Learning Engagement 1 Section 1 INTRODUCTION TO STS.pdf

SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY Learning Engagement 1 SCIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY: An Overview HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS: A Glimpse H Introduction Science may not be a magic wand that can create miracles but it make...

SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY Learning Engagement 1 SCIENCE AND T ECHNOLOGY: An Overview HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS: A Glimpse H Introduction Science may not be a magic wand that can create miracles but it makes wonders beyond expectations. Technology on the other hand is almost a perfect masterpiece that reflects the ingenuity of the human minds. Both are essential for man to live and exist. Science and technology have enabled man to look further than our planet. It had shrunk the world and put it on our hands. It has defied borders among nations yet it has forged inequality among people. Science and technology made a great influence on our daily lives. Science and technology made a great impact to the society. Science and technology created a great advantage on world affairs. And the impact intensifies as time flies. Science and technology has evolved to supremacy that it became the elixir and oasis of man’s existence. It is through science and technology that we are becoming more capable without realizing that we become more dependent on it. Co-dependency may be mutual yet we are being posed by the thought that we could not live without it anymore. The question is - are human’s dependent on science and technology? or is science and technology dependent on humans? For most, science and technology had dispersed pieces of heaven, but for some it disposed bits of hell. Page 1 of 14  SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY Section 1: Introduction to STS: An Overview Desired learning Outcomes At the end of this session, the students must have: 1. discussed various perspectives related to science and technology; 2. explained how knowledge in science and technology transformed society; 3. assessed how discoveries and inventions related to S & T that influenced the society in the different facets of their lives. Lesson Proper Definitions of Science Science is any system of knowledge that is concerned with the physical world and its phenomena and that entails unbiased observations and systematic experimentation. In general, a science involves a pursuit of knowledge covering (Source: creation.com) general truths or the operations of fundamental laws. (britannica.com) Science (from the Latin word scientia, meaning "knowledge"), is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. (Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Science) Science is the concerted human effort to understand, or to understand better, the history of the natural world and how the natural world works, with observable physical evidence as the basis of that understanding. Source: googleusercontent.com Page 2 of 14  SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY It is done through observation of natural phenomena, and/or through experimentation that tries to simulate natural processes under controlled conditions. Science from an Individual Perspective In most cases, people collect information to test new ideas or to disprove old ones. Scientists become famous for discovering new things that change how we think about nature, whether the discovery is a new species of dinosaur or a new way in which atoms bond. Many scientists find their greatest joy in a previously unknown fact (a discovery) that explains something problem previously not explained, or that overturns some previously accepted idea. That's the answer based on noble principles, and it probably explains why many people go into science as a career. On a pragmatic level, people also do science to earn their pay checks. Professors at most universities and many colleges are expected as part of their contractual obligations of employment to do research that makes new contributions to knowledge. If they don't, they lose their jobs, or at least they get lousy raises. Scientists also work for corporations and are paid to generate new knowledge about how a particular chemical affects the growth of soybeans or how petroleum forms deep in the earth. These scientists get paid better, but they may work in obscurity because the knowledge they generate is kept secret by their employers for the development of new products or technologies. Science from the Societal Perspective If the ideas above help explain why individuals do science, one might still wonder why societies and nations pay those individuals to do science. Why does a society devote some of its resources to this business of developing new knowledge about the natural world, or what has motivated these scientists to devote their lives to developing this new knowledge? One realm of answers lies in the desire to improve people's lives. Geneticists trying to understand how certain conditions are passed from generation to generation and biologists tracing the pathways by which diseases are transmitted are clearly seeking Page 3 of 14  SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY information that may better the lives of very ordinary people. Earth scientists developing better models for the prediction of weather or for the prediction of earthquakes, landslides, and volcanic eruptions are likewise seeking knowledge that can help avoid the hardships that have plagued humanity for centuries. Any society concerned about the welfare of its people, which is at the least any democratic society, will support efforts like these to better people's lives. Another realm of answers lies in a society's desires for economic development. Many earth scientists devote their work to finding more efficient or more effective ways to discover or recover natural resources like petroleum and ores. Plant scientists seeking strains or species of fruiting plants for crops are ultimately working to increase the agricultural output that nutritionally and literally enriches nations. Chemists developing new chemical substances with potential technological applications and physicists developing new phenomena like superconductivity are likewise developing knowledge that may spur economic development. In a world where nations increasingly view themselves as caught up in economic competition, support of such science is nothing less than an investment in the economic future. Another whole realm of answers lies in humanity's increasing control over our planet and its environment. Much science is done to understand how the toxins and wastes of our society pass through our water, soil, and air, potentially to our own detriment. Much science is also done to understand how changes that we cause in our atmosphere and oceans may change the climate in which we live and that controls our sources of food and water. In a sense, such science seeks to develop the owner's manual that human beings will need as they increasingly, if unwittingly, take control of the global ecosystem and a host of local ecosystems. Lastly, societies support science because of simple curiosity and because of the satisfaction and enlightenment that come from knowledge of the world around us. Few of us will ever derive any economic benefit from knowing that the starlight we see in a clear night sky left those stars’ thousands and even millions of years ago, so that we observe such light as messengers of a very distant past. However, the awe, perspective, and perhaps even serenity derived from that knowledge is very valuable to many of us. Page 4 of 14  SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY Likewise, few of us will derive greater physical well-being from watching a flowing stream and from reflecting on the hydrologic cycle through which that stream's water has passed, from the distant ocean to the floating clouds of our skies to the rains and storms upstream and now to the river channel at which we stand. However, the sense of interconnectedness that comes from such knowledge enriches our understanding of our world, and of our lives, in a very valuable way. In recognizing that the light of the sun and the water of a well are not here solely because we profit from their presence, we additionally gain an analogy from which we can recognize that the people in the world around us are not here solely to conform to our wishes and needs. When intangible benefits like these are combined with the more tangible ones outlined above, it's no wonder that most modern societies support scientific research for the improvement of our understanding of the world around us. Science and Change If scientists are constantly trying to make new discoveries or to develop new concepts and theories, then the body of knowledge produced by science should undergo constant change. Such change is progress toward a better understanding of nature. It is achieved by constantly questioning whether our current ideas are correct. As the famous American astronomer Maria Mitchell (1818-1889) put it, "Question everything". (Source: asianscientist.com) The result is that theories come and go, or at least are modified through time, as old ideas are questioned and new evidence is discovered. In the words of Karl Popper, "Science is a history of corrected mistakes", and even Albert Einstein remarked of himself "That fellow Einstein... every year retracts what he wrote the year before". Many scientists have remarked that they would like to return to life in a few centuries to see what new Page 5 of 14  SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY knowledge and new ideas have been developed by then - and to see which of their own century's ideas have been discarded. Our ideas today should be compatible with all the evidence we have, and we hope that our ideas will survive the tests of the future. However, any look at history forces us to realize that the future is likely to provide new evidence that will lead to at least somewhat different interpretations. Some scientists become sufficiently ego-involved that they refuse to accept new evidence and new ideas. In that case, in the words of one pundit, "science advances funeral by funeral". However, most scientists realize that today's theories are probably the future's outmoded ideas, and the best we can hope is that our theories will survive with some tinkering and fine-tuning by future generation The notion that scientific ideas change, and should be expected to change, is sometimes lost on the more vociferous critics of science. One good example is the Big Bang theory. Every new astronomical discovery seems to prompt someone to say "See, the Big Bang theory didn't predict that, so the whole thing must be wrong". Instead, the discovery prompts a change, usually a minor one, in the theory. However, once the astrophysicists have tinkered with the theory's details enough to account for the new discovery, the critics then say "See, the Big Bang theory has been discarded". Instead, it's just been modified to account for new data, which is exactly what we've said ought to happen through time to any scientific idea. (gly.uga.edu) Definitions of Technology (Source: encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.c 1) Page 6 of 14  SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY Etymology The word technology comes from two Greek words, transliterated techne and logos. Techne means art, skill, craft, or the way, manner, or means by which a thing is gained. Logos means word, the utterance by which inward thought is expressed, a saying, or an expression. So, literally, technology means words or discourse about the way things are gained. Contemporary Lately, technology has come to mean something different. In one Usage respect, the term has come to mean something narrower -- the above definition would admit art or politics as means of gain, yet though those activities are permeated by technology now, most of us would not consider them to be examples or subsets of technology. In another respect, this definition is too narrow, for when most of us speak of technology today, we mean more than just discourse about means of gain. Working In this essay I will refer to technology in five different senses. Following Definitions are some working definitions. the First, technology is the rational process of creating means to order and technological transform matter, energy, and information to realize certain valued process ends. The significance of this definition will become clearer below. technological Second, technology is the set of means (tools, devices, systems, objects methods, procedures) created by the technological process. Technological objects range from toothbrushes to transportation systems. technological Third, technology is the knowledge that makes the technological knowledge process possible. It consists of the facts and procedures necessary to order and manipulate matter, energy, and information, as well as how to discover new means for such transformations. Page 7 of 14  SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY a technology Fourth, a technology is a subset of related technological objects and knowledge. Computer technology and medical technology are examples of technologies. the Finally, technology is the system consisting of the technological process, technological technological objects, technological knowledge, developers of system technological objects, users of technological objects, and the worldview (i.e., the beliefs about things and the value of things that shape how one views the world) that has emerged from and drives the technological process. (engr.oregonstate.edu) (Source: https://cdn1.byjus.com/wp-conten 1) Page 8 of 14  SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY Nine Inventions from the 21st Century That Are Still Shaping Our World Today Source: Donovan Alexander interestingengineering.com The 21st century has been an exciting time for those of us who dabble or are simply interested in the realms of technology. If you were born in any of the previous decades, you have had the opportunity to bear witness to some of the most important innovations and advancements in human history. 1. SOCIAL MEDIA Ok, let’s start with the more obvious and controversial one, social media. You might have grown tired of seeing your friends' countless posts or the constant threats to your own privacy but at one point (Source: alexsl/iStock) Social media held a truly exciting promise, to connect people across the world. Tools like Friendster and MySpace entered the scene in 2002 and 2003 respectively, opening the doors for the eventual giant Facebook. Social media is everywhere. There is a good chance that you read this post from our social media page. Social media does connect people and businesses across continents, is a hub for both great and useless information, and has even been a stage for major political movements. Just to put everything into scale, there are currently 7.5 billion people on this planet and 2.89 billion of them can be found on some sort of social media platform. Social media is going to be around for a while. Page 9 of 14  SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY 2. MULTI-USE ROCKETS Hate him or love him, Elon Musk has made some tremendous contributions to our planet. His company SpaceX has gone on to develop rockets that can be recovered and reused for other launches. It was in 2017 when SpaceX became the first to use one of these rockets again for another mission. (Source: https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-c 1) 3. THE CAPSULE ENDOSCOPY All thanks to massive advancements in light-emitting electrodes, image sensors, and optical design in the 90s, the capsule endoscopy was able to be created. First used in 2001, the technology uses a tiny wireless camera the size of a common pill. This allows doctors to explore and examine the human body, specifically the digestive system, to identify any potential Internal bleeding, inflammation, or cancerous tumors. (Source: CHUYN/iStock 1) 4. BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY The idea of a blockchain did not first appear in 2008. In fact, Stuart Haber and W. Scott Stornetta first envisioned the idea in 1991. However, it was not until the emergence of Bitcoin in 2008 when blockchain technology truly became relevant. People around the world are excited about blockchain as it has the potential to change industries outside of the cryptocurrency world. Page 10 of 14  SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY From car-sharing to cloud sharing, blockchain technology offers greater transparency increased efficiency and speed, improved traceability, and enhanced security just to name a few benefits. (Source: https://miro.medium.com/max/974/ 1) 5. BITCOIN AND CRYPTOCURRENCIES Remember last year when you could not go one day without seeing or hearing about cryptocurrencies? Bitcoin’s unprecedented rise in value force the world to pay attention to these decentralized tools. There were previous attempts to create cryptocurrencies in the late 90s, but it was the mysterious Mr. Nakamoto and his creation of Bitcoin that would go on to become a staple of culture. (Source: pcmag.com 1) Cryptocurrencies are already changing the way we conduct financial transactions offering a transparent, secure, and decentralized way to conduct business. Page 11 of 14  SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY 6. MOBILE OPERATING SYSTEMS Imagine where you would be without that smooth and easy to use operating systems found on your phone. Whether you love Android or Apple’s iOS, operating systems change your mobile device’s interface for the better, opening the doors to Better user experiences and (Source: hocus-focus/iStock 1) greater technological advances. 7. 3D PRINTING One of our personal favorites, 3D printing has a lot of hype around it because of its potential to disrupt everything from the food industry to the aerospace industry. In fact, there are a lot of examples of how that has already begun. Now, 3D printing is not completely new to the 21st century. (Source: https://pegus.digital/wp-content 1) Page 12 of 14  SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY 8. GENE EDITING / CRISPR The fascinating thing about gene editing is that it has played a big role in various aspects of science fiction before coming into fruition. Back in 2012, researchers from the University of California, Berkeley and a separate team from Harvard, as well as the Broad Institute, independently discovered the power of the bacterial immune system known as clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats or CRISPR. (Source: https://factbasedhealth.com/wp-c 1) 9. THE INTERNET OF THINGS This is probably another buzzword that you hear thrown around a lot. Originally conceived towards the end of 1999 by Sun Microsystems co- founder Bill Joy, we would go on to see the real application of IoT in our consumer devices and appliances in the 21st century. Yet, the IoT has the potential to unlock the “fourth industrial revolution” driving innovation in places like artificial intelligence and robotics. (Source: 4x-image/iStock 1) Page 13 of 14  SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY Synthesis Page 14 of 14