Activity 1 for STS

Submitted by: Melea Kristine C. Rosal

BSMLS 1C

Submitted to: Adam Renz T. Sullaga

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION (SKILLS CHECKLIST)

Answer the following in MS Word/ in written format:

1. Give 3 other major scientific and technological developments in the world (or in the
Philippines) that created a large impact on your daily life.
Pen is a general name for a writing tool that uses liquid pigment to leave a mark on the
surface. This liquid pigment is ink. Pens use ink to write on the surface and are ancient
writing tools. I do think that this is one of the inventions that are now underappreciated
by society nowadays especially it has been around in evolution since Neolithic Era. It
creates a large impact on my life since I write my feelings, thoughts and experiences a
lot in closed pages than speak out loud in the public. My pen collection had been my
comforter whenever I have thoughts in mind to write or even solving the problem
equations I had in Mathematics or Chemistry.
Mobile phones are telephones with access to a cellular radio system so it can be used
over a wide area, without a physical connection to a network whereas the Internet is a
global network of computers that works much like the postal system, only at sub-second
speeds. Just as the postal service that enables people to send one another envelopes
containing messages, the Internet enables computer and mobile phones to send one
another small packets of digital data. To dream of having mobile phones is a euphoric
moment for late adolescents like me. It just doesn’t enter you communication but also
showcases you to different entertainments like social media apps accompanied by the
internet especially when owning smart phones. I do think that mobile phones and
internet had created a large impact on my life on complete different sides. Indeed, it
does give you the free ticket to social sites to share and communicate with and a
humongous source of knowledge to visit whenever you like to be curious about. Yes, we
do have these advantages yet on a negative note, it brings emotional damage when you
are targeted by its netizens. Also internet, if used dependently and carelessly, chances
are it will encourage timid and laziness of people to easily copy and paste without giving
the author its proper credits. Nevertheless, these technological advancements should be
used properly to function on its right purpose.
2. What historical antecedents give rise to the inventions you mentioned in the first
question?
The first people to invent the pen as a basic tool to write were the ancient Egyptians.
The oldest piece of writing in papyrus dates back to 2000 BC. This evidence suggests
that they were the first to create a tool that allowed rhem to make their language tangible
and permanent. History of pens starts in Ancient Egypt where scribes, trying to find
replacement for styluses and writing in clay, invented reed pens. These pens were made
from a single reed straw that is pointed at one end and with a slit that led the ink to the
point and left the mark on the papyrus. This pen was too rigid and its point didn’t last
long. Because of that people started using quills - pens made from molted flight feathers
of large birds. These pens were also made by making a point at thicker end but feathers
were cured before the use and could maintain the point longer. They were popular in the
Western World from the 6th to the 19th century until steel pens appeared. Metal nibs for
dip pens were used in Ancient Rome but were not popular until they were mass
produced in 19th century. Pens with reservoirs were known since 10th century but were
not widely used. In 17th century, inventor Daniel Schwenter made a pen made from two
quills that held the ink inside instead of being dipped into inkwell. The first fountain pens
appeared in 19th century in France and revolutionized writing because they made much
less mess and didn’t have to be dipped in inkwell all the time. End of the 19th century
saw also the first ballpoint pen which was, when modernized, even more practical and
cheaper than fountain pen. The first fiber or felt-tipped pen was invented in Japan in
1960s and it later developed into marker pen and highlighter which work on the similar
principle. After that, in the 1970s, was invented rollerball pen, which is similar to ballpoint
pen but uses water-based inks while ballpoint uses oil-based

The history of mobile phones goes back to 1908 when a US Patent was issued in
Kentucky for a wireless telephone. Mobile phones were invented as early as the 1940s
when engineers working at AT&T developed cells for mobile phone base stations. The
very first mobile phones were not really mobile phones at all. In 1997, Philips introduces
an early attempt at a digital “smart phone”. The unit called “The Synergy” provided
wireless access to email, internet and faxes.

The ARPA-Net gave rise to the internet. It was designed and implemented by DARPA,
the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, who called it the Advanced Research
 Projects Agency Network. It was this system which later became what was known as the
Internet.

3. How did the developments in science and technology shape human history?
Science and technology have had a major impact on society, and their impact is
continually growing. By drastically changing our means of communication, the way we
work, our housing, clothes, and food, our methods of transportation, and, indeed, even
the length and quality of life itself, science has generated changes in the moral values
and basic philosophies of mankind. Beginning with the plow, science has changed how
we live and what we believe. Who would have thought that a single straw seed and quills
would be painted in history as writing equipments and now, known of which we used
daily today as pens? What would be our situation if the internet and mobile phones are
not invented and improved in the latter decades? For sure, no people would have the
chance to indulge in the comfort of communication and discover a wide source of
knowledge for references. By making life easier, science has given man the chance to
pursue societal concerns such as ethics, aesthetics, education, and justice; to create
cultures; and to improve human conditions. However, it has also placed us in the unique
position of being able to destroy ourselves, if and only not in proper use.

REFERENCES:
 Burke, J. et al. (1985). The Impact of Science on Society. Retrieved at:
https://www.google.com/url?
sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://history.nasa.gov/sp482.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwj0
p4ScrLvqAhVDb30KHfa8BXEQFjADegQIDBAJ&usg=AOvVaw3SHRgYrttRMON
_RNI_6evY
 Contributor Writer for www.historyofpencils.com. Published Date/Year Unknown.
 Contributor Writer for History of Mobile Phones and the first mobile phone.
(2020). Retrieved at: https://www.uswitch.com/mobiles/guides/history-of-mobile-
phones/amp/
 Contributor Writer for What is the Internet. (2012). Retrived at: www.bbc.co.uk
 Madison, S. (2018). What Historical Antecedents gave rise to the Internet?
Retrieved at www.quora.com