21st Century Technology

Mike Carson


A commonly used technology in the 21st century is the car. It is a general technology which has many forms. Cars, busses, truck, etc. The idea of the automobile has helped people and society as a whole. However, the car is not an idea that belongs only to this century, and it it not an idea that has stopped evolving either. The original concept of a car was supposedly a carriage with a once cylinder gasoline engine. This first ran in 1893. But there have been traces if the idea of a car back to the early 1800's and even earlier.  Although many things that influenced the car are not necessarily technologies, there were many factors that went in to this crucial invention. Webster's dictionary defines technology as the practical application of knowledge especially in a particular area. With that definition in mind, the way early humans used the idea of a wheel for things such as wheelbarrows and other utilities could be classified as technology. Later in civilization when people started to expand, such as the time of the manifest destiny, settlers used a horse and wagon. The horse and wagon was essentially the first sighting of the 'car'. A mobile that could transport humans and their materials over long distances faster and more efficiently than foot. The wagon would serve as the physical aspect of the car and the horse would theoretically be the engine. These early concepts are what contributed to the concept of the modern day car. The progression of the car and especially the technology within it has increased exponentially. Even today there are autonomous cars and that idea is increasing rapidly. To look at the evolution of technology for cars would insinuate that cars in the coming decades will be leaps and bounds more advanced than they are now. Looking at the current trends cars will be running on different forms of fuel. It is becoming more evident that gasoline is not the most efficient and safe fuel to use in cars. Cars have become electric now and maybe soon there will be another more efficient way to power a car. With the technology available today, the industry is moving towards an efficient, safe, and virtually harmless car.