Module 5
Special Topics in Science,
Technology, and Society
MR. Filipino M. Salamat
Instructor
Contact Number:
0909497955830
Module Duration:
May 2, 2023 – May 13, 2023
GE008
Science, Technology, and Society
SAN MATEO MUNICIPAL COLLEGE
General Luna St., Guitnang Bayan I, San Mateo, Rizal
[Link]
MODULE 5:
Special Topics in Science, Technology, and Society: Information Society
LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
At the end of the module, you must be able to;
1. Determine the interrelatedness of society, the environment, and health;
2. Explain the process of genetic engineering ;
3. Discuss the ethics, implications, and potential future impacts of GMOs.
INPUT INFORMATION:
Lecture/Discussion:
Humans are surrounded on all sides by technology claiming to supply information: television, smart phones,
and internet devices, among others. However, do they all provide information or just noise? More voices are trying to
get our attention but how can we be sure that they share knowledge and the truth?
To answer this basic question, a short historical backgrounder might prove useful. Before the printed word, the written
word was prevalent. Yet, the intent to carry information has always been present.
INFORMATION
A word is a combination of sounds that represents something. It is the
significance which makes the words distinct from just any kind of vocal utterance.
Words are made up of sounds and yet they transmit something more significant.
They transmit a message. The words are informed because they carry
“information”. Words are informed with meaning given by the speaker and
intended for the listener. Simply put, they communicate meaning.
THE ROLE OF LANGUAGE
In the human quest for understanding the natural world, the ability to name and
classify objects found in nature was seen as a first step in knowing. Thus, the scientific
search for truth early on recognized the usefulness of language and the ability it gave to
make sense of nature. For the ancient Greeks, language was an object worthy of
admiration. Words have power.
This kind of knowing sprang from the Greek fascination and wonder at the power of
words and language. How is it possible that one’s idea can simultaneously
exist in his/her mind in another’s? How is it possible that human beings can communicate through words and thus
form a community? Does the power of the communicated word come from the speaker, who is the thinker and the
source, or from the listener, who is the recipient of the communication? However you answer these points, it is clear
that thinking in terms of a common system being generated by the speaker and received by the listener is useful in the
pursuit of knowledge. Science, from the Latin word, scire (meaning
to know), is one kind of knowledge the Greeks wanted to understand.
The idea of comprehending words as more than just combinations of sounds led the Greeks to seek out the principles
of everyday language. When talking to other people, for example, a meaningful message is created using ordinary
sounds. Its meaning is also not diminished by multiplication – the speaker can use the same words over and over again
to talk to ten, a hundred, or even a thousand people separately or at the same time. Nevertheless, the same message
will be received by everyone. Words, therefore, can function across space and time without reducing their meaning.
The first philosophers, as they thrashed about groping for seeking a unifying principle in nature, sometimes hit upon
things such as fire or water. But they believed that something was common in all of these. The many seemingly
different things in the natural world must have a unifying factor. There was an inside to be “understood”. They sought
for this meta phusis, literally meaning “after nature”.
Plato’s principle of “One and the Many” refers to the underlying unity among diverse beings in the natural world.
For Plato, there is a common intrinsic nature shared by different objects, which determines their real sense. Biologists
devised a way to illustrate this principle using a system differentiating between genus and species. Many species
belong in one genus.
In the 21st century, we are aware more than ever that there is rich diversity in nature, which technology has allowed us
to discover.
MATHEMATICS AS THE LANGUAGE OF NATURE
Technology in the modern world is the fruit of science. Because the scientific method helped people discover
how nature behaves, they were able to control nature with technology. A more accurate statement is: Since people
have discovered the laws and language of nature, they can develop technology that uses these laws and language for
their benefit. This language is, of course, mathematics, the great contribution of Isaac Newton. Nature can be
understood because it speaks in the language of mathematics and the human brain, to a certain extent, can comprehend
this language. Unfortunately, this fact is not always appreciated.
TECHNOLOGICAL WORLD
The ability to think and conceptually comprehend nature and the principles it follows eventually leads to
science. Even in ancient times, Western thinkers harnessed the forces of nature after understanding them better. Lost
in antiquity is the first sailing vessel that worked through the power of the wind, it was never recorded when the early
people realized that fire has its own power and energy. Not all early inventions are lost in time, however. Hero of
Alexandria, for instance, would invent a primitive steam engine in the first century.
THE PRINTING PRESS AND BEYOND
The power of the eidos, or idea, would be witnessed in the succeeding
centuries of development in the West. The ancient fascination with language gave
rise to the preservation of the words of earlier people at the same time when the
West weakened itself due to internecine warfare and conflicts. Throughout this dark
period, the importance of the word – the power to be informed as a human being –
led to the transmission of ideas through hand-copying. From this manual action
would arise the technology that would transform cultures – the printing press.
The development of the printing press, which may be regarded as the beginning of
a true revolution, could be dated to the 15th century. Through this technology, the
ancient Greek idea that knowledge should be shared and communicated among
humans would actually be done on a scale unimagined by its thinkers. Using the
printing press, people on different sides of the world could share their thoughts and
ideas with each other, forming communities of thinkers across space and time.
The world has never looked back. This technological invention allowed words and scientific ideas to establish a view
of nature anchored in scholarly works and studies. For instance, new discoveries about the phenomenon of electricity
were eagerly absorbed by fellow scientists who then utilized the science to create other technological products. The
radio was built upon the wave nature of electricity and magnetism, and from there, television followed.
In the age of information, the transmission of ideas has undergone changes. Meaning and depth are no longer
conveyed strictly by rhetoric but rather by its electronic replacement, the digital signal or digit. Such digital world is a
direct offspring of the progressing world of technology built upon the many advances in science.
THE WORLD WIDE WEB
A more modern example of technology feeding upon itself is the 20th
century tour de force: the World Wide Web through the internet. Sir Tim
Berners-Lee invented it as a way of addressing data processing and
information sharing needs among scientists for the European Organization for
Nuclear Research (CERN). CERN’s atom smasher produces a huge amount of
scientific data every second. It thus required better data analyzers to work on
the gathered information in coordination with each other. While the telegraph
and telephone had allowed the transmission of information to transcend
physical boundaries, processing a veritable ocean and mountain of scientific
data generated by the atom smasher needed a new medium.
With the ease of sharing information at present, its reliability becomes compromised. Anyone with a connection to
other people can produce contents which are showing half-truths or even lies, giving rise to disinformation. Social
media also encourages building a community of like-minded people. The creation of these groups often reinforces
biases and beliefs based only on the content that they allow within the community, forgoing the variation and clash of
ideas provided in real life. Worse, these communities can be tapped by people in power who may take advantage of
these mechanisms – controlling public opinion and harassing those who present opposing views – for their own
advantage. Meanwhile, the easy access to personal information makes one susceptible to online predation, identity
theft, and scamming, among others. Thus, it pays to be vigilant in utilizing these modern devices at all times.
The technology applied when a sailor rigs up a piece of cloth to catch the wind is the same one that produces modern
machines and devices, albeit less complex. Nevertheless, human beings have always found a way to address their
needs and discover new frontiers with scientific thinking. Considering the many benefits we get from these
technologies, we must also be responsible in utilizing them to avoid harming others and ourselves.
