Is Science Nothing but a Threat to Society?

Science is the study and understanding of the world which we currently live in. Human beings have been constantly doing experiments and research throughout the years to understand more about ourselves and our surroundings and it is human's constant thirst for knowledge and our natural curiosity which drive us to pursue the areas of science. Even though the acquisition of knowledge alone is not a harmful thing, men's decisions to make us of their knowledge and covert it into actual actions make the study of science dangerous. Therefore science cannot be considered as merely a threat to society since it provides many benefits.

Science allows human beings to understand themselves and contributes to the medical field. Through science, we get to know our body structure, how our body functions exactly and the uses of the different parts of our body. This allows us to have a greater understanding of the way which our body works and enables us to use this knowledge to our advantage. Due to the fact that we understand our body well, doctors are able to treat and save patients and prolong our lifespan. Cures for disease and illness are being discovered and this allows human beings to be saved from their diseases. For example cures for deadly diseases such as heart failure, lung damage and other life threatening illnesses which were once incurable are now treatable with the extensive study of science through researches and new discoveries made. Science which contributed to the development of technology also led to the prolonged of our lifespan. Current technology allows us to conduct surgeries like heart bypass surgeries, which lower the chance of the occurrence of a heart attack, enabling people with possible arteries blockages to prevent a heart attack from happening. Science and technology also make it possible to have transplantations so that if your organs are not functioning properly, a replacement surgery can be performed to replace the malfunctioned organ. Therefore through the study of Science, we are able to come up with treatments for diseases for the benefit of mankind and our lifespan can be then prolonged. Hence Science is beneficial to us and it is not merely a threat to society.

Science enables countries to develop economically and make progresses. Through advances in Science, countries are able to compete with other countries and it can contribute to the economic development of that country. Some countries like Singapore invests a lot in biomedical fields to provide the necessary technology and expertise to come up with tip notch treatments for various diseases so that foreigners will want to seek treatment in Singapore. With this, Singapore is able to earn and compete with other countries economically and improve the standard of living of its citizens. Thus, Science cannot be considered as nothing but a threat to society.

Even though Science is useful to man and may bring about benefits to us, the misuse of such knowledge may result in harm being done to ourselves instead.

Through Science, we are able to create destructive weapons and equipments for war. Such powerful tools allow human to gain control but may also result in a high level of destruction done to our lives. An example is the nuclear bomb which was being invented. It is able to create a high level of destruction, thus putting our lives at danger in the event of the misuse of such a destructive weapon. Therefore Science may indeed be a threat to society if it is misused and if it falls in the wrong hand.

Besides that, Science may also lead to a loss of identity as human may be able to have greater control over how things works and even use this to manipulate nature. This scenario is created in the book "1984", where human's basic instinct and humanity are being eroded to create a 'perfect' world. Such misuse of knowledge may be of a threat to us in future. Just like the situation in 1984, we may end up having a single institution which is capable of controlling others and it may lead to the eradication of identity of individuals.

Thus even though Science is useful to human as it allows us to improve our living conditions and quality of life, the misuse of such knowledge will be harmful to us instead.