Science,

Technology
And
Society
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Our course deals with interactions between science and
technology and social, cultural and political and economic
contexts that shape and are shaped by them. (CMO No. 20,
series of 2013). This interdisciplinary course engages
students to confront the realities brought about by science
and technology in society. Such realities pervade the
personal, the public and the global aspects of our living and
are integral to human development. This course seeks to
instill reflective knowledge in the students that they are able
to live the good life and display ethical decision making in
the face of scientific technological advancement.

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Science and technology have had both a
positive and negative impact on society,
especially in the following areas:
Community Life
Health
Communication

Work

Copyright © 2006 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

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The shift from nomadic life to farming led to
the development of the city.
• Networks of
transportation,
communication, and
trade systems
• Specialized labor
• Government and Jerusalem, one of the world’s first
cities, is still in existence today.
religion
• Social class
Copyright © 2006 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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 The nineteenth century witnessed the
Industrial Revolution.
• Invention of textile
manufacturing machines
• Division of labor
• Increase in production
• Crowded cities
• Unsafe and unhealthy
working conditions
Some of the negative aspects of the Industrial
Revolution included poor working conditions and long
hours.
Copyright © 2006 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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Technical innovations saved physical energy
and lessened people’s workload.

The tractor The vacuum cleaner

The washing machine

The refrigerator
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 (Continued)

The concept of leisure developed from labor-

saving technology. People use the money they
earn to take advantage of leisure time.

Sporting Events
Television

Movies
Social Activities
Copyright © 2006 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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The greatest innovation of technology was
longevity.
Estimated Life Expectancy of People in
the United States, 1900 - 2000

90
Life Expectancy (in years)

80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0

9 00 9 20 9 40 9 60 9 80 0 00
1 1 1 1 1 2
Year Copyright © 2006 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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 (Continued)

A large part of technology has been dedicated to

the advancement of medical science.

Sir Alexander Fleming discovered

penicillin, the first antibiotic, in Dr. William Thomas Green Morton (c.
1928. 1846) was one of the first medical
In 1796, Edward Jenner paved the way practitioners to use anesthesia on a
for modern immunology by discovering a patient before performing surgery.
vaccine for smallpox.

Copyright © 2006 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

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Some current innovations could have a drastic
impact on society.
In 1997, scientists at the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh,
Scotland, introduced Dolly the sheep, the first mammal ever
to have been cloned. Dolly quickly became the symbol of the
controversy over the ethics of cloning.
(Continued)
Embryonic stem cell research is another area that is at the
center of controversy. While stem cells might be able to be
used to generate new organs for transplant, the use of them
has many ethical considerations.
Copyright © 2006 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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Inventions and innovations in communication
have had a major influence on society.
• Egypt: papyrus and hieroglyphics
• Ancient Babylonia: cuneiform
• Ancient Greece: public speaking, persuasive
rhetoric, drama, and philosophy
• Ancient Rome: Roman alphabet
• Modern Europe: printing press
• World today: World Wide Web

Copyright © 2006 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

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Progress is a series of improvements in human
life marked by inventions and discoveries.
• Positive attributes of technology
must be greater than negative
attributes
• Negative consequences:
destruction of environment and
loss of what it means to be
human The Exxon Valdez oil spill off the coast of
Alaska in 1989 impacted 1,300 miles of
shoreline and killed an enormous amount
of wildlife.

Copyright © 2006 by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

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The Scientific Revolution
The Scientific Revolution is a revolution in
thought which established modern science as
a powerful new way to understand reality.

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Nicolaus Copernicus
(1473-1543)
 Sun-centered universe –
heliocentric theory

 Earth is no different than

any other planet

 On the Revolutions of the

Heavenly Spheres (1543)
 http://www.npr.org/2011/11/08/141931239/for-copernicus-a-
perfect-heaven-put-sun-at-center

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Contribution to the World
Nicolaus Copernicus
was the first to say the
sun was the center of
the universe with proof
involving physics,
mathematics, and
cosmology. His works
influenced Galileo,
Keplar, Descartes, and
Newton.

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• In 1514, Copernicus published Commentariolus
(The Little Commentary). He only distributed a few
handwritten copies among his friends. The book stated
The Little Commentary
seven principles:
1) There is no one centre of the universe.
2) The Earth’s centre is not the centre of the
universe.
3) The centre of the universe is near the sun.
4) The distance from the Earth to the sun is
imperceptible compared with the distance to the
stars.
5) The rotation of the Earth accounts for the
Apparent daily rotation of the stars. Front
6) The apparent annual cycle of movements cover of
of the sun is caused by the Earth revolving Comen-
around it. tarioulus
7) The apparent retrograde motion of the Earth
from which one observes.
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Charles Darwin
February 12, 1809 – April 19, 1882

by Katharine E. Hamilton 20
Education
Discovering His Passion
 Studied medicine at Edinburgh, theology at Cambridge
 Interest in natural history
 Taught by a freed black slave who told him exciting
tales of the South American Rainforest

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 Psychology
Sigmund Freud

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Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)

-Austrian, doctor
-father of psychoanalysis
One of the first psychologists to
study human motivation
-Psychiatry vs. Psychology
-up until 20th century frontal
lobotomies were performed on
patients

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Freud-believed that mental illness is a
result of nurture, not nature.
He asked the question:
“What makes people do things?”
Answer: MOTIVATION
Needs motivate human behaviour (food,
shelter, clothing…)

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Maslow's hierarchy of human needs. (From Maslow,
A. (1970}. Motivation and personality (2nd ed.). New
York: Harper & Row; reprinted by permission of
Harper Collins Publishers.) 27
Being deprived of a need arouses a feeling called
a DRIVE OR DESIRE. Animals respond
instinctively, humans learn various ways to
respond.
Human motivation explains the reasons why
people behave the way they do.
People have DRIVES OR DESIRES in the back of
their minds
ie: Will to live, will to die
Some of these desires cause people to behave
irrationally.
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People are born with a certain number
of instincts or DRIVES (human
instinctive behaviour)

The human mind has 3 Structures of

Personality
Ego

Superego

Id

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ID - animalistic nature of man
- MAKAHAYOP PERSONALITY
(this part of the mind seeks to bring us
pleasure)
-primitive parts of our personality including
aggression and sexual urge (libido) is
present

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EGO (self) -conscious part of the mind
(Rational Self).
- MAKATAO personality
-Decides what action to take for positive
means and what to do based on what is
believed is the right thing to do. Aware of
reality.
-Acts according to laws and morals

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SUPER EGO- unconscious part of the mind
that
- acts as our conscience. Reminds us of
what we should do.
- MAKA-DIYOS personality
The ID and the SUPEREGO are in
constant conflict. Your DRIVE tells you
to do one thing , while SOCIETY tells
you to do something else.
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 If you don’t resolve this conflict between
the ID and the EGO, you may experience
unhappiness or mental distress.

Thus, in order to understand

motivation, you must understand what is
in your unconscious memory. This is the
basis for PSYCHOANALYSIS.

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“Psychoanalysis has as its core the idea
that each of us has an unconscious part
whose existence, activities and thoughts
are hidden behind a mental barrier that
we cannot voluntarily remove. Behind
this barrier are repressed and
psychologically dangerous thoughts
that give rise to unconscious conflicts,
which in turn, can result in
psychological and physical symptoms.”
- Plotnik, p. 514

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