12. 科技的影响& u7 k& H9 E. G5 C) ^
The case of medical technology illustrates once again that technology can be both a blessing and a curse. In recent decades we have become increasingly aware that the problems of human life cannot always be solved by technological means. The “technological fix” can have adverse consequences. In the case of medical technology, vital ethical issues must be addresses. Other technologies, such as nuclear power and chemical plants, can directly threaten human life. As Charles Perrow writes, “Human-made catastrophes appear to have increased with industrialization as we built devices that could not crash, sink, burn or explode.” Perrow also points out that the increasing complexity of modern technology has led to a new kind of catastrophe: the failure of whole systems (i.e., activities and organizational networks as well as apparatus), as in the case of the Three Mile Island accident of the Challenger disaster.% ^) s1 N3 C$ Z& @, e
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13 学院: i5 J1 m$ z3 O9 r9 r
The work of scientists must be paid for, and the more their research is “pure” (in that it has no apparent uses that generate profits), the more it must be supported by other institutions like government or industry. This dependence of science on other institutions continually subjects scientists to pressure to make their work relevant to the needs of business or military. |
发表于 2012-8-15 12:52:21
