MODULE 1

General Concepts and

Historical Events in Science,
Technology and Society

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 Unit 1: Intellectual Revolutions that Defined Society

At the end of the lesson, you will be able to:

1. discuss how the ideas postulated by Copernicus, Darwin and Freud contributed to
the spark of Scientific revolution; and
2. analyze how scientific revolution is done in various parts of the world like in Latin
America, East Asia, Middle East and Africa.

To further understand what exactly happened during the scientific revolution, it is

important to examine the different individuals whose ideas have shaken and contested the
dominant theories and ideas during this period- the truths of their time.

Scientists in all periods of time are driven by their curiosity, critical thinking, and creativity
to explore the physical and natural world. Their love for science and technology is driven by their
deep passion to know and to discover. They are not driven by clamor for honor and publicity.
They are ordinary people doing extraordinary things. In spite of all the predicaments and
challenges they experienced, they never stopped experimenting, theorizing and discovering new
knowledge and ideas.

There were many scientists who worked for commendable results but for the purpose of
discussion only three known men in this arena will be discussed.

NICOLAUS COPERNICUS

He is a Mathematician and astronomer who formulated a model of the universe that placed
the Sun rather than the Earth at the center of the universe. The earth and all the planets are
surrounding or orbiting the Sun each year. Copernicus model of the Earth orbiting around the
Sun automatically positioned the planets into a logical sequence.

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 The Copernican Model:
A Sun-Centered Solar System

In his model, Copernicus outlined two kinds of planetary

motion:

1. The orbits of Venus and Mercury lay inside the orbit of

the Earth, thus, closer to the Sun
2. The orbits of Mars, Saturn and Jupiter lay outside the
Earth’s orbit, thus, farther from the Sun

From this model, he would work on the length of time

it will take for each planet to orbit once around the Sun. The result would form a sequence from
Mercury, with a shorter year, through Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn with the longest
year. He placed the planets in order of increasing distance from the Sun. One of the great
problems in the Copernicus model, however, was the position of the stars. The stars cannot be
placed in a fixed position like crystals in a distance sphere.

CHARLES DARWIN

Darwin is famous for his theory of evolution. He changed the concept of the world’s
creation and its evolution. Darwin published his book The Origin of Species in 1589 which is
considered to be one of the most important works in scientific literature. Darwin collected many
significant materials in order to present his theory with overwhelming evidence on how species
evolved over time and presented traits and adaptation that differentiate species.

Darwin’s Theory of Evolution

The theory of evolution by natural selection is the process by which organisms change
over time as a result of changes in heritable physical or behavioral traits. Changes that allow an
organism to better adapt to its environment will help it survive and produce offspring.

SIGMUND FREUD

Freud is a famous figure in the field of psychology making a significant contribution in the
scientific world through the development of an important observational method to gather reliable

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data to study human’s inner life popularly known as the method of psychoanalysis. This method
is a scientific way to study human mind and neurotic illness.

The Id
The id is the only component of personality that is
present from birth. This aspect of personality is entirely
unconscious and includes the instinctive and primitive
behaviors. According to Freud, the id is the source of all
psychic energy, making it the primary component of
personality. The id is driven by the pleasure principle, which
strives for immediate gratification of all desires, wants, and
needs. If these needs are not satisfied immediately, the result
is a state anxiety or tension.

The Ego

The ego is the component of personality that is responsible for dealing with reality.
According to Freud, the ego develops from the id and ensures that the impulses of the id can be
expressed in a manner acceptable in the real world. It functions in the conscious, preconscious,
and unconscious mind. The ego operates based on the reality principle, which strives to satisfy
the id's desires in realistic and socially appropriate ways. The reality principle weighs the costs
and benefits of an action before deciding to act upon or abandon impulses.

The Superego

The last component of personality to develop is the superego. It is the aspect of

personality that holds all of our internalized moral standards and ideals that we acquire from both
parents and society—our sense of right and wrong. The superego provides guidelines for making
judgments. According to Freud, the superego begins to emerge at around age five.

There are two parts of the superego:

1. The ego ideal includes the rules and standards for good behaviors. These behaviors include
those which are approved of by parental and other authority figures. Obeying these rules
leads to feelings of pride, value, and accomplishment.
2. The conscience includes information about things that are viewed as bad by parents and
society. These behaviors are often forbidden and lead to bad consequences, punishments,
or feelings of guilt and remorse.

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CRADLES OF EARLY SCIENCE

Development of Science in Mesoamerica

Mesoamerica includes the entire area of Central America from Southern Mexico up to the
border of South America. The expanse of the covered area made this region rich in culture and
knowledge prior to the arrival of its European colonizers.

• The Maya civilization is one of the famous civilizations that lasted for approximately
2,000 years. These people are known for their works in astronomy, for measuring time
using two complicated calendar system useful for their life especially in planning their
activities and in observing their religious rituals and cultural celebrations. They developed
technology for growing different crops and building elaborate cities using ordinary
machineries and tools.

• Build hydraulics system with sophisticated waterways to supply water to different

communities.
• Used various tools and adapt themselves to innovations especially in the field of
arts. Built looms for weaving cloth and devised a rainbow of glittery paints made
from mineral called mica. Famous as one of the world’s first civilizations to use a
writing system known as the Mayan hieroglyphics.
• Skilled in mathematics and created a number system based on the numeral 20.
• Developed the concept of zero and positional value even before the Romans did.

• The Inca civilization

The following were scientific ideas and tools that Incas developed to help them in
their everyday life:
o Roads paved with stones
o Stone buildings that surmounted earthquakes and other disasters
o Irrigation system and technique for storing water for their crops to grow in all
types of land
o Calendar with 12 months to mark their religious festivals and prepare them for
planting season
o The first suspension bridge
o Quipu, a system of knotted ropes to keep records that only experts can interpret
o Inca textiles since cloth was one of the specially prized artistic achievements

• The Aztec civilization

Some of their contributions are the following:

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 o Mandatory education. The Aztec puts value on education; that is why their
children are mandated to get education regardless of their societal class, gender,
or age. It is an early form of universal of inclusive education
o Chocolates. The Aztec in Mexico developed chocolate during their time. In the
Mayan culture, they used it as currency. The Aztec valued the cacao beans highly
and made it as part of their tribute to their gods
o Antispasmodic medication. They used a type of antispasmodic medication that
could prevent muscle spasms and relax muscles, which could help during surgery.
o Chinampa. It is a form of Aztec technology for agricultural farming in which the
land was divided into rectangular areas and surrounded by canals
o Aztec calendar. This enabled them to plan their activities, rituals and planting
season
o Invention of the canoe. A light narrow used for traveling in water systems

Development of Science in Asia

Asia is the biggest continent in the world and the home of many ancient civilizations. It
is a host to many cultural, economic, scientific and political activities of all ages.

In the field of science, technology and mathematics, great civilizations have stood out:
India, China and the Middle East civilizations.

• India
o India is a huge peninsula surrounded by vast bodies of water and fortified by huge
mountains in its northern boarders. The Indians creatively developed various ideas
and technologies useful in their everyday lives.
o They are known for manufacturing iron and in metallurgical works. Their iron steel
is considered to be the best and held with high regard in the whole of Roman
Empire.
o They are also famous in medicine specifically Ayurveda, a system of traditional
medicine that originated in ancient India before 2500 BC, still practiced as a form
of alternative medicine.

Other notable Indian works in science and technology includes the following:
o In the field of astronomy, they developed theories on the configuration of the
universe, the spherical self-supporting Earth and the year of 360 days with 12
equal parts of 30 days each
o Ancient India known for mathematics. Tried to standardize measurement of length
to a high degree of accuracy and designed a ruler, the Mohenjo-daro ruler.

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 o Indian astronomer and mathematician Aryabhata introduced a number of
trigonometric functions, tables and techniques as well as algorithms of algebra
o Indian Brahmagupta suggested that gravity was a force of attraction, and lucidly
explained the use of zero as both a placeholder and a decimal digit along with the
Hindu-Arabic numeral system
o Another Indian named Madhava of Sangamagrama considered as the founder of
mathematical analysis

• China
o China is one of the ancient civilizations with substantial contributions in many areas
of life like medicine, astronomy, science, mathematics, arts, philosophy and music.
o Known for traditional medicines; example is the practice of acupuncture.
o In terms of technology, the Chinese are known to develop many tools, among the
famous discoveries and inventions of the Chinese civilizations were compass,
papermaking, gunpowder and printing tools.
o They also invented other tools like iron plough, wheelbarrow and propeller. They
developed a design of different models of bridges, the first seismological detector,
and developed a dry dock facility.
o In the field of astronomy, the Chinese also made significant records on supernovas,
lunar and solar eclipse, and comets, which were carefully recorded and preserved
to understand better the heavenly bodies and their effects to our world. They
observed the heavenly bodies to understand weather changes and seasons that
may affect their daily activities. They used lunar calendars, too.
o The Chinese are also known in seismology that made them more prepared in times
of natural calamities. On the other hand, it may have been the religious and
philosophical framework of Chinese intellectuals that made them unable to accept
the ideas of laws of nature.

• Middle East Countries

o Middle East Countries are dominantly occupied by Muslims. With the spread of
Islam in the 7th and 8th centuries, a period of Muslim scholarship or what is called
the Golden Age of Islam lasted until the 13th century. The common language of
Arabic, access to Greek texts from the Byzantine Empire, and tehir proximity to
India were contributory to the intellectualization of the Muslims and provided their
scholars knowledge to create innovations and develop new ideas. Muslim scientists
placed greater value on science experiments rather than plain-thought
experiments leading to the development of the scientific method in the Muslim
world, using experiments to distinguish between competing scientific theories set
within a generally empirical orientation. Several scientific breakthroughs include
the following:

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 o A Muslim scientist named Ibn al-Haytham is regarded as the Father of Optics,
especially for his empirical proof of the intromission theory of light;
o In mathematics, the mathematician Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi gave his
name to the concept of the algorithm while the term algebra is derived from al-
jabr, the beginning of the title of one of his publications;
o What is now known as the Arabic Numeral System originally came from India, but
Muslim mathematicians did make several refinements to the number system, such
as the introduction of decimal point notation;
o Jabir ibn Hayyan was considered by some scholars to be the “Father of Chemistry”.
o Ibn Sina pioneered the science of experimental medicine and was the first
physician to conduct clinical trials contributing to the discovery of the contagious
nature of infectious diseases and the introduction of clinical pharmacology.

Development of Science in Africa

Africa is blessed with natural and mineral resources. Science also emerged in this part of
the planet long before the Europeans colonized it. The history of science and mathematics show
that similar to other ancient civilizations, the early civilizations in Africa are knowledge producers,
too. The following are some of the scientific development:
▪ The development of geometry was a product of necessity to preserve the layout and
ownership of farmlands of the Egyptians living along the Nile River;
▪ The rules of geometry were developed and used to build rectilinear structures, the
post of lintel architecture of Egypt improved the quality of life of the Egyptians
especially in building their early homes and cities;
▪ Egypt was known to be a center of alchemy, which is known as the medieval
forerunner of chemistry
▪ They tried to study human anatomy and pharmacology and applied important
components such as examination, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis for the
treatment of disease.
▪ Astronomy was also famous in the African region
▪ Metallurgy was also known in the African regions during the ancient times
▪ Invented metal tools used in their homes, in agriculture, and in building their
magnificent architectures
▪ Mathematics was also known to be prominent in the life of early people in the African
continent
▪ The Lebombo Bone from the mountains between Swaziland and South Africa, which
may have been a tool for multiplication, division, and simple mathematical calculation
or a six-month lunar calendar is considered to be the oldest known mathematical
artifact dated from 35,000 BCE

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