Science, Technology

and Society (STS)

Science and Technology

during Pre-colonial and
Spanish Colonization in
the Philippines
 Introduction
 The development of science and technology in the Philippines has already come along a way.

 Many significant inventions and discoveries have been accomplished by or attributed to Filipinos.

 This lesson tackles how the development of science and technology affect the development of the Philippine as a nation.
 PRE-COLONIAL PERIOD
 Scientific and technological development in the Philippines began in the pre-colonial period.

 Even before the Spaniards came to the Philippine islands, early Filipino settlers were already using certain plants and herbs as medicines.

 Systems of farming and animal-raising were also implemented. Moreover, early Filipinos had also developed different modes of transportation,
whether terrestrial or maritime.
 PRE-COLONIAL PERIOD
 A complicated engineering feat was achieved by the natives of the Cordillera when they built rice terraces by hand.

 Through these terraces, the people were able to cultivate crops on the mountainsides in cold temperatures.

 They incorporated an irrigation system that uses water from the forests and mountain tops to achieve an elaborate farming system.

 The rice terraces of the Cordillera, which are still functional, show the innovative and ingenious way of the natives to survive in an otherwise unfriendly environment.
 COLONIAL PERIOD
 Colonization by the Spaniards provided the Philippines with modern means of construction.

 Walls, roads, bridges, and other large infrastructures were built using some of the engineering skills and tools brought by the
Spaniards.

 In addition, the Spanish government developed health and education systems that were enjoyed by the principalia class.
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
Introduction of Plants and Animals
From Mexico, the early Spanish colonizers introduced new plants in the Philippines. Among these plants were achuete, cacao, coffee, beans, maize (corn),
maguey, peanuts, chico, and papaya. These plants thrive on Philippine soil, and in due time they became part of the island flora.

New animals were likewise introduced into the country by Spain. From Mexico came cattle, goats, horses, sheep, and fighting roosters. Carabaos, chickens,
geese, ducks, pigeons, and swans were imported by Spanish authorities from China.
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
First Geodetic Survey of the Philippines
On July 30, 1789, two Spanish corvettes, the Atrevida and Descubierta, under the command of Captain Alejandro Malaspina, left Cadiz,
Spain.

These corvettes were dispatched by the Spanish government to make scientific observations and conduct geodetic surveys of the coasts of
Spanish America, Marianas and the Philippines.
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
First Geodetic Survey of the Philippines
The Malaspina expedition visited Manila, after having explored and chartered the Visayas and Mindanao, to survey the coast of Luzon.

One of the scientists in the expedition was a youthful botanists, Antonio Pineda, native of Guatemala, who explored and studied the flora and agricultural
potentialities of the Philippines.

In the course of his scientific labors, he died of sickness at Badoc, Ilocos Norte, on June 23, 1792, aged 38.
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
Improvement of Transportation and Communication
In the 19th century, Spain built many roads and bridges, especially during the decade 1830-1840.

To aid navigation, the first lighthouse in the Philippines was built at the mouth of the Pasig River in 1846. It was called farola.

More lighthouses were built in other parts of the archipelago in later years.
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
Improvement of Transportation and Communication
The first steamships arrived in Manila Bay in 1848. They were the Magallanes, Elcano, and Reina de Castilla.
The first railroad – the Manila-Dagupan Railway – was established in 1891. It was owned by an English company.
In Manila, a tramcar service (tranvia) was opened to the public in 1893. Two years later, the first electric light system appeared in the city.
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
Improvement of Transportation and Communication
New means of communication were introduced. In 1854 was established a monthly mail service between Manila and Hongkong.

The first Philippine stamp was issued on February 1, 1854. In 1873 a steamship line between Manila and Spain was established. The first telegraph line was opened
in 1873.

In 1880 the first cable which linked the Philippines to the outside world was laid. The first telephone appeared in Manila in 1890.
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
Progress in Agriculture
Modern agriculture implements scientific methods of cultivation. In 1836, Eulogio de Otaduy introduced the first steam machine for hulling rice.

A few years later, Nicholas Loney, British merchant, introduced the first steam machine for hulling sugar in Negros.

Beginning in 1838 various experimental farms were established by the government in Vigan (Ilocos Sur), Magalang (Pampanga), Daraga (Albay), Ilagan
(Isabela), and La Paz (Iloilo).
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
Progress in Agriculture
In these farms, experiments were conducted on the raising of new varieties of plants, the breeding of animals, and new methods of land cultivation.

In 1890 a model farm called La Grandja was established by Governor Valeriano Weyler at La Carlota, Negros Occidental. Under the able
management of Don Jose Sanchez, Spanish soil physicist, this farm conducted the first experiments in scientific agriculture in the Philippines.
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
Sciences
The first scientists in the Philippines were the Spanish friars. Father Blas de la Madre de Dios (Franciscan) wrote in 1611 the first
work on Philippine flora.

Most famous of the friar-botanists was Father Manuel Blanco, whose botanical work, Flora de Filipinas, was published for the first
time in 1837. He was called the “Prince of Botanists.”
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
Sciences
During the closing decades of the Spanish regime several Filipino scientists distinguished themselves in botanical research. Among them were Dr. Jose
Rizal, Dr. T.H. Pardo de Tavera, and Dr. Leon Ma. Guerrero.

Father Castro de Elera (Dominican) wrote the first work on Philippine zoology which was highly commended in the scientific circles of the world. He
was a zoology professor at the University of Santo Tomas.
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
Sciences
Three Filipino scientists acquired fame in chemistry, namely: Anacleto del Rosario, Antonio Luna and Mariano V. del Rosario. In 1888, Anacleto del
Rosario became the first Filipino director of the Manila Laboratory. He was called the “Prince of Filipino Chemists.”

The establishment of the courses in medicine and pharmacy in the University of Santo Tomas fostered scientific knowledge. The first Filipino
physicians, pharmacists, chemists, botanists, and zoologists were graduates of this university.
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
Sciences
The first sundials in the Philippines were built in 1871 at Tagudin, Ilocos Sur, by Father Juan Sorolla (Augustinian).

The crowning glory of the Philippine sciences during the Spanish times was the Observatory of Manila, a Jesuit legacy to the Filipino people. It was founded by
the Jesuits in 1865.

Under the guidance of Fr. Federico Faura, its first director, it attracted world attention because of its accurate forecasts of typhoons and its scientific recordings
of earthquakes.
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
Sciences
The fame of the Observatory was enhanced by the achievements of the Jesuit scientists, notably:
Fr. Federico Faura (1840-1897) inventor of the “Faura barometer”;
Fr. Jose Algue (1856-1930) inventor of the “Barocyclometer”;
Fr. Ricardo Cirera (1864-1932) authority on Philippine terrestrial magnetism;
Fr. Jose Corona (1871-1937) authority on Philippine typhoons; and their worthy brethren – Father Juan Doyle, Miguel Saderra Maso, Miguel Selga, and George M.
Zwack.
The Observatory of Manila, still existing, is the oldest observatory in Asia.
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
Hospitals
Owing to the humanitarian influence of Christianity, social welfare was promoted in the Philippines.

As early as the 16th century, the sick and the needy were given great care. In 1578, a Franciscan lay brother named Juan Clemente, founded the first
hospital in Manila.

Out of this hospital originated the present Hospital San Juan de Dios and San Lazaro Hospital, two of the oldest existing hospitals in Southeast Asia.
 COLONIAL PERIOD
1. Science and Technology during the Spanish Regime
Hospitals
Other hospitals which rose in Manila were the Hospital de San Gabriel (1588) and the Hospital Real (1612).

Hospitals were also established in the provinces, such as the Hospital de Agua Santas in Los Banos, Laguna (1602), the Hospital de San
Jose in Cavite (1641), the Leper Hospital in Laoag (1814) and the Leper Hospital in Cebu (1850).