Science, Technology, and Society 

 
Hand out Title: Human Flourishing under the Human Condition  
Prepared by: ​Mark Aron S. Mactal  

In this lesson, will identify the different conceptions of Human Flourishing. Determine the 
development  of  the  scientific  method  and  validity  of  science.  Critic  human  flourishing  vis-à-vis 
progress of science and technology to be able to define for themselves the meaning of a good life.  

WHAT IS HAPPINESS?  

• ​In ​psychology​, ​happiness is a mental or emotional state of well-being which can be defined 
by, among others, positive or pleasant emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy.  

• ​To ​behaviorists, ​happiness is a cocktail of emotions we experience when we do something 

good or positive.  

• ​To ​neurologists,​ ​happiness is the experience of a flood of hormones released in the brain as 
a reward for behavior that prolongs survival.  

• ​The  ​hedonistic  view  ​of  well-being  is  that  happiness  is  the  polar  opposite  of  suffering,  the 
presence  of  happiness  indicates  the  absence  of  pain.  Because  of  this,  hedonists  believe 
that the purpose of life is to maximize happiness, which minimizes misery.  

• ​Eudaimonia,  ​a  term  that  combines  the  Greek  words  for  "​good​"  and "​spirit​" to describe the 
ideology.  ​Eudaimonia  ​defines  happiness  as  the  pursuit  of  becoming  a  better  person. 
Eudaimonists  ​do  this  by  challenging  themselves  intellectually or by engaging in activities 
that make them spiritually richer people.  

EUDAIMONIA  
​good spirited”  
​coined by Greek philosopher Aristotle  
​Describes the pinnacle of happiness that is attainable by humans.  
​“human flourishing”  

ARISTOTLE  
​Aristotle  believed  that  human  flourishing  requires  a  life with other people. Aristotle taught 
that  people  acquire  virtues  through  practice  and  that  a  set of concrete virtues could lead a 
person toward his natural excellence and happiness.  
​According  to Aristotle, there is an end of all of the actions that we perform which we desire 
for  itself.  This is what is known as eudaimonia, flourishing, or happiness, which is desired 
for  its  own  sake  with  all  other  things  being  desired  on  its  account.  Eudaimonia  is  a 
property  of  one's  life  when  considered  as  a  whole.  Flourishing  is  the  highest  good  of 
human  endeavors  and  that  toward  which  all  actions  aim.  It  is  success  as  a  human being. 
The best life is one of excellent human activity.  

​From ​Nicomachean Ethics (​ the philosophical inquiry into the nature of the good life for a 
human being.)  
Human flourishing arises as a result of different components such as  
• ​Phronesis  
• ​Friendship  
• ​Wealth  
• ​Power  
In ancient Greek society, they believe that acquiring these will surely bring the seekers happiness, 
which in effect allows them to partake in the greater notion of what we call the Good. 
​As time changes, elements that comprise human flourishing changed.  

​People found means to live more comfortably, explore more places, develop more 
products, and make more money.  

​Humans of today are expected to become “man of the world.”  

​Supposed to situate himself in a global neighborhood, working side by side among 

institutions and the government to be able to reach a common goal.  

Difference Conceptions of Human flourishing  

literature, sciences, and art 
Eastern   for a greater cause  
• ​Focus is community  Western  
centric   • ​More focused on the 
• ​Individual should sacrifice  individual  
himself for the sake of    • ​Human flourishing as an end ​•
society   Aristotelian view  
• ​Chinese Confucian system ​• • ​Aims for Eudaimonia as the 
Japanese Bushido   ultimate good 
• ​Encourage studies of 

Science, Technology and Human Flourishing  

• ​Every discovery, innovation, and success contributes to our pool of human knowledge. ​•
Human’s perpetual need to locate himself in the world by finding proofs to trace evolution. ​•
Elicits our idea of self-importance.  

• ​Technology is a human activity we excel in as a result of achieving science. (Heidegger) ​•

Good ​is inherently related to the ​truth.  

Science as Methods and Results  

• ​Science stems from ​objectivity b​ rought upon by a ​rigid method   
• ​Claim to ​reason and empiricism  

Steps in Scientific Method  

In school, the scientific method is introduced in the earlier part of discussions. Even 
though the number of steps varies, it presents a general idea how to do science:  
1. ​Observe ​and determine if there are unexplained occurrences unfolding. 
2. ​Determine the problem ​and identify factors involved.  
3.  Through  past  knowledge  of  similar  instance,  ​formulate  hypothesis  ​that  could  explain  the 
said  phenomenon.  Ideally,  the  goal  is  to  ​reject  the  null  hypothesis  ​and  accept  the 
alternative  hypothesis  of  the  study  “to  count  as  significant”  (can  also  be  separated  into 
additional steps such as “to generate prediction” or “to infer from past experiments”).  
 4. ​Conduct experiment ​by setting up dependent and independent variables, and trying to see 
how independent ones affect dependent ones.  
5. ​Gather and analyse ​results throughout and upon culmination of the experiment. Examine 
if the data gathered are significant enough to conclude results.  
6. ​Formulate conclusion and provide recommendation ​in case others would want to 
broaden the study.  
Verification theory  
​A discipline is science if it can be confirmed or interpreted in the event of an alternative 
hypothesis being accepted.   
​Premium on empiricism   
​Takes into account those results which are measurable and experiments which are 
repeatable.  
VIENNA CIRCLE   

 
- group of scholars who believed that  
​only those which can be observed should be regarded as meaningful  
​Reject those which cannot be directly accessed as meaningless​.  

Falsification Theory  
​As long as an ideology is not proven to be false and can best explain a phenomenon 
over alternative theories, we should accept the said ideology.   
​Allowed emergence of theories otherwise rejected by the verification theory. ​
Encourages research in order to determine which among the theories can stand the test of 
falsification  
KARL POPPER  
• ​aim at the production of new, falsifiable predictions   
• ​scientific practice is characterized by its continual effort to test theories against experience 
and make revisions based on the outcomes of these tests