Benefits of progress. What has scientific and technological progress given mankind? Why do our children, as if spellbound, sit at the monitor for hours
I have heard more than once from the older generation that our children are completely different. Grandmothers are amazed that modern mothers only take care of children from morning to night. And the point is not in the mothers themselves, but in the children who have become too hyperactive.
What happened and who is to blame? Maybe this scientific and technological progress makes our children progress after themselves?
mobile connection
It's even scary to think how many different waves fly around us. Just take cell phones. Without them, it is now impossible to imagine life, and after all, some ten years ago, a mobile phone was a luxury item.
Now even first-graders have a phone. Undoubtedly, it has become much easier for mothers, because you can always control the child and find out how things are going. But the children's brain is much less protected than the adult, so what to do? Refuse innovation for the sake of the health of the child?
Microwave
Previously, in order to warm the baby's milk, it was necessary to turn on the gas, heat it in a saucepan, pour it into a cup or bottle. Now - a microwave oven will warm up any food in a matter of minutes. It is convenient to heat baby food - always quickly and no need to invent water baths and other tricks.
But many mothers are categorically against microwaves. It is believed that this is very harmful and the food is "irradiated". I have used and use a microwave oven, because I see no harm in the fact that the waves just heat up the water in the product. What do you say about this?
Satellite TV, navigators, Wi-Fi
These are all colossal breakthroughs in scientific and technological progress. Thanks to many interesting channels, you can develop children, including programs about animals and culture, a variety of children's quizzes, films, and more.
Navigators make it easier to navigate the road, this is especially important when a small passenger is sitting behind. Wi-Fi devices allow mom or dad to work freely in the next room while the children watch cartoons on the Internet. From this follow another modern irreplaceable invention ...
Computer and internet
The Internet can provide huge developmental opportunities for even the smallest children: for example, children's educational games, online coloring books, audio books and much, much more. Only now the harm from this development is also not small!
Vision deteriorates, posture worsens, dependence on computer games, pornography, which children often learn about from banners on websites. And instead of tags and catch-ups in the fresh air, they choose a new toy in tanks ...
How to be?
But no matter how much we want to protect our children from the harm of scientific and technological progress, they have to live in this world. Therefore, you need to learn yourself and teach kids to use the gifts of our time wisely. A minute of conversation on a mobile phone, during which you can say everything you need, will not bring harm. But many hours of chatter - quite.
Refusing satellite dishes and Wi-Fi devices is stupid: if you don’t have it, then your neighbors will certainly have it. It is also impossible to forbid approaching a computer, because now there is nowhere without the basics of computer literacy. Therefore, you will have to calm down. Only here is the question: so what is still more - good or harm?
To receive the best articles, subscribe to Alimero's pages at .
The main purpose of this work is to find out what dangers scientific and technological progress carries.
Scientific and technical progress
Scientific and technological progress (STP) is the process of discovering new knowledge and applying it in social production, which allows combining and combining available resources in a new way in order to increase the production of high-quality end products at the lowest cost.
In a broad sense, at any level - from the firm to the national economy - STP means the creation and implementation of new equipment, technology, materials, the use of new types of energy, as well as the emergence of previously unknown methods of organizing and managing production.
Technology Diffusion
The widespread use of complex technologies began not so long ago. Prior to this, man mostly used technologies close to what nature gives. For example, growing a variety of cereals and fruit plants, animal husbandry, iron and copper forging, wood and stone construction, etc. But, approximately from the middle of the 19th century, scientific and technological progress began to develop rapidly. Complex technologies have emerged, the creation of which requires collective labor, as well as a large investment of time and resources. An example of such technologies is artificial satellites, nuclear power and electronic computers. However, the dangers they pose should also be taken into account.
Harm to the environment
For many hundreds of millennia, a few groups of primitive hunters and gatherers of wild fruits have had no greater impact on environment than other types of living beings, were one of the elements of the "natural balance" that did not depend on them. The situation has changed since the advent of cattle breeding and agriculture. Scientific and technological progress made it possible, and the needs of a growing population, forced to take care of both increasing the efficiency of social labor and using natural resources by changing cultivation - improving the elements of the environment - creating animal herds and crop fields. Canals, irrigation systems, roads were built, steppes were plowed up - these were the first steps in the transformation of nature. This was inevitably accompanied by deforestation or burning, the extermination of pests and predators, harmful not so much for the person himself, but for the element of nature cultivated by him. The growth of material, technical possibilities for the transformation of nature created the illusion of man's omnipotence, the achievement in the near future of dominance over nature, "subjugation of it." For several millennia, no one paid attention to the already manifest negative consequences of rapidly increasing interference with natural processes.
The scientific and technological revolution of the second half of the 20th century, having sharply accelerated the pace of development of material production, created a qualitatively new situation in the interaction between society and nature. More and more masses of raw materials are involved in circulation, an increasing amount of energy is used, new spaces of the earth and the expanses of the World Ocean are being mastered. In general, it can be argued that the enormously increased opportunities and means of influencing nature and the equally increased needs of mankind have led to the use of natural resources in volumes commensurate with their total reserves on the planet, and the scale of various actions of mankind - the transformation of the earth's surface, the moisture cycle and many substances, energy production, etc. - have become comparable with the corresponding elements of natural phenomena of a global order. In the last one and a half to two decades, the negative impact on the natural environment from material production, its pollution, which sometimes leads to disruption of the natural cycles of the circulation of substances and energy in natural processes, has sharply increased. In many cases, the impact on the environment approaches the limits, the transition of which can cause irreversible and dangerous consequences. Thus, according to the data of serious studies, the total volume of residual products of production and consumption polluting the environment amounted to about 40 billion tons in the early 70s. reach 100 billion tons.
Burning an oil spill off the coast of Louisiana
The annual release of oil products into the World Ocean is 6 million tons, and according to some data - 10 million tons. The oil film, which today covers a large part of the surface of the oceans and seas, affects evaporation and energy exchange between the atmosphere and the ocean. The coastal waters of most industrialized countries have developed areas with high concentrations of heavy metals, including mercury. The ability of the natural environment to compensate for these pollutions is limited. In a number of areas with a high concentration of industry, the amount of pollution already far exceeds the ability of the natural environment to neutralize them. If serious measures are not taken, then the same situation in a historically short period of time may arise on the scale of the planet as a whole.
Other justified concerns environmental problems. Among them is the reduction of the planet's forest cover. According to the FAO, the area of tropical rainforests is decreasing by 15 million hectares annually. In East Africa, it has already decreased by 72%, and in South Asia - by 63.5%. According to forecasts made, for example, in the late 70s on the instructions of the US government, the area of forests on Earth by the end of the 20th century. will be reduced by 40%.
So, despite the fact that while a person does not feel the impact of technology on nature, very soon this can turn into a disaster. Humans can wreak havoc on their own environment by destroying the plants and animals that provide them with food, and by contaminating the water and air they cannot live without. Despite the fact that attempts are already being made to stop this, the damage to nature continues to be inflicted, because not everyone wants to think about what consequences their actions will have in the future.
Weapons of mass destruction
Military science and technology are inextricably linked. Many technologies can be used as weapons, while others were originally military developments, and only then found their application for peaceful purposes. And, as progress does not stand still, weapons of mass destruction appear, capable of destroying entire cities and making vast territories uninhabitable.
Comparison of the size of the fireballs of nuclear explosions
One of the most dangerous types of weapons of mass destruction is nuclear and thermonuclear charges. Only two cases of their use are known: the bombing of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. Then two nuclear charges were dropped from a bomber of the United States of America. One charge was equivalent to 13-18 kilotons of TNT, and the second 21 kilotons. The total number of deaths ranged from 90 to 166 thousand people. Some time after the explosion, the survivors began to die from radiation sickness. This event is one of the most famous examples of how dangerous weapons of mass destruction can be. The power of modern thermonuclear charges reaches the equivalent of several tens of megatons of TNT. For example, the most powerful thermonuclear bomb, called the "Tsar bomb" and tested Soviet Union on Novaya Zemlya was equivalent to about 57-58.6 megatons of TNT.
Another, no less dangerous weapon is biological. In history, there are a number of famous cases of its use. For example, during the colonization of America, the Europeans intentionally infected the Indians with smallpox, from which they themselves had a vaccine at that time. And in 1942, Great Britain developed the Vegetarian plan, the purpose of which was to scatter livestock feed contaminated with anthrax from aircraft across Germany. The plan itself failed, but the island where the weapons were tested was completely contaminated and quarantined until 1990. Also, many epidemics, such as bubonic plague, may have been deliberately spread as a weapon.
Another type of weapon of mass destruction is chemical. There are quite a few cases of the use of this weapon. For the first time, chemical weapons were widely used during the First World War, when Germany released chlorine from cylinders. Since the Anglo-French army was not ready for such an attack, 15 thousand soldiers suffered from it, 5 thousand of whom died. Later, near the Belgian city of Ypres, Germany launched another chemical attack - shelling the enemy with mines containing an oily liquid (called Mustard). This attack resulted in 2,490 deaths, of which 87 died. After its distribution in the first world war, chemical weapons have been used in many wars.
Weapons of mass are available to several states in quantities, perhaps sufficient to destroy all life on the planet. The presence of such weapons is an important advantage for any country, therefore, there is no way to completely abandon them. At the moment, there are many agreements prohibiting the use of different types weapons of mass destruction, as well as programs to reduce their number. However, no agreement or program can guarantee that no one will decide to use it.
Changing human values
The influence of the achievements of science and technology on us begins already in childhood. Indeed, after birth, a very active development of the human brain begins. This process was and remains almost the same as it always was, but at the present stage, starting from 3-5 years old, the brain begins to develop faster than before. Naturally, one of the main factors of such an active and rapid development of the brain in children is the achievement of technological progress. If earlier the brain did not require any special efforts to learn the elementary things that surround us, now most children who have reached the age of 3-5 are already trying with might and main to master the computer, to learn the initial skills in managing cell phone etc. Of course, all these technical innovations make their direct contribution to the faster development of the human brain. However, they also have negative effects.
paper manufacturing plant
Machines are increasingly replacing humans in many tasks. A significant part of the things we use are produced with minimal human involvement: Complex equipment, such as televisions and telephones, a wide variety of food, clothes, etc. After a certain template has been created and production has been set up on its basis, a person is engaged only in control, and most of the production needs are raw materials. Usually the production process itself, and sometimes even the internal structure of the product, remains hidden from the end user.
All this leads to the fact that a significant part of people take the technologies around them for granted. They do not understand how these technologies were created, what materials were used, they do not even know the basic principles of their work. They also don't understand the contributions made by the people who created them. As a result, a person from an early age forms the idea that technologies will develop "by themselves", and he will be able to continue using them, while not making any contribution to their development. We cannot even say exactly how the things we constantly use in everyday life were produced. For example, such a simple and cheap thing as paper undergoes many chemical processes during production that require sophisticated equipment. Or a variety of complex equipment, where even the basic principles of operation are not clear to every person.
All this leads to the fact that people turn into "consumers", producing a minimum of useful products, but at the same time consuming everything that society can give. At the same time, the number of "producers" is decreasing, because people grow up as consumers from childhood. Thus, technological progress can stop and even go in the opposite direction.
conclusions
At the present time, scientific and technological progress has a huge impact on the way of life of a person. However, despite the benefits that technologies bring to us, they also have negative effects that can cause irreparable damage not only to humanity, but to the entire planet.
Pictured outstanding person. Not me. I'll explain further. Now many will agree that all these computers and tablets only interfere with life and work. Children on the street do not walk, as they used to. Adults don't visit each other. In the subway, they sit aloof, buried in tablets. Before you come to the post office for a package, fill in a few lines and the package is yours. Now came to the Russian Post. Keep a long tail. The operator will enter you and the necessary and unnecessary information about you and a bunch of numbers from the parcel into the computer for sending to Moscow for some reason. Even if it is a local shipment, all the same, she needs to fill information about it immediately to Moscow. All the same, you will fill in the forms indicating who issued your passport and when, and even with the unit code and indicate this in more than one place. As if the number and series of the passport is not enough. Then they will look for a parcel for a long, long time. And if you squeak, you will get: "Here, come here instead of us for our salary." Computers are even more remarkable in polyclinics. You sit for two hours waiting, then the doctor looks at you for 2 minutes, and writes and enters data for 15 minutes. Yes, and in order to have a look, before that you will write a paper that the entire responsibility for the actions of the doctor is not on the doctor, but on you, who do not understand medicine. But, I got carried away. Let's go back to the late sixties. Domestic film tape recorders flaunt in shop windows and cost a monthly salary and more. I'm not talking about imports. They are in commission shops and 5 times more expensive. Sasha Meshcheryakov, my classmate up to the 3rd year, is very advanced in terms of music and technique. I have Astra-2, he has Astra-10 and Comet together, and even imported speakers. He also has a portable portable tape recorder. "Comet" is heavy - you can't really drag it. His records are excellent. This is the time of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. Numerous connections and acquaintances allow him to keep abreast of the then pop music. We are good friends, we study together, our interests coincide in many respects. Together we analyze the problems, we consult. I get some notes from him. However, there is no time to get involved in music. The university is serious. Lectures on theoretical mechanics are delivered by Yakov Gilelevich Panovko, doctor of technical sciences, then a corresponding member, and later a full member of the Latvian Academy of Sciences. https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panovko_Yakov_Gilelevich His image is at the beginning of this essay.
Ya.G. Panovko is charismatic and majestic, the ideal of all students and, no doubt, students and, in general, all women in Latvia, where he used to work, and in Russia, where he moved. Of those who saw him, of course. Reads excellently, reads virtuoso, reads clearly. He is a Methodist from God. His exciting lectures are attended as the parishioners once came to Luther's sermons. The hall is always full. He is also the author of excellent books written in excellent language so that they can be understood, and not in order to demonstrate to the scientific community what a smart author is. However, the feeling of clarity in lectures is somewhat illusory. You still need to work through the issues. You get a task, and it's not so easy to find a way for right decision. Science is not that simple. The calculation model must be correctly compiled and understood the physics of processes and the sequence of actions. Meshcheryakov came up with a grandiose and fascinating idea to record the lectures of a great man on a tape recorder and then prepare from the notes. Then do only drawings at the lecture, and you don’t need to write words in a notebook. He is not a stupid guy, he goes and asks permission from the lecturer. "For God's sake! Write." - receives in response. And, here, Sasha is sitting in the front row, putting up a microphone so that it is better heard and clicking buttons from time to time. He has no time to write in the abstract, but he tries. We write drawings and text in the abstract in the old way. Who knows, nevertheless, what will come of this venture with a tape recorder? The semester ends. Exams ahead. We always rolled out five of them per session. The social sciences held themselves in high esteem, and at least one of their desired list Yes, they did. Significance and money. In other universities for some reason it is always smaller. The interval between exams for each subject is 3-4 days. Try to get ready! Sasha rewrote the lectures for me. I put on a precious cassette, turn it on, wait .... What the hell! Lengths, crackling from moving a chair, the sound of footsteps, noises in the audience, scratching of chalk on a blackboard, snatches of conversations and many more sounds that you don’t notice at all in a normal environment. No, of course, and the distant speech of the lecturer is also against the background of not weak interference. If Mesheryakov also managed to attach a microphone to Panovko, but, of course, there was no such agreement. I'm trying to get my head around, but how uncomfortable it all is and how long it takes! It needs to be listened to in real time. And a lot of lectures. I lost several hours, twisted the film, but there was no sense. Fragmentally it turns out. I turn off the tape recorder, take a summary, try to figure it out from the notes. No, with time pressure, there is nothing better than a usual, handwritten, synopsis. All the other students in our group came to the same conclusion. On that exam, the initiator of the experiment received a triple. A big scientist gave me a B. I was very dissatisfied with this result. What can you do! It is not easy to please an extra-class specialist! After this experiment, lectures on a tape recorder were never recorded again.
In the scientific world, society, in the media, an old discussion has escalated about the usefulness or harmfulness of scientific and technological progress about the need to curb or even ban it. One can argue about this endlessly, taking advantage of all the benefits of modern civilization: sitting in warm, bright apartments, equipped with all kinds of modern household appliances, and using computers and other office equipment and communications. This dispute is especially “productive” at various symposiums and conferences periodically organized in the best parts of the world, where the best representatives of the debating parties flock and gather from everywhere in the blink of an eye.
However, it must be admitted that there is an objective basis for this discussion. Since history records the life of a person on earth, there is no convincing evidence that the specific number of unfortunate people in the modern world has decreased compared to previous times, starting from the most ancient times, although we have penetrated much deeper into the laws of nature, and the levels of material consumption and even to compare material possibilities is ridiculous. Worse, in our time of unprecedented development of science and technology, most people more clearly than ever daily feel a global threat not only to their “serene happiness”, but simply to their existence.
The word "progress", in my opinion, must be divided into two components: first, the liberation of man from the "taboos" that were "established" by nature itself (the laws of the material world); secondly, the liberation of man from the "taboos", which were "accepted" by people to harmonize human relations, based on the original inclination of people to bestiality (sinfulness).
There is a misconception that the first component of “progress”, namely, the liberation of a person from “technological” “taboos”, which he was forced to accept due to his inability to resist the action of the objective laws of the material world (for example, the law gravity etc.) is independent of the second. The glaring result of this delusion is an endless arms race and more and more bloody wars, which can hardly be called progress!
It is logical to assume that the removal of technological "taboos" should correspond to the readiness of people to properly use the results of technological development, the purification of people from their "sinfulness". In other words, true progress can only exist if people from generation to generation become better and better: brighter, kinder, "more humane."
In the meantime, unfortunately, a completely opposite trend is quite clearly visible: scientific and technological development, providing a person with enormous opportunities and freeing him from hard physical and mental labor, increases a person’s free time not for creative and moral development, but for his moral degradation (in including the degradation of the elite of human communities) against the background of all sorts of dubious entertainment and pleasures, thus strengthening and multiplying the worst properties of a person, and there are an abyss of examples of this.
Therefore, today's one-sided scientific and technological development of human society can only be conditionally called progress, since its second side (the purification of man) turned out to be practically unchanged over time.
