Science, Technology and Society Review

Science, Technology, and Society (STS)

• Study of how social, political, and cultural values affect scientific research and technological innovation, and how these, in turn, affect society, politics, and culture.

History of STS

• 1925: Ludwig Fleck's monograph "Genesis and Development of a Scientific Fact" introduced key STS themes.
• 1962: Thomas Kuhn's "The Structure of Scientific Revolutions" attributed changes in scientific theories to changes in underlying intellectual paradigms.

Definition of Science and Technology

• Science: a systematic and organized knowledge drawn from various disciplines, including anthropology, history, political science, and sociology.
• Technology: applied science, a body of skills and knowledge that modifies systems, processes, and developments in the world.

Science and Technology During Ancient Times

Sumerian Civilization

• Mesopotamia, inhabited by Sumerians around 3500 BCE.
• Developed the first writing system, cuneiform.
• Irrigated fields by constructing dikes and canals.
• Invented the sailboat.

Babylonian Civilization

• Located in the border of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in Iraq from 3500 BCE to 500 BCE.
• Notable rulers: Hammurabi (1792-1750 BCE) and Nebuchadnezzar II (604-562 BCE).
• Hammurabi promulgated his code of law.
• Nebuchadnezzar constructed the famous "Hanging Gardens of Babylon".

Egyptian Civilization

• Existed from 3150 BCE to according to conventional Egyptian chronology.
• Achievements: quarrying, surveying, and construction techniques; mathematics, medicine, irrigation systems, agricultural production techniques, faience, glass technology, literature, and the earliest known peace treaty.

Greek Civilization

• Made significant improvements in science and technology.
• Notable figures: Archimedes (mathematician and engineer) and Pythagoras (mathematician and creator of the Pythagorean Theorem and Pythagoreanism Religion).

Other Inventions

• Astrolabe: a device used to determine location and longitude.
• Cannon: created by Ctesibius of Alexandria and first used with compressed air.
• Crane: a device that helped Greece in construction by lifting heavy materials with less work.
• Levers: a simple but smart way of quickly lifting heavy weight using counterweight.
• Gears: key for many technology inventions, leveraging the power of levers.
• Water Pumps: helped carry water to elevated places, dealing with gravity.

Persian Civilization

• Contributed to the current understanding of nature, medicine, mathematics, and philosophy.
• Notable achievements: algebra, chemistry, wind-power machine, and first distillation of water.
• May have created the first batteries, known as the Baghdad Battery.