Introduction to GSTS STS

Science - Is the study of how society, politics,

and culture affect scientific research
- It is the system of knowledge of the
and technological innovation, and
natural world gained through how these, in turn, affect society,
scientific method.
politics and culture.
o “Modern science is a discovery as - Is a relatively recent discipline,
well as an invention” – John originating in the 60s and 70s,
Heilbron, 2003 following Kuhn’s The Structure of
Technology Scientific Revolutions (1962)
- Was the result of a “sociological turn”
- It is the practical applications of what in the science studies
we know about nature
o Tekne – “Art” or “Craft” Goal of GSTS
o Logia – “Subject” or “Interest”
- Confront Realities
Society - Environmental Awareness
- Spread Awareness
- It is a group of people with common - Reflective Knowledge
territory, interaction, norm, culture,
etc. Module 1 | Historical Antecedents of
- A group of individuals involved in Science and Technology Through the
persistent social interaction, or a large Course of Time
social group sharing the same Outline:
geographical or social territory,
typically subject to the same political
authority and dominant cultural
expectations Ancient Times (Look at Visual Arts on PPT)
- The sum total of our interactions that
we engage in to figure thing out and - Transportation and navigation
to make things - Communication and record keeping
- Mass production
Scientific Method or Scientific Inquiry - Security and protection
- Health and aesthetics
- Engineering
- Architecture
(For more information on Ancient Times to
Africa Inventions, see pdf “Ancient Times
to Africa Inventions”, docs “GSTS Report
Summary” and GSpaces (Gmail>Chats)
by Ma’am Rivera)
Module 2 | Intellectual Revolution
“All significant breakthroughs are break -
“withs” old ways of thinking.” – Thomas
Kuhn
Meaning: The phrase means that supporting scientific investigation and
important discoveries or advancements in the more widely held picture of the
usually happen when people decide to universe.
think differently and break away from the - the most significant period of
usual ways of thinking or doing things. It discovery and growth of the sciences
emphasizes the importance of being in the whole of history.
open to new ideas and not sticking rigidly - a series of events that marked the
to old ways of approaching problems. emergence of modern science during
the early modern period.
Paradigm Shift
- a fundamental transformation in
- An important change that happens scientific ideas.
when a new and different way - Led to the establishment of several
replaces the usual way of thinking modern sciences. Took place in
about or doing something Europe towards the end of the
- This happens when we get to Renaissance period. Renaissance –
introduce to a new paradigm based interest in science.
on new experiments or evidences
Under Intellectual/Scientific Revolution:
Evolution of Scientific Revolution
- Copernican Revolution
- Paradigms o The first paradigm shift; on the field
o Normal belief and practice in the of astronomy particularly
discipline cosmology
- Anomalies • Astronomy – is the scientific
o Minor changes according to study of celestial objects and
research phenomena that originate
- Scientific Revolution outside the Earth’s atmosphere.
- Major changes due to extraordinary • Cosmology – is the study of the
researches universe and its components,
- Normal Science how it formed, how its has
o Research confirms the validity of evolved and what is its future.
existing paradigm o Geocentrism – earth-centered
belief by a Greek philosopher,
and cycles again Aristotle (384 – 322 BC)
Intellectual Revolution • Claudius Ptolemy (100 – 160 AD)
– he improved Aristotle’s
- It is the rise of contemporary science observation by using
during the early modern period. This measurements using epicycles-
era is when developments in planetary orbits.
mathematics, physics, astronomy, • Geocentric model – one of the
biology (including human anatomy), greatest discoveries of that
and chemistry changed how society time.
viewed the natural world. o Heliocentrism – sun-centered belief
- a fundamental transformation in by a Greek astronomer and
scientific ideas across institutions mathematician, Aristarchus of
Samos (310 – 230 BC). But due to - Darwinian Revolution
lack of strong evidences, it was o The religious belief that God is the
rejected. intelligent designer of the
• Nicolaus Copernicus intelligently designed universe, the
▪ He was a Christian monk. creator of all things, was the
▪ He found the postulates or paradigm accepted by the
unproven theories of society.
Aristotle and Aristarchus. o “Theory of Evolution by Natural
▪ His findings are based on Selection”, the genetic makeup of
planetary observations and a population changed (evolution)
calculations. depending on the conditions
▪ At first, he hesitated to show dictated by the environment
to the society because he (natural selection). Darwin’s
was scared to get scorned Evolution by natural selection
by the government. therefore became the paradigm
▪ In 1543, on his deathbed, he shift to the paradigm of creation.
was able to release his book o Charles Darwin (1809 – 1882)
o Copernican Revolution took off • English naturalist obsessed in
with the acquisition of more precise nature. “The origin of species” in
data on the movement and 1859.
position of planets around the sun • Organismal adaptation and
• Johannes Kepler evolution were through the
▪ Kepler’s Law of Planetary process of natural selection.
Motion • The ones who have the best
▪ Tychonic system – the most genes were able to survive and
precise equipment available evolve.
before the telescope by - Freudian Revolution
Tycho Brahe o Well known in the field of
▪ He proved that planets Psychology, he was able to
moved in elliptical orbits change people’s perception of
around the sun. psychology
• Galileo Galilei o Contributions:
▪ His telescopic observation of • Psychoanalysis
the four moons of Jupiter ▪ The study that explains
proved that celestial bodies human behavior
did not revolve around the • Three forces of psychical
sun on his book “The Starry apparatus
Messenger” ▪ ID (pleasure principle),
• Isaac Newton ▪ EGO (reality principle;
▪ He brought the triumph of defense mechanisms) and
heliocentrism by using ▪ SUPEREGO (morality
gravity to explain the principle; idealistic goals and
movement of the planets perfection)
around the sun.
• Instincts are two causes of o Roger Bacon (1214-1294)
behavior • One of the earliest European
▪ Eros (Love) – love preserves scholars to refine the scientific
unity methods.
▪ Death – promotes • He developed the idea of (1)
destruction making observations, (2)
▪ Libido – driving force of hypothesizing and (3)
instinct experimenting to test the
• Psychosexual theory hypothesis.
• Role of Dreams o Francis Bacon (1561-1626)
• Understanding of Self • He developed the scientific
- Baconian Revolution method.
o Philosophers believed that all ▪ Scientific method – is a
knowledge could be obtained systematic approach used
through pure reasoning, and that to establish scientific
there was no need to actually go knowledge or modify
out and measure anything. existing knowledge.
o Aristotle
• Father of Science
• Gave importance to the use of
measurement and observation
as a tool for gaining knowledge
as it should be supported by
real world findings.
o Ibn al-Haytham
• Islamic scholar best known for
his works on light and vision.
• He proposed the “Scientific
Method”
• Scientific Method: • He argued that scientific
▪ State an explicit problem, knowledge is obtained after
based upon observation making observations and then
and experimentation. utilizing inductive reasoning to
▪ Test or criticize a hypothesis interpret the observations.
through experimentation. • Inductive Reasoning (Look at
▪ Interpret the data and come specific examples and make a
to a conclusion, ideally using general guess or prediction.)
mathematics. • Deductive Reasoning (Start with
▪ Publish the findings a big idea and apply it to a
• Other Islamic scholars specific situation to figure
contributed to this method something out.)
• Islamic Golden Age of Science
• It was passed through Europe
and Asia due to wars.