The word "technology" can also be used to refer to a collection of techniques. In this context, it is the current state of humanity's knowledge of how to combine resources to produce desired products, to solve problems, fulfill needs, or satisfy wants; it includes technical methods, skills, processes, techniques, tools and raw materials. When combined with another term, such as "medical technology" or "space technology", it refers to the state of the respective field's knowledge and tools. "State-of-the-art technology" refers to the high technology available to humanity in any field.

 

The invention of integrated circuits and the microprocessor (here, an Intel 4004 chip from 1971) led to the moderncomputer revolution.

Technology can be viewed as an activity that forms or changes culture.^[13] Additionally, technology is the application of math, science, and the arts for the benefit of life as it is known. A modern example is the rise ofcommunication technology, which has lessened barriers to human interaction and, as a result, has helped spawn new subcultures; the rise of cyberculture has, at its basis, the development of the Internet and thecomputer.^[14] Not all technology enhances culture in a creative way; technology can also help facilitate political oppression and war via tools such as guns. As a cultural activity, technology predates both science andengineering, each of which formalize some aspects of technological endeavor.