Technology

Everyone should be able to harness technology, Jobs told Fresh Air's Terry Gross in 1996. In memory of Apple's co-founder and former CEO, we listen back to excerpts of their conversation. "Our goal was to bring a liberal arts perspective ... to what had traditionally been a very geeky technology," he said.

As many as 12 million computers worldwide have been infected with a highly encrypted computer worm called Conficker. Writer Mark Bowden details how Conficker was discovered, how it works, and the ongoing programming battle to bring down Conficker in his book Worm: The First Digital World War.

Constantly having access to our cellphones is changing the way we interact with the world, says technology writer Brian X. Chen. In a new book, he explains how being "always on" will affect law enforcement, the medical community and higher education.

Online dating sites are now a multibillion-dollar industry. But how do they match people together? New Yorker writer Nick Paumgarten recently profiled several of the major online dating websites to find out how they pair people with compatible romantic mates.

Science writer Susan Freinkel chronicles the rise of plastic in consumer culture — and its effects on the environment and our health — in Plastic: A Toxic Love Story. Freinkel says plastics leach potentially harmful chemicals into our bloodstream — and that scientists are now figuring out what that does to our bodies.

The co-founder of Twitter talks about how the service was used in Egypt to help organize the protests, and about the rumors that the popular microblogging service could be purchased by Google or Facebook.

Computerized algorithms now do much of the work on Wall Street. Financial journalist Felix Salmon says they've become ingrained in the financial system -- but are also increasingly complex and difficult to regulate.

What happens to your online presence when you die? Evan Carroll and John Romano edit The Digital Beyond, a website that helps users plan what happens to their online content after death. They suggest you start planning now for the inevitable.

The constant stream of information we get through mobile and hand-held devices is changing the way we think. Matt Richtel, a technology writer for The New York Times, explains how the use of digital technology is altering our brains -- and how retreating into nature may reverse the effects.

Even recycling your old TVs and computers doesn't mean you're doing the right thing -- trashing certain items may mean major heath and environmental problems. Jim Puckett of the Basal Action Network talks about the best ways to ensure your electronics are being recycled correctly.