The Human Person
Flourishing in terms
of Science and
Technology
Eudaimonia
❑ Literally “good spirited”
❑ Coined by Greek philosopher
Aristotle
❑ Describes as the pinnacle of
happiness attainable by
humans.
❑ “Human flourishing”
Eudaimonia
In Nicomachean Ethics (philosophical inquiry into the nature of the good life for
a human being.) Human flourishing arises as a result of different components
such as:
1. Phronesis
➢ The habit of making the right decisions and taking the right
actions in context and relentless pursuit of excellence for the
common good.
2. Friendship
3. Wealth
4. Power
Eudaimonia
● In the Ancient Greek society, they believe that acquiring those
qualities will surely bring the seekers happiness, which in
effect allows them to partake in the greater notion of what we
call Good.
What is Human Flourishing?
❑ An effort to achieve self-actualization
and fulfillment within the context of
a larger community of individuals ,
each with the right to pursue his or
her own such efforts.
❑ Involves rational use of one’s
individual human potentialities
including talents, abilities, and
virtues in the pursuit of his freely and
rationally chosen values and goals.
Relevance of Human Flourishing in
Science and Technology
Relevance of Human Flourishing in Science and Technology
❑ The human person, as both the bearer and beneficiary of
science and technology, flourishes and finds meaning in the
world that he/she builds.
❑ In the person’s pursuit of the good life, he/she may
unconsciously acquire, consume or destroy what the world
has to offer.
❑ To be able to appreciate the fruits of science and technology,
they must be examined not only for their function and
instrumentality but also for their greater impact as a whole.
❑ 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
and repeating the process in full circle.
❑ Humans of today are expected to become
“man of the world
❑ Competition as a means of survival has
become passé
❑ Coordination is the new trend
The conception of Eastern and Western
regarding Society and Human Flourishing
EASTERN WESTERN
❑ Community – centric ❑ More focused on the
individual
❑ Individual should sacrifice
himself for the sake of society ❑ Human flourishing as an
end
❑ Chinese Confucian system
and Japanese Bushido ❑ Aristotelian View
❑ Encourages studies of ❑ Aims for Eudaimonia as the
literature, sciences and art ultimate good
for a greater cause
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 brought upon by a
rigid method
❑ Claim to reason and empirism
Steps in Scientific Method
01 Observe 04 Conduct Experiment
02 Determine the problem 05 Gather and analyze
Formulate conclusion
Formulate hypothesis
03 06 and provide
recommendation
Verification Theory
● A discipline is science if it can be confirmed or interpreted in the event of
an alternative hypothesis being accepted.
● Premium to emperiscim
● Takes into account those results which are measurable and experiments
which are repeatable.
● Vienna Circle
➢ Group of scholars who beliveved that
■ Only those which can be observed should be regarded as
meaningful
■ Reject those which cannot be directly accesses as meaningless
ILLUSTRATION
Lea has a theory that her classmate Ian likes her. Good, she thought, I
like him too, But how I know that he likes me ?
She began by observing him and his interactions with her. Several
gestures she noted include his always exchanging pleasantries with her
whenever they bump into each other, his big smile when he sees her,
and him going out of his way to greet her even when his riding a
jeepney. Through these observations, she was then able to conclude
that does like her because, she thought, why would anyone do
something like that for a person he does not like?
ILLUSTRATION
As it turns out, however, Ian is just generally happy to meet people he
knew. He had known Lea since they were in first year and regards her as
a generally okay person. It is no surprise then that upon learning that
Ian basically does this to everyone, Lea was crushed. She vowed to
herself that she would never assume.
Falsification Theory
● As long as an ideology is not proven to be false and can be best explain
in 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
○ A proponent of this view
○ Aim that the production of new, falsifiable predictions
○ Scientific practiceis characterizedd by its continual effort to test
theories against experience and make revisions based on the
outcomes of these tests.
Falsification Theory
Ian is generally everybody’s friend. He likes to be around people and genarally aspires to
become everybody’s friend. However, there is this one girl, Lea, who seemed to not like
him when he is around. Everytimr he waves at her, she turns away, and when they are in
the same room, she avoid his glances. Through this, he concluded that Lea does not like
him and does his best to show her that he is not a threat. He begani greeting her
wherevery they pass by each other at the corridor, even going so far as calling her
attention when he was in the jeepney and saw her walking past.
When they were able to talk to each other, he found out that Lea is just really shy and is
not acustomed to people greeting her. He then was able to conclude that his initial
impression of her not liking him as a person is wrong and thus said proposition is
rejected.
Falsification Theory
● There is no known rule as to the the number of instance that a
theory is rejected or falsified in order for it to be set aside.
● There is no assurance that observable event or “evidences” are
indeed manifestations of a certain concept or “theories”.
Science as a Social Endeavor
● Several philosophers such as Paul Thagard, Imre Lakatos, Helen
Longino, David Bloor, and Richard Rorty, presented an alternative
demarcation that explores the social dimension of science and
effectively, technology.
● Sciences cease to belong solely to gownwearing, bespectacled
scientists at laboratories.
● The new view perpetuates a dimension which generally benefits the
society.
Science and Results
❑ Science is not the only discipline which is able to produce
results - religion, luck, and human randomness are some
of its contemporararies in the field.
❑ Science is not entirely foolproof, such that it is correct
100% of the time.
Science as Education
❑ There are distincts portions in entrance exams in the secondary and
tertiary levels that are dedicated to science and mathematics.
❑ Inthe Philippines, a large distribution a large distribution of science
high schools can be found all over the country.
❑ One might infer that there are more demand in this field as students
are preconditioned that the field would latter land them high-paying
jobs and a lucrative career after graduation .
Science as Education
❑ Ifone is really in pursuit of human flourishing, it would make sense for
them to pursue it holistically.
❑ Simply mastering science and technology would be inadequate if we
are to, say, socialize with people or ruminate on our inner self.
❑ Aristotle’s eudaimonic person is person is required to be
knowledgeable about science, among other things of equal
importance.
❑A true eudaimon recognizes that flourishing requires one to excel in
various dimensions, such as linguistic, kinetic, artistic, and socio-civic.
HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH?
❑ In 2000, world leaders signed the Millennium Development Goals
(MDG) that targets 8 concerns, one which states that they should
be able to forge a global partnership for development.
❑ Economists believe that growth is the primary indicator
development.
❑ Technology has been a primary instrument in enabling to pursue
said goal, utilizing resources, machineries, and labor.
❑ Growth is not infinite
Developed countries should not push forth more
growth but instead adopt “de-development”
policies or else, everybody loses.
- Joseph Hickel
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