Have Science and Technology Created a Dream or a Nightmare for Man?

Science and technology have flourished considerably for the gain of mankind. All their achievements have left no part of the world isolated. Thanks to science and technology, all the countries are interlinked and we are living as a global village. Many fields have been improved such as transport, industry, communication, education, human rights as well as economic and socio-cultural development. However. it is also a two-edged sword. It favors wars, culture erosion, and unemployment among other problems.

One of the major achievements of science lies in the field of medicine. Science has helped greatly for man to be able to fight diseases. Because of science and technology, the world is a better place. On one hand, scientists are constantly looking for new drugs and on the other, technology based on life science has resulted in many useful applications such as shots that prevent mumps and measles, X-rays showing cavities and organ transplant. Discoveries in medical science have led to pasteurization, vaccination, antibiotics, anesthetics, genetic engineering and many more life-saving discoveries.

Genetic engineering emphasizes its incredible potential for good. Scientists curiously seek to know why some people become ill, some cannot take certain drugs and some die prematurely. Demand for human transplant organs has led to animals being genetically engineered and bred to provide suitable organs for transplant. Scientists are also able to alter the genetic make-up of some of the food we eat. It is argued that these genetically modified plants and animals can provide the world with increasing amounts of much required food and medicines. Genetic engineering has also been known to develop new plant varieties with built-in defenses against pests and diseases.

Transport has undeniably revolutionized the world, with constant improvement in science and technology. With more progress in the last few years, we now have electric trains in many countries. Trains of this type are luxurious and run at enormously high speeds. Science and technology have also helped mankind succeed in flying in powered airplanes. There are luxurious airliners with video equipment, facilities for preparing food and other amenities. Today, large, fast jet liners are common and vehicles like the space shuttles promise to transport humans to and from space.

Thanks to science and technology, agricultural production has increased tenfold. The amount and quality of food has increased considerably. Given the ability to modify virtually any plant characteristic and to tailor plants in precisely defined ways, biotechnology would seem to offer tools, well-suited to agricultural development strategies. For example, it should eventually be possible to modify a plant's physiology to improve its efficiency in photosynthesis, enabling grains to produce more carbohydrate and thus lead to higher yields. Developing countries like Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand have established national programs in agricultural biotechnology.

One can always criticize but without the development that science has brought in medicine, genetic engineering, transport, most of us would not be here- we would have been victims of the massive child mortality rates that prevailed in all previous centuries. Thanks to science, life expectancy has doubled in the past two hundred years. However, the benefits of science and technology must be judged alongside their disasters. It is doubtful whether science has really improved our lives. Does today's technological society really make us happier and more fulfilled than the lifestyles pf the pre-industrial age? It is far from obvious.

Mass media are an offspring of technology. Then followed radio, cinema, television, satellite transmission among others. Mass media determine the character of our society. The total impact of the inflow of information and foreign technology produces a deep impact on our world view. Indeed mass media influence people's mental picture of the world. Violence, advertising, lack of creativity among others are issues focused by the mass media. The latter encourage obesity and violence in society.

Science has to take a large measure of responsibility for providing the instruments of destruction: nuclear, chemical and biological weapons used often this century. Not only has it given us the means to destroy each other efficiently and ruthlessly, but we can also undermine the environment slowly and insidiously in times of peace, through the technological developments of the industrial revolution.

Science has also been responsible over the past two hundred years for the systematic torture and the exploitation of animals in medical research, cosmetic research, chemical research and scientific farming techniques. Only the uncivilized would allow this cruelty and this fact is making man face his worst nightmares.

Science is not incompatible with a sense of meaning and wonder at the beauty of life and universe. Science can be used for good or for evil. It depends on man himself whether he wants to live it as a dream or as a nightmare.