LESSON 1: INTRODUCTION TO SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY
AND SOCIETY
 Definitions:
o Science is the systematic knowledge
based on facts, nature, and it is
formulated through careful
observation, experimentation, and
research.
o Science developed from
 the observation of regularity in
the natural world:
a) The return of spring
after winter,
b) the setting of the
sun at a day's end,
c) the falling of the
ebb tide after high
water.
o Regularity suggests that nature is
not all chaos but follows rules.
 Science has been a human activity well before
the development of the first civilizations.
 The oldest civilizations are believed to have
emerged some time before 3000 BC; but
excavations from Catal Hüyük in Anatolia have
shown that the people in today's Turkey had
developed advanced skills in measurement and
accurate mapping as early as 6200 BC.
Linking Science & Religion
 In early societies scientific study was
undertaken by priests and monks, and scientific
knowledge was taught in temples and
monasteries.
 As civilizations developed, the link between
science and religion weakened and science
became the domain of philosophy.
 A clear distinction between science and religion
did not develop until well into the 18th century.
Religion
 Religion, like science, attempts to establish a
system of knowledge about nature.
 All religions are based on the belief that gods
act in an orderly fashion and make sure that
nature follows rules.
 The human mind is opposed to chaos; it can
only make sense of an ordered world and finds
order to meet its needs, even where order may
not exist.
Separation of Science & Religion
 Science is a system of knowledge based on
repeatable observation and experiment.
 Religion is a system of knowledge based on
unverifiable belief.
 Early societies had only limited means of
experimentation, and their endeavor to
discover the laws of nature had to rely on a
range of unverifiable assumptions.
 As human knowledge progressed, the need for
unverifiable assumptions decreased
progressively, and eventually science and
religion separated.
 Religious belief can still stimulate scientific
discovery today.
  Einstein's famous words "God does not play
dice" expressed the belief in a God who loves
order, a belief that influenced his approach to
scientific study and led to new scientific insight.
 People in early human societies had to spend
much of their time procuring food and shelter
and could not afford to put much effort into
non-essential activities. If science was practiced
in the earliest societies it must have been for a
purpose; in other words, science was
undertaken for practical applications. The fruits
of science translated into new technological
developments.
What is Technology?
 Technology is about taking action to meet a
human need rather than merely understanding
the workings of natural world, which is the goal
of science.
 It uses much more than scientific knowledge
and includes values as much as facts, practical
craft knowledge as much as theoretical
knowledge.
 The word technology has changed it meaning
several times since it came into use in Europe
during the 17th century. In the most general
terms, it can be defined as the application of
knowledge about nature to practical aims of
human endeavor.
 If this definition is accepted it follows that
technological development occurred at least as
early as first scientific study: Stone-age humans
realized that flintstone produces better cutting
tools than sandstone.
 They made that discovery and used their new
knowledge well before someone found the
scientific explanation for the phenomenon.
  Long periods of human history were
characterized by the mastering of technologies
such as the smelting of copper, bronze or iron,
without much knowledge of the underlying
scientific principles. In some societies this lack
of scientific understanding gave technology
mystical qualities and lead to misguided
activities such as medieval
European alchemy (unscientific attempts to
convert lead or other low value metals into
silver or gold) or the quest
for immortality through chemical concoctions in
ancient China.
Culture Defined
What is Society?
 It is a group of individuals involved in persistent
social interaction, or a large social group sharing
the same geographical or social territory.
 Society is the organizational form in which
individuals of a species live together. The animal
world contains many examples of different
societies. Bears have a large daily food intake
requirement but live in an environment where
the food supply is scattered over a wide region;
as a consequence, bears live solitary lives
through most of the year.
 Lions and wolves rely on collaborative hunting
and therefore live-in small hunting parties. In
both cases the internal structure of their
societies is determined by the environmental
conditions and the survival needs of the species.
Their societies cannot evolve; bears could not
survive in groups, nor could lions live solitary
lives.
 The earliest human society was the hunter-
gatherer society. It relied on food availability
from the land and could therefore only support
very small kinship groups. Larger gatherings of
many people could be sustained only on festive
(religious) occasions and then only for a few
days.
 The agricultural society is still widespread today
and probably the most common society
structure across the globe. It coexists with the
more advanced form of the urban society,
which developed when the division of labor
reached the stage where individuals specialized
in trades and had to receive food and other
subsistence in exchange for products of their
work.
What is a Civilization?
 Civilization requires that the society has
developed a central institution responsible for
the organization of daily life support, for
example the maintenance of a water supply or a
transportation system.
 This requires an advanced administration, which
is not found before the development of cities.
 A civilization is therefore always sustained by an
urban society, although the majority of its
people may (and often do) live in an agricultural
society structure in the countryside.
o Description of Different Civilizations
 Different civilizations are
described based mainly on
their:
 cultural achievements
 spiritual achievements
 artistic achievements
 The classic definition of culture goes back to
1871, when the English anthropologist Edward
Burnett Tylor wrote in his work Primitive
Culture that "culture ... is that complex whole
which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals,
law, custom, and any other capabilities and
habits acquired by man as a member of
society."
 Culture is behavior; it includes language, rituals,
social customs and many other elements of
expression.
 Ex. Neolithic Culture - is an artistic
expression of stone - age humans.
 French culture - “French way of life”;
which is a major consideration in the
formation of today's nation.
 The existence of prehistoric art demonstrates
that human societies developed culture before
they developed civilization.
 If culture is behavior, civilization is structure. 
 One approach at defining civilization lists a few
conditions that have to be met before a society
is considered a civilization.
 Not all civilizations satisfy all of these criteria,
but to be considered a civilization they have to
satisfy the majority of them.
Conditions for a society to become a Civilization
1. The existence of cities;
2. Advanced division of labor based on
specialized occupational groups;
3. Social classes, including a ruling class that is
exempt from work for basic subsistence;
4. An administration that can collect "social
surplus" (taxes or tribute);
5. Public buildings not designed as dwellings
but for communal purposes; and
6. Record keeping in written form.
 Civilizations therefore are large structures that
can contain many cultures.
  The boundaries between different civilizations
are sometimes not well defined, particularly
when one civilization evolved from another.
 It is therefore not possible to state with
certitude a definite number for all civilizations
of the world, but the number is small, much
smaller than the number of languages, nations
or art styles.
 There are a few thousand languages and
hundreds of cultures but only about a dozen
civilizations.
LESSON 2: INTERRELATEDNESS OF SCIENCE,
TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY
 Long periods of human history were
characterized by the mastering of technologies
such as the smelting of copper, bronze or iron,
without much knowledge of the underlying
scientific principles.
 In some societies this lack of scientific
understanding gave technology mystical
qualities and lead to misguided activities such as
medieval European alchemy (unscientific
attempts to convert lead or other low value
metals into silver or gold) or the quest for
immortality through chemical concoctions in
ancient China.
 Today the relationship is the reverse:
 Most new technology is the result of scientific
research that preceded it.
 It is also generally accepted that today science
and technology are closely linked and that
science provides the theoretical underpinning
for its technological applications.
 The symbol of this symbiosis is probably
Thomas Alva Edison, the first engineer to
establish a factory for inventions just before the
20th century.
 In the context of this course technology and
science have to be seen as closely related, since
both require systematic thinking and
experimentation.
 They began as parallel developments, initially
more or less independent of each other, but
grew closer as the centuries progressed, and
became eventually inseparable.
 Science and technology are activities exclusive
to the species Homo sapiens.
 But it is not science that sets humans visibly
apart from the animal world, because scientific
research produces invisible results, and it is
impossible to tell whether an animal can think
and reach scientific conclusions or not.
 The proof is not in the thought but in the action.
Some animals have been observed to use tools,
for example a stick to poke into a bees' nest or
to reach a fruit on a tree; but no animal fashions
general tools and keeps them for later use.
 This is the essence of technology, and if proof is
required that Homo sapiens differs from all
other animal species, technology can provide it.
 The rise of the urban society is a clear example
of the interaction between technology and
society.
 Increased division of labor resulted from new
technological developments and allowed
people to live in communities of a size that
could not be sustained before.
 Technology also defined the size of the new
cities: Everything required for daily life had to
be reached by foot, and living quarters had to
be within reasonable distance of the public
water supply.
 Ancient cities were therefore usually small but
extremely crowded.
 Evidence obtained from excavations from
before 2000 BC suggests that cities of up to
20,000 people occupied less than half a
kilometer square, a population density nearly
twice that of today's most crowded cities such
as Kolkata (Calcutta) or Shanghai.
 Technological innovation offered opportunities
to take up a trade, but these innovations
affected mainly the way in which people hunt or
build houses and not so much the way in which
people prepare meals.
 It was therefore mostly the men who took up a
trade and began to bring money into the family.
 As a result, the development of the urban
society increased the economic dependence of
women, and women became more and more
disadvantaged.
 Societies cannot ignore prevailing economic
conditions, but there can be choices in their
response to economic change.
 Village societies in Europe and in the South
Pacific existed under similar economic
conditions but developed quite different social
structures.
 The economic conditions of 21st century
capitalism can offer economic independence for
all; they do not prescribe a society of isolated
individuals connected through electronic
technology.
 It is possible to imagine a new form of
community living in which financially
independent individuals of all age groups come
into daily contact with each other in meaningful
exchange, respect each other and care for each
other.
SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY
Deals with the natural Deals with how humans
world modify, change, alter, or
control the natural
world.
Is very concerned with Is very concerned with
what is exists in the what can or should be
natural world (biology, designed, made, or
chemistry) developed from natural
world materials and
substances to satisfy
human needs and wants
Is concerned with Is concerned with such
processes that seek out processes that we use to
the meaning of the alter/change the natural
 natural world by: world such as: the globe is vivid, but the benefit has been
“inquiry”, discovering “invention”, innovation, harvested maximum by all countries.
what is, exploring, and practical problem solving,  Science and technology have made life a lot
scientific method. and design. easier and also a lot better with the
advancement of medicines and analysis on
Interconnections between Science & Technology diseases. Apart from the medical side, there has
been a remarkable development in education,
 Science drives Technology & Technology drives communication, agriculture, industry, etc. the
Science global economic output has increased 17 folds
 Science explores for the purpose of knowing, in the 20th century.
while technology explores for the purpose of  In spite of the advancements in almost all
making something useful from that knowledge. sectors, still, the world is not free from hunger,
 Science drives Technology by making new disease, pollution, illiteracy, and poverty. The
technology possible through scientific gap between the rich and the poor has
breakthroughs. widened. By the 21st century, with the right
 Engineers focus on using science to develop applications of research, development, and
products. implications of science and technology a major
 Without technology, some science experiments difference could be brought about.
would not be possible.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY IN DEVELOPMENT
 Without science, technology could not proceed.
 Science is a way of Knowing  Development is simply becoming in the future
 Technology as a way of Doing of what industrialized countries are today.
 The very questions that scientists ask are  Development is
shaped by the available technology. o The acceleration of economic growth
o The reduction of inequality
*From the beginning of time, man has strived to
improve his way and quality of life. The cavemen o The eradication of absolute poverty
discovered how to make and use tools, developed a o A multidimensional process
logical sequence for activities, and evolved processes o Involves the reorganization &
that added value to his life. reorientation of entire economic and
social systems
*The totality of the use and application of his o Involves major changes in
knowledge, skills, tools, and materials constitutes what administrative, institutional, and social
we today describe as technology. structures
Who uses technology? o Involves major changes in popular
attitudes, customs, and beliefs
 EVERY ONE!  Role of Science & Technology in Development?
 College Students o Science & Tech are considered by many
 Working Adults to be forces for improvement in the
 The children welfare of developing states.
 The elderly o Are also feared by many to be potential
 The relationship between technology and contributors to the dehumanization of
society is reciprocal. Society drives man and to the degradation of
technological change, while changing environment.
technologies in turn shape society. 1. The role should be directed
 Technological decisions should take into toward reduction of inequalities
account both costs and benefits. between advanced and the
 Everyone should observe how the technological developing countries and
changes are driven by the needs of society, and between various sections of
they should be able to predict what some of the population within a country.
consequences of those new technologies might 2. Should make the natural social
be. environment harmonious
 Examples of technological changes include: new without seriously endangering
kinds of media, computers, and communication the future.
systems; the development of more fuel-efficient 3. Should not be inserted as
cars; the construction of new or improved separate packages of
buildings, roads, and bridges; and new foods development techniques
and types of clothing. implemented in isolation from
the rest of the national
LESSON 3: IMPORTANCE/APPLICATIONS OF SCIENCE
evolution
AND TECHNOLOGY TO SOCIETY
4. Must be directed within the
 The role that science and technology have framework of the fundamental
played in improving the life conditions across social, cultural, and economic
rights in a peaceful and
cooperative world.
 The application of science and tech Is a
fundamental factor which influences the pace
of economic development.
 Implies the existence of certain prerequisites,
among which are the ff:
o Creation of a social climate favorable to
the application of science and tech;
o Role & responsibilities of the
universities in the implantation of
science;
o Technical and technological education
and training;
o Promotion of technological sciences
and applied research;
o Agricultural education and research;
and
o Infrastructure of auxiliary services
 The importance of science and tech in national
development cannot be over-emphasized. It is a
known fact that no nation can develop without
science and technology.
 Developed nations of the world like the
America, Germany, France etc. boast of several
scientific inventions which make them to be
rated as the world powers.
 Science and technology are the pivot of any
nation’s development.
 A nation without science and tech is definitely a
backward nation, such nation will be considered
undeveloped.
 Science and technology is associated with
modernity and it is an essential tool for rapid
development.