If you are an observer of Science, Technology and Society one realises that Science and Technology cannot be separated from the Arts, Culture, Business and Politics. In politics let us look at four moments in human history,
First, The Wannsee Conference
A meeting of representatives of the different agencies of Hitler’s Third Reich met to decide how to handle their Jewish Problem. Years before this Hitler and company were able to embed into German Law means to separate and in dew Jews, non-Aryans and other undesirables. This was not a new thing hatred against the Jews and campaigns have happened before : (i) expelled from Spain; (ii) forced into Ghettoes; (iii) ordered to wear badges or judenstern in public; and (iv) pogroms. At Wannsee the Nazi’s were able to put a system to the exploitation and purge of the Jews. This was a system that followed a production assembly line for cars by Ford. However, instead of producing a car for the masses; masses of Jews were eliminated in a genocide that the Nazi’s called the Final Solution. Majority of the Nazi officials meeting at Wannsee were lawyers a study of the minutes and other related documents one notes a lot of words used in a round about way to describe exploitation and murder (EUPHEMISMS) – resulting in a distrust of words.
It is of no surprise then that Auschwitz and Dachau resembles industrial estates.
One of things that can be observed with the Nazis is their use of Science and Technology to improve weapons and technology of war. This of course is not limited to the Nazi’s alone their Allies and Opponents were also involved in this technology race. It is then ironic that the same racial law and anger against the Jews of the Nazis led them to their defeat in the tech race. In particular the production of the Atomic Bomb was won by the United States with the help of scientists hounded and fled from Germany. One of them was Albert Einstein – a German Jew who was forced to flee because of the Nazis. Hitler and the Nazis assured their defeat by alienating and killing their pool of scientists.
After the war Germany’s technology were spoils that the Allies got. V2 Rocket scientists like Von Braun were adopted by the US and in turn allowing them to develop ICBM and the Nasa Space Program.
TWO, Stalin and Trofim Lysenko
Trofim Lysenko was a Russian Scientist who promoted non Mendelian Genetics. Lysenko was also a politically astute scientist. Whenever the Party suggested an agricultural measure, he would be the first one to suggest a remedy that will. Also his adherence to non Mendelian Genetics – which in a nutshell is that an organism can change despite the inherited characteristics – was in line with the Party belief that a comrade can change regardless of their background. And more importantly his friendship with Stalin made Lysenko a powerful scientist in the Soviet Union. Anyone who disagreed with him were told to be quiet or suffer a holiday to a gulag or a permanent residency in cemetery. The only scientists who were not affected by this Lysenkoism were nuclear scientists. Stalin may have been as or even more bloof thirsty than Hitler but he was not dumb enough to delapitate his important scientists. The influence of Lysenko thrived even after Stalin’s death affecting the growth of Biological and Agricultrual Science in Russia.The successors of Stalin eventually backtracked on supporting Lysenkoism and Lysenkoism became a pejorative term to describe any science use to support a political purpose.
Third, The War Against the Four Pests
When Mao Zedong and the Communist came to power in China, one of Mao’s aim was to modernise the country. This include an increase in industrial and agricultural production. At the same time Mao was organising farmers into collectives and communes he launched the War Against the Four Pests – Rats, Mosquitos. Flies and Sparrows. In particular Sparrows were targeted because they ate the grains. Several things were done to kill the Sparrpws – hunting them, destroying their nests and even playing loud music (The loud music prevented them from landing and resting – in effect the Sparrows were killed by exhaustion). The campaign was a success there was a significant decrease in the Sparrow population of China. Unfortunately, The Sparrows also preyed on the Locusts and with the Sparrows gone the population of Locusts increased. This large Locust population feasted on the crops that led to the collapse of China’s agriculture. The people of the commune and cooperatives were not prepared for this and forced to eat green crops (crops to young to be harvested) and sometimes even shoes. Famine and death followed. It is believed more than a million or even a billion died. There were political repercussions to what would be known as the Great Famine. The least was the revision of the propaganda of the War Against the Four Pests – the Sparrow was dropped from the list and replaced with the cockroach. Mao Zedong was severely criticised by his colleges. And this resulted in backlash of all critics during the Cultural Revolution.
Mao’s War Against the Four Pests is story of an ecological disaster. The cause was political, the effect was ecological and it affected China’s politics.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY DOES NOT LIVE IN A VACUUM
A study of Science and Technology in history will reveal that progress, the lack of it or the abundance is dependent on the influencers and the movers of society. Business and politics make science and technology possible. Orwell once said everything is politics and this is true. The Bayt Al-Hikma would not be possible with the caliphate of Haroun Al- Raschid and Al-Mammun.Su Song was a scientist, philosopher and a statesman. One wonders if Gallileo and company were part of the ruling political elite would they have been hounded. Arguments and counter-arguments that can probably fill up an afternoon or two of lively discussion.
What is important at least in the post and the earlier one is to realise how Science and Technology can and is affected by Politics an Business. Perhaps it is not bad to learn from it.
Everything is political but there should be set boundaries on the relationship of science and politics. Science can be instrumental in policy making and political negotiations if utilized properly. Science and technology should always be practiced for the benefit of the greater good.
Leana Carlos
2012-78924
STS THY
Science and technology is indeed inseparable from politics. Those in power greatly influence the development of science and technology. Sadly, their decisions are highly driven by political motives and personal gains. Hence, the advancements that are not in line with their interests are being slowed down or suppressed.
John Steven Magboo
2011-55727
STS THX
One should never underestimate the power of Science and Technology in other fields for its influence can make a big difference. However, since it is interconnected with other fields, the possibility of it being used as a stepping stone for either the betterment of mankind or for simply greed cannot be ignored. It is sad to think that science and technology can easily be controlled by people in politics and business nowadays usually for their own selfish desires.
Chelsie Lauren T. Olaes
2014-13213
STS THY
“Science and technology does not live in a vacuum”
This is very true and is evident even in the university. A research project today can only push through with sufficient funding, and research is generally expensive. Fortunately, private institutions or businesses give large grants to certain researches; however, they choose researches based on which will fuel their industry or business. This relationship between industry and research has its advantages and disadvantages. One advantage is that businesses lend feasibility to science. Businesses are practical; thus, it aims to make discoveries applicable to the public. They are the means by which science can influence daily public life. On the other hand, the essential partnership of businesses tends to leave certain areas of research behind, especially those which have not caught the public eye, those which do not seem to solve an urgent problem at hand.
Businesses can be said to direct research to a certain extent. To what extent exactly, may dictate whether this is good or bad for the nation. In the Philippines, for example, researchers which listen to the business world are directed towards application-based research more than basic research, since we are a developing country. In our case, leaving basic research to the first world could be better for us; inventing a cheap biodegradable substitute for plastic would help more people than discovering a new subatomic particle.
Kristine Larissa B. Yu
2013-14910
STS THY
It is true that science and technology is intricately related to politics. Power is used to influence others, and as shown by Lysenkoism, power was even used against established facts. Power was also used to orient science and technology towards destruction and killing. The war against the four pests also show that politics and power can be so overwhelming that people only see the surface and fail to take into account complexities behind ecology and nature. These examples show us that yes, politics and power is essential for science and technology to progress, but there needs to be balance to avoid using science for wrongdoings.
Marrian Deytiquez
STS THX
One thing that I have gained from this article is the importance of power when it comes to science and technology. The knowledge that we gain from research is very limited, because what is discovered ultimately depends on what the powerful desire to know. There are many scientists who can learn so much more, but they are limited or bound by their backers.
Margaux Betinna Lim
2012-30637
STS THX
Science is definitely inseperable from politics and ideologies. It is true that politics and ideologies can affect what type of research and innovation are funded or are given attention. But the same is true the other way around, science also affects politics and ideologies. New undeniable discoveries and evidence can change people’s way of thinking and it can change laws and how things function in society.
Bea Cerojano
2012-61155
How beautiful was the idea of the blog on Science and Technology affecting Business and Politics and vice versa. It is indeed the case. Another case where this relationship is pertinent is in the pre-campaign periods. Supporters of presidentiable and vice presidentiable candidates have already been quarrelling in the social media. The innovation of technology has increased the importance of social media as a platform for political campaigns. Cheaper internet and internet platforms have made social media more accessible to Filipinos and thus increasing the number of Filipinos active in the said social platform. Any public relations, whether good or bad, would have a great impact on the voting population involved in social media. Politicians cannot afford to fall behind this powerful curve.
How beautiful was the idea of the blog on Science and Technology affecting Business and Politics and vice versa. It is indeed the case. Another case where this relationship is pertinent is in the pre-campaign periods. Supporters of presidentiable and vice presidentiable candidates have already been quarrelling in the social media. The innovation of technology has increased the importance of social media as a platform for political campaigns. Cheaper internet and internet platforms have made social media more accessible to Filipinos and thus increasing the number of Filipinos active in the said social platform. Any public relations, whether good or bad, would have a great impact on the voting population involved in social media. Politicians cannot afford to fall behind this powerful curve.
Allen Cruz
2012-32153
STS THX
Science and politics are like laces of a shoe. They may be independent from each other, but only when they work together will the shoe—society—function. As the article pointed out, these two fields are inseparable; they are intertwined. This is true and evident until now.
Government policies, which undeniably is greatly affected by political beliefs and ambitions, dictate the progress of scientific research and development and the advancement of technology in the country. Alone, scientific research will not thrive, especially since it needs a vast amount of funding. Private individuals and institutions, whose behavior also depends on the performance of the government, are unlikely to fund these researches because the costs outweigh the benefits. As a result, the scientific community rely on the financial support of the government.
Conversely, advancements in the field of science and technology, groundbreaking inventions for example, also has an effect on the state of politics in a nation. As we may notice, the most powerful countries are those who has the most advanced technology. The economic growth model developed by Robert Solow, which states that technological progress results to economic growth, provide an explanation to this correlation.
Nevertheless, at the end of the day, these shoelaces should have one primary goal: to make better the lives of people.
Adrian Jericson S. Jimenez
2014-77970
STS THY
It is only natural for man to crave for advancement. It is necessary that this advancement is achieved and reinforced by science and technology and pursued with everyone’s best interest in mind, taking into consideration all possible outcomes and repercussions as well as the moral implications of decisions made. As demonstrated by the stories of history told above, the desire to progress would only result in turmoil if done to modify nature, upsetting its balance. This, I believe, perfectly demonstrates the importance of grounding decisions on scientific fact.
Mel Exmundo
2012-16897
STS THX
Science and technology has greatly helped in forming our own society. With that said, various components of our society like business and politics have a direct relationship with science. Hence, a change in the other causes a change on another. Thus, the political events that happened such as the Wansee Conference, affected science in a way that it drove away the country’s greatest scientists due to the harsh policies and laws being implemented by the government. Moreover, it should also be noted that sometimes scientists take advantage of the power given to them to spread their ideas, regardless if they are scientifically accurate or not. And lastly, business and politics & science and technology should strive to work together to avoid mishaps that could have permanent effects on our society because in the end, everything is all connected to each other.
Angelique G. de Castro
2014-21220
STS THX