GE1713
Section I: SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY IN GENERAL
Science, Technology, and Society (or STS) is a subject matter that:
• deals with interactions between science and technology and social, cultural, political, and economic
contexts that shape and are shaped by them;
• seeks to engage students to confront the realities brought about by science and technology in
society;
• seeks to instill reflective knowledge that students can live a good life and display ethical decision-
making in the face of scientific and technological advancement; and
• includes mandatory topics on climate change and environmental awareness.
It is built on the foundation of science as both philosophy and practice.
Section II: PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE
The philosophy of science can be broken down into two (2) parts: the "knowledge" portion, which
encompasses the scientific fields and their importance to society, and the "epistemology" -- the methods
and its importance to the formation of knowledge.
PROPONENT(S) SCIENTIFIC METHOD JUSTIFICATION
John Stuart Mill (1806–1873) Inductive Reasoning They proposed that the inferred conclusion is
Francis Bacon (1561–1626) absolute and applies to everything else.
David Hume (1711–1776) The Problem of The problem with inductive reasoning is that
Induction "not all conclusions can be considered as
general truths."
Karl Hempel (1905–1997) Hypothetico-deductive Conclusions can only be determined through
method rigorous experimentation, implying the
importance of quantitative data. The
hypothesis has more bearing in the pursuit of
knowledge.
Rev. Thomas Bayes (c. Bayesian Confirmation It is a quantitative form of confirmation that
1701–1761) Theory provides numerical support to the hypothesis
rather than stating outright that the hypothesis
is correct. Its results and framework were
based on using probability tools.
Karl Popper (1902–1994) Deductive Reasoning Observations are required to formulate a
problem to further solidify the existence of the
hypothesis. However, by concluding
something to be true -- even before being
tested on, the hypothesis becomes irrelevant
because the outcome is fixed.
Falsificationism In support of the deductive reasoning, falsifying
the experiment's outcome means that the
hypothesis proposed is also false.
Paul Feyerabend (1924– Epistemological There is no scientific method. The essence of
1994) Anarchism science is that "anything goes."
John Earman (1942– Testing Scientific This book seeks to justify why theories have to
present) Theories be tested for confirmation, as well as
deconstruct how the various models of
confirmation theories are similar in some ways.
01 Handout 1 *Property of STI
[Link]@[Link] Page 1 of 4
GE1713
Scientific realism versus antirealism
• Scientific realism is the epistemic view of science, which states that the Universe, with its
observed and unobserved concepts, being described by Science is real regardless of how it is
represented. In this sense, every information and theory presented is taken as it is and is
considered factual.
o Naïve realism postulates that everything is true.
o Structural realism posits that, while everything in this Universe is true, they must adhere
to specific structures to provide their existence with evidence.
o Entity realism states that something exists because there are tools developed to provide
evidence to their existence. Thus, it stands in between naïve and structural realism.
• Scientific antirealism is the epistemic view of science, which states that the unobservable
concepts of the Universe, such as electrons and genes, are inherently unverified. Thus, for these
theories to be accepted as real, they must be able to present undeniable physical evidence of their
existence.
o Constructive empiricism states that science aims to give, in its various theories, a true
story of what the Universe is, but based only on the observable aspects of the Universe.
o Instrumentalism states that scientific theories are merely instruments for solving problems
and making predictions.
o Social constructivism argues that every aspect of scientific knowledge is borne out of the
collective observations of many. This information is only proven to be true because these
have been verified and endorsed by a particular group at a particular time.
From reductionism to theoretical pluralism
Reductionism can be construed as a thesis about ontologies, laws, theories, linguistic expressions, or
some combination of these. Considered as a relationship between scientific theories, it can be taken as a
synchronic relation between two concurrent theories belonging to different levels of description or a
diachronic relation between a historical predecessor theory and its successor.
Theoretical pluralism has been tagged as the "disunity of science" because it promotes a multidisciplinary
approach to the various fields of science rather than a succession of knowledge in between disciplines.
This view has been criticized because it forfeits the benefits that come from examining inter-theoretic
relations. The question of the unity or disunity of science remains a controversial topic.
Section III: Time and Hyperhistory
More people are alive today than ever before in the evolution of humanity. And more of us live longer today
than ever before. Life expectancy is increasing, and poverty is decreasing (relatively speaking), even if the
degree of global inequality is still scandalous. As a result, disability is becoming the biggest health-related
issue for humanity.
Whenever we think of history, we usually tend to refer to it as a "when." But, if we look at it from a different
perspective, history can also be referred to as a "how." Like, "how" did people in the past live their lives,
and "how" their lives differ from ours at present. In our case, when we say that we have lived prehistorically,
then we have lived in a world -- and time -- with no form of written record. Living historically can mean that
we have now developed a form of recording: writing documents such as letters, encoding multiple pieces
of information quickly via typewriter, and configuring the real from fake, as in the case of scanning paper
bills.
But we are now entering a new phase: hyperhistory. With so many written information scattered about, we
cannot file them anymore in physical containment. Sometimes, these documents tend to get lost in a
01 Handout 1 *Property of STI
[Link]@[Link] Page 2 of 4
GE1713
heaping mess. This is where the advancements in the Information and Communications Technology (ICT)
enters the scene. The development of this field is rooted in both history and hyperhistory, as the progression
of knowledge and mankind depends on them. With the rising demand for information storage, the ICT
community spearheaded hyperhistory with its technological strides. This, in turn, make people entirely
dependent on them. Entire societies may even halt their progress if ICTs became absent.
However, progress comes at a price: ICTs are expensive. Simply increasing the digital storage space takes
time to be developed, and more years are needed in improving data storage. Moore's Law states that the
number of transistors present in digital computers increases at least every two (2) years. Even Metcalfe's
Law, which tackles about the value of a network of nodes, noted that if left unconnected, a network is simply
expensive to maintain -- which depend on the ever-increasing number of nodes that are connected to the
entire network.
Section IV: The History of Philippine Science and Technology
The need to develop a country's science and technology has generally been recognized as one of the
imperatives of socio-economic progress in the contemporary world. This has become a widespread concern
of governments, especially since the post-World War II years.
Among Third World countries, an important dimension of this concern is the problem of dependence in
science and technology, as this is closely tied up with the integrity of their political sovereignty and economic
self-reliance. There exists a continuing imbalance between scientific and technological development among
contemporary states with 98 percent of all research and development facilities located in developed
countries and almost wholly concerned with the latter's problems Dependence or autonomy in science and
technology has been a salient issue in conferences sponsored by the United Nations.
It is within the above context that this paper attempts to examine the history of science and technology in
the Philippines. Rather than focusing simply on a straight chronology of events, it seeks to interpret and
analyze the interdependent effects of geography, colonial trade, economic and educational policies, and
socio-cultural factors in shaping the evolution of present Philippine science and technology
HISTORICAL PERIOD SCIENTIFIC CONDITIONS and/or ADVANCEMENTS
Precolonial • There have not been any reliable accounts that could provide details about
early Filipinos
• According to secondary sources provided by the Spanish missionaries
and colonizers, the precolonial people were numerous, scattered, thriving,
relatively self-sufficient and autonomous communities long before they
arrived
• The early Filipinos had attained a generally simple level of technological
development, compared with those of the Chinese and Japanese, but this
was sufficient for their needs at that time
• The early Filipinos were masters of boatbuilding, metallurgy, weaving,
agriculture, and pottery among other crafts
o Unfortunately, their metalworks and pottery did not survive because
of competition, such as the cast iron from Sarawak and porcelain from
China
o What remained, however, is the crafting of the palayok, still being
used today
01 Handout 1 *Property of STI
[Link]@[Link] Page 3 of 4
GE1713
Spanish Occupation • Spanish colonizers established gender-specific schools that taught
subjects designated for boys and girls
o The Royal and Pontifical University of Santo Tomas, the oldest
university in the country, was established during this time
o This still limits the indio because higher education is reserved only for
the elite and the wealthy
▪ The Spanish friars who taught in universities highly discouraged
teaching the sciences, as they believed this promoted materialism
▪ Uneducated people were employed more in manual labor (and
were paid less for it), while those who studied found themselves
to be employed less (yet paid more)
o Educational pursuits during this period were:
▪ Physics
▪ Chemistry
▪ Natural history
▪ Mathematics
▪ Theology
▪ Philosophy
▪ Humanities
▪ Jurisprudence
▪ Canon law
▪ Medicine
▪ Pharmacy
▪ Maritime Navigation
▪ Agriculture
• They also established hospitals and research centers for their own use
• With the establishment of larger towns and education regarding
agriculture, the Philippines fared well in terms of agricultural trade and
export due to their mastery in boatbuilding
American Occupation • The American government established more public schools and
supported both the education and science sectors
• The University of the Philippines first opened during this time
• The gender bias during the Spanish Occupation began to disappear at the
encouragement of the American government
• Vocational and Industrial schools found difficulty in acquiring students due
to the developed disdain to manual labor
Japanese Period All forms of education went to a halt during World War II.
Post-war Era Interest in the fields of engineering, medicine, and other science-related
backgrounds has increased steadily over the years. However, due to a lack of
funding and support from the national government in these concerned fields,
those who studied under these fields sought employment and benefits in other
countries, leading to a steady decline in employment rates in these fields.
REFERENCES:
Caoili, O. C. (1986, June). A history of science and technology in the Philippines. University of the Philippines Science Research
Foundation
Chapter 1 – Time/Hyperhistory (2016). In L. Floridi, The Fourth Revolution (pp. 16-41). Oxford University Press.
[Link]
The Gale Group, Inc. (2003). Philosophy of science. Encyclopedia of Science and Religion. [Link]
and-religion/philosophy/philosophy-terms-and-concepts/philosophy-science
01 Handout 1 *Property of STI
[Link]@[Link] Page 4 of 4
