In your comments, please respond to the essential question of chapter 10 in Shea et al. (p.599) after reading the preface to this chapter.
How are advances in science and technology affecting the way we define our humanity?
Remember to read this simple question carefully.
Do not just list advances in science and technology
Do not just list the ways in which science and technology affect our lives.
Do list the ways in which these advances affect the way we think of what it means to be human.
Science is in a way, dehumanizin us as it advances more and more quickly. Technology makes it easier to get in touch with people through the internet and mobile phones but it seems like that method of communication is beginning to dominate pre-facebook methods of interacting. Now it seems like everything is done through the internet to plan and talk about our lives. It takes out the element of actually facing people to talk to them. Websites such as facebook have completely taken over and people now go to that site whenever they want to get their opinion across or talk about something. Weapons have also advanced too far to consider their uses humane. The use of advanced missles distances whoever is responible from the victim and makes killing people far too easy. Technology is simply moving too fast and our humanity cannot keep up.
ReplyDeleteJust like Neil stated, technology is moving to fast. The problem with our socitey is that, along with the nonstop technological advances, people completely misuse what is given to them. With just a click of a mouse, a rumor and spread to hundreds, even thousands, in a matter of minutes. Information about history, medicine, news, etc can be found with no problem, and a lot of that information is biased and unfactual, yet people still believe it becasue they feel that since its on the internet, it must be true. However, the previous statement is wrong. There are billions of people in the world, each with their own idea, and they then put it on a "wiki" page because one can easily post on it and not have the information fact checked before hand, which then provides people with undocumented information.
ReplyDeleteAlso, with such an increase in cell phones and social networking sites, people can easily get in touch with anyone they want, whether it be through Facebook messaging, instant messaging, texting, tweeting, etc. With such an increase in non-verbal communication, ones speaking ability begins to plumit the longer he or she does it. Also, since spelling doesn't matter on social networks or in texts, or people have "auto correct" on their iphones and ipads, that their grammar and spelling ability is also decreasing.
If we are not careful, technology will eventully overpower us and we will enter a world Ray Bradbury writes about in "There Will Come Soft Rains" where humans have ceased to exist and technology is so advanced that homes are able to to everything on their on, with no humans to control it.
The advantages in science and technology are affecting the way we define our humanity because with all these advantages people are starting to not be capable of doing things the way they used to. Our humanity is right of the bat learning to do things through technology. For example almost nobody gets written mail in the mail anymore, all ways of communication is through email or transferred through a phone.
ReplyDeleteOur humanity has become lazy and with all the new tecnology things come to easy. I started reading some of "Brave New World, and it sickens me how people are literally being made through fertilization treatments.
Advancements in science and technology are causing humans to be thought of as efficient, skilled, and certainly intelligent, but also lazy and desensitized in many instances. Scientists over the years have completely revolutionized the way humans live. Inventions such as the car and the telegraph are examples of this. The introduction of Chapter 10 words it nicely by saying that "some of the fantasies of science fiction have become the realities of life" (599). Those who introduce new technology to the world are clearly intelligent people, and it could be argued that humans need to be intelligent as well to utilize technology.
ReplyDeleteHowever, advancements in science have also been able to desensitize humans. By being able to experience less face-to-face interaction with others, such as through Facebook or Twitter, or even with the world around you, like through television and the internet, humans aren't getting as many real interactions. Not only that, but because we have access to so much technology, humans have become, as Lauren said, lazy. Humanity has been redefined in the sense that people do not have to work as hard, because technology can achieve and will continue to achieve tasks that once required true skill and hard work.
In the preface of this chapter it shares how the meaning of the word science has changed throughout the years. As a result the definition of our humanity has changed too especially as technology became completely linked with science. What does it mean to be human? Well that is a complex question all by itself. In this day, technology has a big role in defining what is means to be human. It is human nature for us to not even think two seconds about calling on the phone, texting, or facebooking a friend when we want to talk to them instead of having an actual conversation with the person face to face. Technology and science have made it possible for all sorts of medicine to be made available for everyone. Nowadays if a person feels any little symptom he/she runs to a medicine instead of waiting till it goes away or realizing something is really wrong and seeing a doctor. It is only human to get in a car and drive to your destination instead of walking. Also, it is only human to go on the internet to find answers. For many questions or situations a person does not even have to think and use his/her brain, just type in the question into the internet and find the answer. Technology is dehumanizing us. It is taking over our world, and making us are change the way we, humans, operate.
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ReplyDeleteTechnology has been changing the way we live our life's for both good and bad. As a whole the human race has become less able to be social with one another face to face in a conversation. However putting a phone or computer between the same two people and the conversations become endless.
The technology has changed our lives for the good too. We can now know what is going on across the world with just a few clicks of a button. We have become more diverse and are able to avoid situations that have already occurred somewhere else.
Technology has the power to do great things but it has the power to essentially take over the world if we are not careful in how we control these computers/technologies.
Going along with what Lauren said, the rapid advancements in technology people are loosing abilities to do things and solve problems for themselves because the technology that can do that is right there for them to use. Humanity as a whole does not have to work as hard to solve simple tasks of everyday life, therefore, like previously stated, become lazy. We are more dependent on technological advances then ever, and without it some of us would be lost trying to do some simple tasks made even easier with technology.
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ReplyDeleteAs it discusses in the preface of Chapter 10, science has become a way to shape and influence our society. As society has recognized technological advancements and scientific achievements, people have become increasingly more dependent on these inventions. Since as it states on 599 "Have we created a monster, as Mary Shelley prophesized?" Even though advancements have provided conveniences, they have also made people dependent on a piece of technology. Technology has defined our humanity; it has defined our social skills, our life skills and problem-solving skills.
ReplyDeleteIn today's world, a way of communicating would be using a cell phone to text, or a message on Facebook. Technology has affected our social skills and interaction and instead of communicating with actual people, it seems most of the time we are communicating with a piece of technology. Many people, including myself, would be lost if I didn't have my cell phone. Technology has also replaced things that humans used to have to do by themselves. Even in stores, they now have "self check-outs", where humans aren't even needed to work at registers. Machines are replacing all things that humans are doing and that has affected our lifes. Humans do not have to do as much as time progresses. Also, even simple logical skills are not as necessary today. Humans can be lazy but they also have a world of information at their finger tips. If they don't understand something they can google it, instead of having to try and figure out a problem on their own. From all of these effects, humans have become less social, dependent on technology, and less wise since machines have become wise for us.
Although, technology has also made remarkable improvements for the world. However, with all of these improvements, one must look at how this affects society and how it affects the lives of humans.
Science and technology has effected how the human race interacts with one another. Technology allows us to pick up a phone and type in order to communicate. There is no face to face interaction needed to communicate. Technology has made everything we do easier. Microwaves have made it possible to cook food in just minutes. Like Mackenzie said technological advancements in medicine have been very beneficial. These advancements have improved the quality of life. Humans are extremely dependent on technology whether it is good or bad.
ReplyDeleteAdvances in science and technology affect the way we define humanity because it has greatly changed our daily lives. Technology has changed the way we communicate in so many ways. For instance, I believe that people have lost some of their social skills because of texting. People have become so used to typing things that spoken language is more difficult. Also people rarely write letters to eachother or mail documents to eachother because we have email and fax machines.
ReplyDeleteSo far I agree with everything that everyone before me has said. Technology has definitely changed humanity both for the good and the bad. Science has impacted humanity because it has allowed us to understand the way things work and how they run. This is extremely beneficial to society because we can create and build technologies that encourage humanity. Technology and science have also changed the face of medicine and health care for humanity. Putting organs into other people, transferring blood, and brain surgery are things that occur every day now. However, some sciences and technology has been bad for humanity. Things such as atomic bombs and other nuclear weapons. Science like this destroys humanity instead of helping it. Especially now with all of the technology at our fingertips, humans have become increasingly lazy. Information is at the click of a button and people don't even think twice about how people used to have to find information. Before computers people would have to go to library and use books to do research which is something that young kids take for granted these days.
ReplyDeleteToday many things are based around technology. While the "tech savvy" person may seem very smart and skilled they may also be seen as lazy. I think in general technology has made us lazier as humans and it's become a lot more acceptable to be lazy. Instead of sitting there writing a letter and going to the post office it's a lot easier just to send a quick text or email. It's even easier to just use face time and be able to talk face to face without even being near each other. Which has desensitize us as humans because we don't have the face to face contact that people did years ago.
ReplyDeleteAdvances in technology and science are affecting the way we define humanity by changing the ways be communicate, share information, and learn. Before the internet, doing a research paper meant going to the library and picking up a book to actually find the information, but now all of that information is at our finger tips. We almost need to be connected with all this information at all times. With texting and other forms of communication, people can't get away for a holiday, when someone from back home texts or emails him or her. It makes us feel as though every thing needs to be faster. Faster access to information leads to assignments being completed faster and more time for one to do other things. It this way, its sort of detrimental to society as we are sort of accelerating too fast. We aren't developing social skills on the same level and we've lost the old sense of communication.
ReplyDeleteThe advances of science and technology have affected the way we define our humanity because most of our everyday activities involve technology. We constantly use our phones and computers to communicate with friends and families and to even do homework. Games and reading are even done using computers or other types of technology. There are rarely things that we do without some sort of technology involved.
ReplyDeleteWith the advancements in medicine, people are trying to define exactly when a thing is considered a life. Today abortion is a big issure because many believe that it is murder of a child. Technology is able to stop the process of development of embryo's in it's early stages to stop it from evolving into a child.
ReplyDeleteAnother example would be how we are now able to clone various living things. Many people think that this practice is blastphemous because of religous issues. This affects how we think of life and what we would considered to be a human, stemming away from the traditionalist views that a person is made from one man and one woman.
I do not personally have a problem with either of these issues however it is scary how rapidly life as we know it is changing all around us due to technology.
Living in a world dominated by helpful technological advancements it is easy to overlook the cons of these inventions. Most inventions benefit us in a positive way but these same things can be used ineffectively and diminish the quality of life. For example cell phones are a wonderful invention in that they provide a way of communicating whenever and wherever. the cell phone also is useful when someone is say on a long car ride and need to preoccupy themselves with something but when the cell phone is used incorrectly the effects are extremely visible. When someone relies on their phone as the only way of communication social skills suffer greatly. When kids use their phones to post mean things on facebook or thorough text the results are endless. While the cell phone was created as a tool to facilitate life it is now being used in a way that can hurt someone’s quality of life. These inventions change what it means to be human by changing the way we interact. human interaction is what life is about and soon technology will take that away from us whether it means to or not.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with what both jami and Lauren are saying in that because of technology and science advancements humans are starting to become lazy. It is true that technology advancements such as the car, as jami as stated, but due to advancements in computer technology face to face communication is faltering. As others have posted, Facebook, twitter, tumblir are starting I cause the degeneration of human interaction. An with these creation as humans we almost feel safer with this technology, as though we can't be touched and this can lea to cyber bullying. Over the years bullying had gotten worse and worse especially cyber bullying because there is that wall between you and that person and you don't have I look at them when you are tearing them down. One can argue that technology has made the human race more intelligent, modern, and advanced but it is important that we use technology in the right way.
ReplyDeleteI, too, am impressed by the range of comments that have been posted thus far--you are thinking more deeply that you have on previous post--so philosophical! Keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteI am of two minds on the advances of science and technology as they relate to defining our humanity.
The advances in science and technology have increased the opportunities we have to be comassionate-- to heal the sick, to instruct the ignorant, to save people physically and intellectually who would otherwise die or be condemned to third world lives.
However, we have shifted to valuing logic and reason over feelings and ethics. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should--to quote Jeff Goldblum's character from Jurassic Park. People focus on what humans can do before they ask about the implications--we have become impulsive. @Amanda, like Frankenstein, we only worry about the monster after we have brought it to life.
@Mike, science and technology have increased the "need for speed" and what it means to be human seems to include always working, always moving, always doing something--instead of just being. Even our leisure is concentrated and rushed--sports are seasonless now, and our down time and vacations are scheduled to within an inch of our lives.
And, too, there seems to be a need for everything to be perfect and a lack of tolerance for difference, flaws, or deivations from the norm. Science and technology often treat humans as moving constantly toward a superficial ideal--plastic surgery, genetic engineering, streamlining, efficiency.
Fast, impulsive, perfet...all these pressures change what it means to be human...and I think make us depressed rather than optimistic...science and technology can be a burden as well as cures.
Science and technology are changing the way we define humanity because humans are now thought of as lazier and less useful. Humans are no longer needed to do everyday things such as shop. Amanda pointed out the use of self checkouts but we are also able to shop online from a computer, phone or tablet and receive our items the next day in some cases. I think humans will be even less useful in the future as technology advances further. Also, it lessens our need to interact face to face with people. We have te ability to use tthis blog rather than textbooks everyday. Even now, I'm typing this post on my phone because I don't need to be at a computer.
ReplyDeleteScience and technology are changing the way we define humanity because humans are now thought of as lazier and less useful. Humans are no longer needed to do everyday things such as shop. Amanda pointed out the use of self checkouts but we are also able to shop online from a computer, phone or tablet and receive our items the next day in some cases. I think humans will be even less useful in the future as technology advances further. Also, it lessens our need to interact face to face with people. We have te ability to use tthis blog rather than textbooks everyday. Even now, I'm typing this post on my phone because I don't need to be at a computer.
ReplyDeleteAlso just adding on to my post on page 600 it states "while science had give us better nutrition.......also brought us environmental pollution, nuclear weapons and a frenetic pace to our lives." so even though science has brought great knowledge and technology to us it also brought nuclear bombs which led to the bombing of Nagasaki. This is destroying humans and also giving great responsibility to us; we need to know how to use such great technology the right way.
ReplyDeleteTechnology has affected humanity for the good and the bad. In the fields of science it has helped save many lives. Technology helps to make our lives easier, but it can be considered to make it too easy to the point where it is making us lazy. With the help of computers things like shopping and bringing home textbooks are not necessary. I think that in the future we will continue to be more lazy as more advancements are right at our fingertips.
ReplyDeleteAlso, as stated before face to face interaction is limited with all of the technology such as Facebook and twitter. I even rarely talk on the phone when I can send a text message.
I think that the technological and scientific advancements that have been made have been both highly beneficial and yet detrimental to the way humans interact with each other and the world around them. The benefits that have come to be because of technology are astounding. The medical field has been positively effected by all of the advancements because people can face tragedies and come through them stronger than ever. I think that the technology relating to the medical field has instilled hope within humanity that people can get sick and be close to their deaths and yet doctors will be able to save them because of technology.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I do believe that communication between humans has become completely different. People are not afraid to be a bully over the Internet or through a text message, which is a major reason as to why teens are all over the news for suicides. Also, people don't know how to interact with others face to face because it is much easier to just text someone or send them a message on Facebook. Society is changing because of all the technology and if it keeps changing so rapidly people may not even know how to start a conversation with someone face to face.
Just like Lauren said, I think that technology has caused humans to become more lazy and more dependent. Humans rely on technology and because it instead of thinking for themselves and being self sufficient. Also, humans do not interact with eachother and communicate the way they used too. Humans are almost becoming hidden behind a computer screen because there are less interactions, which has created bullies because people gain confidence behind a computer screen instead of being a genuine human.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Neil when he says the technology is dehumanizing people. Technology is making people more lazy becuase more and more tasks are being completed with the use of technology. Also, technology is allowing people to communicate through the internet or texting The amount of face to face conversations that people have today is limited. As new generations are growing up, they are learning less social skills that they need to be successful when they are older.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the fact that technology is making people lazy. Cars, social networking sites, and cellphones take a lot of work out of our daily lives. All of these technological inventions come with many benefits. Communication speed has become much faster, and phones and social networking sites are versatile in means of communication. We need to remember, however, that using this tehnology is not always the best choice. You cannot see someone's reaction to your words while talking on a cellphone. You do not get the same reaction over a text or wall post as you would if you were actually talking to a person. This reaction, I think, is what is now lacking in our society.
ReplyDeleteScience is show of our progress from the beginning of time, as we have changed drastically from the cavemen days. It is a reflection of our knowledges and advancements, and shows our morals and needs as a society collectively. Technology in the past decade or so has made us more connected, such as with the internet, laptops, and cellphones. We can contact almost anyone within seconds with a touch of a button. Science defines humanity and morality, and questions when we should draw the line.
ReplyDeleteOver time, the many advances in technology have changed the way we define humanity. Back in the colonial days where there was barely any sort of technology, people were very hardworking because they had to be to survive. Through the generations, technology has been invented to make life easier for everyone. As life gets easier, people get lazier because they have to do less to live a comfortable lifestyle. In some aspects this isn't true such as working your way up to CEO in a company. That requires very hard work. The work in which I refer to is physical work. There are machines to harvest crops and people don't even have to get up to turn the television on. If technology keeps advancing at this rate, humans will be the laziest they have ever been. Humans could potentially not have to lift a finger to do anything far in the future. I also agree with Amanda about the medical field gaining many benefits from technology. I also agree with her about people potentially not even knowing how to have a conversation with eachother face to face.
ReplyDeleteAdvances in science and technology have affected the way we define ourselves as humans in many ways. With technology advancing so rapidly it is making us become more lazy. Technology can have a negative affect on our social lives because there are so many ways to comunicate without facing each other. I think that we are also becoming too dependent on technology. I beleive that as science and technology continue to advance humans won't be needed for certain jobs. This could cause an increase in unemployment.
ReplyDeleteAdvances in science and technology affect the way we define ourselves as human. Today, humans generally try to live sickness free (as it is no longer commong to be so sick with modern medicine and healthcare). Also, being in the world today involves constant contact with people, being able to profieciently use technology and being able to adapt quickly to constant new technologies that we are bombarded with. As humans, we no longer have to be very articulate and socialize with people, nor do we have to be patient because information and almost everything we could want it available at the touch of a button on the internet. Humans today, with science and technology, are a far cry from the human of the past.
ReplyDeleteReading the preface to chapter 10 reminded me of Fahrenhiet 451. They both warn of the dangers of dependence of technologies and show how these advances in sciences greatly impact the behavior of society. Before any of these advances were made, humans were defined by their strength and ability to survive using only their hands. Today, people are defined more so by thier intelligence. Now it is seen as more honorable to be able to design something that will take the place of something our ancestors once did with only the help of tools they had made with their bare hands. Our society today may be more efficient, but definitely substantially less self-sufficient. This can be looked at as a negative or positive. We are able to do things to now that we could not many years ago, but ultimately we have become dependent on these advances. If all of these intelligences and inventions were somehow lost, would today's society be able to survive without them or have they taken away our natural human survival instincts?
ReplyDeleteI agree with Paige that with all the advances in technology it has become more acceptable to be lazy. People rely on technology for just about everything, and while it has made humans lazy, it has also made us much more impatient. Now people don't seem to have the motivation to do things and they become angry when they have to wait too long for anything. It has also decreased our social skills, we now just text someone instead of calling or meeting face to face. At the same time the advances in technology has helped the human race achieve many things. It has provvided us with new medicine so we can live longer, it has allowed us to explore outter space, and it has also madde our lives easier compared to the past. We have to change the ways we think to keep up with all the advances and sometimes our humanity gets lost along the way. -vVictoria Howe
ReplyDeleteTechnology has changed the way we live and act. Has humans, we have become more lazy and antisocial. We isolate ourselves from human interaction because it is prefered to text or email than call someone or actually meet with them. Everyone relies too heavily on technology that our society would crash if it crashed or went away. Technology is not all bad because it is a lot more efficient than the human mind alone. Computers and smart phones are good examples of techology that change our everyday lives. Entire companies run on computers and without it,life for companies would be much more difficult.
ReplyDeleteAdvances in technology have affected our lives greatly for an endless amount of reasons. New technologies have give us oppurtunites to communicate in ways we never use to be able to before. We can now ccommunicate wirelessly and this lets people be in contact at all times. With the internet and cell phones people are constantly in communication with others. For many reasons this is advantageous to humanity as a whole but at times it can even be detrimental. These technologies are also harming our society. It is being noticed that people are struggling with social skills because these technologies are depriving them of face to face contact. People are so use to using their devices to communicate that they can barely hold a conversation with another person. Technology is a never ending element of humanity and advancements will be made for years to come. We can't stop using technology because of how it can be bad for us but figure out how to evolve it so that it is both useful and healthy to use at the same time.
ReplyDeleteTechnology does not have emotion. The problem is that technology is beginning to take place of human emotion. Instead of expressing feelings outload to somebody, or say something to somebody's face, people hide behind blogs and text messages. I, myself, fall victim to that. Technology is efficient in the sense that you can get information and get taks done quicker, but that is not affecting "humanity". Humanity is not being lost at the hands of technology, but it's becoming less personal in the real world.
ReplyDeleteScience and technology have, fairly recently, changed what it means to be human. As new technology emerges and becomes available to the general public, it seems as though people are overwhelmed with the potential and eventually learn to use it but in the wrong way. The internet once was a way to communicate with people and look up certain information. Now there are millions of people on social websites such as Facebook and instead of meeting someone in person they are communicating online where there is no body language or tones in someone's voice. Issues like cyber bullying have come up which is a prominent problem because of technology. On the contrary there have been remarkable advances in, like amanda said, in the medical field which helps people live longer.
ReplyDeleteTo be human is to be able to think and act for ourselves. This is what separates us from mere animals. Technology is slowly taking this away from us. Today, people do not need to think very hard to come up with solutions, they just type it into Google. It changes the way we act because of being independent and coming up with our own ideas, we depend on technology. For example, instead of walking somewhere we call our friends to pick us up. Technology also changes the way we interact with people. Instead of talking face to face with a person, we just send them a quick text. I know that I would much rather text then call people, and I am not sure if it is because I am lazy or I just don't have the social skills because I have texted for so long. Our civilization believes that we have become so advanced with all the new technology that we have, when in fact as humans we are in fact taking a step backward.
ReplyDeleteAdvances in technology and science are affecting the way we define our humanity because we heavily depend on new science and technology. We use technology to communicate with each other through social networks like Facebook and though texting and emailing. Because we communicate through technology people are becoming more antisocial when they need to talk face to face and they don’t know how to hold a conversation. People are also losing their jobs because of technology. For example a few years from now there may no longer be a postal service. This is because people now a day’s use the internet and emailing to communicate and also to pay their bills so there really is no need for mail anymore because everything can be done online. Science is also changing the way we define our humanity because people are living longer because of new medicines and medical tools. Because of the new advancements in medicine people are living longer because most illnesses or problems they have can be treated or cured. People can also get plastic surgery to change the way the look or can get surgery to replace organs and other body parts to help them live longer. People can also get prosthetic body parts. Although we consider them to be human, are they really all human if they have artificial parts? This is a physical example of how humans are become more like robots, but we are also becoming more like robots mentally because we use technology and the internet for everything instead of using our brains to figure things out.
ReplyDeleteAs with many peolpe above me I agree that with the rapid degree of technological advances, the world is dehumanizing. Simple conversation, interaction, and human to human contact is dwindling to the point that some people cannot hold a conversation or would never think to meet face to face. These skills are so basic yet we are losing touch with them. Miss Pflaumer mentioned self-checkout lines where a person does not need to interact with a human.
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