Heidegger on the Technological Attitude

When Heidegger talks about the 'essence of technology', he is not concerned with specific technologies (iPads, cell phones, hydroelectric dams, etc.).  Rather, he is concerned with a technological attitude, or way of approaching things.  In this sense, technology is a way of uncovering the truth about things.  The traditional theory of truth is that sentences are true when they correspond to reality.  Heidegger's theory of truth is that things are true when they are uncovered as themselves.  Technology is one way of uncovering things.  All acts of uncovering are dangerous.  To uncover one thing is to cover up another thing.  Think about digging a hole in the dirt.  When you dig up one thing, the dirt you removed has to go somewhere.  The kind of uncovering that characterizes the essence of technology is Gestell, or enframing.  Enframing is a way of uncovering things that necessarily prevents other modes of uncovering and revealing.  Technological enframing reveals all things as energy to be unlocked, transformed, transferred and stored.