Science, Technology and Society

“Historical Antecedents in which Social Considerations changed the course of Science and
Technology”
Overview
Welcome to STS. As a first topic, it is important to give you a background in science,
technology, and society. In this topic, you will learn the definitions of these three big words and
a bit of their history. You will also identify some scientific discoveries and inventions that have
(or can have) a direct impact on you as a student in your respective course. You will also note
that paradigm shifts happen in history which is caused by developments in science and
technology.

What is Science?
1. Science originated from the Latin word “Scientia,” which means “knowledge”
- It involves a pursuit of knowledge covering the general truths of the natural world.
Which means it is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the
form of testable explanations and predictions about the world.
2. Science is a global human endeavor.
- People from all over the world take part in the scientific process. This means that
people all over the world are interested in science and use scientific data and
technological solutions. Participation in science by a diverse range of people will
result in greater and faster progress toward understanding how the natural world
works and solving problems confronting individuals, communities, and the
environment.
3. Science is an ongoing process.
- It will always be unfinished business, as new information emerges, debunking old
accepted facts and theories. This cycle is never-ending. For example, people in
ancient times believe that the earth is flat. They took it as fact until a new claim arises
such as the shape of the Earth is an oblate spheroid. This just means that it flattens at
the poles and widens out at the equator, contradicting all their beliefs, with all the
concrete evidence. There is a shift from the old view to the latest accepted facts.
Science will never be finished!
4. Science is unveiling nature.
- It unlocks all nature’s behavior. Science gives way to a better understanding of the
natural world. Science is a method of learning about what is in the natural world, how
it works, and how it came to be the way it is. It is more than just a collection of facts;
it is a path to understanding.

What is Technology
1. Technology is the application of scientific knowledge.
 - Technology is the practical application of scientific knowledge to the goals of human
life or to the modification and manipulation of the human environment. It can also be
defined as a collection of techniques, skills, and processes used in the manufacture of
goods or services or the achievement of goals such as scientific investigation.
- We can see the relationship between Science and Technology in this section. Even
they are two independent fields, still they work together in a ‘brains and hands’,
‘mind and action’, ‘knowledge and application’, ‘theory and practice’ partnership or
manner.
2. Technology as material products; results of scientific inquiry.
- This means this are the products or services produced by scientist or company.
Today, technological innovations serve as the foundation for new products and
services. The advantages of incorporating technology into manufacturing practices
include: an improvement in product quality at all stages of the manufacturing process,
not just the end product.
3. Technology as a social enterprise.
- This means that technology is a complex system of knowledge, skills, people,
methods, tools, materials and resources applied and allocated to the development,
operation and production of a new or improved product, process or services.
Technology in the service of social entrepreneurship opens up a plethora of
possibilities. It has the potential to enable robust new solutions while also assisting in
the scaling of existing ones. It can also encourage participation, contribute to the
long-term viability of social enterprises, and increase financial investment.

What is Society?
1. The word ‘society’ was derived from the Latin word Socius, meaning ‘companionship or
friendship’.
- Society is a large group of people who live together in an organized way, making
decisions about how to do things, and sharing the work that needs to be done
2. Society is a group of people involved with each other through persistent relations.
- A society, also known as a human society, is a group of people who are connected to
one another through long-term relationships, or a large social grouping that shares the
same geographical or social territory and is typically subject to the same political
authority and dominant cultural expectations.
3. Sociology is the field that studies society.
- A society is a group of people involved in social interaction. It is a network of human
relationships.
- Sociology is the systematic study of human social life, groups and societies. Its
subject matter is our own behaviour as social beings. It has a body of concepts,
methods and data.
- Sociology is the discipline that studies society while society is the study object of
sociology.
 WHAT IS SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY (STS)?
1. Science, Technology and Society explores the powerful social, ethical, and political
relationships that drive research and innovation.
2. STS is where the fields of Science, Technology, and Society meet.
- STS investigates the difficulties of living and innovating in a world where emerging
science and technologies are becoming more interconnected, pervasive, and powerful.
The goal of Science, Technology, and Society, or STS, is to help people develop
analytical skills that connect science and technology to broader social needs.

THE INTEGRATION OF THE THREE FIELDS

Who wants to share their thoughts on the integration of Science, Technology, and Society?
This figure describes the interaction of science, technology, and society in three
dimensions. The field of science provide data for innovation in technology, but technological
development requires more scientific knowledge. Technology improves the quality of life in the
society, but societal progress is highly dependent on technological advancement. Societal needs
are accommodated by science, and scientific discoveries help improve the quality of life.

Introduction

To understand the past, one must look back and revisit it. Similarly, we will examine our
very rich history to determine the major turning points in the development of Science and
Technology that have led us to the innovation of cutting-edge and sophisticated Technology in
the present.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN ANCIENT TIMES

Ancient Mesopotamia
1. The earliest record of the existence of S&T was in Ancient Mesopotamia (presently a
region shared by Iraq, Kuwait, Turkey, and Syria) happened between 600 BC to 1400
AD.

Sumerian civilization
1. Sumerian are known for their contribution with the first writing system called as
cuneiform.
- Cuneiform is a writing system that originated in Sumer over 5,000 years ago. It is
significant because it contains information about ancient Sumerian history as well as
the history of humanity in general.
- Aside from the in order to meet the challenge of mass-producing food, they invented
plowing, irrigation, dikes, and wheels for farming.
 2. Throughout the existence of this civilization, their main mode of transportation was
through waterways such as rivers and seas.
- The Sumerian civilization pioneered the use of roads for transportation. They are also
credited with creating the first road.

Babylonian Civilization
1. Babylonian civilization, which emerged near Tigris and Euphrates River.
2. Major contributions is the Hanging garden of Babylon which one of the seven wonders
of the world.
- They were well-known for being excellent builders, engineers, and architects.

Ancient Egyptians
1. Ancient Egyptians are known for their earlier contributions like water clock or
clypsedra, paper or papyrus, ink and a system of writing known as hieroglyphics.
- Hieroglyph is so called "sacred carvings." Initially, the Egyptians only used
hieroglyphs for inscriptions carved or painted on temple walls. This style of pictorial
writing was also found on tombs, sheets of papyrus and limestone fragments.
2. They are known for its renowned archeological artifact like the death mask of
Tutankhamen and Pyramid of Giza.
- They also developed cosmetics for aesthetic purposes. Meanwhile, wealthy Egyptians
wore wigs to protect their shaved heads from the sun's harmful rays during this time
period.

Ancient Greece
1. In Ancient Greece, science was first recognized as a distinctly separate field from
human, artistic philosophy.
- The Greeks referred to science as 'natural' philosophy, or philosophy concerning
nature.
2. They are also celebrated for their contribution to the world like coliseum, Olympics,
alarm clock and water mill.
- Apart from being the birthplace of western philosophy, some of the major
achievements of Greeks include in-depth works on Philosophy and Mathematics.

Roman Empire
1. In terms of architecture and engineering, Romans are known for building elaborate
churches, basilicas, aqueducts, coliseums, amphitheaters and residential houses.
2. They have also devised their own number system which is the Roman Numeral System.
- The Roman Empire was regarded as the strongest political and social entity in the
western world, and it was regarded as the cradle of politics and governance. In terms
of codified laws and legislation, other civilizations looked to it as a model.

China
 1. Considered to be the oldest civilization in Asia, China is known for the silk trade, tea
production, gun powder and the living legend Great wall of China.
- Later, historical records show that the ancient China and India have developed their
own S&T which proliferated in the entire Asian continent.

The start of the middle ages was marred by massive invasions and migrations. Wars are
prevalent during this time. As such, great technology was needed in the fields of weaponry,
navigation, food and farm production and health. The wars have resulted to population decline.
However, in the later part of this period, there was significant increase in population. Trade and
commerce among nations increased, which resulted in greater demands for transportation
technology. Some of the most innovative minds came from this period.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN MIDDLE AGES

1. To facilitate record keeping, wood lock printing developed by Chinese was improved by
the time of Johann Gutenberg with a cast type printing press.
- This general invention soon evolved to be the mechanical printing press which was
eventually used all over the world. The printing press was invented to address the
need for publishing books that would spread information to many people at a faster
rate. This invention also made works accessible to individuals who could not even
write (Streissguth, 1997).
2. Since the Middle Age was also known as the Age of Exploration, the need for nautical
inventions was high. The invention of the telescope takes place here.
- Telescope is an optical instrument that helps in the observation of remote objects, was
a great help for navigators during this time.
3. Another invention in the Middle Age is the microscope.
- Another invention in the Middle Age is the microscope. Growing populations caused
massive migration and urbanization during the period. More and more people
transferred to polluted and populated urban areas which resulted in more people
getting sick. With this, experts needed to a device to study microorganisms in order to
develop proper medicines for illnesses. Guided by the principles used for the
invention of eyeglasses in earlier years, Zacharias Janssen was able to develop the
first compound microscope (Davidson, 2015).

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN THE PHILIPPINES

Meanwhile, in the Philippines, there were only a few records of S&T during the pre-
colonization period, making it hard to say if our country had flourished its own indigenous S&T
during that time.
1. The remnant proofs that we still have today, such as the rice terraces in the Mountain
Provinces, folkloric medicines, to name a few, suggest that our ancient Filipinos had their
own S&T.
2. On the other hand, we have strong historical records that our S&T proliferated through
our educational systems (Caoili, 1986).
- Beginning from the Spanish colonization when our country started producing
scientist-turned doctors, one of whom is our national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal.
 PARADIGM SHIFT

While STS is a unification of three fields (science, technology, and society), the unification
actually experiences paradigm shifting. Consider the following infographic that shows how in a
span of about 50 years, technology has great evolved, causing impact on the development of
social businesses.

This figure describes the timeline of technological evolution. We will understand and identify the
development as we analyze the paradigm shift. Whoever has an idea or thoughts about the
paradigm shift, I will grant an extra 5 points to those who participate or share their ideas with the
class.

Explanation
 Notice how technology evolves every decade. In the 1960-70’s, technology in business
only has minimal impact so that during this period, businesses focus more on price
margins and profit. Sa part na ito kumbaga tinuturing siyang infancy, toddler year.
 In the 1980-90’s, new technology was slowly being integrated in businesses so that
companies tend to improve client communication. Sa part na ito tinuturing naming early
childhood or puberty year.
  In the 2000-10’s, social media technology boomed, thus requiring businesses to
formulate new strategies as business focus shifted to more customer satisfaction and
building potential clients. Sa part na ito para naman siyang adulthood or middle age.
 Take note that this paradigm shifting is true not only in business fields, but to other fields
as well such as in media communication, engineering, and education.

Synthesis
Science, Technology, and Society are three interdependent yet interacting, interrelated
fields. The three have emerged simultaneously in history that since then have given much of the
quality of human life in general. The list of discoveries and inventions is endless, changing the
world since the beginning of time up to this modern day, and beyond.
- S&T proliferated together with society; we can testify that here in our country. We
can identify paradigm shifts wherein S&T impacted much of society.
- The essence of how science and technology contribute to society is the creation of
new knowledge and then the application of that knowledge to improve human life and
solve societal problems.

That concludes our lesson for today. I hope you learned a lot from this. Our first lesson
will also include some activities.