You Can't Blame The Science --Image ISU

It's a sad but inescapable fact; some of science’s greatest advances have come from humanity's darkest moments. But this is not science's fault. Science and technology are not good or bad: it depends on how humanity chooses to use it.

"Baby Bomb Victim." Democracy Web. Democracy Web, 28 Aug. 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 

     2014. <http://democracyweb.com/?attachment_id=11617> 

For example  nuclear technology; which has it's roots in the Manhattan project. The Manhattan project was a research and development project that made the first atomic bombs during world war two. These bombs were dropped in Japan and had catastrophic impacts. This is an image of a young child that was killed by one of these bombs. (The black on the kid is skin that was completely burnt by the bomb.) This bomb in total murdered 60 000 to 80 000 people. It is considered the world’s worst and most powerful weapon. It took 2 billion dollars (roughly 25.8 billion of today's dollars) and the world’s greatest minds to research and develop the technology behind them. But we used this technology to murder people, even innocent children. The child represents all of the innocent lives that were lost because of the bombs. The science itself did not choose to kill people, humans did.

A woman undergoing a nuclear medical examination to scan for cancer and metastases.

"Breast Cancer – Diagnostics – Localization of Metastases." Health Care.

    Siemens, 2011. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.healthcare.siemens.com/

    clinical-specialities/oncology/cancer-types/breast-cancer/patient-information/

    diagnostics/localization-scanning-for-metastases/>.

In contrast, we have nuclear technology to thank for the entire field of nuclear medicine, which is used in medical imaging, diagnosis and treatments of conditions like cancer. The left side of the image shows the scan from the patient showing they have cancer. This side of the image is black and red, the red indicating the growths.  The scan gives off the feeling of death and sickness because of its overall darkness. The right side of the image portrays a patient undergoing nuclear medical imaging to check for metastases or cancer. The image is mostly white, with very little dark colours. The image gives off a feeling liveliness  and health because of how bright it is. The image goes from the right dark image to the light left image, so death to life: sickness to health; meaning this technology is being used to save lives. Again the technology did not chose to do this, humans did. Humans decided to use the same technology that was used to kill, to cure people. So, this proves that the science and technology behind some of the world’s worst weapons is not bad by itself, its how humanity has chosen to use these discoveries.   

Until early 1945, Dresden was the only major German city largely spared by Allied air attacks. At the time of the attack, it was no longer of any great military or strategic importance; rather, it served chiefly as a reception point for Silesian refugees.  

"Dresden in the Aftermath of Allied Bombing (February 13-14, 1945)." German

    History Documents. German History docs, n.d. Web. 8 Jan. 2015.

    <http://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/sub_image.cfm?image_id=2109>.

Secondly, we have the technology behind Fritz Haber's ammonia synthesizers which is used for fertilizers and in making explosives such as TNT and Amatol. Amatol explosives were extensively used during the world wars in aerial bombs, depth charges, shells, and naval mines(Wikipedia). In this picture here we see the aftermath of the allied bombing of Dresden, Germany. Dresden was no longer of any a great military or strategic importance at the time of its bombing, and the majority of people who were in the city were innocent refugees.  The image portrays a city in ruins, with death and rubble shown everywhere in the picture by the tattered buildings, bodies, and a dark, dusty sky. This disaster was able to happen because of Haber’s ammonia synthesizing technology, which was used to create the ammonium nitrate in the bomb. This dark imagery supports the notion that all this destruction and death happened because of this technology, but this is not the case. The science behind this did not choose to be used to kill and destroy cities, humans did.

"Green Fields Wisconsin, Lush Rich Rural Farm Crop, Spring Agriculture."

    IStockphoto. iStockphoto LP, n.d. Web. 12 Jan. 2015.

    <http://www.istockphoto.com/photo/

    green-fields-wisconsin-lush-rich-rural-farm-crop-spring-agriculture-9971620>.

On the other hand, Haber’s ammonia synthesizing technology helped revolutionize agriculture by enabling the creation of ammonia fertilizers. Today, nitrogen fertilizers are responsible for feeding 48% of the worlds population(International Nitrogen Initiative). In this picture we see a lush farm with steadily growing plants. This picture is opposite to the last, it portrays life with vegetation growing everywhere in the picture. There are upright buildings and the sky is rich with colour with no clouds. This imagery supports the belief that this technology is good because it is used to help grow food. The science and technology did not choose to be used for this purpose, humans did. The bombs and agriculture show two uses for the same technology, it was humans who decided how to use this technology. We used it to kill and feed people. This proves that science and technology are not good or bad, it depends on how humanity chooses to use it.

Ultimately, humans can use science and technology for good and bad purposes, but the science itself is not good or bad: its neutral.

Works Cited

"Amatol." Wikipedia. Wikipedia, 30 Oct. 2014. Web. 8 Jan. 2015. 

     <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amatol>.  

"Baby Bomb Victim." Democracy Web. Democracy Web, 28 Aug. 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 
     2014. <http://democracyweb.com/?attachment_id=11617>. 

"Breast Cancer – Diagnostics – Localization of Metastases." Health Care. 
     Siemens, 2011. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.healthcare.siemens.com/ 
     clinical-specialities/oncology/cancer-types/breast-cancer/patient-information/ 
     diagnostics/localization-scanning-for-metastases/>. 

"Dresden in the Aftermath of Allied Bombing (February 13-14, 1945)." German 
     History Documents. German History docs, n.d. Web. 8 Jan. 2015. 
     <http://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/sub_image.cfm?image_id=2109>. 

"Green Fields Wisconsin, Lush Rich Rural Farm Crop, Spring Agriculture." 
     IStockphoto. iStockphoto LP, n.d. Web. 12 Jan. 2015. 
     <http://www.istockphoto.com/photo/ 
     green-fields-wisconsin-lush-rich-rural-farm-crop-spring-agriculture-9971620>. 

Theobald, Mark, trans. "Ammonia, The Substance That Changed The World." 
     International Nitrogen Initiative. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Jan. 2015. 
     <http://www.ini-europe.org/node/16>. 

My Defining Moment

My defining moment was when my dad got sick and was hospitalized. The doctors at the hospital misdiagnosed him because the technicians were sloppy with their diagnostic imaging, and the doctors were very stupid and unskilled and did not know any better to order clearer image. It turns out my dad had a blood clot in the back of his neck from an accident a few months prior. If a big piece of the clot broke off it would have stopped blood flow to his brain and he would have died. Little bits of the clot had already broken off causing him to have something like a stroke, where the left side of his body would go completely limp and numb! This happened 3 times. It was the first stroke that made him go to the hospital in the first place, yet the doctors sent him home anyway (idiots). Then my dad had another stroke, so my mom forced my dad to see the doctors at the hospital she worked at in order to get a second opinion. After a week of tests they found the blood clot. For a week we had no clue what was going on with him or if he'd live. This experience made me want to become a doctor so i could PROPERLY diagnose people so they do not have to go through what my family did, as well as save people from dying. But this also inspired me to become a better person too because you never know when someones going to pass away, and I wanted to be a positive force in people's lives. Before i did not care about my grades or anything in general. I was very rude and I did not really care about others. Because of this experience I started trying really hard to get better grades so I could get in a good medical school, and now I try my best to help people out whenever and however I can. It really changed me into a kinder person.

Is The Rez Sisters really worth Studying?

I believe The Rez Sisters is worth reading because it gives us insight of how life is on first nations reserves. It show us the struggles they go through with sickness, death, housing, and other social problems. Each character brings something new to the play and offers a new side to the same story. The profanity in the play makes the characters problems more real and relatable because we’re teenagers and we tend to cuss when we are angry, and it strengthens the point the characters are trying to make. I believe the profanity in the play sets it apart from other plays where everything is bland with no real emotion or anger put into the arguments. And it teaches you about the problems First Nations have in other part of our own country, and its good to be informed on issues like that. So yeah, i believe the Rez Sisters is worth looking at and studying.