Sometimes efficiency is obvious. On a production line for, say, chocolatey treats, it is a series of whirring, specialised machines busy enrobing a biscuit in caramel, covering it in chocolate, and drying, packing and stacking the product. For an office worker communicating with colleagues it probably involves email. In both cases, the process has been made more efficient by technology. Across almost all industries the story, since the industrial revolution, has been one of tech boosting efficiency.