from anywhere other than the more developed countries of the world since we appear to solely depend on technology coming from such countries. In a vary subtle way, 2  Unit 1 History of Technology countries such as Sri Lanka seem to have become lethargic in pushing for developments in technology on their own. This may be as a result of a misguided feeling that historically we do not “own” the proper “rights” to do such modifications, since it has all been acquired from outside our countries and cultures. It would be an interesting eye-opener to many of us to see that we ourselves would have had the necessary capabilities had it not been for a few historical inevitabilities determining the course of our history. Learning of history would therefore give us a better footing to consider the claims and limitations of modern science and technology to solve our problems in many different contexts. Therefore, there are two clear objectives of studying the history of technology. ▪ We have to be aware, while learning and practicing the skills of technological know how, that it is a moving, evolving body of knowledge never destined to stand still. We are learning about science and technology as it is “today”, as a lively discipline rather than as the final product of the past endeavors of so many others. ▪ We have to also know that technology, in whatever interpretation is not free from the bounds of their origin. We in this country as novices in this field also can lay claim to some of this historical heritage as individuals representing a particular cultural cross section of the world. The knowledge that we are not outsiders to this long tradition of technological excellence should inspire us to have access to modern technologies and to see things in perspective and go for advances on our own. 3  Unit 1 History of Technology 1.2 History of Technology of Sri Lanka When we consider the history of technology as it affects us, we need to look at our own background in this country. Essentially being a sub-unit of the great Eastern cultures of the past, it has evolved a singularly identifiable tradition of technology in its history. Sri Lanka is an island that had supported a civilization dating more than 3000 years. Some of the technological artifacts remaining from this period tell of advanced technological developments which have now become extinct due to various reasons. Looking at some such example would be a good introduction to understanding the basis for the indigenized technologies that had kept this relatively sophisticated society pulsating during these forgotten centuries. Any visit to the ancient ruins of the country, situated all over the island and mostly ignored by locals will tell of a story that supports these claims. The irrigation systems of the dry zone are an often-quoted example, which stands out in the ancient world for its high level of development. The remaining network of tanks and canals have hinted at the deeper understanding of the principles of managing natural resources of the seemingly non-scientific planners of that age. Another example of a technology that once was possessed by the Sri Lankan craftsman which can boast of a standard comparable to the best of the world is that of producing high quality steel using local methodologies over a thousand years ago. A British researcher (Gull Juleff) has discovered the remains of such production facilities in the Samanalawewa area, which had 4  Unit 1 History of Technology duplicated this process to produce high quality steel used in manufacturing utensils and weapons. This technology has been exported to other countries in later centuries where they had thrived even after the original methods were lost to the Sri Lankan themselves after some time due to some reasons. As you will see throughout the course, we attempt to give a reasonably balanced view of the developments at a global scale as each of these stories shares many threads linking each of other. The modern civilization, which is even more integrated than before continues this collective effort in various forms. 1.3 Course Outline The course will be presented in three modules. Each module addresses a particular area of interest and will consist of materials drawn from many sources. While the primary material will be in printed form you would have supplementary materials in all three formats printed, audio, and video. The recommended methodology of study is given below under separate heading. These are the brief titles of the material covered in these texts. Unit 01: Ancient Sri Lankan Technologies In Unit 01, we do two case studies of ancient Sri Lankan technologies, that of steel making and Irrigation. We study both its achievements and limitations. 5  Unit 1 History of Technology Unit 02: Pre – modern technologies from non European cultures In Unit 02, we study pre-modern technologies from non-European cultures, essentially, Chinese and Arabic. The studies taken here are designed to highlight some major contributions made towards the development of modern science and technology and there cultures. The case study of some particular developments in Mathematics is taken to focus on the problem of controversial history. In this course, development of calculus, and the controversy between Newton and Leibniz. The last session, titled the „End of History and the way Forward?‟, deals with the problem of the Eurocentric bias in the usually known history of science and technology and, a call for a more comprehensive narrative, which could be called a truly global history of these important developments. 1.4 Narrative style and content The material attempts to be as accessible to the non-technical reader as possible. This is because the aim to this course is to bring to the attention of the student the historical impact of technology rather than on the technology itself. As you would have seen from the course outline, the material does not necessarily follow a chronological narrative of the development of technology. Rather it seeks to follow the issues highlighted by modern technology and trace their roots in the historical traditions of this country and the rest of the world. We hope that this approach would bring out the relevance of understanding the historical developments which resulted in the technological civilization of today. 6  Unit 1 History of Technology 1.5 Methodology and how to study The student is expected to read the primary reading material in the presented order, if not mentioned otherwise. The two units would contain open ended exercises as well as the more straightforward self assessment questions drawn from the materials presented. The student is advised to go through them before proceeding as important ideas might be addressed in these exercises. This material is supplemented with collections of readings that support the basic themes but would be more specialized or focused than the main readings. It would be optional from a strict examination point of view but would consist of materials that are an integral part of the main blocks. The course would be presented together with a set of audio-visual material from various sources that would be more general in content. Although it is assumed that such materials are not part of the core course, they are an important introduction to the various sources of information of value. The student is encouraged to go beyond this limited range of materials offered and read widely from the available literature to gain a perspective of the issues. Each student will be given an assignment in an area of interest to him / her, in which it would be required to seek knowledge and information beyond the confines of the course material. As it is understandably difficult to present all points of view in this kind of a limited presentation it is hoped that the student supplements his/her conceptual base through knowledge and experience gathered from other sources. They are encouraged to make field visits whenever possible to 7  Unit 1 History of Technology places of importance, such as historical sites and museums, and to make observations of the day to day implementations of technology in the environment. As history of technology is a never ending theme, the main purpose of this course would only be fulfilled by such an active pursuit of the changing nature of technology that is affecting us. 1.6 Conclusion The purpose of reminding ourselves of the story of technological development is to make us aware of the important perspectives that fashioned the direction of this historical narrative called technology and science. We often lose sight of the way this story was guided and modified by the local and individual contributors, who had many different objectives in mind. Often a series of chance occurrences, sometimes aided by a few individuals have created a history that has lead to the modern science and technology we see all around us today. By forgetting that history is always a shared experience recollected only when convenient, we however tend to consider that science and technology as a phenomenon limited to the developed world. These effectively shuts us out of admiring the beauty of the human energy that has gone in to this endeavor and make ourselves outsiders from the mainstream of progress. It is with this in mind, that we attempt to take this journey through the human adventure of technological progress. We will look at its roots and try to understand the basis for the inherent assumptions that modify and limit the growth of technology in our own societies. When we are aware that we ourselves share a thread of technological prowess which is unique in the world, which unfortunately however has not survived, we would be 8  Unit 1 History of Technology comfortable with the aims and objectives of the technological education that we acquire as budding engineers. The freedom to modify the theories and make use of them appropriately comes from this awareness and self-confidence of being practitioners of technology with a feel for its pulse. This would transform our approach to such knowledge, making ourselves participants and not merely spectators in this hugely exiting adventure of science and technology. We are living in the best period of history to learn about this story at the beginning of a new millennium. An understanding of the story of technology would be good preparation for the challenges of the future, because tomorrow is bound to be where we go from today, and today has been fashioned by yesterday. 1.7 Learning outcomes ▪ To recognize reasons as to why you should study the History of Technology. ▪ To identify the study methodologies to be adopted in this subject. ▪ To outline the scope of the subject. Activity 1.1 Search the Internet for useful, web sites on the History of Technology. Prepare a list of five of your favorite web sites. 9