Neil Trezley S.

Balajadia MST HS Mathematics

History and Philosophy of Science and Technology December 15, 2018

Problems, Issues and Challenges Encountered by Science and Technology Education

Science and technology have had a major impact on society, and their impact is
growing. By drastically changing our means of communication, the way we work, our
housing, clothes, and food, our methods of transportation, and, indeed, even the length
and quality of life itself, science has generated changes in the moral values and basic
philosophies of mankind. Beginning with the plow, science has changed how we live
and what we believe. By making life easier, science has given man the chance to
pursue societal concerns such as ethics, aesthetics, education, and justice; to create
cultures; and to improve human conditions. But it has also placed us in the unique
position of being able to destroy ourselves.
“Science” is (when you reduce it to its basics) a methodology for improving of
Mankind’s understanding of the principles that underlie the real world. Quantum
mechanics, optics, thermodynamics, and so forth are all predominantly taught as
“science.” Over many years successive refinements precipitate a gradual improving of
the baseline of knowledge about these subjects.
This survey evaluated one aspect of the Science‐Technology‐Society theme,
namely, the teaching of global problems related to science and technology. The survey
was conducted during spring 1984. Two hundred sixty‐two science educators
representing 41 countries completed the survey. Response was 80%. Findings included
a ranking of twelve global problems (the top six were: World Hunger and Food
Resources, Population Growth, Air Quality and Atmosphere, Water Resources, War
Technology, and Human Health and Disease). Science educators generally indicated
the following: the science and technology related global problems would be worse by
the year 2000; they were slightly or moderately knowledgeable about the problems;
print, audio‐visual media, and personal experiences were their primary sources of
information; it is important to study global problems in schools; emphasis on global
problems should increase with age/grade level; an integrated approach should be used
to teach about global problems; courses including global problems should be required of
all students; most countries are in the early stages of developing programs including
global problems; there is a clear trend toward S‐T‐S; there is public support for including
global problems; and, the most significant limitations to implementation of the S‐T‐S
theme (in order of significance) are political, personnel, social, psychological, economic,
pedagogical, and physical. Implications for research and development in science
education are discussed.
National Academies reports in 2004 and 2017 rejected export controls as a way
to control dual-use research in the life sciences, such as the now-famous Australian
study that gave rise to a lethal virus that causes mousepox. Whereas the malign uses of
a 100% lethal poxvirus—such as smallpox, which killed half a billion people in the
twentieth century—are clear, the military uses are less so. Biological weapons,
especially highly lethal ones, are very difficult to control once released, and make for an
unpredictable weapon. To an apocalyptic cult, such as the Aum Shinrikyo cult that
committed the sarin attacks in 1995 on the Tokyo subway (and two attempted anthrax
attacks besides), that might be acceptable.
In the military and intelligence spheres, a similar argument can be made.
Neuroscience is less likely to lead to a resurgence of torture if the United States would
enact strong legislation to reaffirm its commitment to the provisions of the Geneva
Convention, famously limited by President George W. Bush through Executive Order
13440. The abuses committed under this order were made possible by weakening the
nation’s institutions. Affirming the values that lead us to reject torture requires us to
repair those institutions.
Finally, military research in neuroscience should be made as open as possible. In
this case, a lot of the fear of future misuse arises in the context of a lack of information
about what the military has developed, or hopes to develop. Sunlight can help fix this
problem.
The world faces an enormous challenge in providing sufficient, reliable electricity
without simultaneously emitting greenhouse gases. Numerous recent assessments cast
severe doubt on the ability to decarbonize the power sector using only renewables.
Getting emissions to near zero while meeting energy demand at a reasonable price will
require flexible, nonemitting power with high capacity factors. Nuclear power represents
one of the most potentially feasible technologies to meet this need. We should not throw
this technology under the bus.
Often times it backfires, such as the modern threat of nuclear war, obesity and
disease rates increasing due to inactivity because of technology, eye problems from
screens, social problems, many parents for instance will just give their kid a phone to
play with to quiet them down or whatever, but by doing that consistently they avoid
interaction with the kid, so phones can cause all kinds of developmental problems like
that, not only socially, but if the kid doesn’t play with physical objects, it could inhibit
motor skill development. Job loss due to technology is another problem, that is only to
get exponentially worse. Many people are less really connected to people socially than
ever, due to social media, which claims to connect them virtually. Of course, we are
given the ability to, for instance, let me share this knowledge with you, using technology,
but is it really necessary? How much has it actually improved things? Most people use
the internet for useless, mindless things anyway.
More often than not, when the impact of new technologies on the world of charity
is being considered, the focus is on the way in which these technologies could offer new
ways of addressing social and environmental problems. You can see this in all the
various examples of “tech for good” initiatives, which usually seek to apply a hacker
mindset to social problems in the hope of finding innovative approaches that will deliver
better outcomes.
Loss of access to technology that you have come to rely on is not just a rights
issue: there is a growing body of evidence that it can cause symptoms of actual physical
harm. For example, there are many studies showing that some people’s reliance on
their mobile phones takes on the quality of an addiction (which has been pun-tastically
dubbed “nomophobia”), and that they therefore suffer withdrawal symptoms if it is taken
away from them in the same way that a drug user would. Furthermore, an increasing
number of people’s entire sense of identity and self is tied up with the ways in which
they present themselves online in various contexts, so losing access to the internet is
tantamount to losing part of themselves. And again, the more that we become reliant on
other technology, the more of a problem this is going to be.
The impact of technology on our social, mental, physical and environmental
health can be devastating if we don’t keep ourselves in check. There’s no denying the
benefits we have gained from technological advancements, but as with all things in life
moderation is key. Being aware of the harmful aspects of the overuse of electronics will
help you avoid any unnecessary pitfalls. We have also compiled a list of reading
material that delves deeper into this relatively new area of study.
Social isolation is characterized by a lack of contact with other people in normal
daily living, such as, the workplace, with friends and in social activities. We isolate
ourselves by walking around in our own little world, listening to our iPods or staring at
the screen of the latest mobile device even when we are around other people. Studies
have shown that people who are socially isolated will live shorter lives.
The use of online social media outlets causes us to meet face-to-face with much
less frequency resulting in a lack of much needed social skills. We lose the ability to
read body language and social cues in other people.
Technology creates the perfect recipe for depression with the lack of human
contact, overeating and lack of exercise. There is a reason the use of antidepressants
are on the rise and the blame can’t be completely dumped on the pharmaceutical
companies. They aren’t carting people into the doctor’s office and force feeding them
the pills. This isn’t to say that depression isn’t a real problem, but some people could
cure their depression by living a healthier lifestyle.
The use of technology has caused an increase in bullying and escalated the
degree of severity. Kids are no longer able to escape their tormentors once they reach
the safety of their own homes. Bullies infiltrate the security of their victims’ homes
through online avenues. It is also easier to get more kids involved in bullying because
people are more likely to say things online that they wouldn’t say in person. The
increase in cyber-bullying has also led to an increase in teen suicides.
 In a recent book, Professor Rosen of California State University, Dominguez Hills
conducted a study of high school students to determine how technological distractions
affected their study habits. He discovered that students could concentrate for an
average of a measly three minutes at a stretch. The major culprit behind their lack of
focus? Technology.
Students who tended to “multitask” (or, really, to change tasks frequently) or to
check Facebook even once during the 15-minutes they were monitored were likely to be
poor students. Students reported that even without the constant reminders provided by
notification lights and sounds, they were internally preoccupied with whether anyone
was trying to get in touch with them or commenting on their statuses.
As our technology moves faster, our patience grows thinner. A huge study from
UMass Amherst, which surveyed 6.7 million users, showed that viewers tend to
abandon online videos if they take more than 2 seconds to load. Most users stay on a
single web page long enough to read only 20% of the text on that page, according to a
survey by the Nielsen Norman Group.
On an emotional level, posting a Facebook status, a tweet, or an Instagram
photo feeds on and reinforces our need for instant approving feedback. Becoming too
used to instant gratification in the virtual world can lead to poor choices and major
frustrations in the real world.
Science is about asking questions and finding credible ways to answer them.
Scientists and engineers lay the foundation for practical applications of what is learned,
and respond to needs in the broader society, as well as our own curiosity and passion
for new knowledge. Economists have attributed more than half of the gains in gross
national product and up to 85% of the gains in per capita income over the past several
decades to advances in science and technology (1–3). Science works best in a culture
that welcomes challenges to prevailing ideas and nurtures the potential of all of its
people. Scientific ways of thinking and of re-evaluating one's views in light of new
evidence help strengthen a democracy.
The search for knowledge about the impact of human societies on our
environment has gained in importance as rapid population growth and economic
development intensify the stresses human beings place on the biosphere and
ecosystems. Advances in biology, computer sciences, and techniques for sensing
biological, physical, and chemical phenomena on, below, and above the Earth's surface
could help us develop a more sustainable relationship with the Earth and its natural
resources.
The life sciences were fairly sleepy for a long time, with even dramatic
observations about heredity and biochemistry making only a minor impression between
1860 and 1944. Then McCarty, MacLeod, and Avery's critical experiment showed that
DNA, not proteins, carried the molecular message of inheritance. Within a decade, x-ray
crystallography of DNA molecules by Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins and
deductions about the role of hydrogen-bonding of antiparallel strands of DNA led James
Watson and Francis Crick to propose in 1953 the double-helical structure for DNA and
its functional implications. Once the triplet code was cracked, the pace accelerated
remarkably, leading eventually to the Human Genome Project.
Reversing the effects of ageing, reprogramming genes to prevent diseases and
producing clean energy are some of the biggest challenges for the next 50 years,
according to a group of leading experts.
The pace of advances in technology means the rate of progress will be 30 times
faster in the next half century than in the past 50 years, futurologists believe — and that
opens up the prospect of innovation in many fields.
Better understanding of our genes could lead to more personalised medicines
and longer, healthier lives; communication technology should get faster and cheaper;
and we will hopefully find more environmentally sustainable ways of living.
Alongside clean energy came clean water, which was in "seriously short supply
in many regions of the world. New technologies for desalinating sea water may be
helpful, but small-scale technologies for local water purification may be even more
effective for personal needs."
The NAE report also hailed the potential of advanced computer intelligence,
which it said would enable automated diagnosis and prescriptions for treatment.
 References
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/tea.3660230704
https://issues.org/forum-40/
https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-problems-of-science-and-technology-in-the-
society
https://www.cafonline.org/about-us/blog-home/giving-thought/the-future-of-doing-
good/future-imperfect
https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:zeMijQaWQnAJ:https://histor
y.nasa.gov/sp482.pdf+&cd=10&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=ph
http://roogirl.com/25-negative-effects-of-technology/
http://www.digitalresponsibility.org/distraction-caused-by-technology
http://science.sciencemag.org/content/314/5806/1696
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2008/feb/15/technological.challenges
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2008/feb/15/technological.challenges