Portal:Technology

The Technology Portal

P:TECHP:TECH

Technology is the application of conceptual knowledge to achieve practical goals, especially in a reproducible way. The word technology can also mean the products resulting from such efforts, including both tangible tools such as utensils or machines, and intangible ones such as software. Technology plays a critical role in science, engineering, and everyday life.

Technological advancements have led to significant changes in society. The earliest known technology is the stone tool, used during prehistory, followed by the control of fire—which in turn contributed to the growth of the human brain and the development of language during the Ice Age, according to the cooking hypothesis. The invention of the wheel in the Bronze Age allowed greater travel and the creation of more complex machines. More recent technological inventions, including the printing press, telephone, and the Internet, have lowered barriers to communication and ushered in the knowledge economy. (Full article...)

Outline of technology

Refresh with new selections below (purge)

Recognized articles - load new batch

Entries here consist of Good and Featured articles, which meet a core set of high editorial standards.

Image 1
M-108 was a state trunkline highway in the US state of Michigan. The highway followed Nicolet Street, although some maps also labeled it as Mackinaw Highway. The road was on the boundary between Emmet and Cheboygan counties.

The original M-108 designation dated back to 1928. This version was transferred to local control in 1957, but revived later under a similar routing in 1960. On April 29, 2010, the Petoskey News-Review reported that the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) would rebuild the roadway in preparation to transfer it back to local control once again. MDOT and local officials signed memoranda of understanding, completing the transfer of the roadway on December 9, 2010. (Full article...)
Image 2
M-64 is a north–south state trunkline highway in the Upper Peninsula of the US state of Michigan. It runs for approximately 63+3⁄4 miles (102.6 km) through the western part of the state in land that is part of the Ottawa National Forest. The highway connects with County Trunk Highway B (CTH-B) at the state line near Presque Isle, Wisconsin. As it passes through dense forests, M-64 runs along lakes Gogebic and Superior. The northern end is at a junction with US Highway 45 (US 45) in Ontonagon.

The M-64 designation was used on two other separate highways before it was used for the current highway. The first was at the other end of the state near the Ohio state line, and the second was on the Keweenaw Peninsula near Eagle Harbor. The current highway has carried the M-64 moniker since 1930, when it was assigned along two disconnected highways. These two parts were joined into a single corridor soon after. M-64 was one of the last highways in the state of Michigan to be paved in 1961. In the early part of the 21st century, the state replaced the bridge over the Ontonagon River and shifted the highway's northern terminus. (Full article...)
Image 3
State Route 504 (SR 504, designated as the Spirit Lake Memorial Highway) is a state highway in southwestern Washington state in the United States. It travels 52 miles (84 km) along the North Fork Toutle River to the Mount St. Helens area, serving as the main access to the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument. The highway begins at an interchange with Interstate 5 (I-5) and SR 411 in Castle Rock and terminates at the Johnston Ridge Observatory near Spirit Lake.

The Cowlitz County government built the Spirit Lake Highway in 1903 and paved it in the early 1930s before it was transferred to state control, becoming Secondary State Highway 1R (SSH 1R) in 1937. SSH 1R initially ended at the boundary of Columbia National Forest (now Gifford Pinchot National Forest), but was extended in 1961 to the timberline of the mountain. It was renumbered to SR 504 in 1964 and remained popular with loggers and tourists, requiring bridges and sections to be rebuilt. (Full article...)
Image 4

The passenger service centre at the concourse of the station

Sengkang MRT/LRT station is a Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) and Light Rail Transit (LRT) interchange station in Sengkang, Singapore. It is an interchange between the North East Line (NEL) and Sengkang LRT (SKLRT). Along with Buangkok station, it is located within the Sengkang planning area.

The LRT station opened on 18 January 2003 along with the other East loop stations on the SKLRT, with the NEL station opening later on 20 June. Services on the West loop began service on 29 January 2005. Upgrades to the station are being implemented to improve barrier-free accessibility to the station. Located at Sengkang Town Centre between Sengkang Square and Sengkang East Way, it is directly connected to Compass One, Compass Heights and Sengkang Bus Interchange, and is within walking distance to the Compassvale Bus Interchange. (Full article...)
Image 5
North Carolina Highway 67 (NC 67) is a 40.9-mile-long (65.8 km) primary state highway in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The highway travels through Yadkin and Forsyth Counties between its western terminus at U.S. Route 21 Business (US 21 Business) in Jonesville and NC 150 in Winston-Salem. NC 67 primarily follows an east–west alignment and connects the towns of Jonesville, Boonville, and East Bend, along with the city of Winston-Salem.

The first NC 67 was established as an original North Carolina state highway in 1921 traversing a route between Taylorsville and Sparta. The highway was later extended south to Conover in 1926, but was replaced by NC 16 and NC 18 by 1929. Modern-day NC 67 was created in 1930 travelling from US 21 and NC 26 in Jonesville to US 421 and NC 60 in Oldtown. The highway was significantly rebuilt between 1931 and 1933, reducing its mileage but maintaining a similar alignment. In 1962 it was extended southeast along the former alignment of US 421 to US 52 in downtown Winston-Salem. The eastern terminus was adjusted in 1969 to end at Interstate 40 (I-40), US 158, and US 421 in Winston-Salem, and it was adjusted to end at NC 150 in Winston-Salem in 1995. (Full article...)
Image 6

A 2019 XD60 (6164) on the M60 SBS on Broadway near 116th Street–Columbia University station in June 2024

The M60 Select Bus Service is a bus route in New York City. It is part of MTA Regional Bus Operations, operated by the Manhattan and Bronx Surface Transit Operating Authority (MaBSTOA) under the New York City Transit brand. The M60 provides service between the Upper West Side of Manhattan and LaGuardia Airport in East Elmhurst, Queens, traveling between boroughs via the RFK-Triborough Bridge. It is the only direct public transit option between Manhattan and LaGuardia Airport, as well as the only bus route to serve all LGA terminals.

The M60 was introduced in 1992 as an airport connector and is usually advertised as such. Much of the M60's passenger load, however, is from its crosstown service along 125th Street in Harlem; the M60 is the busiest of the four bus routes that run along the 125th Street Crosstown Line ("125th Street corridor"). On May 25, 2014, the M60 was converted into a Select Bus Service (SBS) route to improve service to-and-from the airport, and service along 125th Street. (Full article...)
Image 7
Nebraska Highway 88 (N-88) is a highway in northwestern Nebraska. It has a western terminus at Wyoming Highway 151 (WYO 151) at the Wyoming–Nebraska state line. The road travels eastward to N-71, where it turns south. N-88 continues east to south of Bridgeport. The road turns north, and ends at an intersection with U.S. Highway 385 (US 385) and N-92 in Bridgeport. The route was designated in 1937, before the official state highway system was created. It was extended to the state line in 1986. (Full article...)

More recognized articles

Selected picture

Image 1
Red telephone box
Photograph: Christoph Braun
A 'K6' model red telephone box outside of St Paul's Cathedral in London. These kiosks for a public telephone were designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott and painted "currant red" for easy visibility. Although such telephone boxes ceased production when the KX series was introduced in 1985, they remain a common sight in Britain and some of its colonies, and are considered a British cultural icon.
More selected pictures
Image 2
Empire State Building
Image credit: Lewis Hine
A structural worker bolts beams on the framework during the construction of the Empire State Building in New York City. The 1,250-foot (380 m) building opened on May 1, 1931, at the time the tallest building in the world, overtaking the Chrysler Building (seen to the right), which had just been completed the year before. The addition of a pinnacle and antennas later increased its overall height to 1,472 feet (449 m).
More selected pictures
Image 3
Ruby Loftus Screwing a Breech Ring
Painting: Laura Knight
Ruby Loftus Screwing a Breech Ring is a 1943 painting by the British painter Laura Knight depicting a young woman, Ruby Loftus (1921–2004), working at an industrial lathe as part of the British war effort in World War II. The painting was commissioned by the War Artists' Advisory Committee, and is now part of the Imperial War Museum's art collection. The painting brought instant fame to Loftus, and has been likened to the American figure of "Rosie the Riveter".
More selected pictures
Image 4
Stockwell Garage
Photograph: David Iliff
An interior view of Stockwell Garage, a large bus garage in Stockwell, London, designed by Adie, Button and Partners and opened in 1952. The 393-foot-long (120 m) roof structure, seen here, is supported by ten very shallow "two-hinged" arched ribs, between which are cantilevered barrel vaults topped by large skylights. The garage, which could originally hold 200 buses, has been a Grade II* Listed Building since 1988.
More selected pictures
Image 5
Escalator
Credit: Stig Nygaard
An escalator is a moving staircase for carrying people between floors of a building. The device consists of a motor-driven chain of individual, linked steps that move up or down on tracks, allowing the step treads to remain horizontal.
'"`UNIQ--templatestyles-00000022-QINU`"'
- More selected pictures
Image 6
Laptop computer
Credit: Mike McGregor
The OLPC XO-1 is an inexpensive subnotebook laptop computer intended to be distributed to children in developing countries.
'"`UNIQ--templatestyles-00000026-QINU`"'
- More selected pictures
Image 7
Continuous casting
Photo: Alchemist-hp
A disc of copper made by continuous casting, the process whereby molten metal is solidified into a "semifinished" state for subsequent rolling in the finishing mills. Continuous casting replaced the creation of ingots using stationary moulds. The process allows lower-cost production of metal sections with better quality, due to the inherently lower costs of continuous, standardised production of a product, as well as providing increased control over the process through automation. After casting, this disc was then etched to achieve its final state.
More selected pictures
Image 8
Curiosity (rover)
Photograph: NASA
A self-portrait by the Mars rover Curiosity on October 31, 2012. The mosaic is stitched from a set of 55 images taken by the Mars Hand Lens Imager at "Rocknest," the spot in Gale crater where the mission's first scoop sampling took place. Self-portraits such as this help NASA document the state of the rover and track changes, such as dust accumulation and wheel wear.
More selected pictures
Image 9
Jet engine
Diagram: Jeff Dahl
A diagram of a typical turbojet engine. Air is compressed as it enters the engine, and is mixed with fuel that burns in the combustion section. Released through the exhaust, the resulting hot gases provide forward thrust and turn the turbines that drive the fan blades of the compressor.
More selected pictures
Image 10
Overhead power line
Credit: Simon Koopmann
An overhead power line is a structure used in electric power transmission and distribution to transmit electrical energy along large distances. It consists of one or more conductors suspended by towers or utility poles.
'"`UNIQ--templatestyles-00000024-QINU`"'
- More selected pictures
Image 11
New York City Subway
Map: CountZ
A transit map of the New York City Subway, one of the oldest and most extensive public transportation systems in the world. Operated by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority of the State of New York, it has 468 stations in operation on 209 mi (337 km) of routes, with 842 miles (1,355 km) of track. It is the busiest rapid transit rail system by annual ridership in the Western Hemisphere, and fifth busiest in the world. Its stations are located throughout the boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx. Staten Island has its own rail line which is not part of the system, but is included in the map as well.
More selected pictures
Image 12
Flat-four engine
Photograph: ULPower Aero Engines
The ULPower UL260i, a flat-four engine produced by ULPower Aero Engines of Belgium. Flat-four engines are flat engines with four cylinders arranged horizontally in two banks of two cylinders on each side of a central crankcase; they can be used in cars, motorcycles, or aircraft. This type of engine tends to be well-balanced and have efficient cooling, but is expensive to manufacture and considerably wider than other engines.
More selected pictures
Image 13
Enriched uranium
Photo: United States Department of Energy
A billet of enriched uranium, which is uranium where the percent composition of uranium-235 (²³⁵U) has been increased through the process of isotope separation. Enriched uranium is a critical component for both civil nuclear power generation and military nuclear weapons.
More selected pictures
Image 14
Thermoplastic-sheathed cable
Photograph credit: Petar Milošević
A thermoplastic-sheathed cable consists of a toughened outer thermoplastic sheath of polyvinyl chloride, covering one or more individual annealed copper conductors. Each of the current-carrying conductors in the "core" is insulated by an individual thermoplastic sheath, coloured to indicate the purpose of the conductor concerned. The protective earth conductor may also be covered with insulation, although, in some countries, this conductor may be left as bare copper. The type of thermoplastic, the dimensions of the conductors and the colour of their individual insulation are specified by the regulatory bodies in the various countries concerned.
More selected pictures
Image 15
Let L-410 Turbolet
Photo: Łukasz Golowanow
The Let L-410 Turbolet is a twin-engined short-range transport aircraft, manufactured by the Czech aircraft manufacturer LET, mostly used for passenger transport. The L-410 first flew in 1969, and with more than 1100 produced, is the most popular 19-seat plane in history.
More selected pictures
Image 16
Rigger
Photo credit: Alfred T. Palmer
"Big Pete" Ramagos, rigger at work on Douglas Dam, Tennessee, June 1942. A rigger is a person or company which specializes in the lifting and/or moving of extremely large and/or heavy objects. Riggers use equipment expressly designed for moving and lifting objects where ordinary material handling equipment cannot go.
More selected pictures
Image 17
Telephone
Credit: Berthold Werner
A telephone, or phone, is a telecommunications device that converts sound, typically the human voice, into electronic signals suitable for transmission via cables or other transmission media over long distances through satellite.
'"`UNIQ--templatestyles-00000020-QINU`"'
- More selected pictures
Image 18
Tugboat
Image credit: Al2/Lycaon/Jeff Dahl
A diagram showing the parts of a tugboat, a boat used to maneuver large ships in harbours, over the open sea, or through rivers and canals. They also tow barges, disabled ships, and oil rigs. Equipped with powerful engines producing thousands of horsepower, extensive rigging equipment, and a fender of tires for protection, tugboats can push or tow large vessels with high precision and speed.
More selected pictures
Image 19
Wheel
Credit: fir0002
A wheel is a circular component that is intended to rotate on an axial bearing. The wheel is one of the main components of the wheel and axle which is one of the six simple machines.
'"`UNIQ--templatestyles-00000028-QINU`"'
- More selected pictures
Image 20
Fuel injection
Image credit: WikipedianProlific
An animated cut-away diagram of a typical fuel injector, which is used to spray controlled amounts of petrol (gasoline) into an internal combustion engine. A solenoid is activated when fuel is intended to be delivered to the engine, causing the plunger to become pulled toward the solenoid by magnetic force. This uncovers the valve opening, allowing fuel to flow into the atomiser and out the spray tip. The route of fuel is shown in orange; grey/blue indicates no fuel present.
More selected pictures

Main topics

General images - load new batch

The following are images from various technology-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Pont du Gard in France, a Roman aqueduct (from History of technology)
Image 2Walls at Sacsayhuaman (from History of technology)
Image 3Alessandro Volta with the first electrical battery. Volta is recognized as an influential inventor. (from Invention)
Image 4A late Bronze Age sword or dagger blade (from History of technology)
Image 5Self-replicating 3D printer (from Emerging technologies)
Image 6A rare 1884 photo showing the experimental recording of voice patterns by a photographic process at the Alexander Graham Bell Laboratory in Washington, D.C. Many of their experimental designs panned out in failure. (from Invention)
Image 7Design for a flying machine (c.1488) by da Vinci (from History of technology)
Image 8'BUILD YOUR OWN TELEVISION RECEIVER.' Science and Invention magazine cover, November 1928 (from Invention)
Image 9Dome of Florence Cathedral (from History of technology)
Image 10Edison electric light bulbs 1879–80 (from History of technology)
Image 11Ford assembly line, 1913. The magneto assembly line was the first. (from History of technology)
Image 12A variety of stone tools (from History of technology)
Image 13Thomas Edison with his second phonograph, photographed by Levin Corbin Handy in Washington, April 1878 (from History of technology)
Image 14An axehead made of iron, dating from the Swedish Iron Age (from History of technology)
Image 15Clock from Salisbury Cathedral, ca. 1386 (from History of technology)
Image 16The preserved Rocket (from History of technology)
Image 17The wheel, invented sometime before the 4th millennium BC, is one of the most ubiquitous and important technologies. This detail of the "Standard of Ur", c. 2500 BCE., displays a Sumerian chariot. (from History of technology)
Image 18The compartmented water wheel, here its overshot version (from History of technology)
Image 19Agriculture preceded writing in the history of technology. (from History of technology)
Image 20NASA Fuel cell stack
Direct-methanol cell (from Emerging technologies)
Image 21A water-powered mine hoist used for raising ore, ca. 1556 (from History of technology)
Image 22Johannes Gutenberg's printing press was voted the most important invention of the second millennium. (from Invention)
Image 23Solid-state air batteries
Li-Air composition (from Emerging technologies)
Image 24Eric M. C. Tigerstedt (1887–1925) was known as a pioneer of sound-on-film technology. Tigerstedt in 1915. (from Invention)
Image 25Newcomen steam engine for pumping mines (from History of technology)
Image 26Top 30 AI patent applicants in 2016 (from Emerging technologies)
Image 273D printer (from Emerging technologies)

Did you know (auto-generated) - load new batch

... that Kathanar – The Wild Sorcerer is being shot on a custom-built studio spanning 45,000 square feet (4,200 m²), utilizing the virtual production technology?
... that Aileen Davies sang roles on the first two D'Oyly Carte Opera Company recordings using the new electrical-recording technology?
... that Justin Yu, the current Classic Tetris World Champion, is also a cellist in MIT's video game orchestra?
... that vehicles in Star Trucker still look like American semi-trucks from the 1970s, despite having technology such as warp drivers and maglocks?
... that Criccieth Castle combined the "latest advances in military technology" with the "haphazard Welsh castle building style"?
... that the Illinois Institute of Technology created Chicago's smallest park by deeding a 54-square-foot (5 m²) granite slab to the city?
... that Byrnihat was ranked by an air technology company as the world's most polluted city in 2024?
... that the Japanese manga series Mink featured futuristic technology even though its creator was unfamiliar with computers?