Please give some information or suggest an essay on the topic "science is a good servant but a bad master".

Question

It's very urgent as this is one of my essay topics for the final examination. I have collected some information but that's not enough so please be kind enough to share your knowledge/thoughts with me. Please help!

Answer 1

Visit this site, hope it will help-

http://astro.gmu.edu/classes/a10594/notes/l04/l04s023.html

Once more...
http://www.rasch.org/rmt/rmt81c.htm

Answer 2

There should be a wealth of information on the topic of Creationism vs. Evolution. Basically, the assertion "science is a good servant but a bad master" might be interpreted (at least by me) to be a good description of how each side comes to the table with presuppositions. Scientists are generally looked down upon in the scientific community if they hold any theory in regard that can't be "scientifically proven," as in the case of many (but not all) aspects of faith. However, this attitude can become a hindrance to truly honest scientific inquiry (e.g., automatic disbelief in the supernatural miracles).

Answer 3

The essence of a good answer to this statement is that science is just science. There is no mechanism within science that deals with moral issues. That means that you can use the same science for morally good purposes as morally bad. Here are some examples.

We know that gravity causes things to fall towards earth. A good application of that is in third world countries to use falling water to turn a water wheel which grinds flour. A bad application would be in the use of a guillotine, which causes the blade to fall on the victim's neck.

Ballistics deals with air pressure, force of gravity and issues of the trajectory of a bullet. A good application allows scientists to send a rocket to the moon. A bad application allows a madman to shoot into a crowd of people and kill some.

Many things run on electricity today. A good application is a light in a dark place. A bad application is completing a circuit that causes a bomb to blow up.

I have listed a website below with an essay on this subject. Good luck. Try to come up with original examples and be creative.

Answer 4

The phrase "science is a good servant but a bad master" suggests that a scientist must follow where it leads and not the other way around.

In other words, you cannot pick and choose elements of scientific knowledge to justify your own ideas and ignore all of the evidence that doesn't fit. You have to go with the whole theory, not the bits that are convenient.

The classic example of this is with the current debate on creationism/ "intelligent design". Pro-creation/ ID proponents tend to pick out things such as an incomplete fossil record, or the fact that macro-evolution is difficult to directly observe (due to it taking millions of years) and use that as evidence that the whole model of evolution is wrong, whilst ignoring the 200 years of overwhelming scientific evidence in favour of the Neo-Darwinism model that includes population studies, genetic studies and evidence from fossils, animal groups, gene flow etc.

You could also use eugenics as an example and how the Nazis picked elements of theories by Galton and Darwin to justify their programme of "racial hygiene".

Answer 5

If I were writing such a paper, I would focus on the fact that science per se does not properly concern itself with humanistic and moral considerations. Science is only concerned with physical facts. Therefore science alone cannot be the basis of serious decisionmaking. Examples:

1) In the Eugenics movement of the late nineteenth, early twentieth century, many people thought that scientists should decide which people should reproduce to create the most genetically fit society. People who were "defective" should not be allowed to marry, or should be sterilized so they could not reproduce. This led to inhumane actions, like government approved sterilizing of poor and so called "undesirable" people. It also helped to perpetuate anti-misceganation laws, which outlawed interracial and interethnic marriages. This deprived persons the right to choose their own spouses.

2) In the past, people were often involuntarily comitted to mental hospitals because they exhibited odd or unpleasant behaviors, even if they were of no danger to themselves or others. This was done in the name of scientifically based medicine, with little thought to the rights and welfare of those being committed.

Answer 6

fantastic topic. it is my concept about it: technological know-how is a reliable servant 'reason lets use it in our on a daily basis lives and with it we would have a more desirable ideal living. technological know-how has been assisting us out ever because the first technologies became made, it is hearth. From hearth to pcs, technological know-how has been providing us very a lot of provider. yet. . . on the different hand, technological know-how can be a nasty draw close because: a) With technological know-how as our draw close, we will be searching for for further and extra understanding as a lot because the point the position we are going to seek how we were made subsequently neglecting God itself because the author, b) With technological know-how as our draw close, we are going to create some issues that are very risky yet imaginitive (subsequently the Atomic Bomb), c) With technological know-how as our draw close, we may be rigidity to commit some thing for its call (subsequently the Chemical Experiments on animals and human beings), d) with technological know-how as our draw close, we are going to see ourselves as maximum more desirable effective than some thing else 'reason lets do some thing (subsequently the tale of Tower of Babel in the bible)

Answer 7

This is really more of a philosophical argument and depends completely on what YOU believe. The basic idea is that science nurtures intelligence but leaves the soul and emotions uncared for [thus explaining the "need" for religion or spirituality or morality of some type].