Technique vs Technology

I was standing in my kitchen, with a 15+ girl on my left side and a 50+ woman on my right side.

The girl asked me, "akka, what is the use of computer science degrees hereafter?"

I looked into her eyes, "why such a question?"

"I thought I can pursue CS in my higher secondary. But everyone uses technology today. I don't think CS people will have any special quality", said the girl.

"Special quality in the sense?", I asked her, though I understood her question.

"Today everyone knows everything in computer science. We play in and out with all gadgets, in fact, a comman man knows more than a techie in using technology. Technology is becoming a part of life. Take me for example - I too know what is cloud computing, Artificial intelligence. I can anytime learn concepts and develop things. Then how do you differentiate a comman man from a techie?", she questioned me in curiosity.

I gazed at her for few seconds and started looking around the place. I took wheat flour, transferred some to a bowl, and gave it to her.

"Knead it to make chapathis", I told her.

"I do not know to knead it", she looked at me.

"Your mom does it?", I asked her.

"Nah, we have food processor, it will knead the dough", she said with pride.

I asked the woman, "Do you know to use food processor?" She said, "No."

"What? Don't you know to use?", the girl made fun of her.

I gave the bowl to the woman on my right. She kneaded it in minutes with adequate water.

"She knows how to do it without food processor", I told the girl.

I took a small amount of dough and asked the girl to roll it as chapathi. She said, "We have roti maker to do it".

I started dividing the dough into 8-10 chunks.

"You know to use technology, we know the technique. This is the special quality!", I told her calmly.

"You are comparing computer science with food?", she asked me.

"Not only computer science, it applies to every field!", I told her, "See, the amount of water is different for making dough for puri and chapathi. The texture depends on water and how we knead it. This is the technique. The technology here is food processor or roti maker. You do not know the technique and she does not know the technology. Without technology, you cannot prepare chapathi, but she can make it."

"Examples for other fields?", the girl asked me.

"Washing machine vs washing clothes by hand and drying them, Electric cleaning vs manual sweeping and mopping, etc", I paused for a while and continued, 

"In computer science you learn about the technique and implement it! You can develop anything today, but remember you are developing on the top layer, what holds the top layer is the work of cs field people. Since you know to use a gadget better than a techie, doesn't mean you know the gadget in and out. The one who developed it knows what can be done and what cannot be done. If the technology gets an issue, the developer has to sort it out again!

Some cs people know what to do, some know how to do and some know both! There are some who know what happens, how it goes wrong and how to correct a fault! Just different aspects as other fields have! Technology exists to help humans and minimize their burden. Even in the absence of technology, the technique can help us.

CS makes you learn/find a technique, It is upto you to understand it and implement it."

"Ok akka, I understood! I will go ahead with cs", she said politely.

"Proceed as you like, not by what others influence you to do", I told her.

In a nutshell, to my readers here,

When you know the technique, you can (learn to) handle any technology. Without technique, there is no technology!

Do not underestimate the people working in any field! Every field has its uniqueness!!!

PS: I rarely make/eat chapathis. I am not a follower of: 'chapathis cure diabetes' :) :) :)