the science essay 

the science essay

The Impact of Scientific Discoveries on Society

1. Introduction

Sacred sites and men’s attempts to control them are historically rooted in religious symbolism. Science and the scientist are offered as such a symbol, and increasing responsibility for the reorganization of society is attributed to its “priesthood.” Scientific investigation is an organized attempt to describe and interpret events which otherwise would appear to be disconnected. As a group, scientists increase the stored experiences available to society, and uncover, report and help the public control socially unwelcome situations. In so doing, the scientist enables society to establish a historically continuous combination of social structures, values and moral patterns, and their corresponding institutions, to cope with the universe, including its own biological and psychological characteristics.

The identification and development of scientific knowledge as an aspect of the evolution of man’s ability to create and utilize tools; how society encourages the activities of scientists; discoveries and technological innovations; the burden of knowledge; emotional responses of society to discoveries; it will often develop symbolism for promising fields, e.g. Lavoisier’s contemporaries used a symbol for oxygen which was, in effect, a pre-scientific recognition of its relevance to combustion and to physicochemical processes.

2. Historical Examples of Scientific Discoveries and Their Societal Impact

The Ancient Greeks made tremendous contributions to the development of Western science. Aristotle wrote many scientific works, which had a profound impact on medieval learning. His scientific method is considered one of the first principles underlying scientific discoveries and the key formula for obtaining scientific truths. Among his works, those concerning cosmogony have attracted wide interest. Although most of Aristotle’s ideas about the cosmos appear comical nowadays, their impact on society and the advancement of science is estimable. The Greek philosophers claimed that the Earth is a round ball, not a flat disk. Aristotle was also the first to devise an empirical (direct) method to estimate the Earth’s radius, estimating its value to be 3650 km, while the correct value is about 6400 km. These early works stimulated explorations, which led to new discoveries. The estimation of the Earth’s radius, in particular, fostered transatlantic voyages, following the suggestions made by Columbus for finding a new direct route towards the East, made feasible by the efficiency of these direct explorable routes. Finally, these estimations also fostered ancient attempts to measure the dimensions of the Earth, using distance evaluations obtained from explorations. However, the findings of many scientific discoveries have then shown that 1) sea journeys which follow the ancient suggestions are really not possible, 2) sea explorations could offer faster East-West connections, and if inland trade routes were established, it would be possible to establish profitable trades with some eastern and northern Asian populations.

Since the development of the first scientific method and the discovery of the first laws of science, there have been occasions where many scientific discoveries have revealed a wealth of new knowledge regarding the world. It wasn’t the result of surmise and spells. Many scientific discoveries have also had a great impact on the development of societies. They aroused interest in some old scientific findings that were previously restricted to a geographic area, and accelerated the commencement of many explorations and subsequent discoveries. All of these scientific discoveries have had a great potential impact on society and have helped to develop and shape its institutions.

3. Current Scientific Breakthroughs and Their Implications for Society

Will science be able to advance with the same rapidity when special purpose gain equations are added, and social area restriction or moratorium are used as conditional controls? Even in applied research, there is often concern about the adverse effect of these addition and controls. These worries naturally become more severe when research moves into the area of basic research, the proper function of which is normally defined as being relatively far from the areas in which technology development and application occur. The present study does not dispute the primary scientific value of basic research. Rather, it is an attempt to appraise the long-time impact of the lesser social and economic objectives upon basic research. Only after these are systematically accounted for, can we size up the instrumental and complementary roles which basic research of this less disinterested kind could be made to play in the progressive expansion of positive social effects. The present study has no orthodox concerns with basic research.

Although current science can have significant effects on society, in many cases the implications are not clear. Basic research is being initiated in accelerating nonlinear culture-controlled research processes. Society probably will have more control over areas such as nuclear power technology, human reproduction, and creation of artificial intelligence before relevant scientific research is completed. Early social and scientific area restriction or moratoriums in these areas could help society gain some practical and equitable control over these scientific developments. The period in which this gain in control is possible might be short. It is the function of research to produce knowledge, and to use this knowledge for new and more practical objectives. In general, rapid scientific and technology developments have had positive effects.

4. Ethical Considerations in Scientific Research

Ethical decision is often difficult, being a compromise between conflicting pressures. Holding that scientific knowledge is the product of the intellectual faculties, and not of divine inspiration, we can draw no ethical distinction between types of knowledge. However, any ethical consideration of research practice must also be attended by a careful moral reflection on the ends and purposes to which knowledge will be put. Work enters the classical pattern of science when testing goes on within the scientific community and is carried out in accordance with scientific conventions, or when the actual testing is controlled by some group of highly trained scientists who are members of the community. These considerations seem to support present social practice. Following them not only maximizes the character of scientific research but also permits society to enjoy the fruit of scientific research without supporting the entire spectrum of scarcely applied analysis. In economics, by so doing, human welfare improves. In human affairs, this permits the ethical goal to speak.

Ethical considerations governed the research activities of the Greeks as well as the alchemists and natural philosophers of earlier times. While irritated by excessive formalism and constricted by royal grants, the scientists of the Renaissance and later periods continued to recognize ethical restrictions. A great deal of the work of contemporary scientists is governed by ethical ideas rather than legal compulsion. Even if ethical considerations do not influence the actions of all scientists, it is essential that they be part of the general guide to research practice lest the offense be given or society demand insufficient research to continue.

5. Conclusion and Future Prospects

In this review, we must mention many important aspects of the social sciences that we do not discuss. They include the cultural influences on scientific discoveries, the influences of science on societal values, and the fabrication of public opinions on scientific matters through propaganda. Moreover, we have looked at the impact of scientific discoveries on society mainly from the justice point of view. From the welfare of humanity viewpoint, perhaps the most universally valued task for science is to discover the deep mysteries of the universe, which makes our existence both meaningful and satisfying. One of the main public social aftermaths of fundamental scientific discoveries is to inspire people, especially the younger generation, in investing for the future. Violence and war are the other side of injustice. Science and ethical training are the two wings that give humanity opportunities to fly wisely and peacefully within the full potential of progress.

In this paper, we have reviewed the long-standing and complex relationship between scientific discoveries and society by exploring different ways by which they impact each other. We conclude that the moral of the story is: scientific and technological advances offer enormous potential benefits, but achieving these potential gains involves making difficult decisions, and most of the decisions have both moral and scientific dimensions. It is doubly important that we scientists and researchers understand and are sensitive to these societal dimensions of their work and to help policymakers and the general public appreciate the social context of science.