J. Robert Oppenheimer Persons born in the twentieth century have witnessed what seem to be unparalleled changes in the world around them. These changes have occurred largely because of the scientific and technological revolutions which have characterized the past three centuries, particularly in the western world. Many authors have written about these changes and not always in positive terms. This volume provides a variety of viewpoints and insights into the ways in which science and technology have influenced and continue to influence the broader society. The reader may be confused by the terms science and technology terms which are often used interchangeably.
Science is a particular way of studying and knowing the world.
It is based upon a rational belief that an objective world exits and can be known. Science differs from other ways of knowing the world primarily in its insistence that its theories be experimentally testable in that world. In its purest form, scientists pursue their knowledge simply for the sake of knowing. Others, who might be called applied scientists, may seek the same knowledge in order to use it. Thus a scientist might try to understand the microscopic structure of a particular metal in order to create a theoretical understanding of all metals, while an applied scientist might study the same metal, using the same techniques, gaining the same knowledge, in an effort to create a harder form of steel, for example.