We hardly give it any more than a passing thought, but technology and society, or even technology and culture, for that matter, are very dependent on one another.
Both technology and culture (which is best described as what we eat, how we dress, what our morals and values are, how we think and how we lead our everyday lives) influence each other. It is a symbiotic relationship they share. Right from the birth of the primeval civilizations in the forests of Germany and the river banks of India and China, technology has been invented, adapted and manipulated by human beings for simplifying their activities and getting work done more easily. Initially, it began with ancient man carving crude tools out of stone or wood for cutting, chopping and as weapons. More recently, the refrigerator has been invented so we can preserve food, the air conditioner so we are protected from extremes in climatic conditions, and the computer for solving specific, data based problems. A few more detailed examples will illustrate the interrelationship between technology and culture more exhaustively.
Let us use the cell phone as an example.
The telephone made it possible for listener and speaker separated by huge geographical distances to communicate with each other as easily and fluently as they would had they been speaking in person. Ever since, we have felt the need for a similar device that can be carried around so communication would not be hampered even if one or both parties to the conversation are on the move. The hankering after this kind of device did culminate in the invention of the mobile phone, which influences the way we talk and communicate. You can talk to anyone you like at any time and in any part of the world inexpensively. Now, you can even access the internet through your cell phone, and receive and send email messages. This is a prime example of societal needs (in this case, the need to access people rather than material objects) leading to an important technological development.
Another example of technology affecting culture, especially youth culture in countries like India, Brazil and Japan, is the increasing growth and popularity of social networking websites. Orkut, Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace are a favorite after school or weekend activity of young people all over the globe. This too has arisen from the fact that a basic human instinct is to communicate with and reach out to other humans. Technical professionals have supplied today’s youth with a tool to accomplish just that task. The sense of emptiness that haunts a large section of teenagers all over the world, what with the rise of the nuclear family steadily over the last century, even in cultures faithful to their traditions, such as India and Japan, has been remedied by the cropping up of chat rooms where you can have your fill of conversation on Polanski and Coldplay and anything in between.
Technology and culture have become so intertwined that a study of one is inevitably dependent somewhat on some idea of the other. Cultural necessities have given birth to many technological innovations without which our lives are unimaginable today. Hopefully, more life changing inventions will happen with culture demanding it from technologists.