UNIVERSIDAD DE MANILA

College of Education
One Mehan Gardens, Manila City, Philippines 1000

SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY

Dr. Ricardo Reyes III, DDM, LPT, PhD

MODERN PERIOD OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

The modern period of science is characterized by the use of modern equipments and
more advanced technology.

Vaccine

• Discovered by Edward Jenner in nearly 1800s

• Derived from vacca meaning ―cow‖
• Jenner took a fluid from a cowpox blister and scratched it into the skin of an 8-year old
boy. A single blister rose up on the spot but the boy soon recovered. He inoculated the
boy again but the disease did not develop

Genetics

• Gregor Mendel, a monk in the mid 1800s discovered how hereditary traits were passed
on in organism
• He used peas (pea plant) to determine the pattern of heredity
• His discovery did not only provide an understanding about the genes but it also gave
way to genetic engineering such as the hybridization and Genetic Modification (GMO)

Camera

• Invented by French inventor Joseph Niepce in 1800s

• He used a technique called heliography to produce one of a kind image
• The first camera is a small room with an opening for the light, and the light sensitive
material to record the image

Electricity

• Benjamin Franklin proved through a kite experiment that lightning was a form of
electricity
• Italian Physicist Alessandro Volta discovered that particular chemical reactions could
produce electricity. In 1800s he constructed the voltaic pile (early electric battery) that
produce a steady electric current
• Michael Faraday (1791-1867), a self-taught scientist excelled in chemistry and physicist to
become one of the most influential thinkers in the history. He has been called the father
of electricity together with Nikola Tesla & Thomas Edison

Transatlantic Telegram

• Invented by Guglielmo Marconi

• First long-distance wireless communication and it is a wireless radio
Telephone

• Invented by Alexander Graham Bell

• Device that converts sound and electrical waves into audible relays, and is used for
communication
• How it was discovered – In researching ways to teach the deaf, he experimented with
transmitting sound via electricity. He applied for a form of patent on March 7, 1876. Three
days later he performed a demonstration of the new device, speaking the words. ―Mr
Watson, come here, I want you‖
Why is there a need for that discovery at that time – It helped improve communications
between people at a distance

Computer

• The first computer was the Analytical engine invented between 1833-1871 by Charles
Babbage, a British mathematician and mechanical engineer.
• Analytical engine is a programmable computer that ascends from the abacus

Light bulb

• In 1879, Tomas Edison filed a patent for an electric lamp with a carbon filament
(incandescent lamp)
• It is an electric light with a wire filament heated until it glows
• The filament is enclosed in a bulb to protect the filament from oxidation
• Electric current is supplied to the filament by terminals or wires embedded in the glass
• A light bulb produces light from electricity. In addition to lighting a dark place, it can be
used to show an electronic device is on, to direct traffic, for heat, and for many other
purposes
• The electric light bulb has been called the most important invention since man-made
fire. It helped to establish social order after sundown, extend the workday well into the
night, and allow people to navigate and travel safely in the dark.
• Without the light, there will be no nightlife

X-RAY

• The invention of the x-ray machine rose up from the accidental discovery of x-ray by
Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen in 1895.
• He is a German Physicist working with a cathode ray generator with a light tube similar to
fluorescent light bulb. He removed the air in the light tube and replaced it with special
gas. When he passed a high electric voltage through it, the tube emitted off a
fluorescent ray creating an image of his bones in his hand
• The unknown ray (x-ray) can penetrate thru soft tissue on his hand

Antibiotics

• Alexander Fleming accidentally discovered the antibiotic in 1928

• When he came back from a vaccination, he found that a green mold called Pennicillum
notatum had contaminated the Petri-dishes in his laboratory killing some of his cultured
bacteria.
• Fleming discovered that it was not the mold itself but it’s the ―juice’ it had produced that
had destroyed the bacteria. He named this ―mold juice‖ penicillin
• This discovery led to the introduction of antibiotics that greatly reduced the number of
deaths from bacterial infections and viral infections as well
Bicycle

• Invented by Comte de Several

• How it was discovered – It was like a scooter with wooden wheels and you pushed it with
your feet & you also stopped it with your feet
• Why is there a need for that discovery at that time – People could get around faster and
not have to use horses. It could get you from place to place quicker.

Benz Patent Motorwagon

• Invented by Karl Benz

• For transportation
• How it was discovered – It was discovered when Karl Benz made several identical copies
and sold it to the people. This is also considered to be the first "production" vehicle and
also the first modern vehicle
Why is there a need for that discovery at that time – Because the previous automobiles are slow
and can easily overheat so that is why he made a car that has an electrical ignition, a water-
cooled internal combustion engine and different gears

Airplane

• Invented by Wilbur & Orville Wright (The Wright brothers) in 1903

• They made four (4) brief flights at Kitty Hawk with their first powered aircraft
• This invention gave meaning to everyone; from popular enthusiasm for the pilots & their
aerial exhibitions, to the commercial and military potential of aviation, to the artistic
expression it inspired
• The impact of the airplane on the 20th century is beyond measure

Television

• The television was invented by a 21 years old inventor named Philo Taylor Farnsworth.
• Farnsworth invented the television to be able to transmit visual images just as radio
transmitted sound. He lived in a house without electricity until he was age 14
• Between the 1940s and 2000s, commercial television had a profound and wide-ranging
impact on society & culture. It influenced the way the people think about several
important social issues such as economics & politics.

Robot

• The word robot was first used to denote a fictional humanoid in a 1920 play Rossum’s
Universal Robot by Karel Capek, a Czech writer. His brother Josef invented the word
―robot‖
• It comes from a Czech word robota, meaning ―forced labor‖
• It is a machine able to replicate certain human movements and functions automatically
• A robot is any automatically operated machine that replaces human effort
• Robotics is the engineering technology dealing with design, construction and operation
of robots
• The first digitally operated and programmable robot was invented by George Devol in
1954 and was called the Unimate. This ultimately laid foundations of the modern robotics
industry
• The first uses of modern robots were in factories (industrial robots). These are simple fixed
machines capable of manufacturing tasks which allowed production with less need for
human assistance.
 • Digitally controlled robots and robots using artificial intelligence (AI) have been built
since the 2000s

3D Printing

• Invented by Charles W. Hull in 1984

• Function or purpose;
 turn digital files containing three-dimensional data—whether created on a CAD
or CAM program, or from a 3D scanner—into physical objects.
• How it was discovered;
 Chuck Hull had been working for a company that used UV lamps to fashion
tough, durable coatings for tables when he hit on the idea to take advantage of
ultraviolet technology to make small prototypes.

LED Light

• Nick Holonyak invented the first visible colored LED light in 1962
• It is a semiconductor device made up of gallium arsenide phosphide that emits visible
light when an electric current passes through it
• The output can range from red to blue-violet according to its wavelength
• Why is there a need for discovery at that time – LEDs were originally discovered as an
option for general lighting. Also to reduce the need for reflectors and diffusers that can
trap light

Touch Sensitive Devices

• Invented by Samuel G. Hurst

• Function or purpose – Evolution of handheld devices
• How it was discovered – They used electrically conductive paper to read a pair of x- and
y- coordinates. That idea led to the first touch screen for a computer
• Why is there a need for that discovery at that time – With this prototype, his students
could compute in a few hours what otherwise had taken days to accomplish.

Credit Card

• Invented by Frank McNamara

• Function or purpose – Allows you to borrow cash or acquire goods or services and pay it
later
• How it was discovered – the idea of the credit card came to Frank McNamara in 1949
while he was having dinner at a restaurant in New York City. When it was time to pay the
bill, McNamara realized he had forgotten his wallet. McNamara negotiated his way out
of washing dishes to pay for his dinner by signing for it instead and promising to pay the
restaurant back.
• Why is there a need for that discovery at that time – A customer could eat without cash
at any restaurant that would accept Diners Club credit cards. Diners Club would pay the
restaurant and the credit card holder would repay Diners Club

Bionic Arm (Bioprosthetics)

• Invented by David Gow in 1993

• To give a replacement arm to those who lost their arm from an accident, disease or war
• Why is there a need for that discovery at that time – This medical and technological feat
will help many amputees to still ―feel‖ normal. This will make the amputees lives more
 forgiving than having no arms, which is a very important part of our body, especially
nowadays where accidents are a norm, diseases like cancer are incurable and war
taking place everywhere

Magnetic Resonance Imaging Scanner (MRI)

• Invented by Raymond Vahan Damadian

• Radiologic way of forming images of the anatomy and physiological processes of the
human body in both health and disease
• How it was discovered – Damadian used the concept of NMR which uses magnetic field
gradients and creates 2D images. He adjusted specific frequencies and used sensitive
point in spatial localization to obtain 3D imaging
• Why is there a need for that discovery at that time – For further knowledge and early
detection of cancer cells

World Wide Web (Global Network)

• Invented by Tim Berners Lee

• It is an information space where documents and other web resources are identified by
Uniform Resource Locators (URLs), interlinked by hypertext links, and can be accessed via
the Internet

Wi-Fi

• Invented by John O’ Sullivan, Terrence Percival, Diethelm Ostry, John Deane, & Graham
Daniels
• It is a technology that uses radio waves to provide network connectivity
• How it was discovered – In 1991, NCR Corporation with AT&T Corporation invented the
precursor to 802.11, intended for use in cashier systems
• The first wireless products were under the name WaveLAN. They are the ones credited
with inventing Wi-Fi