 Both science and technology and human flourishing are

HUMAN FLOURISHING related, in that the good is inherently related to the

truth.
 EUDAIMONIA - “good spirited”, is a term coined by
renowned Greek philosopher Aristotle (385-523 BC) to 1. Observe and determine if there are unexplained
describe the pinnacle of happiness that is attainable by occurrences unfolding
humans. 2. Determine the problem and identify factors involved.
 EUDAIMONIA - HAPPINESS - THE HIGHEST GOOD IN LIFE 3. Formulate hypothesis that could explain the said
 This has often been translated into “human phenomenon. The foal is to reject null hypothesis and accept
flourishing in literature, arguably likening humans the alternative hypothesis for the study “to count as
to flowers achieving their full bloom. significant”
 Nicomachean Ethics - Aristotle’s human flourishing 4. Conduct experiment - by setting up dependent and
arises as a result of different components such as independent variables
phronesis, friendship, wealth, and power. 5. Gather and analyze - results throughout and upon
 In the Ancient Greek society, they believe that culmination of the experiment. Examine if the data gathered
acquiring these qualities will surely bring the are significant enough to conclude results.
seekers happiness, which in effect allows them to 6. Formulate conclusion and provide recommendation
partake in the greater notion of what we call
“GOOD”
 Our concept of human flourishing today proves to  VERIFICATION THEORY - the idea proposes that a
be different from what Aristotle originally discipline is science if it can be confirmed or interpreted
perceived then - humans of today are expected to in the event of an alternative hypothesis being
become a “man of the world” accepted.
 He is supposed to situate himself in a global  Theory gives premium to empiricism and only takes into
neighborhood, working side by side among account those results which are measurable and
institutions and the government to be able to experiments which are repeatable.
reach a common goal.  Vienna circle, a group of scholars who believed that only
 Competition as a means of survival has those which can be observed should be regarded as
become passe, coordination is the new trend. meaningful and reject those which cannot be directly
 MAN OF THE WORLD - broad knowledge as accessed as meaningless.
well as able to interact with other people  Its shortcomings - somewhat too risky, several budding
because of technology theories that lack empirical results might be shot down
 Western civilization tends to be more focused on the prematurely, causing slower innovation and punishing
individual, while those from the east are more ingenuity of newer, novel thoughts.
community- centric.  FALSIFICATION THEORY - asserts that as long as an
 Human flourishing as an end then is primarily more of a ideology is not proven to be false and can best explain a
concern for western civilizations over eastern ones. phenomenon over alternatives theories, we should
 Community takes the highest regard that the individual accept the said ideology.
should sacrifice himself for the sake of the society.  The strongest one is that which is able to remain
 This is apparent in the Chinese Confucian system or the upheld amidst various tests, while being able to
Japanese Bushido, both of which view the whole as make particularly risky predictions about the world
greater than their components.  Karl Popper is the known proponent. - up-and-
 The Greek Aristotelian view, aims for eudaimonia as the coming theories of the time
ultimate good
TECHNOLOGY AS A WAY OF REVEALING
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND HUMAN
 Generation gap -changes brought by technology.
FLOURISHING  Holocene extinction - sixth extinction or more aptly
Anthropocene extinction - occurred from as early as
 Every discovery, innovation, and success contributes to between 100,000 to 200,000 years up to the present.
our pool of human knowledge. One of the most Extinction of both flora and fauna due to human activity
prevalent themes is human’s perpetual need to locate  Martin Heidegger - its essence, or purpose, and being
himself in the world by finding proofs to trace evolution. are different from each other.
 The business of uncovering the secrets of the universe  A means to achieve man’s end and which
answers the question of our existence and provides us constitutes human activity
something ti look forward to.  Science and technology has been part of human activity
 Having a particular role, which is uniquely ours, elicits since the beginning of our species. It has aided us in
our idea of self- importance. survival and helped us outsmart our adversaries
 Human flourishing is deeply intertwined with goal provided us comfortable living
setting relevant to science and technology. It is relevant  Truth is the aim of the theoretical sciences, the good is
as a tool in achieving the former or echoing Heidegger’s the end of the practical ones.
statement, technology is a human activity that we excel
in as a result of achieving science.
 Plato - things in this world are not real and are only WHEN TECHNOLOGY AND HUMANITY CROSS
copies of the real in the world of forms  TECHNOLOGY - Greek words - techne and logos - which
 Two aspects of reality: the world of forms - the entities mean art and word. Technology means a discourse on
are only copies of the ideal and the models, and the arts.
forms are the only real entities. In the world of matter,  Paul Gottlieb Nipkow, a German student, in the late
things are changing and impermanent 1800s was successful in his attempt to send images
 Things are red in this world because they through wires with the aid of a rotating metal disk, the
participate in what it means to be red in the world invention was then called “electric telescope” that had
of form. 18 lines of resolution.
 Change I a process that is inherent in things. We,  1907 - two inventors, Alan Archibald Campbell- Swinton
along with all other entities in the world, start as who was an English scientist and Boris Rosing, a Russian
potentialities and move toward actualities. scientist, created a new system of television by using
 Every action that emanates from a human person the cathode ray tube in addition to the mechanical
is a function of the purpose (telos) that the person scanner system.
has.  this success story gave rise to two types of
 Happiness is the be all and end all of everything that we television systems: mechanical and electronic
do. The end goal of everything that we do is happiness. television.
 Human flourishing, a kind of contentment in knowing  Martin Cooper, a senior engineer at Motorola, made the
that one is getting the best out of life. A kind of feeling world’s first mobile phone call. He called their rival
that one has maxed out his potentials I the world, that telecommunications company.
he has attained the crux of his humanity.  The mobile phones used by Cooper weighed 1.1
 John Stuart Mill declared the Greatest Happiness kilograms and measured 228.6 x 127 x 44.44 mm.
Principle by saying that an action is right as far as it  This kind of device was capable of a 40 minute talk
maximizes the attainment of happiness for the greatest time. However it took 10 hrs to charge
number of people.  In 1983, Motorola made their first commercial
 Mill said that individual happiness of each individual mobile phone available to the public known as the
should be prioritized and collectively dictates the kind of Motorola DynaTAC 8000X
action that should be endorsed.  Charles Babbage, a nineteenth-century English
Mathematics professor, designed the Analytical Engine
SCHOOL OF THOUGHT which was used as the basic framework of the
computers even until the present time.
 MATERIALISM - The atomists in Ancient Greece.  The first true portable computer was released in April
Democritus and Leucippus led a school whose primary 1981, it was called the Osborne 1
belief is that the world is made up of and is controlled
by the tiny indivisible units in the world called “atomos ROBOTICS AND HUMANITY
or seeds” - Atomos comes together randomly to form
the things in the world. Only material entities matter.  THE INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF ROBOTICS (IFR)
 Matter is what makes us attain happiness. Material AND UNITED NATIONS ECONOMIC COMMISSION FOR
wealth as the primary source of the meaning of EUROPE (UNECE) - formulate a working definition for
their existence service robots.
 HEDONISM - PLEASURE. Life is about obtaining and  A robot is an actuated mechanism programmable
indulging in pleasure because life is limited. The Mantra in two or more axes with a degree of autonomy,
of this school of thought is the famous, “eat, drink, and moving within its environment, to perform
be merry for tomorrow we die.” Led by Epicurus intended tasks. Autonomy in this context means
 STOICISM - To generate happiness, one must learn to the ability to perform intended tasks based on
distance oneself and be apathetic. The original term current state and sensing without human
“apatheia” means to be indifferent. For stoics, intervention
happiness can only be attained by a careful practice of  A service robot is a robot that performs useful
apathy. tasks for humans or equipment excluding industrial
 THEISM - most people find the meaning of their lives automation application.
using God as a fulcrum of their existence. The ultimate  Germany was one of the first countries to develop
basis of happiness for theists is the communion with service robots
God.
 HUMANISM - the freedom of man to carve his own
destiny and to legislate his own laws, free from the
INFORMATION AGE
shackles of a God that monitors an controls. MAN IS
THE CAPTAIN OF HIS OWN SHIP- control of themselves  Highly modernized, automated, data - driven, and
and the world outside them. technologically advanced - these best describe our
society nowadays, as evidenced by how information
could be transferred or shared quickly.
 According to Webster's Encyclopedic - information is
“knowledge communicated or obtained concerning a
specific fact or circumstance”
  Information is a very important tool for survival. determined that the most popular result would
 Information Age is defined as a “period starting in the frequently be the most usable.
last quarter of the 20th century when information  America Online and CompuServe set up electronic
became effortlessly accessible through publications and chat rooms - these were open areas of cyberspace
through the management of information by computers where interested parties could join in a
and computer networks” conversation with perfect strangers “surfing the
 Information age is also called the Digital Age and the net”
New Media Age - because it was associated with the  Bioinformatics - is the application of information
development of computers. technology to store, organize, and analyze vast amount
 James R. Messenger - proposed the Theory of of biological data which is available in the form of
Information Age in 1982 “the information Age is a true sequences and structures of proteins - the building
new age based upon the interconnection of computers blocks of organisms and nucleic acids - the information
via telecommunications carrier.
 Richard Wurman - “information Anxiety” in the 1900s,  The development of a consolidated formal database,
information became the currency in the business world, known as SWISS-PROT protein sequence database, was
information was the preferred medium of exchange and initiated in 1986.
the information managers serves as information  BLAST - used for comparing sequences
officers.  Annatator - an interactive genome analysis tool
 GeneFinder - tool to identify coding regions and
 Desktop Computers - described as a PC that is not splice sites.
designed for portability. A workstation that has a more  Bioinformatics is the key to rational drug discovery.
powerful processor, additional memory and enhanced
capabilities for performing special group of tasks, such
as 3D graphics or game development. BIODIVERSITY AND THE HEALTHY SOCIETY
 Laptops - these are portable computers that integrate
the essentials of a desktop computer in a battery-
 Vertebrates fell to 60% from the 1970s due to human
powered package, which are somewhat larger than a
causes. By 2020, wildlife decline will be 67% of the
typical hardcover book. They are commonly called
present number.
notebooks.
 Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) - tightly integrated
 The World Wide Fund for Nature and Zoological Society
of London- reported an annual decrease in wildlife by
computers that usually have no keyboards but rely on a
2%
touch screen for user input. Typically smaller than a
paperback, lightweight, and battery-powered.  Marco Lambertini, the General Director of WWF
 Server - it refers to a computer that has been improved International - described that the disappearance of
to provide network services to other computers. Servers wildlife is an unprecedented rate.
usually boast powerful processors, tons of memory and  Earth might enter the sixth mass extinction
large hard drives  Mass extinction is described as the disappearance of
 Mainframes - huge computer systems that can fill an species at a rate 1,000 faster than usual
entire room. The term “mainframe” has been replaced  Biodiversity is defined as the vast variety of life forms in
by enterprise server. the entire Earth.
 Wearable computers- they involve materials that are  It encompasses all kinds of life forms, from the
usually integrated into cellphones, watches, and other single-celled organisms to the largest multi-celled
small objects or places. They perform common organisms.
computer applications such as databases, email,  Its definition is in the structural and functional
multimedia, and schedulers. perspective and not as individual species.
 The World Wide Web (Internet) - Claude E. Shannon,  Is a major factor that contributes to sustainable
an American Mathematician who was considered as the food production for human beings
“Father of Information Theory”. He worked at Bell  According to VILLAGIO GLOBALE, Biodiversity
Laboratories is “the variability among living organisms
 The INTERNET is a worldwide system of interconnected from all sources, including terrestrial, marine
networks that facilitate data transmission among and other aquatic ecosystems and the
innumerable computers. ecological complexes of which they are part;
 One early problem faced by Internet users was this includes diversity within species, between
speed. species, and of ecosystems.
 Fiber -optic cables allowed for billions of bits of  Biodiversity is the source of the essential goods
information to be received every minute. and ecological services that constitute the source
 Intel - developed faster microprocessors so of life for ail and it has direct consumptive value in
personal computers could process the incoming food, agriculture, medicine, and in industry.
signals at a more rapid rate.
 Sergey Brin and Larry page, directors of a Stanford  The disappearance of species in a certain
research project, built a search engine, listed environment causes an imbalance in the
results to reflect page popularity when they ecosystem, producing more chaotic changes that
harm the entire ecosystem (inquirer.net 2016)
  Physical environmental hazards - pollution, toxic
 Biotic, the living organisms chemicals, food contaminants
 Abiotic, nonliving organisms  Social environmental hazards - dangerous work,
 Interdisciplinary Approach is needed to study the poor housing conditions, urban sprawl, poverty
ecosystem  Infectious diseases caused by unsafe drinking
 Sustainability of the ecosystem ensures a better water and poor sanitation - schistosomiasis,
survival rate against any natural disaster. We, as diarrhea, cholera, meningitis, gastritis
human inhabitants of the ecosystem, must  In 2015, approximately 350,000 children under the
preserve and conserve the biodiversity of all age of face died from diarrheal diseases related to
creatures. unsafe drinking water.
 United Nations’ Environment Programme  1.8 billion people used drinking water
identified the major threats to biodiversity: contaminated with feces. More that 2 billion
 Habitat loss and destruction - inhabitation of people lacked access to basic sanitation.
human beings and the use of land for  Food production causes environmental damage
economic gains from esticides, fertilizers, soil sanitazation, waste
 Alterations in ecosystem composition - produced by livestock, carbon emissions from food
Alterations and sudden changes, either within manufacturing and transportation, deforestation
species groups or within the environment, and overfishing
could begin to change entire ecosystems.  Climate change could have a serious impact on
Alterations in ecosystems are a critical factor human health and could deteriorate farming
contributing to species and habitat loss. systems and reduce nutrients in some foods
 Over- exploitation - over-hunting,  Hospitals - use large quantities of electricity and
overfishing, or over-collecting of species can fossil fuels and produce medical wastes
quickly lead to its decline. Changing  Rensik and Portier stated that "A reduction in
consumption patterns of humans is often mortality from starvation or disease can lead to
cited as the key reason for this unsustainable overpopulation, which stresses the environment in
exploitation of natural resources many different was- increasing use of fossil fuels,
 Pollution and contamination - biological clearing of land, generation pollution and waste,
systems respond slowly to changes in their and so on
surrounding environment. Pollution and  safeguarding of coral reefs is essential to reduce
contamination cause irreversible damage to the risk of floods, as this extraordinary ecosystem
species and varieties can reduce wave energy by 97% thus protecting
 Global climate change - both climate over 100 million people all over the world
variability and climate change cause  Rainforest Conservation Fund The value of
biodiversity loss. Species and populations may biodiversity is the value of everything
be lost permanently if they are not provided  Constanza We must begin to give the natural
with enough time to adapt to changing capital stock that produces these services
climatic conditions adequate weight in the decision-making process,
 Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace- basic concept otherwise, current and continued future human
about biodiversity loss was from them. welfare may drastically suffer... many ecosystems
 It is extremely difficult to estimate the future costs are literally irreplaceable
of losses in the biodiversity or of the  VARIOUS LEVELS OF DIVERSITY:
environmental damage (Rainforest Conservation  SPECIES DIVERSITY (HIGH/LOW NUMBER OF
Fund) SPECIES
 As stated by TILMAN, “the earth will retain its most  GENETIC DIVERSITY ( HIGH/LOW GENETIC
striking feature, its biodiversity, only humans have DIVERSITY WITHIN POPULATION
the persistence to do so. This will occur, it seems,  ECOSYSTEM DIVERSITY (NARROW/WIDE
only if we realize the extent to which we use DISTRIBUTION OF ECOSYSTEMS)
biodiversity”
 Humalog- Modified human insulin  Species diversity - heterogeneity of living species in a
given region or habitat
 According to WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION,  Species - group of organisms of similar individuals that
biodiversity is a vital element of a human being’s are capable of interbreeding; grouped based on the
nutrition because of its influence to food similar characteristics of their family.
production  Habitat - place where the different species live
 Nutrition and biodiversity are linked at many DIFFERENT HABITAT:
levels: the ecosystem, with food production as an  Tropical rainforest
ecosystem service, the species in the ecosystem,  Temperate forest
the genetic diversity within species  Grassland (savanna)
 Environmental hazards - increase the risk of  Desert
cancer, heart disease, asthma, and many other  Aquatic
illnesses  Polar ice (tundra)
 Tide pools
 Roles of GMOs in the Food and Agricultural Industries
 Genetic diversity - describes the variety in the number 1. Pest Resistance- genitically modified plants to resist certain
of genetic types, as well as the chromosomes present in pests.
different species in a given region; differences in the a) example is Bt Corn. The Dna (genome) of the Bt
genetic makeup between species and the variety within Corn has been modified with the gene of Bacillus
a single species. thuringiensis. A soil bacterium that produces
 Genetic variation increases - when habitat proteins which is toxic to corn borers (worms)
increases in size or chromosome mutations
increase 2. Virus Resistance - genetically modified plants to resist
 Ecosystem Diversity - a type of biodiversity that refers certain virus
to the variation in the ecosystems in a region
 Ecosystem - a biological community that includes all 3. Herbicide Tolerance - genetically modified plants to
living things interacting in a certain area or region with tolerate herbicide
non-living things such as weather, climate, temperature,
soil, air, sun, atmosphere 4. Fortification - genetically modified plants fortified with
 Coniferous forest certain minerals
 Tropical rainforest
 Savanna 5. Cosmetic Preservation - genitically modified plants to resist
 Desert natural discoloration
 Tundra
 Deciduous forest 6. Increase growth rate - genitically modified organism that
 Aquatic habitats has higher yield in growth than normal species
 Salt water - ocean
 Fresh water - lakes, rivers, streams, ponds  Bacillus Thuringiensis- a soil bacterium that produces
proteins which is toxic to corn borers (worms)
GMO: SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND POLITICS  GM Papaya- also called Rainbow Papaya
 Papaya Ringspot Virus- known to be detrimental to
 Rosalie Ellasus - a former OFW worker in papaya plants. Its protein was introduced to papaya
Singapore turned farmer, attended the Integrated plant through plant tissue which turned out to be
Pest Management-Framers Field School and was resistant to the virus itself
introduced to BT Corn  Roundup Ready soybean- an example of herbicide
tolerance
 Bt Corn - a genetically modified corn that is  Glyphosate, a herbicide for weeds was introduced to
resistant to the destructive Asian corn borer soybeans making it tolerant to the herbicide itself

 Jack Williamson- In 1951, coined the term "  Fortification- genetically modified plants fortified with
genetic engineering"author of the science fiction certain minerals
novel Dragon's Island  an example is Golden Rice fortified with Vitamin A
 Genetic Engineering- is the deliberate through Beta Carotene
manipulation of the organism's genes, where it  Cosmetic Preservation- genetically modified plants
may involve transfer of genes from other organism resist natural discoloration
 An antibiotic- resistant E. coli bacteria was created  an example is Arctic Apple
in 1973  AquAdvantage Salmon- a gene from an ocean pout, an
 Genetically Modified Organism ( GMO)- an eel-like fish was introduced to Pacific Chinook Salmon,
organism created through genetic engineering making the salmon grow faster than its normal rate
GMOs in Non-Food Crops and Microorganisms
 an organism, either plant, animal, or 1. Flower Production - GMOs in flower production are seen in
microorganism, in which the genetic material modified color and extended vase life of flowers
(DNA) has been altered in a way that does not Examples are Blue Roses. Contain 3,5- diglucoside, together
occur naturally by mating or natural with large amount of flavonols.
recombination
 The development of GMOs was perceived to help 2. Paper Production - modified characteristics of trees for
in the advancement of technology for the benefit higher yield of paper production
of humans in different industries like agriculture
and medicine 3. Pharmaceutical Production - modified plants to produce
 The CENTEER FOR ECOGENETICS AND pharmaceutical products
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH (CEEH) identified the ff Examples are periwinkle plant. Bacterial genes were added to
roles of GMOs in the food and agricultural enhance the production of vinblastine, an alkaloid usually
industries added to drugs for cancer treatment like Hodkin’s lymphoma

4 Bioremediation - use of modified plants that can assist in

the bioremediation of polluted siteds
  Executive Order No. 430 of 1990- this is where the GMO
5. Enzyme and Drug Production- use of modified organisms Concern started
that can produce enzymes for food processing and  The department of Agriculture released Administrative
medicines. Order No. 8, guideline for the importation and release
 an example of this id CGTase into the environment of GM plants and plant products.
Cyclomaltodextrin glycosyltransferase  The phil was marked to be the first country in Asia to
another example is Artemesin approved commercial cultivation of GMOs when GM
corn planting was approved in 2002.
7. GMOs in the medical field - genetic engineering is playing a
significant role from diagnosis to treatment of human-
dreaded diseases. It helps in the production of drugs, gene BENEFITS OF GMOs
therapy, and laboratory researches.  Higher efficency in farming
 An example is Humulin- genetically engineered  Increase in harvest
insulin used by Type 1 diabetes patients who are  Control fertility
insulin-dependent  Increase in food processing
 Improvement of desirable characteristics
 Nutritional and pharmaceutical enhancement
 Lignin- is a complex polymer in trees that is removed  Reduce the use of fertilizer and pesticides
from wood to make paper through kraft process
 Shrub Tobacco/ Nicotiana Glauca- genetically modified SOME EXAMPLES OF COMMON FOOD WITH GMOS
with phytochelatin TaPCSHI1, used for bioremidiation  Kellogg’s Corn flakes
 Artemesin/ Artemesinic Acid- is a compound used for  Quaker chewy granola bars
anti-malarial drug extracted from sweet wordwood  Ultra Slim Fast
plant  Quaker yellow corn mean
 Humalog- modified human insulin  Alpo dry pet food

Top 5 Countries that Operate GMO Farmlands POTENTIAL RISKS OF GMOS

 US 1. There are inadequate studies on the effects of GMOs to
 Brazil humans and the environment
 Argentina 2. Genetic engineering promotes mutation in organisms
 India which the long term effect is still unknown
 Canada 3. Humans consumption of GMOs might have the ff effects:
 More allergic reaction
 Human Genome Project- mapping of human genes to  Gene mutation - may develop abnormalities and
provide framework for research and studies in the field mutation, more than the desired product of the
of medicine gene alteration
 Mutation of genetically engineered microorganisms-  Antibiotic resistance - GMO food contains
genetically modified bacteria and viruses may mutate to antibiotic resistant genes; this may cause disease-
become more resistant or virulent that may cause more causing bacteria likely to be more antibiotic
dreadful diseases for human beings resistant too, increasing the possibility of
 Cloning- asexual reproduction of an organism using widespread of the disease
parent cell through genetic engineering  Nutritional value- GMO food may have change in
 The Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex)- their nutritional value
responsible for the development of standards, codes of
practices, guidelines, and recommendations on food - the primary issue on GMOs presented is its unnatural
safety production or what is termed to be a violation of nature.
 has developed principles for human health
risk analysis of genetically modified food
products
 Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety- international
environmental treaty that regulates the trans boundary
movements of Living Modified Organisms
 requires exporters to seek consent from importers
before its first shipment of LMOs
 International Trade Agreement on labeling of GM Food
and Food Products- requires exporters of GM food and
food products to label their products and give rights to
importing parties to reject or accept GM products
 NCBP- National Committee on Biosafety of the
Philippines - developed the guidelines on the planned
release of genetically manipulated organisms (GMO)
and potentially harmful exotic species in 1998.