Course Syllabus – GEC 6 (Science Technology and Society)
Professor: Dr. Florenda C. Ballesteros-Temanel
A. Description
The course deals with interactions between science and technology and social, cultural, 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. Scientific
knowledge and technological development happen in the context of society with all its socio-political, cultural, economic, and
philosophical underpinnings at play. 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 and technological advancement.
This course includes mandatory topics on climate change and environmental awareness.
B. Credit Unit: 3 units
C. Number of Contact Hours per Week: 3 hours every week for 18 weeks or 54 hours in a semester
D. Learning Outcomes
At the end of the course, the students should be able to:
Knowledge
1. Articulate the impacts of science and technology on society, specifically Philippine society.
2. Explain how science and technology affect society and the environment and its role in nation-building.
3. Analyze the human condition in order to deeply reflect and express philosophical ramifications that are meaningful to the
student as a part of society.
4. Define and demonstrate the impact of social media on the students’ life and Philippine society in general
Values
1. Imbibe the importance of science and technology in the preservation of the environment and the development of the
Filipino nation.
2. Critique human flourishing vis-à-vis the progress of science and technology such that the student may be able to define for
himself/herself the meaning of the good life.
3. Foster the value of a healthy lifestyle toward the holistic and sustainable development of society and the environment
Skills
1. Creatively present the importance and contributions of science and technology to society.
2. Examine shared concerns that make up the good life in order to come up with innovative and creative solutions to
contemporary issues guided by ethical standards.
3. Illustrate how the social media and information age impact their lives and their understanding of climate change.
E. Course Outline
1. The Nature and Relationships of Science, Technology and Society
a. Characteristics of Science & Technology :Scientific Method
b. Characteristics of Science & Technology: Scientific Traits and Values
c. History of Science and Technology
d. Intellectual Revolutions
e. Science and Technology and Nation Building
2. Recent Advances and Trends in Science and Technology
a. The Information Age
b. The Nano World
c. Biodiversity and the Healthy Society
d. Biotechnology
e. Gene Therapy
f. Climate Change and the Energy Crisis
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3: Specific Issues and Concerns on Science and Technology and its impact to the Society
a. Ethical
b. Socio-Political
c. Economic
F. Required Readings and Other Materials
Anderson, Philip W. “More is Different—One More Time,” in More is Different: Fifty Years of Condensed Matter Physics, ed. N.
Phuan Ong and Ravin N. Bhatt, Princeton University Press, 2001.
Balakrishnan, Janaki and B V Sreekantan, eds. Nature’s Longest Threads: New Frontiers in the Mathematics and Physics of
Information in Biology, World Scientific, 2014.
Caoli, Olivia. “A History of Science and Technology of the Philippines,” in Analysis of Conditions for National Scientific and
Technological Self-Reliance: The Philippine Situation, Quezon City: University of the Philippines, 1986.
Dayrit, Fabian. “Sustainable Development: An Evolving Paradigm for the 21st Century,” in Stellar Origins, Human Ways:
Readings in Science, Technology, and Society, ed. Ma. Assunta Cuyegkeng, Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University
Press, 2011.
Ecker, David J. Germ Catcher, Scientific American, 2014.
Floridi, Luciano. The Fourth Revolution: How the Infosphere is Reshaping Human Reality, Oxford University Press, 2014.
Feynman, Richard. “The Pleasure of Finding Things Out: What Is and What should be the role of scientific culture in modern
society” in The Best Short Works of Richard Feynman, pp. 97–115, Perseus Books,1999.
Gripaldo, Rolando. “The Concepts of the Public Good: A View from the Filipino Philosopher” in The Making of a Filipino
Philosopher and Other Essays, pp. 82-100, National Bookstore, 2009.
Heidegger, Martin. The Question Concerning Technology and Other Essays, HarperCollins, 1982.
Hickel, Jason. “Forget ‘developing’ poor countries, it’s time to ‘de-develop’ rich countries,” The Guardian, Online:
http://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2015/sep/23/developing-poor-countries-de-
develop-rich-countries-sdgs.
Lehrer, Jonah. How We Decide, Mariner Books, 2010.
Maboloc, Christopher Ryan. “Eudaimonia and Human Flourishing” in Ethics and Human Dignity, 15-23, Rex Bookstore, 2010.
McNamara, Daniel J. in “A Return to the Beginning,” in Stellar Origins, Human Ways: Readings in Science, Technology, and
Society, ed. Ma. Assunta Cuyegkeng, Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press, 2011.
Rodriguez, Socorro M. “Philippine Science and Technology: Economic, Political and Social Events Shaping Their Development,”
1996
Von Baeyer, Hans Christian, Information: The New Language of Science, Harvard University Press, 2005.
G. Suggested Readings
Agro-ecology: What it is and what it has to offer? Is this the future of farming?
Alan Turing: The Enigma” (Andrew Hodges and Douglas Hofstadter)
Aristotle, Nichomachean ethics, Book VI and Book X
Article: “Environmental Impacts of Nanotechnology and Its Products” (Zhang et. al Proceedings of the 2011 Midwest
Section Conference of the American Society for Engineering Education, 2011)
Article: “Nanoethics: The ethical and Social Implications of Nanotechnology” (Patrick Lin and Fritz Allhoff, Hoboken,
New Jersey: John Wiley and Sons, Inc. 2007)
Flowcharts/revival-west/the-age-enlightenment. http://www.flowofhistory.com/readings-flowcharts/revival-
west/the-age-enlightenment/fc97 http://www.flowofhistory.com/readings-flowcharts/revival-west/the-age-
enlightenment/fc98 http://www.flowofhistory.com/readings-flowcharts/revival-west/the-age-enlightenment/fc99
http://www.flowofhistory.com/readings-flowcharts/revival-west/the-age-enlightenment/fc100
http://www.flowofhistory.com/readings-flowcharts/revival-west/the-age-enlightenment/fc100a
http://www.flowofhistory.com/units/west/15/FC101 http://www.flowofhistory.com/%5Bmenupathalias%5D/fc102
http://www.flowofhistory.com/units/west/15/FC103
Government Documents: 1. NEDA. National Development Agenda; Regional Agenda
http://www.dbm.gov.ph/wpcontent/uploads/GAA/GAA2015/GAA%202015%20Volume%20I/NEDA/NEDA.pdf
http://www.dbm.gov.ph/wp-content/OPCCB/OPIF_2007/neda3.pdf
Kuhn, Structure of Scientific Revolution
(http://projektintegracija.pravo.hr/_download/repository/Kuhn_Structure_of_Scientific_Revolutions.pdf)
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Philosophy of Science (Encyclopedia). Scientific Progress, Scientific Revolutions
(http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/scientific-progress/#SciPro)
(http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Philosophy_of_science.aspx#3)
(http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Scientific_Revolutions.aspx#3)
Physics of the Future: How science will shape human destiny and our daily lives by the year 2100 (Michio Kaku,
Doubleday, 2011)
Article: “The politics of Golden Rice” (Dubock, Adrian GM Crops & Food. Jul-Sep2014, Vol5 Issue 3 p 210-222 13p.)
H. Website/Videos/Film Clips
Dayrit, Fabian M. Ppt: Can we build a culture of science through nanotechnology? (2013)
Film: Akiro Kurosawa’s Dreams “Village of the Watermills”
http://www.history.com/topics/enlightenment/videos/mankind-the-story-of -all-of-us-scientific-revolution
http://www.flowofhistory.com.readings
http://hti.osu.ed/scientific revolution/lesson plans
http://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2015/sep/23/developing-poor-countries-de-
develop-rich-countries-sdgs
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6432307, stm, The ethical dilemmas of robotics
http://www/theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2008/07/Is google making us stupid/306868/, Is Google Making Us Stupid?
2008. Nicholas Carr
http://www.cc.gatech.edu/computing/nano/documents, Why The Future Doesn’t Need Us (2000) – Bill Joy, Chief Scientist
and Corporate Executive Officer of Sun Microsystems
https://explorable.com/scientific-reductionism
https://explorable.com/what-is-a-paradigm
Movie: “A I” Isaac Asimov, “I Robot
Movie Clip (youtube): The Magician’s Twin: CS Lewis and the case against Scientism
Martin Heidegger, The Question Concerning Technology
UNEP, That Sugar Film (2015) (documentary) Ppt: towards a green economy: pathways to sustainable development and
poverty eradication
Video: Stephen Colbert’s interview with Neil Tyson https://www.youtube.com/watchv=YXh9RQCvxmg&noredirect=1
Youtube: World’s Greatest Inventions (3 minutes)
Youtube: Science Friction: Stem Cell Research
TED Talk: Juan Enriquez on “The Next Species of Human”
TEDTalk: Julian Assange on “Why the World Needs Wikileaks”
TED Talk: Ray Kurzwell on “How Technology Will Transform Us”
TEDTalk: Susan Lim on “Transplant Cells Not Organs”
J. Class Materials
Activity Report: A day without Technology
Activity Report: Timing your Technology
Activity Report: Technology and Past (interviews with elders)
K. Grading Plan
Coursework will be weighted as follows:
Class Standing (Quizzes, Recitation, Reports) 35%
Prelim Exam 15%
Midterm Exam 25%
Final Exam 25%
L. Class Policies
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1. Quizzes
There will be many quizzes (probably one almost every class period). Quizzes will relate to current and previous topics. A
quiz may be given at any time during any class period – immediately after the lecture, at the beginning or end of a class, etc.
There will be no make-up quizzes – none even later during the same class period. Quizzes will be given only to those
students who are present when the quizzes are administered.
2. Preliminary/Mid-term/Final Examinations
The preliminary/mid-term/final exam will be comprehensive. No make-up exams shall be allowed, except for valid reasons
and/or documented excuses. SEE ME WITHIN ONE WEEK OF MISSING THE TEST TO QUALIFY.
3. Attendance
When the number of hours lost by the absence of a student in one term reaches 20% of the prescribed number of hours in
the subject, he shall be dropped from the class roll. If the majority of the absences are not excused, he shall be given a
grade of 5.0. Time lost by late enrolment shall be considered as time lost by absence. Any significant tardy or early
departure from class will be equivalent to one-hour period of absence.
4. Academic Dishonesty
Academic dishonesty is a completely unacceptable mode of conduct and will not be tolerated in the class. Any student
found cheating during an exam or deliberately plagiarizing from another student will receive a failing grade for the
course.
5. Consultation Hours
Your professor can be reached for a consultation:
Office : Department of Biological Sciences
College of Arts and Sciences, ISU-Echague, Isabela
Schedule : Tuesdays 8:00am – 11:00am
CP No. : 09989853676
6. Others
Your recorded grade will be available for your review at any convenient time. Do remember to keep all quizzes/exams
returned to you so that any discrepancies can be easily and fairly straightened out. Except in cases of actual error, final
grades are permanent. The last day to withdraw from the course is one day before the scheduled midterm examination.
7. Classroom Rules of Conduct
No cell phones/radios are allowed in the class.
Food and beverages are not permitted in the classroom. This includes plate lunches, drinks, candy, etc, whether opened or
not.
Prepared by:
FLORENDA C. BALLESTEROS-TEMANEL, Ph.D.
Professor VI
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