Introduction to Science, Technology and It is meant simply to explain how nature

Society and the universe work and that the

obligation of the scientists, besides
Definition of Terms: studying the nature of the universe, is to
Science explain the possible uses and application
- the word came from the Latin “scientia” of such scientific knowledge.
meaning “knowledge” ➢ Made it clear that science is not the same
- refers to the systematic and methodical as technology. Scientists are not
activity of building and organizing responsible for the application of
knowledge about how the universe knowledge in technology.
behaves through observation, ➢ Further explained that the very nature of
experimentation, or both. science is that it is not possible to predict
John Heilbron (2003) scientific discoveries and how these
- Famous American Science Historian discoveries may be applied. While
- Stated that “Modern science is a scientists are not responsible for the
discovery of regularity in nature, enough reliable conduct of the scientific inquiry
for natural phenomena to be described and its honest interpretation and
by principles and laws.” dissemination, technological applications
- He also explained that science required of science are influenced by other
invention to devise techniques, sectors such as politics and governance,
abstractions, apparatuses, and religion, and business.
organization to describe these natural
regularities and their law-like Advancements in science and technology have
descriptions. become pervasive. They are manifested in the
activities that humans pursue and the tools they
Technology use everyday. The beauty of this is that an
- Originated from the Greek word “techne” advancement builds upon itself. As such,
meaning “art, skill, or cunning of hand” humans today live more productive and more
- Is the application of scientific knowledge, exciting lives than their predecessors.
laws, and principles to produce services,
materials, tools, and machines aimed at The dynamism and immensity of scientific and
solving real-world problems. technological progress also pose challenges
and drawbacks to the way humans live. The
Society introduction of machines tremendously cut the
- Is composed of a group of people living need for the human workforce and gave rise to
together in a more or less ordered the question of whether machines will eventually
community replace humans.

Wolpert (2005) The invention of drugs that cured the previously

➢ Made an interesting comparison incurable diseases introduced new strains of
between science and technology that is bacteria and viruses that are resistant to the
helpful in the study of their interaction very same drugs that once fought them-take an
with society antibiotic-resistant strain of gonorrhea as an
➢ Explained that reliable scientific example.
knowledge has no moral or ethical value.
The rise of social media drastically changed
how humans communicate, interact, and share
information; however, this tends to put people’s
privacy at risk. Indeed, science and technology
have served a predominantly double-edged
function.
ETHICAL DILEMMAS
Definition:
Dilemma - is a situation where a person is
forced to choose between two or more
conflicting options neither of which is
acceptable.
What are Ethical Dilemmas?
Ethical / Moral Dilemmas
- Are situations where persons, who are
called “moral agents” in ethics, are forced
to choose between two or more
conflicting options, neither of which
resolves the situation in a morally
acceptable manner.
Three Conditions That Must Be Present in
Moral Dilemmas
1. The person or agent of moral action is
obliged to make a decision about which
course of action is best.
2. There must be different courses of action
to choose from.
3. No matter what course of action is taken,
some moral principles are always
compromised.
Ten Emerging Ethical Dilemmas
1. Helix - a digital app store designed to
read genomes.
2. BlessU-2 Popper - first robot priest and
monk.
3. Emotion-Sensing Facial Recognition -
a software being developed to assess
your reactions to anything such as
shopping and playing games.
4. Ransomware - a way of holding data
hostage through the backing and
requiring a ransom to be paid.
5. Textalyzer - a device that analyzes
whether a driver was using his or her
phone during an accident.
6. Social Credit System - a system of
scoring citizens through their actions by
placing them under constant
surveillance.
7. Google Clips - a hands-free camera that
lets the user capture every moment
effortlessly.
8. Sentencing Software - a mysterious
algorithm designed to and courts in
sentencing decisions.
9. Friendbot - an app that stores the
deceased’s digital footprint so one can
still chat with them.
10. Citizen App - an app that notifies users
of ongoing crimes or major events in a
specific area.
Methods of critiquing these emerging ethical
dilemmas may come from similar methods used
in previous critiques of science and technology
issues. For example, one can use methods
used in critiquing the rise of clinical trials of gene
therapy in the 1990s. Today's approach of
critiquing emerging science and technology
issues, such as the ones listed above, may be
influenced by how scientists and nonscientists
evaluated the positive and negative purpose,
one can continue to specifically draw from the
tenets of philosophy, and sociology in making
informed and critical judgments of the ethical
and moral values of these innovations in
science and technology.
What is Social Implication?
- Social implications of an event or action
are the results, on society or part of
society, of the event or the action. The
idea of social implications can also be
extended to a law or a policy, that is, a
planned set of repeated actions.
Examples of Dilemmas and their Social
Implications
1. Personalized Genetic Test
Personalized Medicine
2. Hacking Into Medical Devices
- Implanted medical devices, such
as pacemakers, are susceptible to
hackers. Barnaby Jack, of security
vendor IOActive, recently
demonstrated the vulnerability of
a pacemaker breaching the
security of the wireless device
from his laptop and
reprogramming it to deliver an
830-volt shock.
3. Driverless Zipcars
- In three states (Nevada, Florida,
and California), it is now legal for
Google to operate its driverless
cars. Google’s goal is to create a
fully automated vehicle that is
safer and more effective than a
human-operated vehicle. The
ethics of automation and equality
of access for people of different
income levels are just a taste of
the difficult ethical, legal, and
policy questions that will need to
be addressed.
4. 3D Printing
- Scientists are attempting to use
3D printing to create everything
from architectural models to
human organs. For now, 3D
printing is largely the realm of
artists and designers.
5. Adaptation to Climate Change
- The differential susceptibility of
people around the world to climate
change warrants an ethical
discussion. We need to identify
effective and safe ways to help
people deal with the effects of
climate change, as well as learn to
/ manage and manipulate wild
species and nature in order to
preserve biodiversity. Some of
these adaptation strategies might
be highly technical (e.g. building
sea walls to stem off sea-level
rise), but others are social and
cultural (e.g., changing
agricultural practices).
6. Low-Quality and Counterfeit
Pharmaceuticals
- The enormous amount of trade in
pharmaceutical intermediaries
and active ingredients raise a
number of issues, from the
technical (improvement in
manufacturing practices and
analytical capabilities) to the
ethical and legal.
7. Autonomous Systems
- Machines are increasingly
evolving from human -controlled
to automated, to autonomous,
with the ability to act on their own
without human input. As these
systems operate without human
control and are designed to
function and make decisions on
their own, the ethical, legal, social
and policy implications have
grown exponentially.
8. Human-Animal Hybrids (Chimeras)
 - So far scientists have kept human- magnify human biological function
animal hybrids on the cellular beyond the societal norm.
level. According to some, even
more modest experiments
involving animal embryos and
human stem cells violate human
dignity and blur the line between
species.

9. Ensuring Access to Wireless and

Spectrum
- These technologies are
completely transforming how we
communicate, conduct business,
learn, form relationships,
navigate, and entertain ourselves.
At the same time, government
agencies increasingly rely on the
radio spectrum for their critical
missions. This confluence of
wireless technology
developments and societal needs
presents numerous challenges
and opportunities for making the
most effective use of the radio
spectrum.

10. Data Collection and Privacy

- Now that microprocessors and
permanent memory are
inexpensive technology, we need
to think about the kinds of
information that should be
collected and retained. These
issues require appropriate policy
discussions in order to bridge the
gap between data collection and
meaningful outcomes.

11. Human Enhancements

- Pharmaceutical, surgical,
mechanical, and neurological
enhancements are already
available for therapeutic
purposes. But these same
enhancements can be used to