Science, Technology and Society
.(INTRO)
A. Meaning of Science and Technology
Science, Technology and Society (STS)
● Referred to as science and technology studies
● Study of how social, political, and cultural
values affect scientific research and
technological innovation, and how these, in turn,
affect society.
● Refers to the interaction between science and
technology and social cultural, political and
economic context which shape and are shaped
by them.
B. Meaning of Science
● Science is a systematized body of knowledge
● Science is an organized and dynamic inquiry
● Science is knowledge gained through
observation and experiment
● Science is human activity
● Science is a social enterprise
● Science leads to formation of concept, method,
principle, theories, law and procedures
C. Meaning of Technology
● Technology as material product
● Technology as the application of
knowledge
● Technology as human activities or
endeavors
● Technology as social enterprise
● Technology as modern technology
D. Some of the notable human successes in the
field of science and technology
1. The Wheel
● Concept of inventing the wheel came
during 3500B.C.
● Wheeled Cart facilitated agriculture and
commerce by enabling the
transportation of goods to
● From the market, as well as easing the
burden of people travelling great
distances.
2. The Compass
● Chinese invented the first compass
between 9th and 11th century
● Made of Iodestone (naturally
magnetized iron ore)
● Soon after, the technology passed on the
Europeans and Arabs through nautical
contact
● The compass enabled mariners to
navigate safely far from land, increasing
sea trade and contributing to the age of
discovery
3. The Printing Press
● Johannes Gutenberg, a german who
invented the printing press around 1440
● He was the first to have created a
mechanized process that transferred the
ink (which he made from linseed oil and
soot) from movable type of paper
● Printing press exponentially increased
the speed with which book copy could
be made.
4. The Internal Combustion Engine
● In these engines, the combustion of fuel
releases a high-temperature gas which,
as it expands, applies force to a piston,
moving it.
● Combustion engines convert chemical
energy into mechanical work
● The engines steered in the Industrial
Age which enable the invention of a
huge variety of machines, including
modern cars and aircraft.
5. The Telephone
● Alexander Graham Bell was the first to
be awarded a patent for the electric
telephone in 1876
● The invention quickly took off and
revolutionized global business and
communication
6. Penicillin
● In 1928, the scottish scientist Alexander
Fleming noticed a bateria-filled petri
dish in his laboratory, the sample had
become contaminated with a mold, and
 everywhere the mold was, the bacteria
was dead
● Antibiotic molded turn out to be the
fungus Penicillium
● Over the next two decades, chemists
purified it had developed the drug
Penicillin, which fight huge number of
bacteria infection in humans without
harming the human themselves
● Penicillin was being mass produced and
advertised by 1944
7. The Internet
● Global system of interconnected computer
network used by billions of people worldwide
● In the 1960’s, a team of computer scientists
working for the U.S Defense Department’s
ARPA (Advanced Research Project Agency)
built a communication network to connect the
computers in the agency called ARPANET.
● It is used a method of data transmission called
“pocker switching”.
● ARPANET was the predecessor of the internet
that eventually emerged to become the
“information superhighway”.
8. Eco-Friendly Technologies/Advantages:
● Solar Energy
● Geothermal Energy
● Wind Power
E. Disadvantages and Ethical dilemmas of Science and
Technology
1. Threats to human survival
● The invention of nuclear weapons in
1945, like nuclear bombing of Nagasaki
and Hiroshima that caused the death of
many people
● This was a product of chemical and
biological warfare(bio-warfare); toxic
wastes produced by manufacturing
companies that threaten human survival
and stability of the environment.
2. Ethical Dilemmas
● The negative effect of the technology
are numerous
● In our march to progress we have
degraded the natural world
● Forest are chopped down, topsoil is
washed away, rivers are polluted and
our waste is dumped in the oceans
3. Disparities in Human well being
● There are advanced countries enjoying
science and technology based successes
and hold high esteem in contemporary
society(Economic Strength) versus
million of people in developed countries
who have not partake in these benefits
4. Social and cultural conflicts
● Military power is vital for national security of
many governments; Superior and highly
technical weapons dictated the outcome of some
recent wars.
5. Innovating technologies can have consequences
for certain sectors or constituencies
● Incude pollution associated with production
processes,
● Increased unemployment from labor-saving new
technologies,
● Conversion of agricultural land into urban areas
● Effect on humans psychologically and
emotionally
● Effect of overused technologies in medical
technologies in the medical industry that can
cause fatal birth and diseases
● Global warming
DO YOU KNOW?
In the Philippines, people turn to science and technology
for warning advice and assistance during calamities and
disasters. We have some government agencies
responsible for giving us advice and information:
● Philippine Institute of Volcanology and
Seismology (PHIVOLCS)
● Department of Science and Technology (DOST)
● Philippines Atmospheric Geophysical
Astronomical Services Administration
(PAGASA)
● We have built windmills and transit trains that
provide us means of source of energy and
transport.

SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY (LESSON
1)
EVIDENCES Of SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
DURING PREHISTORIC TIMES
● Early humans attempted to understand the
unknown world, their natural sense of curiosity
led them to know more about the world and their
nature.
● They started to record pattern, cycle and
repetition of what was happening and started to
look for answers
● This led them to analyze and organize
information which led them to their
understanding of science
● Technology has come to reality because of the
desire of humans to thrive and survive.
A. The Dawn of first Civilization
● Ancient humans were able to discover and
invent tools and method as science developed
and progressed
● Early humans have already developed skills and
technologies which served and supplies their
needs for survival
● Mankind existed long before the written word,
there was no historical evidences of how people
lived then
● Written records of any kind of dated only
about 5,000 BC
● People discovered learned and developed since
and technology as the consequence of their
search for food and for other survival needs and
even curiosity
B. Evidences of Science and Technology during
the Prehistoric Time (3000-5000 BC)
● Man’s achievement can be categorized
as:
➢ Discovery
➢ Invention
STONE AGE
● This period was marked by which some stone
was widely used to make tools and implements
● Dated roughly 3.4 million years era
➢ In about 8000 BC this era was divided
into 3 separate periods:
● Paleolithic Period (early)
● Mesolithic Period (middle)
● Neolithic Period
(new)
● Tools developed gradually from single to all
purpose tools to a collection of varied and highly
special types of tools, each designed to serve a
connection with a specific function
● four fundamental traditions were developed by
the Paleolithic ancestors:
(1) pebble tool traditions
(2) bifacial-tool or hand-axe tradition
(3) flake-tool traditions
(4) blade-tool traditions
● The Early Stone Age includes the most basic
stone tool kits made by early humans
➢ The oldest stone tool (Oldwan kit)
consisted of hammer stones, stone cores
and sharp stone flakes.
ACHEULEAN TOOLKIT
● Product of homo erectus
● Acheulean technology is best characterized by
its distinctive stone handaxes
● Achaleulean hand axes were multi-purpose
tools used in a variety of tasks.
 ● Acheulean tools are sometimes found with
animal bones that show signs of having been
butchered
PEBBLE-TOOL TRADITION
● The first stone was naturally broken, sharp
edged rocks that were casually picked up, used
and discarded
● Early hominids began purposely selecting
specific raw material, and making their own
sharp-edged stone tools
● Entailed the sharpening of pebbles and small
cobbles through bificial (two sided) removal of
flakes
HAND-AXES TOOL TRADITION
● Most common tool of Stone Age was the hand-
axe
● Shape varied from circular to triangular
● Earliest type of hand-axes is called Acheulean
hand-axes, from Paleolithic period
FLAKE-TOOL TRADITION
● Earliest implement they made during Paleolithic
Period
● Used these tools as knives and scrapers
● Made by Paleothic age until Metal age
● Produced by striking the core of stone with
hammer
BLADE-TOOL TRADITION
● Defined as being flakes
● Twice as long as they were wide
● Have parallel or subparallel sides and at least
two ridges on dorsal
● Incorporated as parts of larger too such as
Spears.
● Scrapers- used to hide woodworking
● Burins- used for engraving
STONE AGE
● Made from variety of stones: flint and chert
were shaped or chipped use for cutting tools,
flakes, blades and weapons
● Flaking was able to produce a wide range of
special tool that was used for cutting, choping,
scraping and sawing
● Basalt and sandstone were used for ground stone
tool
● Neolithic was characterized by herding societies
● Bronze smelting adoption of agriculture
BRONZE AGE
● Second principal period of the three-age Stone-
Bronze-Iron system
● Followed by Neolithic period
● Marked with the beginning of mining and
metallurgy.
● Denotes the first period in which metal was
used
● Harder and more durable
● Tin must be mined and smelted added to molten
to copper to make bronze alloy
IRON AGE
● Dominant tool was making material was iron
● Iron brought with it’s significant changes to
daily life in ancient history
● Iron made life easier because of Iron tool
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY
(LESSON 2)
The first civilizations emerged independent of one
another along fertile river valleys in MESOPOTAMIA
(Tigris-Euphrates), EGYPT (Nile), CHINA (Huang Ho
Valley) and in INDIA.
People from each civilization have developed their own
● Grew out of a mechanical device that they
way of life.
invented in 3500BC – the potter’s wheel
● Life ● They turned this clay splattered wheel on its end
● Religion and hooked it to a wagon.
● Government ● They did it to make the wheel as means of
● Language practical method for moving heavy objects
● System of writing
● Arts and Crafts Sailboat
● Science and technology
● Astronomy ● First invented by ancient Mesopotamia.
● Agriculture ● Mesopotamians started using sailboats 5000
● Medicine years ago.
● Mathematics ● Mesopotamia is situated between two famous
● Engineering rivers, they needed water transportation for
● Architecture travel and trade.
First Astronomers
Sumerian civilization ● Sumerians were among the first astronomers that
(Sumer, mesopotamia) mapped the movement of stars, planets and
● Was the southernmost region of ancient moon into sets of constellations.
Mesopotamia. ● Many of these survived in the zodiac and were
● It is the cradle of the world’s earliest most recognized by the ancient Greeks
known civilization, which was first established
in 3600B.C. Sexagesimal System
● Known to be one of the first cities in the world.
● A system of counting in units of 60
● Transformed families into tribes that occupied
● Served as the basis of 360 degree circle and
the territories which became cities then later
60mins in an hour.
called as states.
Babylonian civilization
Cuneiform
● Babylonia was the ancient region bordering the
● The first writing system Tigris and Euphrates river.
● Set of word pictures depicted in symbols ● Babylon is the capital, and served as a
● The symbols are made of triangular marks commercial and religious center in the Tigris –
(3000B.C.) Euphrates valley.
● Pictograms representing actual things were the
basis for writing in the cuneiform Hammurabi
● 1792 – 1750 BC
Clay Tablet ● The first leader of the old Babylonian Empire,
promulgated the famous LAW CODE.
● Contains Sumerian historical information and
● It served as the standards which helped maintain
culture
a period of stability in the region and as well as
● Began as a record keeping for trade
in science and technology.
● Evolved into the use of symbols for writing laws
and stories.
Nebuchadnezzar ii

Wheel
 ● The Neo Babylonian Emperor who ordered the
construction of the famous hanging gardens of
Babylon and the Isthar Gate.
● They also contributed to the development of
science and technology; irrigation, double entry
accounting, multiplication and division tables,
etc.
● They adopted the Sumerian Sexagesimal system
of counting units of 60; they made an accurate
prediction of solar and lunar eclipses and other
astronomical phenomena.
Egyptian civilization
● Situated in the northeastern part of the African
continent, Egypt is located along the Nile River
which provided a fertile delta
Science and technology Development
● Ancient Egypt depended on the waters of the
Nile River. The river gave life to the civilization
of Egypt.
● The early settlers were animal hunters, they
were nomadic.
● They changed their lifestyle to be farmland
settlers.
● Agriculture was supported mainly by extensive
irrigation systems.
● They learned to heat metal ore and made
weapons and utensils.
● They may have been the first people to learn
how to make glass.
● They learned how to heat sand in a very hot
furnace and then blow the molten sand into
glass.
● They make glass jars and glass beads.
Papyrus Reeds
● Egyptian writing wrote with ink brushes on
paper
● The paper is made of papyrus reeds.
Hieroglyphics
● Writing in a form of pictorial symbols
➢ Their knowledge of human anatomy,
physiology, surgery and medical plants enable
them to master the art of embalming their dead.
➢ They created the calendar based on the faces of
the moon, consisting of 29 and ½ days.
➢ The first 365 –day calendar was devised by
IMHOTEP, early in the old kingdom.
➢ They were the first to divide the day into 24
hours, calculated the time by means of water
clock.
➢ Their interest in astronomy was focused on the
stars and early calendar was based on the
appearance and disappearance of the stars
➢ Sirius was the brightest in their horizon
coinciding with the annual rise and fall of the
Nile river.
➢ They were engaged in pottery of various shapes
and sizes.
➢ They built houses made of sun dried mud bricks.
➢ Pyramids still stand today as the monumental
device of the scientific expertise and skills of the
ancient Egyptian geometry, engineering,
architecture and labor management.
➢ They also engaged in ship building; construction
of canals, dikes, ditches with outlet systems.
➢ Food was broiled, baked, stewed, fried etc.
Cretan (minoan) civilization
● Arose on the island of Crete and other Aegean
Islands and it flourished from 2600 – 1400 BC.
● It was rediscovered at the beginning of the 20th
century through the work of a British
archaeologist, Arthur Evans
● Will Durant referred to it as the first link to the
European Chain.
● Minoan civilization was an Aegean bronze age
civilization rules by king Minos.
● Knossos was the capital of Crete, the grandest
site of bronze age palaces built between 2100
and 1575 BC
● The Minoans were primarily mercantile people
engaged in overseas trade
● Their culture from 1700 BC onward, shows a
high degree of organization historians believed
 that they were a part of the Bronze Age’s
important tin trade .
● Minoans made sophisticated carved statues,
ceramics, frescoes, jewels and inscriptions.
● Constructed drainage system, public halls,
courtyard, and religious shrines.
● Streets had good drainage systems and water
and sewer facilities .
● Houses built from sandstone, gypsum and
limestone.
● Minoans raised cattle, sheep, goats and grew
lettuce celery, asparagus, carrots, etc.
● They developed Mediterranean polyculture.
● Around 1600 BC, Akrotiri was shaken by a
violent earthquake.
● The Theran eruption was one of the largest in
human history
● It blasted 10 million tons of ash, gas , and rock
25 miles into the atmosphere.
● 50 years later the civilizations were wiped out.
● Earthquakes and fire destroyed Knossos and
othe
Nebuchadnezzar ii
The Neo Babylonian Emperor who ordered the
construction of the famous hanging gardens of Babylon
and the Isthar Gate.
Science, Technology and Society
(LESSON 3)
The Contribution of Greek, Persian,
and Romans in the Development of Science and
Technology
I. The Classical
Greek Philosophers
(400 B.C. – 400 A.D.)
“GREECE”
● a country in Southern Europe located at the
crossroad of Europe,Asia, and Africa.
● Mainland: Southernmost tip of the Balkan
Peninsula
SOCRATES(470-399 B.C.)
● emphasized the study of human nature in
relation to society.
● established the theory of “SKEPTICISM”
EMPEDOCLES(493-433 B.C.)
● assumed that there were more than one kind of
matter and postulated four roots of elements:
HIPPOCRATES (400 B.C.)
● started science of medicine
● greatest physician of antiquity
● Father of Medicine
Hippocratic oath
● an oath traditionally taken by newly graduate
physicians to observe the ethical standards of
their profession,
● specifically to seek to preserve life.
ARISTOTLE (384-322 B.C.)
● Father of Biology
● Classification of plants and animals
● Introduced method thinking that still plays a role
today.
SCALA NATURAE
● also known as “Great Chain of Being”
● One of the first theories in Biology
● The species form a scale from simple to
complex putting animals that laid warm and wet
creatures alive as the highest form but evolution
is not possible.
ARCHIMEDES (287-212 B.C.)
● laws of the lever and the pulley
● invention of machines
● he calculated the value of pi
● pi – a geometrical calculation that helped
determine the width, or circumference of a
circle.
● Archimedes excelled in
● geometry, calculus, theoretical mathematics,
hydrostatics and displacement.
PTOLEMY (100 A.D.)
● one of the greatest astronomers who founded
Geocentric theory (Earth-centered)
● wrote the Almagest.
 DEMOCRITUS
● developed atomic theory
● idea that matter consisted of atoms
PYTHAGORAS (497-581 B.C.)
● Mathematician
● number were basic matter
● Pythagorean Theorem
PLATO
● nature of the universe
● ascribed geometric forms composed of bounding
planes to the elements of earth, fire, air, and
water based upon their physical properties
ARISTARCHUS
● both mathematician and an astronomer
● discovered new theories about the way the
planets move their orbits
● he thought that even though the earth revolved
around the sun, it also spun on its own axis, or
spin-point, as it followed its orbit around the sun
HIPPARCHUS
● Discovered the length of the month “only one
second off from what we know today”
● Persia has one of the richest art heritages in
world history.
● It encompasses many disciplines including
architecture, painting, weaving, pottery,
calligraphy, metalworking, and stonemasonry
● Persian rugs have always been a vital part of the
Persian culture
A. NAS’TALIQ
● the most beautiful and (technically) the most
complicated Persian Calligraphy style
● Nas'taliq is a style of Islamic calligraphy
formalized in the 14th century by the master
calligrapher Mir ‘Ali Tabrizi
● The name indicates the combination of elements
of two predating styles, ‘Naskh’ and ‘Ta’liq’
● It was the first style to be invented with the
Persian language in mind
B. POTTERY
● The taste and talent of the Persian people can be
seen through the designs of their earthen wares,
ceramic art objects such as figures, tiles, and
tableware made from clay and other raw
materials.

ERATOSTHENES
C. DOMES
● determined the circumference of the earth which
is ● important part and constructed on the first large-
● 28, 000 miles, which is only 3 000 miles more scale in Persia.
than what we know ● Surfaces of the domes are mostly mosaic faced,
THEOPHRASTUS which creates a magical view.

● Father of Plant Science

D.MOSQUES
● wrote “History of Plants” (500 food and
medicinal plants) ● Various structures such as mosques,
● Most outstanding botanist of the early botany mausoleums, bazaars, bridges, and different
wrote “Causes of Plants” places have mainly survived from this period

II. PERSIAN CIVILIZATION

E.WINDTOWER
“PERSIA”
Persia is the former name of Iran; ● chimney-like structure positioned above the
-the Persian Empire was founded by Cyrus the Great in house to the catch the prevailing winds
the 6th century B.C.;
-was the largest empire of the ancient world; Do you know?
-the culture of Persians is one of the oldest in Middle
● A Persian carpet or Persian rug is a heavy
East
textile, made for a wide variety of utilitarian and
Science and Technology Development
 symbolic purpose, produced in Iran (Persia) for
home use of for sale. Persian carpets and rugs of
various types are famous for their elaborate
colors and artistical design, and are treasured in
museums and private collections all over the
world today.
F. “ROME”
● capital of Italy
● today it is known as “the eternal city”
● Latin is the language spoken by Romans
ROMAN CIVILIZATION
● characterized by a government headed by
emperors and large territorial holdings around
the
● Mediterranean Sea in Europe, Africa and Asia.
AQUEDUCTS
● constructed to supply water for Romans
● Rome itself was supplied with 11 aqueducts
made of limestone that provided with over 1
million cubic meters of water each day,
sufficient for 3.5 million people even in modern-
day times.
● influenced the development of various scientific
disciplines: anatomy, physiology, pathology,
pharmacology and neurology, as well as
philosophy and logic
VITRUVIUS
● a writer whose work has provided us with
important knowledge about
● Ancient Rome.
● also an architect and an engineer
● sometimes referred to as the first architect
PLINY
● Described almost a thousand species of plants,
most of which were highly valued for their
medical use
THALES OF MILETUS
● developed the theory of matter based upon
water.

SUNDIALS
● used to tell time created portable versions
● They also used tools for measuring, manual
drills, and metal spikes (used as nails)

Do you know?

ROMAN ROADS
● The Romans primarily built concrete roads for
their military. Nearly 30 military highways, all
made of stone, exited the great city. They made
372 roads and connected 113 provinces
● Notable Roman Scientists

GALEN (129-199 A.D.)

● great physician and surgeon