Human and Machine
“We become in thought and action the servants of the machine we have developed to serve us.” (J. K. Galbraith)
Humans have been using tools since the Stone Age to make work easier. With the Industrial Revolution and the development of increasingly powerful machines, their lives changed fundamentally.
Factories increasingly displace not only home-based work and small workshops but also parts of skilled crafts. Conceived by creative inventors and built by human hands, machines take over an ever-larger share of labor. On the other hand, factory workers must adapt to the rhythm of the machines. Their pace and the time clock regulate daily work life. Machines contribute significantly to increasing productivity and, thus, to raising prosperity. They relieve humans of heavy and dangerous tasks, and are precise and reliable. Just as the machine tool once did, information technologies are transforming the world today.
Here, the relationship between machines and raw materials is illustrated using computing technology as an example. Raw materials are of central importance for modern technologies. Therefore, aspects of their sustainable extraction, efficient use, and recycling are increasingly relevant. A smartphone contains valuable raw materials such as gold, silver, and copper. Discover the 30 most important elements of a smartphone in the “Raw Materials Theater.”
