Individuals can use a systematic approach to thinking critically about risks and benefits. Important personal and social decisions are made based on perceptions of benefits and risks. Science influences society through its knowledge and world view. Societal challenges often inspire questions for scientific research. Technology influences society through its products and processes.
Technology influences the quality of life and the ways people act and interact.
Science and technology have advanced through contributions of many different people, in different cultures, at different times in history. Scientists and engineers work in many different settings, including colleges and universities, businesses and industries, research institutes, and government agencies. Science cannot answer all questions and technology cannot solve all human problems or meet all human needs. Science requires different abilities, depending on such factors as the field of study and type of inquiry. Scientists formulate and test their explanations of nature using observation and experiments.