Special Issues in Science, Technology and Society

Introduction

Biological diversity is the foundation for livelihoods and sustainable development, supplying
basic needs such as food, energy, medicine, recreational and cultural benefits. However,
population growth, industrialization and urbanization have accelerated the decline and extinction
of species as well as the degradation of ecosystems. The losses are due to a range of pressures
driven by socio-economic factors, including climate change, ecosystem degradation, illegal trade
and unsustainable use.

Biotechnology can help conserve biodiversity and help protect some species from going extinct.
Modern biotechnology provides breakthrough products and technologies to combat debilitating
and rare diseases, reduce our environmental footprint, feed the hungry, use less and cleaner
energy, and have safer, cleaner and more efficient industrial manufacturing processes. With the
development of genetic engineering, research in biotechnology developed rapidly because of the
new possibility to make changes in the organisms' genetic material (DNA). Through genetic
engineering farmers can raise more food for a growing world population while reducing
agriculture’s impact on the environment. Genetically modified crops enable farmers to grow
more crops using less land while applying fewer chemicals and conserving water and energy
allowing farmers to be more productive and efficient. Nanotechnology is also increasingly being
used to create new foods and food packaging by breaking matter down into microscopic
nanoparticles that are just atoms wide and “programming” them to perform specific tasks. A
range of nanotech applications for food have been used and proposed, from packaging (e.g.,
forming an air-tight vacuum seal) to taste (e.g., mimicking the flavor and texture of familiar
foods).

The Nano world is perhaps the fastest growing world in the twenty-first century. Global
competition among nations in nanotechnology research, development and marketing is on the
rise. Advantages of nanotechnology towards improving the quality of life are many. However,
disadvantages of nanotechnology especially related to human health, genetic disorders and
climate change are only beginning to surface raising serious concerns. The Nano world will
continue influence science and technology.

Learning Outcomes

At the end of this unit, students will be able to:

 Link learned concepts to the development of the information age and its impact on society;
 Illustrate how the social media and the information age have impacted our lives;
 Determine the interrelatedness of society, environment and health
 Discuss the ethics and implication of GMOs and potential future impacts;
 Discuss the major impacts (both potential and realize) of nanotechnology on society;
 Analyze the issue through the conceptual STS lenses;
 Critique the issue and its cause and benefits to the society
 Describe gene therapy and its various forms;
 Assess the issues potential benefits and detriments to global health;
 Identify the causes of climate change;
 Assess the various impacts of climate change including economic, geo-political, biological,
meteorological, and etc.; and
 Apply STS concepts to the issues of climate change.

LESSON 6: Information Age

Learning Objectives
At the end of this topic, students will be able to:

 Discuss the history of Information Age

 Determine the human and social impacts of developments in the Information Age

Presentation of Contents

Information plays an important role in understanding the truth and reality. If there are
information available, our lives might be enigmatic and chaotic. The development of our system
of acquiring, storing and retrieving information had spurt with the advent of science and
technology and now we are in the century which is considered by many as the Information Age.

Information Age is the period starting in the last quarter of the 20 th century when information
became effortlessly accessible through publication and through the management of information
by computers and computer networks. It is a true new age based upon the interconnection of
computers via telecommunications, with these systems operating on both real-time and as needed
basis- Theory of Information Age (Messenger, 1982).

Before it has reached its current state, constant change has taken place in the form of information
revolution. By 1960’s to 1970’s, rapid growth of information resulted to difficulty in collecting
and managing them1980’s there was Information Anxiety (Richard Wurman). In 1990’s,
information became the currency of the business world. At present, information turned out to be
a commodity, an over developed product, mass produced and unspecialized.

Robert Harris has outlined the truths about Information Age. He described it as follows
 1. Information must complete
2. Newer is equated to truer
3. Selection is a viewpoint
4. The media sells what the culture buys
5. The early word gets the perm
6. You are what you eat and so is your brain
7. Anything in great demand will be counterfeited
8. Ideas are seen as controversial
9. Undead information walks ever on
10. Media presence creates the story
11. The medium selects the message
12. The whole truth is a pursuit

Accessibility of information was made faster and easier with the aid of computer. One of the
significant applications of computers for science and research is evident in the field of
bioinformatics. Bioinformatics is the application of information technology to store, organize
and analyze vast amount of biological data which is available in the form sequences and
structures of proteins – the building blocks of organisms and nucleic acids- the information
carrier (Madan, n.d.) Such was established because of the need to create databases of biological
sequences. Application includes the Human Genome Project, Pharmacogenomics Drug
Discovery, Gene Finder and Annotator.

Biodiversity and the Health Society

Learning Objectives

After successful completion of this topic, you should be able to:

 Define biodiversity;
 Determine the interrelatedness of biodiversity, environment, and health;
 Discuss the ethics, implications, and potential future impacts of GMOs; and
 Propose a plan or make a stand that would show the relatedness of species in forming
up a diverse and healthy society without compromising each other.

Bio diversity

Biodiversity is defined as the vast variety of life forms in the entire earth which includes the
simplest unicellular organism to the most complex multicellular organism. (Serafico, 2018)

Another definition of biodiversity is the variability of organisms including species thriving in

different ecosystems like marine, freshwater or any aquatic and terrestrial and the ecological
complexes of which they are part; this includes diversity between, within and of ecosystems.
(Villago Globale, 2009)
Biodiversity comprises abiotic and biotic factors. Several biomes have diverse characteristics
in terms of their abiotic factors that dictate the biotic factors that thrives on it. The aquatic
biome can be divided into two, the freshwater biome and the marine biome. The freshwater
biome includes ponds and lakes, streams and rivers, and wetlands. It is usually less than one (1
% ) of the earth’s resources. Marine regions include oceans, coral reefs and estuaries. It
comprises about three fourths of the earth’s surface. Terrestrial biomes include deserts, forest,
grasslands, and tundra.

Now that you have shared your knowledge of local biodiversity, it’s time to think about
biodiversity on a bigger scale. Research on the biodiversity of the country as well as the global
scale

Presentation of Contents

Your answer in the above questions actually explains that biotic factors (living things) are
related to the abiotic factors (non-living things). For example, your answer is an increase in the
population of rats in a rice field or decrease in the number of dragonflies in the area; therefore,
there must be changes in the environment. Thus, a change in the environment can cause a
change in the biodiversity. And a change in the biodiversity could have erratic effects in not
only in wildlife and marine but also in human beings.

Activity 1: Collaborative Annotation Chart Think- Pair-Share

Directions:

You were tasked to read the different articles above. The first time you read your hand-out
(assignment), you placed your pencil down and just read to understand. Today, while
listening, it’s time to mark your hand-outs by using the symbol asterisk (*) to mark key ideas,
exclamation point (!) symbol to mark surprising ideas and check mark (√) symbol to mark
things you connect with. Write a quick comment about why you picked that sentence, word or
idea. Lastly, share with your partner. Be sure to identify the quote or passage you selected.
Then, share your comment using a “Sample Language Support” to get your discussion
flowing. Record your partner’s response as well.

Here is a gist of what you have read…

Life here on earth is affected by changes in the environment. Life represented by the various
species face threats every day that leads to evolution and gene modification. There are major
threats to biodiversity that were identified by the United Nations’ Environment Programme
(WHO,n.d.). These threats include habitat loss and destruction, alterations in ecosystem
composition, over-exploitation, pollution and contamination and global climate change.

Given those threats to biodiversity, different aspects in the society, health, biology and
environment are at risk. Researchers have been discovering new ways to improve crop
production, address health illness and decrease biodiversity loss.