Technologies et évolution (en anglais)

I'm going to talk about the idea of progress.To begin with, I'd like to state the definition of progress.Progress is the idea that the world can become increasingly better in terms of science, technology, modernization, liberty, democracy, quality of life, etc.But still the issue is debated among the conscious people whether progress is blessing or it is a curse for humanity.Let us discuss how science can serves humanity and how it can harm it.

First of all, progress can improve a lot the human condition, be it at the social, economic or political level.In an article called "The power of big ideas", published in 1999 in Newsweek Magazine, scientists and other thinkers nominate what they consider the most important invention of the last two thousand years.Printing press is one of them.In my opinion, I think also it is a very important breakthrought because it has greatly favoured the developpement of democracy.Indeed, it has made the books public and therefore permitted mass literacy and exchange of ideas.

In more recent times, we can say the computer is another capital invention for progress.It has profundly disrupted our everyday lives.For example, we can have a instantaneous discussion with a friend thousand of miles from our home.This is fantastic, isn't this?Also, we can access any information at the touch of a button from almost any location.Finally, we could mentionned progress in medicine that are not the least significant ones.Thus, the discovery of many useful drugs and vaccines permitted to save millions of lives.In fact, it is practically impossible to be exhaustive concerning all the advantages that progress has provided to the mankind.

So, New technologies in general have improved our living conditions nevertheless, yet science's progress also raises some issues.

Indeed, the fruits of progress may be used for bad purposes.One of the best example is the atomic bomb.Developped with the help of modern scientific methods, it can finish this world of ours in an instant.The world has seen the illustration of two Japanese cities, Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Another example of potential dangers of progress is genetics engineering.The use of cloning and some genetic manipulations would have disastrous social consequences.Parents would tend to engineer children to conform to social norms, with regard to physical ability, appearance and aptitudes, even though many of these social norms are inherently oppressive.Moreover, it would make people intolerant for disabled people or the least imperfection.It's not unreminiscent of nazi eugenic policies.Also techno-eugenics may make the human species, like other species, the object of the manipulative control of technocratic elites.That is exactly what is happening in the Brave New World by Aldous Huxley!I don't know about you, but me I don't want to see clone or formatted individuals.I like too much the particularity of each humans for that..

In closing, I will address a last drawback of progress.The increasing use of technology made us to lose contact with nature.Nowadays, unlike their parents, youngs are spending more times inside than outside, playing video games, watching tv, chatting on the internet.In the same way, it is reducing the instances of contact with others: people have often more virtual relationships than real-life ones.

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