Science and Technology-Impacts and Prospects

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: IMPACTS AND PROSPECTS
____S.N. JHA
Swami Vivekananda made a remarkable observation about Science:

Science is nothing but the finding of unity. As soon as Science would reach perfect unity, it would stop from further progress, because it would reach the ultimate goal. Thus chemistry could not progress further when it would discover one element out of which all others could be made. Physics would stop when it would be able to fulfill its services in discovering one energy of which all the others are but manifestation…

And while making this long journey, Science has been & is leaving some great impressions on the society, culture and environment which need to be studied thoroughly as the caption above suggests. Science is basically the study, utilization & manipulation of nature. Science isn’t new to mankind. Almost all the ancient civilizations had contributed their scientific mite to the well-being of the world around. Science has two chief purposes: one is to eradicate superstition & ignorance, and the other is to make living easier. The first concerns knowledge and the second, action. What began simply as a thought and a doubt emerged as a chain of revolutions- The Industrial Revolution, the Electrical Revolution, and now the electronic revolution- inundating the world with an altogether new system of thought, and creating an altogether new way of life. Today to remove Science from the world is to kill it. While the 19th century began with the world’s being awed at the marvels of industrialization, the last century began with the world’s marvelling at the wonders of electricity, the camera, and the motion picture. This century has begun with the world’s marvelling at the wonders of electronics. Industrialization brought efficiency, ease in functioning, & perfection in products; at the same time it began to bring people together physically. Electrification, the cinema etc, brought people nearer still. Electronics - the Internet specially - has brought us far more closer now. The famous ‘Global Village’ concept has come to pass. We don’t know what is in store for the people of the next country. But we can guess that they may as well step into a world which even Aladdin’s demon can’t create.
Science aims at inventing smaller & smaller items that work at a faster & faster rate. The industries of the 19th century were huge structures, manufacturing things at an ordinary pace but in a better way than what human labour could achieve. The 20th century perfected the machines so that smaller ones replaced the big, old ones ; and these machines worked faster. We are seeing electronic gadgets today which are still smaller and more efficient. Who knows that tomorrow the gadgets may become so small that they would be eliminated and people would have mental Internet connections? Then the term ‘Global Village’ may be replaced by ‘Global Home’ or something much nearer. The impact of Science & Technology in our everyday life is mind – boggling and they need to be mentioned, studied, analysed and then the future planning should be made accordingly.