I’ve been thinking some about new technology. What really makes a technology new, and what does that mean?

I have an inkling to stand on my high hobby horse and say that a new or improved application of an existing technology isn’t really new. My Subaru Outback and a Model A Ford are basically the same technology. Facebook is software. Pong is software. They are basically the same technology.

What are some examples of actually new technologies we’ve seen recently? Electronic ink, that stays put without power, I think that’s a new technology, but I’m not sure. Hybrid cars, maybe.

So otherwise ‘new technology’ just means newer bigger better faster. But roundabout, if technology is applied science, all new applications of existing technologies are new technologies. So I’m foolish to to pretend Facebook and Pong are the same thing. But still I’m thinking about it.