The famous Greek philosopher Socrates said,“I am the wisest man alive, for I know one thing, and that is I know nothing.” In my humble opinion, this was the notion that pushed inventors to invent, scientists to research, artists to create, engineers to build, and researchers to find the many awesome things we have in our world today – all the time challenging their limits and giving the world another new thing to make life better.

The world is a place of limitless discoveries, followed by new innovations of the older discoveries – this is how simple inventions decades ago, have become the microchips and bluetooths of today’s world. The essence of Socrates’ teachings was to question everything. That is the core link between technology and innovation, and the reason for the advances in technology in the modern world we live in. Scientists, researchers, doctors, engineers are constantly questioning what is what, why it is, how it is, and then taking it to another level for the entire world to enjoy!

Steve Jobs, the mastermind behind Apple, was a college drop-out, with a vision to “go where no man has gone before.” He did not want to waste his parents’ hard earned money studying subjexts that did not interest him, so he chose to study subjects that did; without thinking how the selection would help in the development of his career and his future. He is known as a genius today. Jobs studied a calligraphy course in college because he enjoyed it. It was this course which inspired him to develop the fonts in the personal computer.

Today, the entire world uses the variety of fonts in Windows, which sprouted from that one calligraphy course Jobs took as a student. The point I am trying to make is technology can be the smallest thing, the tiniest innovation, creation, that benefits our daily lives. There are many others technological innovations that we often take for granted, because we are so used to using them in our lives, which were mostly born from small, simple ideas, and the visions of innovators, scientists, and leaders. 

Let’s go back in time and see an early invention; and perhaps, most significant of contributions in the field of technology and innovation. The light bulb and Thomas Edison: Edison was a visionary in many ways, and has been credited with the creation of the first research lab. Although he is famous for the invention of the light bulb more than any other of his inventions, Edison was a chief contributor in the mass communications and telecommunications industries of today. He invented the motion picture camera and also the phonograph, which are a both valid contributions in the field of media all over the world.

With his innovative inventions, Edison not only inspired more people to improve his inventions further, but also immensely transformed the world from what it was before the light bulb. The light bulb created nightlife and amusement parks for leisure, and factories which supported the economy. The same level of global changes occurred when the French and Americans introduced automobiles to the world. Research and development of solar power is another innovative approach to harnessing energy, and is widely used today in all developed and developing countries around the world.

In 1958, the United States government made the NDEA – the National Defense Educational Act. By the 60s, Houston, Texas, USA, became the center for space travel and research. When the Russians were successful in launching Sputnik and sending a man to the moon, it became imperative for America to do the same. And so, in July 1969, and American planted the United States of America flag on the moon. This was a sign of victory, achievement, and also symbolic of innovation in technology.

The US Space Program has made many advances in the years that followed that honorable flight to the moon, and many new things have been made by default of the research done there. A classic example is the rescue of the miners in Chile this year. The equipment used to get them out was created by the US technologists and scientists at NASA, and the trapped miners were fed food tablets that were designed to nourish astronauts during space travels.

Another example is the laser eye surgery done today. The lasers and techniques were developed by scientists at NASA. What used to be a time-consuming, dangerous, and painful operation is now about an hour long, with nearly zero post-operative care considerations and complications.

However, there have been some negative impacts of technology too. Technology and innovation have lead to the creation of deadly weapons, germ warfare, and nuclear bombs. Technology has created lethal drugs, and other such effects, that can wreck havoc on the world if placed in the wrong hands. Cloning is another outcome of technological advancement that I often debate. Cloning living things threatens the very core of humanity and life as we know it. There have been numerous demonstrations around the world to condone it.

Nevertheless, as the journalist Friedman says in his theories on ‘glocalization’, the progress of a country relies on economy, but the way to lead economically is through technology. This is why countries like India and China are becoming economic giants – their technology sectors are growing fast, and being recognized by the rest of the world. Many other technological innovations have come out in the last few decades, which have changed the dynamics of the world today: technology such as the Internet, the World Wide Web, Google, Wikipedia, Blackberry, and other forms of digital technology.

Now we can sit on a computer a million miles away and talk to our loved ones in real time with a webcam picture and audio sound. This was something unimaginable twenty years ago, like, something out of a science fiction movie. 

Although I do not need to fly to the moon, technology affects my life in almost any and every aspect. My daily life would not be the same without technology that I use, often unconciously. To give a small but significant example, I woke up from the alarm on my mobile phone (technology?) this morning. The scheduler option (technology!) on my phone alerted me that I have a deadline to meet in one hour. I brushed my teeth with a scientifically designed toothbrush (technological invention) to reach the far corners of my mouth, with toothpaste that has amazing chemicals (more technology) that will strengthen and whiten my teeth, while keeping cavities at bay for 8 hours.

I heated my instant coffee (another invention) in a microwave (technology) for 60-seconds, put on a synthetic (technology) woolen jacket to keep me warm, and got into an automatic train (more technology). Ten minutes later I was at college, where I logged on to the internet (technology), got this assignment on ‘Technology’ word document from my e-mail, and printed it out (technology); then got in an elevator (technology) to hand it in to Dr. Paul George. This entire process took me under forty minutes!

I am so used to all this technology, that I don’t realize how many people worked tirelessly all over the world to invent and innovate these luxuries for my daily life. I cannot imagine, not having an alarm clock to wake up with, spending an hour making my coffee by heating water on a stove, having to wear many layers of clothing to keep me warm, having to walk a long distance to get to my college, where there would be no Internet, no e-mail, and no printer!

We don’t realize how important technology is to us, and how easy it has made our lives every minute of our waking lives. I cannot wait to see what new things will be invented in my lifetime.

An opinion piece by Sarah Dawood who was consultant and account director at Cafe Headlion, art and design lecturere for L’ecole for Advanced Studies and is currently studying at Miami Dade College. Sarah and the CEO of Cafe HeadLion Neil Christy were interviewed in 2009 for Techistan podcasts.