Human Advancement Through Science and Technology

Science and Technology

responsible for the ways society is continuously being modernized

Martin Heidegger (1977): The Question Concerning Technology

Defined technology as (1) Instrumental and (2) Anthropological

Instrumental

Technology is a means to an end

Technology, instrumental

viewed as a tool available to individuals, groups, and communities that desire to make an impact on society.

Technology, instrumental

Aimed as to how things get done

Anthropological

Technology is a human activity

Technology, anthropological

The production or invention of technological equipment, tools and machines, the products and inventions, and the purpose and functions they serve are what define technolog

Technological Advantages

• Efficiency

• Time

• Communication

• Jobs

• Education

• Transportation

Sword of Damocles

“with great fortune and power comes also great danger”

Spiderman

“with great power comes great responsibility”

The Dangers of Technology

• Lies in how humans let themselves be consumed by it.

• We must not be consumed by technology lest we lose the essence of who we are as humans.

Biotechnology

The use of living organisms in any form for the convenience of life

Traditional Biotechnology

• Used in food preservation and production of foods

• Fermentation

Fermentation

process where microorganisms are used to produce a product

Modern Biotechnology

gives scientists molecular tools for obtaining a better understanding of the structure and function of genes in living organisms.

• Animal Cloning

• GMO

• Plant Hybridization

• Recombinant Drugs

• Antibody Production

• Stem Cell Therapy

• Biopharming

Modern Biotechnology

Biotechnology

uses biological systems, living organisms, or derivatives thereof, to make or modify products or processes for a specific use.

Genetic engineering

is a technique that allows genes and DNA to be transferred from one source to another

Modern biotechnology

gives scientists molecular tools for obtaining a better understanding of the structure and function of genes in living organisms

Genetic engineering

leads to the production of living modified organisms (LMOs) or genetically modified organisms (GMOs) or obtaining a better understanding of the structure and function of genes in living organisms.

AIMS OF MODERN BIOTECHNOLOGY

• Develop new precision tools and diagnostics;

• Speed up breeding gains and efficiency;

• Develop pest- and disease-resistant crops;

• Combat salinity, drought, and problems of agriculture;

• Enhance the nutritional quality of food;

• Increase crop varieties and choice;

• Reduce inputs and production costs; and

• Increase profits (Bragdon et al., 2005)

Cloning

process by which identical copies of an organism are made

Cloning

The copy, or clone, possesses the same genetic material as the original organism.

Cloning

can occur naturally through asexual reproduction

asexual reproduction

a single organism creates a genetically identical copy of itself

Cloning

produces genetically exact copies of organisms

Genetic Engineering

refers to processes in which scientists manipulate genes to create purposefully different versions of organisms—and, in some cases, entirely new living things.

Genetic Engineering

introduced genes from one species to another

GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS (GMOs)

Are products of artificial manipulation and alternation of a species’ genetic material in a laboratory using genetic engineering

GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS (GMOs)

Are organisms whose genetic makeup has been modified using recombinant DNA methods (also called gene splicing), gene modification, or transgenic technology.

GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS (GMOs)

Plant, animal, bacteria, and virus genes may be combined or may be crossbred to produce another kind of species that do not naturally occur in the environment.

GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS (GMOs)

Also called as transgenic organisms since the process involves the transfer of genes.

GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS (GMOs)

Aims to address issues about food security, agriculture, drug production, and nutrition.

Herbert Boyer and Stanley Cohen

first scientists to genetically modify an organism by combining genes from two different E.coli.

Pros of GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS (GMOs)

• increased crop yield

• pest resistance

Cons of GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS (GMOs)

• Growing concern with how GMOs may affect consumers’ health and the environment

• Accident in genetically engineering a virus or bacteria may cause a serious epidemic

Humulin

first GMO approved by the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA), type of insulin produced using genetically engineered E.coli bacteria.

bovine somatotropin (bST)

FDA approved metabolic protein hormone used to increase milk production in dairy cows for commercial use.

Flavr Savr

FDA approved tomato for sale on grocery stores which delays its ripening effect and gives it a longer shelf life compared with natural tomatoes.

Bacillus thuringiensis

Bt potatoes and corn, roundup ready soybeans

Golden Rice

developed in the Philippines to address vitamin A deficiency, which is a public health issue in Asian countries where rice is a staple food crop. 

biosynthesize beta-carotene

Golden Rice

Variety of Oryza sativa genetically modified to ————, a precursor of Vitamin A, in the edible parts of rice

Yorkshire pig, phytase

genetically modified to produce offspring that produce the enzyme phytase in their saliva to digest plant phosphorus, unlike that of normal pigs.

Bt toxins

in the blood of pregnant women in eastern Quebec

• Clustered

• Regularly

• Interspaced

• Short

• Palindromic

• Repeats

shorthand for CRISPR-CaS9

CRISPR

DNA snippets of viruses in a bacterial DNA (new DNA becomes part of their own)

CaS 9

enzyme that acts like a pair of molecular scissors, capable of cutting strands of DNA

C.R.I.S.P.R. technology

Adapted from the natural defense mechanisms of bacteria and archaea

C.R.I.S.P.R. technology

Foil attacks by viruses and other foreign bodies by chopping up and destroying the DNA of a foreign invader

C.R.I.S.P.R. technology

Enable scientists to repair genetic defects (genetic diseases) or use genetically modified human cells as therapies

• Cancer

• Blood disorders

• Blindness

• AIDS

• Cystic fibrosis

• Muscular dystrophy

• Huntington’s Disease

7 Diseases that can be cured by CRISPR

IN VITRO FERTILIZATION

Used as a remedy for infertility, a woman's egg cells are combined with a man's sperm cells outside the uterus. The fertilized egg is then implanted in the woman's uterus and, if successful, begins the pregnancy cycle. The first baby realized from this fertilization method was born in 1978.

Three-parent baby

human offspring produced from the genetic material of one man and two women through the use of assisted reproductive technologies, specifically mitochondrial manipulation (or replacement) technologies and three-person in vitro fertilization (IVF)

• Homosexual and sterile couples to have biological offspring.

• Helps in in-depth research, like motor neuron disease.

• Embryonic stem cells can be cloned to produce tissues or organs to replace or repair the damaged ones.

• allow parents who have lost a child a chance to redress their loss using the DNA of their deceased child

Advantages of Cloning

• “playing God”

• Human embryo should be left alone

• Takes away the uniqueness of an individual

Religious Issues of Cloning

• Success rate 0.1%-3% only

• Enucleated egg and the transferred nucleus may not be compatible

• Pregnancy might fail

• Problems during later development

• Abnormal gene expressions

Medical Issues of Cloning

Australia

Cloning Issues

Prohibited human cloning; therapeutic cloning is legal

Canada

Cloning Issues

prohibits: cloning human, stem cells, growing human embryos for research, buying and selling of human reproductive materials

India

Cloning Issues

no specific law but has specific guidelines prohibiting human cloning; stem cell research is allowed

Argentina

Cloning Issues

prohibits “experiments concerning cloning of human cells in order to generate human beings”

Issues of Targeted Medications

• Requires skill for administration & storage

• May produce toxicity symptoms

• Difficult to maintain the stability of the drug in dosage form

• High sophisticated technology for formulation

• Insufficient localization of targeted systems into tumor cells • Very costly

SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY

Defined as the design and construction of new biological parts, devices, and systems and the re-design of existing, natural biological systems for useful purposes.

SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY

Engineer’s approach to biology

Personal Health Monitoring (PHM) Wearable Biosensors

A portable device that can be worn to record and monitor health-related data outside the hospital

Privacy

Leakage of private information and surveillance.

Overreliance on wearable sensors

Might reduce the interaction between the wearer and his/her physician

• Privacy

• Overreliance on wearable sensors

• Reliability and accuracy

Major Issues of Personal Health Monitoring (PHM) Wearable Biosensors

Communications

Latin word communication

Communications

Social process of information exchange, covers the human need for direct contact and mutual understanding

tele

means distance

Edouard Estaunie

created by ———- in 1904, in which he defined telecommunication as “information exchange by means of electrical signals”

Telecommunication

science and technology of communication over a distance

Telecommunication

a technology that eliminates distance between continents, between countries, between persons.

Issues of Telecommunications & Internet

• Communication breakdown

• Cyber bullying

• Scammers/ hackers

• Privacy

• Identity theft

• Data tracking

• Health and fitness

• Dark web

• Terrorism & crime

• Fake news

• 1876 - telephone invention

• 1926 - 1st transatlantic phone call

• 1946 - area codes

• 1973 - 1st mobile phone

• 1991 - 2G technology

• 2001 to present - internet of things

Evolution of Telecommunications

Alexander Graham Bell

1876 Telephone Invention

29 yo ——— invented the first telephone & in 1903 received a patent for his revolutionary new invention

London to New York

1926 1st transatlantic phone call

In March, the first transatlantic phone call became a reality, since it was made from ———

Area Codes

suggest the numbers that need to be dialed in order to call a specific location

Martin Cooper

first mobile phone was introduced by ——-. He was the first individual who made a handheld mobile phone call in public

Radiolinja

2G technology was introduced for the first time, in Finland by ——, a Finnish operator in GSM