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Are We Controlling Science or Is Science Controlling Us?

The document discusses the relationship between science and human control. It explores ideas from science fiction, like the Cybermen from Doctor Who, who began using technology to prolong life but ultimately lost their humanity. It draws parallels to real technologies like prosthetics and social media that have advanced capabilities but also raise ethical questions. While science itself does not control people, scientists and developers arguably shape technologies in ways that can influence human behavior and potentially lead to control, as seen in dystopian stories where science is intentionally used to control societies, like Brave New World. The document concludes that both statements of whether we control science or it controls us hold truth, but in the present, scientists and developers control the pace of technological change more so than ordinary

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Lachlan
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24 views

Are We Controlling Science or Is Science Controlling Us?

The document discusses the relationship between science and human control. It explores ideas from science fiction, like the Cybermen from Doctor Who, who began using technology to prolong life but ultimately lost their humanity. It draws parallels to real technologies like prosthetics and social media that have advanced capabilities but also raise ethical questions. While science itself does not control people, scientists and developers arguably shape technologies in ways that can influence human behavior and potentially lead to control, as seen in dystopian stories where science is intentionally used to control societies, like Brave New World. The document concludes that both statements of whether we control science or it controls us hold truth, but in the present, scientists and developers control the pace of technological change more so than ordinary

Uploaded by

Lachlan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Discursive Attempt

Are we controlling science or is science controlling us?

It’s currently 11:50 pm on a Wednesday and I somehow have to write a discursive piece due
Friday and make it 900 words. I have left this task way too late and for some unknown
reason I’m still procrastinating even this task by multitasking between YouTube and social
networking. I mean who wants to do English when you can watch Doctor Who, a science
fiction show where one of the villains (the Cybermen) are a future colony of humans on the
moon use technology to prevent them from dying and soon enough they upgrade
themselves to a point where they’re no longer human. To me this concept is fascinating and
out of all the antagonists shown in the 50+ years of Doctor Who these seem to be the most
real and possible in our society – biological engineering has advanced so far that prosthetic
limbs etc… are very common and in the past century have gone from a stick where your
hand should be to a nearly completely anatomically accurate limb. However, this idea does
bring out a question in ethics; when does science become too advanced that it is no longer
moral to use.

Now with science itself, I don’t think there’s ever been a case outside of science fiction
where one’s Frankenstein esque creation breaks free from the control of its inventor.
Although, there have been slightly different versions of that trope, mainly with social media.
To me this technically isn’t a science but it is an addicting world which can suck people in
that it results in Mr Kam coming to the decision to ban all phones entirely (except for
teachers of course). Even as I write this essay, I am watching YouTube, thus proving the
addicting nature of these websites and applications. To the average user of these websites,
people don’t generally agree they’re addicted whereas to an outsider looking on, phones
which help enable this addiction are comparable to a drug. These ever-present screens are
akin to those seen in the dystopian fiction novel 1984 by George Orwell, with the
totalitarian government watching all its people through these screens, supported by the
slogan ‘Big Brother is watching you’. Now it would be remiss to say that the common use of
phones is going to lead to a totalitarian regime taking over and oppressing everyone
however there is something ominous with how people are seemingly opened to being
controlled through their devices.

Although I have mentioned it before but to me personally, the Cybermen are an excellent
example of being controlled by technology unintentionally. Originally written in 1966, the
initial concept is where technology is used to upgrade and keep people alive until they
become more man than machine – emotions are suppressed and humanity is destroyed.
After, they become these things that force people to become like them and join the
conformity of the metallic emotionless men. This is akin to the 1932 fallen utopian novel
Brave New World, where proper human emotions like anger, love, compassion are deplored
and conformity, monotony, drug use, and passionless sex and other recreational activities
are implored as a way to control and manipulate the society of the World State. However, in
the case of Brave New World, science was intentionally created and angled to control
people, opposed to where it’s an accident in the universe of Doctor Who.
Science never stops evolving, yet it does so with the help, aid and manipulation of people
and scientists, it can’t do so alone (except in the Matrix).

The fallacy of the statement of course is the idea that we (ordinary citizens and people) are
in control of science. Now we are to some extent, however discoveries, advancements and
evolutions are primarily done by scientists themselves. So, if we’re to think about whether
we are being controlled by science or not, both statements are true, however, in our current
day and age we are arguably under the control of the scientists and those who develop the
technology; as we impatiently wait until the next iPhone or new piece or kit gets released.
But the technology itself isn’t in control of us, it debatably acts as a medium for those who
want to control, like in Brave New World how drugs and humans themselves are developed
and made through science but the technology used is a byproduct and medium for the
person who had the idea and programmed the technology to implement it.

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