Technological+areas

as defined in the 1999 curriculum []  Curriculum 2007: Technological areas include structural, control, food, and information and communications technology and biotechnology. The technological areas indicate areas in which students will be expected to carry out their technological activities, and suggest the range around which the technology curriculum in schools can be organised and developed. These areas are not mutually exclusive: **most technological developments and learning experiences encompass more than one area. ** Whichever technological area is selected, **design **, including the processes of specification and development and testing of prototypes, is an essential component of the activity. **Drawing and graphics **, including freehand and technical drawing and the use of computer graphics packages, are also essential in technological practice to depict and clarify ideas and proposed solutions. Digital technology - ICT, mobiletechnology, GPS Materials technology Graphics and design Electronics and Control Food technology Textiles Hard materials - wood, metal, plastics Biotechnology Horticulture Production and Process Structures and Mechanisms Paper engineering Paper making Pottery Cob ovens Tuffa pots Information as a Product  One of the confusing set of terminologies in communications technology surrounds the concept of information. What is the difference between information, information technology, communications, and communications technology? One way to approach this is to think in terms of the definition of technology. There are 2 components to this - technology as **//product //**, and technology as **//process //**. Information is clearly a product. It is a commodity that may be bought and sold, or given away freely. It is contained in books, in magazines, in databases, on the Internet. In other words, once it is created it exists independently of its creators. Information may be created by people or by technological devices (weather stations collect data automatically, for example). Information should not be confused with knowledge. Knowledge is a human characteristic. It occurs when information is acquired, internalized and processed so that it has meaning to the person. Information technology was a term coined some time ago to describe computerized systems employed in the creation, processing, and storing of information. It referred to a discrete set of tools and systems. Communications technology is probably a more appropriate term in a world where communications systems are worldwide and interconnected. Information of all forms, sources, purposes, and destinations coexist in an unimaginably complex network. With all forms of information and communications encoded in digital format, information is distributed throughout the entire communications network. from []
 * //Technology is the means by which humans meet their needs and wants //**.