Critical Thinking Assignment #9

My thinking about science amd humanities has definitely changed. I know what science is, but I have never seen it illustrated like this before, whether it be in the graphic novels or on the youtube videos. I never realized how far into the future we really are. I think about science and technology extremely differently now. I look at the incredible iphone and ipads that are manufactured and can't believe how far we have come. It truly is remarkable. I look at the story in the graphic novel "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" When reading that, and especially watching the clips from that, it truly is amazing how far science and technology has come. The way the female robot had human emotions, it was extremely difficult to tell whether she was human or machine. Even as we knew she was a robot, perhaps we might have been thinking that she was human. Incredible science and technology involved. And it can only get better. At the start of the course, I thought I was more of a humanities person, but now I do believe I am more of a science person. I am much more optimistic about science and technology as we finish the semester. It is the future of this planet. There are so many different sciences in the world. Whether it be with robots, the assembly of the atomic bomb, or the ipad2 and they are even coming out with the iphone5 shortly. It doesn't matter how long ago science has been around or how far in the future science will take us, it is to be admired from every angle possible. Everything we do in life is a science. Not to the extreme of Albert Einstein or Robert Oppeneheimer. Oppeneheimer's science is more scarier than anything because the atomic bomb can destroy thousands of people, and to think there are bombs out there that can end the world at any given moment. But, when you look at how brilliant these men were, there is hope for all of us because hopefully we can follow in their footsteps. The 'critical thinking blog' assignments have better helped me with understanding the readings in the class because when you get a chance to write about it, it gives you a better understanding of what the stories are about.

Critical Thinking assignment #8

The responsibilities of scientists are to basically see what the future holds for humanity. Whether the outcome is good or bad, scientists should always go forward with progress even if the consequences are disasterous for most of us. We need to explore our technology and see where it will take us. Oppenheimer's atomic bomb did nearly start a cold war, but a cold war is a lot of heated talking. The diplomats are able to sort the odds and ends out. The atomic bomb is extreme. But, if we do not explore science, other countries, possibily terrorists, can discover things that we would have no defense against because we might be afraid of the consequences. That was the reasoning for the atomic bomb, so the U.S. would be able to protect itself against anyone who threatened them. Another example of how science has made progress is the story in the graphic novel "Androids Dream of Electric Sheep", written by Philip K. Dick. Amazingly, the robot that was constructed, was made to look like exactly like a real woman. She even had human emotions, and fooled so many people. She was a robot, but it took close to one hundred questions to figure it out. With the other robots, it took only thirty questions. When watching the movie, it was next to impossible with the naked eye to determine whether or not she was a human. There is no telling how far science can go. We need to know, for our own good. And for the future of our planet. Science can come up with cures for diseases and give us the best technology. It can give put fear into us as well, with the atomic bomb, as an example. Or even robots that will hurt humans instead of helping them. But, just because the consequences may be awful, we still must figure out where science can take us. It will lead us into the next generation.

Critical Thinking assignment #7

The scientist I have chosen is Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer. And only one word comes to mind when describing him and that would be determination. Oppenheimer was the founder of the atomic bomb, which we was in charge of creating in the early 1940's. And we used the atomic bomb successfully against Japan in 1945. The significance on the way we live now is not to give up on any project that is given to any one of us. The atomic bomb was the most difficult bomb to create, but Oppenheimer, through all of his frustrations and difficulty, was able to build it. The challenges that Oppenheimer had to overcome were criticism from many people about him. He was arrested in the the late 1930's for giving donations to communist countries, and he also married a communist woman. The United States does not support communism at all. The achievements of Oppenheimer were recognized from everyone in politics around the world and every scientist around the world as well. He is an icon. He is the mastermind behind the atomic bomb. Oppenheimer's work definitely inspires us because he was able to create this bomb with the help of other scientists. A lot of scientists had doubts. It also threatens us because the atomic bomb is the most dangerous bomb in the world. What if one of our enemies were able to use it against us? Most likely, our enemies are trying to build weapons that could destroy us. It is terrifying. Oppenheimer was able to bridge the divide of science and humanities. In the graphic novel "Fallout", he had many scientists working with him on this project. But, when they were talking to him, they didn't appear to be talking as scientists. They had second thoughts about the atomic bomb. They were talking to him very gingerly. They didn't want to make any mistakes. But, they were also showing fear. They were scared. The scientists did eventually get the weapon built under Oppenheimer's brilliant mind. Oppenheimer will forever be remembered as the man who built the first atomic bomb and it was used successfully.

Critical Thinking assignment #6

The topic of my research paper is popular science: Bridging the two cultures. What I am going to show is how science can assist human beings, instead of human beings being paranoid about the future of technology. I would like to show how we can use popular science to our advantage.
"Bridging The Two Cultures" is the title of my first source and the author is Anthony Storr. I found this source using JSTOR. This article tells us how artists and scientists don't really think they need each other and that they have no use for each other. The article shows how wrong they are. The 'spin' that Storr is using is that art and science are hundreds of years old, and they both feel they don't need each other and can make the world a better place by themselves. But, in the article, it shows how much they both use each other to make themselves look better. This adds a tremendous amount of perspective because art and science are both extremely important in our culture, and as much as the artist and scientist feel they can get along without each other, they don't realize how better they make our culture when they work together. "Briding The Two Cultures" fits my research paper topic because I am hoping to show how powerful the world becomes when art, science, and humans all bond together and use these things to our advantage instead of being afraid of them or wanting nothing to do with each other.
The second article I am using is titled "Bridging Research and Practice in the Family and Human Sciences". The author is Stephen A. Small. And again, this comes from JSTOR. This again is showing how science and humans fo not believe they have a need for each other. In this article, science doesn't feel it needs psychology, and psycholgists feel they have no need for science. Small is trying to show how incorrect that is. It adds a lot of perpective because humans in nearly all fields do not want anything to do with science, when in fact, science helps us in all aspects possible, including the internet. Science is made to help our entire planet. That is why this will fit my research paper. And I hope to show how popular science has become, and will be the future of our planet. And humans should embrace this. This will only help us, not endanger us.

Critical Thinking post #5

It is one day after the midterm, and I chose to write about Darwinism always opposing humanistic values like altruism and generosity. I realize now I did not make the right decision. What I should have wrote about was about robots and Artificial Intelligence. And I do agree that these robots, including Rachel Eldon, was an intelligent being. It was extremely difficult to determine whether or not she was human. She did a great job in fooling the people that believe she was not. She showed all types of human signs, and she was the closest robot to show human emotion, It would be extremely difficult staring at her to really believe she wasn't human. She had real 'consciousness' like a human which made it even more believable. In "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep"?, written by Philip Dick, it took over one hundred questions to determine whether or not she was a human, and it usually only took between 20 and 30 questions for the others. I agree they were intelligent and I do agree one day, robots will be more than a human computer. We should use them to the best of our technology. They can take us places we have never been before.

Critical Thinking Blog Post #4

A robot can be an incredible tool. It can almost do anything you need it to. And, it is miraculous of how far robotics has come. Sometimes, we have to wonder if robotics will take over the world. It could be appealing to us, but of course, it could also be terrifying to us as well. In the video clip of the "A.I. trailer", it is hard to believe how real they made a little boy seem so real, when he was indeed a robot. He shows human emotions, and anyone who knew that he was not human, probably would never be able to tell the difference. He wanted to be loved like any little boy would. He had all the features that children have. It was hard to see that he was a robot. This was definitely appealing. But, when I was looking at the video clip from the "Terminator trailer", that was not so appealing. That was pretty horrifying. This was a robot who was indestructable. He was on a mission, and no human or anything else would stand in its way. They tried to shoot him, and that had no effect at all. That is the type of machinery that could kill millions of people and it might take years before anyone could figure out a way to find out what the weakness of this robot is. When you can't control it, it will most likely be able to control you, and then we would be at their mercy. So, the way robots can look like real people is fascinating, but at the same time, when trying to take it apart or destroy it, and have no success, it incredibly scary.
I think robots have become acceptable to people because at this point in time, robots are available to help us with whatever we need. I believe a lot of people do not fear robot technology, and robots have become a lot more humanized over the years. When looking at the clip of "ELECTRO", the person who was in control of this robot had to talk into a telephone to give it commands. It moved at a very slow speed. That has been upgraded a lot since then. We might accept robots in our vision of the future because they would be able to do all the work that requires the work of many people. They may be able to fix a flat tire and even cook our meals. This is something to look forward to in the future but as seen in the terminator, something to be cautious of as well.

Critical Thinking Blog- Assignment #3

The first topic that I am thinking about writing for my research paper is "Science and technology: Promise and Peril" (Research paper idea #2)"The Promise of nuclear energy (which was once thought to be an endless supply of cheap electricity) vs. the downside of atomic weapons, etc. I have always been curious how nuclear energy was created and used throughout the world. The nuclear energy, which does supply electricity, has radiation. Japan recently had an earthquake. And they are trying to control the radiation from the damage of the earthquake. If the radiation is not controlled, thousands of people may die. I would also like to know how the creation of nuclear weapons came about. And if anyone uses them, how do they get more?
The second topic that interests me is "Popular Science: Bridging the two cultures". (Research idea #4) I would like to learn how science has had an effect on people around the world. I would like to see how people take a liking or disliking to it. One of the books that is on the list of suggestions for this topic is "The tipping point, blink" written by Malcolm Gladwell, asks a lot of questions that may or may not necessarily have an answer. Two of the questions in the book are: "Why do more and more teenagers smoke, when everyone knows cigarettes kill"? And "why is word-of-mouth so powerful"? These are questions that we have been asking ourselves for years. I am interested to see the view that Malcolm Gladwell has on this.
I will most likely choose "The promise of nuclear energy vs. the downside of atomic weapons. I have always had a strong interest in this. I would like to see how nuclear energy is used, how weapons are made and used, and how powerful they are. The creation of nuclear energy is a creation I am very much looking to explore.