- N NE Book 2 Chapter 2 (NE 2:2), Aristotle
explained that every action aims at some
THE GOOD LIFE IN SCIENCE AND
TECHNOLOGY
HUMAN FLOURISHING
It is imperative to accept science and technology
rather than deny these in our pursuit of the reward of
a good life
- What constitutes good varies from person to
person. Unique backgrounds, experiences,
social contexts, and even preferences make it
difficult to subscribe to a unified standard on
which to tease out the meaning of the good
life. Thus, the prospect of a standard of the
good life-one that resonates across unique
human experiences -is inviting.
ADD
ARISTOTLE’S NICOMACHEAN ETHICS AND
GOOD LIFE
- In the documentary film The Magician's Twin:
C. S. Lewis and the Case Against Scientism,
C. S. Lewis posited that "science must be
guided by some ethical basis that is not
dictated by science itself." One such ethical
basis is Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethic
● Aristotle (384-322 B.C.)
- was an Ancient Greek philosopher and
polymath
- His writings cover a broad range of subjects
spanning the natural sciences, philosophy,
linguistics, economics, politics, psychology
and the arts.
- Aristotle was a student of Plato, who was a
student of Socrates. Together, they were
considered the "Big Three of Greek
Philosophy."
- Originally, they were lecture notes written on
scrolls when he taught at the Lycèum.
- It's widely believed that the lecture notes
were compiled by or were dedicated to one of
Aristotle’s sons, Nichomacus. Alternatively, it
is believed that the work was dedicated to
Aristotle’s father who was of the same name.
NICOMACHEAN ETHICS
- abbreviated as NE or sometimes EN based on
the Latin version of the name.
- It is a treatise on the nature of moral life
and human happiness based on the unique
essence of human nature.
- The NE is particularly useful in defining
what the good life is
● · Aristotle posited two types of good.
good.
- However, some actions aim at an instrumental
good while some aim at an intrinsic good. He
made it clear that the ultimate good is better
than the instrumental good for the latter is
good as a means to achieving something else
or some other end, while the former is good in
itself.
NICOMACHEAN ETHICS
● Happiness is the ultimate good.
- In the Aristotelian sense, happiness is “living
well and doing well’ (NE 1:4). Among the
Greeks, this was known as eudaimonia, from
the root words eu, meaning good, and
daimōn, meaning spirit. Combining these
words, eudaimonia means “happiness” or
“welfare.” More accurately, others translate it
to human flourishing or prosperity. Aristotle
proposed two hallmarks of eudaimonia,
namely virtue and excellence (NE 1:7). Thus,
happiness in the sense of eudaimonia has to
be distinguished from merely feeling good.
EUDAIMONIA : UNIQUELY HUMAN
- Eudaimonia or happiness is unique to
humans for it is uniquely human function. It is
achieved only through a rationally directed life.
- Only humans are capable of a life guided by
reason. Because of this, happiness, too, is a
uniquely human function for it can only be
achieved through a rationally directed life.
ARETE AND HUMAN HAPPINESS
- Eudaimonia is what defines the good life. To
live a good life is to live a happy life.
- For Aristotle, eudaimonia is only possible by
living a life of virtue.
- Arête, a Greek term, is defined as "excellence
of any kind" and can also mean "moral virtue."
A virtue is what makes one function well.
Aristotle suggested two types of virtue:
intellectual virtue and moral virtue.
- Intellectual virtue or virtue of thought : is
achieved through education, time, and
experience. Key intellectual virtues are
wisdom, which guides ethical behavior, and
understanding, which is gained from scientific
endeavors and contemplation.
- Wisdom and understanding: are achieved
through formal and non-formal means.
Intellectual virtues are acquired through self-
taught knowledge and skills as much as those
knowledge and skills taught and learned in
formal institutions.
- Moral virtue or virtue of character: is
achieved through habitual practice. Some key
moral virtues are generosity, temperance, and
 courage. By and large, moral virtue is like a
skill. A skill is acquired only through repeated
practice. Everyone is capable of learning how
to play the guitar because everyone has an
innate capacity for intellectual virtue, but not
everyone acquires it because only those who
devote time and practice develop the skill of
playing the instrument
WHEN THEN IS GOOD LIFE?
The good life in the sense of eudaimonia is the state
of being happy, healthy, and prosperous in the way
one thinks, lives, and acts. The path to a good life
consists of the virtues of thought and character, which
are relative mediators between the two extremes of
excess and deficiency. In this way, a good life is
understood as happiness brought about by living a
virtuous life.
WHEN TECHNOLOGY AND HUMANITY CROSS
What is human rights?
- Human rights are basic rights and freedoms
which belong to every person in the world
from the day they are born to the day they die,
regardless of any circumstance
- Human rights are sometimes used
interchangeably with natural rights.
Two types of Rights:
1. Natural Rights
- Whether an external entity exists or
not, each person has the right to be
born and to live their life.
- Is used when referring to freedoms
which exist whether or not a state or
government acknowledges it.
ex. Right to Life - Because whether an external entity
(e.g., government) exists or not, each person has the
natural right to be born and live their life.
2. Human Rights
- Freedom that a state or a government
acknowledges its citizens possess by
simply being a human.
- The Right to Life is also a human right,
which means that nobody can try to
end your life or prevent someone from
being born.
ex. Right to Education, Right to Work, Freedom from
Slavery and Torture, Right to Equality, Right to
Liberty, Freedom of opinion and expression
● Are based on humanity’s shared values of
dignity, fairness, equality, respect, and
independence.
● Maintains a healthy society and effective
governance because of Human Rights.
These rights and freedoms, however, are not
absolute. Although they must be taken away, and
sometimes restricted because of reasons more
important than upholding individual rights.
● If a person commits a crime
● Violates a law, or
● Is a threat to national security
What is Science and Technology?
- Science is the pursuit of knowledge and
understanding about the natural world.
Technology on the other hand, is the practical
application of that knowledge to create useful
tools and systems.
Science acts and technology acts as a double edge
sword in many instances to human rights. Increasingly
useful at the same time can violate human rights.
INSTANCES:
● Technologies such as Global positioning
systems can be useful for monitoring and
tracking movements of an individual, it can be
for protection or use as a witness, on the other
hand, it can violate the right to privacy.
● New educational System has beefed up
access to and quality of education, on the
other hand, this development and practices
can lead to increase dependence of
knowledge from technology
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY CAN BE USE AS A
TOOL UPHOLDING HUMAN RIGHTS, HOWEVER,
THE CAN ALSO BE USE AS A TOOL TO IMPINGE
HUMAN RIGHTS
RELATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND
TECHNOLOGY
Human rights and technology are connected in
various ways. Technology has the potential to both
enhance and infringe upon human rights. (Double-
edged sword)
● Satellite and global positioning system (GPS)
● Use of technologies in schools.
● Requiring students to obtain gadgets or
devices to use these technologies impinges
on their right to equitable education in
situations where the students are unable to
own or purchase the gadgets or devices.
Clearly, science and technology can be used as tools
for upholding human rights. But, in situations where
the use of tools, products, or practices in themselves
impinges on human rights, measures to control and
mitigate the potential risks and hazards have to be put
in place and implemented.
HUMAN RIGHTS-BASED APPROACH TO
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, & DEVELOPMENT
- In the face of scientific and technical growth,
human rights are crucial components of one's
path to a “eudaimonia” good life.
- The foundation of future scientific and
technical growth must be safeguarding the
welfare and maintaining the dignity of the
human person.
S. Romi Mukherjee, a senior lecturer in Political
Theory and the History of Religions at the Paris
Institute of Political Studies explained a human rights-
based approach to science, technology and
development as follows:
"[It] seeks to place a concern for human rights
at the heart of how the international
community engages with urgent global
challenges. The UN Development Programme
characterizes this approach as one that leads
to better and more sustainable outcomes by
analyzing and addressing the inequalities,
discriminatory practices and unjust power
relations which are often at the heart of
development problems. It puts the
international human rights entitlements and
claims of the people (the right-holders') and
the corresponding obligations of the state (the
'duty-bearer') in the center of the national
development debate, and it clarifies the
purpose of capacity development."
“Human Rights-Based Approach seeks to
address global challenges by making human
rights a central focus, with a commitment to
identifying and rectifying underlying issues,
ensuring the protection of human rights, and
building the capacity of individuals and
institutions to advance human rights principles
in development initiatives.”
Mukherjee (2012)
Identifies science and its approached as:
● “ A socially organized human activity which is
value-laden and shaped by structures and
procedure.”
● “ensure safety, health, and livelihoods include
people’s needs and priorities in developmental
strategies: and ensure that they participate in
decision-making that affect their lives and
resources.”
● “can form the very heart of sustainable
futures.”
DOCUMENTS FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
● Universal Declaration of Human Rights
(Article 27)
- This document affirms everyone's right
to participate in and benefit from
scientific advancements and to be
protected from scientific misuse. The
right to the benefit of science comes
under the domain of "culture", so it is
usually examined from a cultural rights
perspective.
● UNESCO Recommendation on the Status
of Scientific Researchers - 1974 (Article 4)
- This document affirms that all
advances in scientific and
technological knowledge should be
solely geared towards securing well-
being for global citizens, and calls
upon member states to develop the
necessary protocol and policies to
monitor and secure this objective.
Countries are asked to show that
science and technology is integrated
into policies that aim to ensure a more
humane and just society.
● UNESCO Declaration on the Use of
Scientific Knowledge - 1999 (Article 33)
- This document states "Today, more
than ever, science and its applications
are indispensable for development. All
levels of government and the private
sector should provide enhanced
support for building up an adequate
and evenly distributed scientific and
technological capacity through
appropriate education and research
programmes as an indispensable
foundation for economic, social,
cultural and environmentally sound
development. This is particularly
urgent for developing countries." This
Declaration encompasses issues such
as pollution free production, efficient
resource use, biodiversity protection
and brain drains
How Technology Affects our Human Right
Freedom of Expression and Information
● Positive Impact: Technology, particularly the
internet and social media, has democratized
the spread of information and enabled
individuals to express their views and connect
with a global audience.
● Negative Impact: Censorship and content
moderation by tech platforms can limit
freedom of expression. Additionally, the
spread of misinformation and online
harassment can create a hostile environment
for free speech.
Privacy
● Positive Impact: Technology can enhance
privacy through encryption, secure
communication tools, and privacy-focused
software. It enables individuals to have more
control over their personal information.
● Negative Impact: Surveillance technologies,
such as facial recognition, can infringe on an
individual's privacy. The collection and misuse
of personal data by corporations and
governments can also threaten privacy rights.
Children’s Right
 ● Positive Impact: Technology can be used for
education and child protection.
● Negative Impact: Exposure to online risks,
including cyberbullying and inappropriate
content, can harm children’s well-being.
Due Process and Fair Trial
● Positive Impact: Technology can improve the
efficiency and transparency of legal process
through digital records, online court
proceedings, and legal research tools.
● Negative Impact: Biometric surveillance and
predictive policing can infringe on due process
rights and lead to biased law enforcement.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, the intersection of technology and
humanity is a critical juncture in our history. How we
navigate this intersection will determine the future of
our societies. It requires a thoughtful and balanced
approach that maximizes the benefits of technology
while safeguarding human rights, privacy, and
individual dignity. It also necessitates ethical
considerations and a commitment to inclusivity,
ensuring that technology serves all of humanity, not
just a privileged few. It is a complex and ongoing
journey that requires ongoing vigilance, adaptability,
and cooperation across all sectors of society.
BSN 2 – 12F
AGUILAR, BEAH MARIE B.
BASINILLO, AIRA D.
CUNA, KAMELLE ANNE F.
VALE, ANGEL ANN D.
Historical Development and Ethical Issues of
the Information Age
● Information age - Also known as the Computer
age,Digital age,Age of new media.
● Mid-20th Century - Historical period of
traditional industries such as
newspaper,radio,television.
● John Waters - President and Creative Director of
Waters Design Associates, Inc.
● In 1947 - The beginning of the Information Age
was set up through the invention of the transistor
● American physicists John Bardeen and Walter
Brattain, and the optical amplifier
● in 1957 by American physicist Gordon Gould.
Both were necessary for the development of
computing and computers and fiber-optic
communications, setting the stage for the
explosion of information through their efficient
methods of transmitting information.
● Sumerian Cuneiform from 3000 B.C., the
ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics from 2900 B.C.,
and the ancient Chinese small seal script during
the Qin Dynasty in 200 B.C.
● Ancient antecedents of the modern book also
contributed to the unfolding of the Information
Age. These include the ancient Egyptian
papyrus roll around 500 BC, the parchment
codex of the Roman Empire around 100 A.D,
● The ancient Chinese wood-block printing and
paper in 105 A.D.
● HIEROGLYPHICS
● CUNEIFORM
● CHINESE SMALL SEAL SCRIPT
● From manual, tedious, and slow ancient
printing methods, in which the cloth, paper, or
other medium was brushed or rubbed repeatedly
to complete the transfer of ink, the printing press
 was invented by German goldsmith Johannes
Gutenberg in 1440.
● The printing press is a device that applies
pressure to an inked surface lying on a medium
(i.e., cloth or paper to transfer the ink).
Gutenberg's hand mold printing press led to the
creation of the metal movable type. Later, the
two inventions were combined to make the
printing faster and drastically reduced the printing
costs of documents. a new branch of print media
was introduced and was known as "the press."
. ●
Gutenberg's Printing Press.
● The invention of the printing press then ushered
in the era of mass communication. This
permanently reformed the structure of society.
The political and religious authorities were
threatened due to the growing literate population.
The middle class was distinguished from the
domination of the elite educated and learned
class. Due to the rapid increase of vernacular
languages in Europe, proto-nationalism had
grown as well. Although this did not stop the
production of modified printing press like rotary
presses run by steam and used in industrial scale
printing in the 19th century (Hodges, 2012).
“Enigma
M4”Cypher machine
● Alan Turing, an English mathematician, was
hired in 1936 by the British top-secret
Government Code and Cipher School at
Bletchley Park to break the Enigma code
● . His code-breaking work became an industrial
process having 12,000 people working three
shifts day in and day out. To counteract this, the
Nazis had made the Enigma machines more
complicated, having approximately 104 possible
permutations.
● Turing designed Bombe, an electromechanical
machine that allowed the British to read all daily
German naval Enigma traffic by searching
through the permutations. This contribution of
Turing and the British team at Bletchley saved
millions of lives since the invention shortened the
war by as much as two years (Munro, 2012).
.
Alan Turing
At this point, the antecedents of the
Information Age had all taken place, and
humankind would wake up to a world where news
and information would be so vast that they just
can no longer remember everything. Science
and computer historians alike trace the formal
beginnings of the Information Age to the work of
the American mathematician, electrical
engineer, and cryptographer Claude E.
Shannon. Shannon was a researcher at Bell
Laboratories, where he met Turing in 1943. At
the age of 32, Shannon wrote a landmark paper
proposing that all information can be encoded as
a series of ones and zeroes.
Apple I, also called Apple- 1 or Apple
Computer 1.
● The Internet was developed during the 1970s by
the United States Department of Defense,
mainly by scientists to communicate with other
scientists. One early problem faced by Internet
users was with speed
● In the early 1990s, the World Wide Web was
developed largely for commercial purposes.
Corporations created home Pages where they
could place text and graphics to sell products.
Shortly, airline tickets, hotel reservations, books,
and even cars and homes could be purchased
online.
● from 1973 onwards, the Internet paved the way
for social networking and gave rise to the creation
of various social media platforms, s, such as
instant-messaging applications, conferencing
and bulletin-board forum system, exchanging
 emails, game-based social networking,
business-oriented social networking,
messaging, video and voice calling
Evolutions of the Information Age in the 2010s
● In the last decade, the Information Age saw even
greater leaps, so much that it came to be known
as a "decade of disruption.
2020s Information Age Shifts
● As the world continues to push the boundaries of
information science, more evolutions in
information science and technology are
expected to drive industries in the 2020s and
beyond. Interestingly, we find ourselves in the
middle of some of these shifts as they happen in
this decade.
● If the 2010s saw the shift from 3G to 4G
networks, causing internet speeds faster than
ever, the 2020s will see the 4G base technology
evolve into 5G, which would mean even faster
Internet speeds. .
THE FUTURE 5G TECHNOLOGY
● Healthcare will go digital in the 2020s through AI
diagnoses and telemedicine.
● The need to reduce costs, improve patient
outcomes, and optimize physicians' time bring AI
and telemedicine together to reduce disruptions
to current healthcare standards across the world
Healthcare will go digital in the 2020s through
AI diagnoses and telemedicine.
● The world's aging population will cause
increasing pressure to make healthcare more
efficient. The need to reduce costs, improve
patient outcomes, and optimize.
Information Age And The Fourth Industrial
Revolution
● The evolutions of science and technology
during the Information Age,
● The argument that the world may well be in the
midst of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, also
called 4IR or Industry 4.0.
● The German engineer, economist, and founder
of the World Economic Forum (WEF) Klaus
Schwab popularized the term
● Used widely in scientific literature to refer to a
period where changes are not just mere
improvements to efficiency, but a shift in
industrial capital brought about by the fusion of
the latest developments in Al, robotics, the
Internet of Things, 3D printing, gene editing,
and quantum computing
● Industry 4.0 is thus described as a period
marked by the blurring of the divides between the
physical, digital, and biological worlds.
Interconnection - Machines, devices, sensors, and
people will be able to seamlessly connect and
communicate with each other through the Internet of
Things or the Internet of People
Information transparency - As information becomes
more accessible and transparent, Industry 4.0
technology will provide stakeholders with
comprehensive information to make decisions.
Technical assistance - Industry 4.0 will also
establish the technological prerequisites of systems
able to assist humans in decision-making and
problem-solving and help them with difficult or unsafe
tasks.
Decentralized decisions - Cyber physical systems of
Industry 4.0 will be capable of independent decision-
making and autonomous performance of tasks.
2020s Information Age Shifts
Privacy - Mason explains that citizens must exercise
caution in using information technologies. He
pinpoints two threats to privacy, which, although
written as contextualized in 1986, still strike a familiar
chord to many who may have fallen prey to abuse of
information and, with it, vicious attacks on the
Internet.
Accuracy - Misinformation fouls up people's lives.
This is exacerbated when the party holding inaccurate
information are in positions of power and authority.
Another burden on the accuracy of information is
when people rely on information for matters
concerning life and death.
Property - Mason states that the issue of property is
probably the most complex of the four. Several
economic and ethical questions surrounding
intellectual property are hinged on the special
attributes of information and the ways it is transmitted:
Accessibility - It is no longer sufficient that
individuals only have intellectual skills to navigate
through information traffic. Reading, writing,
reasoning, and calculating are tasks for education, but
the demands of literacy in the Information Age compel
stakeholders.
Disinformation, Fake News, And The Post-Truth
Era
● The United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in its
handbook titled "Journalism 'Fake News' and
Disinformation: A Handbook for Journalism
Education and Training, defines disinformation as
"information that is false and deliberately
 created to harm a person, social group,
organization, or country"

Check credentials - Is the author an expert in the

field that the article is concerned with? Do they
currently work in that field? You may check their
public profiles, such as LinkedIn or Google Scholar, or
do a quick Google search to determine whether the
author can speak about the subject with authority and
accuracy.

Read the "About Us" - Does the website where the

news article is published have an "About Us" section?
Sometimes, this section is on a tab at the top of the
website or appears as a link at the bottom.
Remember, all reputable websites have this section
and will even provide a way for you to contact them
through email address or phone number.

Look for bias - Does the news or article lean toward

a particular point of view? Does it link to external
sources, such as websites, files, or images, that are
heavily skewed towards that point of view? Take note,
biased articles may not be giving you the whole story.

Check the dates - Like fresh produce, information is

verified only as far as they are up-to-date. Information
can have an expiration date, and the goal is to use the
most updated version that you can find.

Check out the source - When an article cites

sources, it will help to link to those and check them.
Be wary though because official sounding
associations, sometimes, are just biased think-tanks
or represent only a portion of a rather large group of
people. If sources are not available, read as much
about the topic as you can to gather as much
information as there is out there, which can help you
decide whether the information presented in the news
or article is free or not.

Interrogate URLs - Domain manipulation has

become a practice as well by those intending to
disinform. For example, a website can look like an
edu domain, but followed by a co may likely be a fake
or deceptive site. If you come across a variable of a
well-known URL, do a little investigating. Remember,
disinformation spreaders would want to make the
source look credible, and one way to do that is to
make it look like the truly credible ones.

Suspect the sensational - The more sensational a

news or article is, the more skeptical you should be.
Responsible journalism is neither biased nor
sensational and aims to present the story and all its
sides as they are. It is very common nowadays to
come across exaggerated and provocative headlines
with excessive use of capital letters or emotional
language. These are red flags.

Judge hard - Most importantly, critically assess every

information you come across online. If something
seems to be too good to be true, or too weird, or too
reactionary, chances are it is indeed. Again, be
skeptical.