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INTRODUCTION TO SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES

Excerpts from an article by Roger Posadas

Distinctions Between Science and Technology (Definition)
Science
dynamic, cumulative systems of verifiable concepts, principles, methods, laws, theories, and processes
which seek to describe, understand, and predict natural phenomena
Technology
dynamic, cumulative system of reproducible methods, techniques, and processes which may be derived
from empirical know-how or scientific knowledge and which are used by human societies for the
production, improvement, and distribution of goods and services as well as for the satisfaction of other
material needs

Science
Aim: seeks to discover the workings of nature
--- concerned with know-why
result of a scientific activity: new knowledge = usually published as a scientific paper
Technology
Aim: seeks to invent new or improved tools and materials (hardware) or better ways of doing things
(software)
--- concerned with know-how
result of a technological activity: new product or process = usually appropriated in the form of a patent
and commercially exploited

Scientists
knowledge-oriented
Do Research
A scientist or practitioner of science is one who is actively engaged in generating new knowledge, as
distinguished from a scholar or professor of science who merely studies or teaches science.
Technologists
product-oriented or process-oriented
Do experimental development

Research
the process through which scientists attempt to discover new scientific knowledge
often symbolized by the letter R
Experimental Development
the process in which technologists utilize research findings or empirical know-how in order to devise new
or improved products or processes (ex. fabrication of prototypes, the stage of pilot-plant testing, and the
various pre-investment studies needed to ascertain the technical, economic, and social feasibility of the
new product or process)
Often symbolized by the letter D

Scientific and Technological Services (STS)
cover a mixed group of activities which collect, store, process, package, and disseminate scientific and
technological information or provide other auxiliary services in support of research, experimental
development, and technological innovation (refers to the process of assessing, selecting, evaluating,
designing, adapting, testing, implementing, producing, and utilizing, and diffusing a new technology)
Included among STS are the following:
(a) Scientific Library --- Information and Documentation, Translation Services
(b) Scientific Testing --- Analysis, Calibration, Instrumentation, Standards, Quality-Control, and
Computing Services
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(c) Scientific Observation --- Surveying, Mapping, and Monitoring of the Environment and Natural
Resources
(d) Scientific and Technological Collections ---Museums, Exhibitions, and Gardens
(e) Scientific and Technological Assessment ---Extension, Consultancy, Advisory, Counseling, and
Patent Services
(f) General-Purposes --- Data Collection and Statistical Compilation.

Additional related terms to S & T
Science Education refers to the teaching of science and mathematics at the primary and secondary level.
Its principal aims are :
(a) the inculcation of scientific values, attitudes, and outlook as prerequisites to the development of a
scientific culture,
(b) the propagation of the scientific method and critical thinking, and
(c) the transmission of basic scientific concepts, ideas, and principles needed for attaining some
basic degree of scientific literacy.

Scientific Education and Training refers to the education and training at the university level of basic and applied
scientists as well as science teachers.

Technological Education and Training refers to the education and training at the university level of professional
engineers, R & D engineers, and other technologists.

Technical Education and Training refers to the education and training of technicians and technical teachers.

Scientific and Technological Popularization refers to the promotion of science consciousness among the general
public through popular media presentations of scientific and technological wonders, science books and magazines
for laymen, science fairs, etc.

Interrelationship of Science and Technology
In past centuries:
science and technology developed separately and independently with only occasional, weak, but
symbiotic interactions between them
Nowadays:
much of modern advanced technology have depended so much on the recent findings of modern science
thus modern technology can be rightly called applied science
In turn, modern scientific research has become heavily dependent on the latest technological hardware
and software
In the current scientific and technological revolution, the time interval between scientific discovery and
technological utilization has been steadily decreasing: it is nowadays estimated to be about a year or two

Disciplines of Science and Technology
Basic Sciences or Natural and Mathematical Sciences:
BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
CHEMISTRY
EARTH SCIENCES
PHYSICS
MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES
Applied Sciences or Technological Sciences:
AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES
ENGINEERING SCIENCES
MEDICAL SCIENCES


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Various Aspects and Types of Technology
Technology - is the system of know-how, skills, techniques, and processes which enable societies to produce,
distribute, install, maintain, or improve goods and services needed to satisfy human needs.
------ It may be embodied in either a material form (i.e., machineries, equipment, tools, factories, structures, and
other hardware) or an informational form (i.e., patents, blueprints, diagrams, formulae, and other software).

1.) Operative technology
A technology which gets implemented and utilized
2 kinds: static aspect - refers to the know-how and skills which permit its possessor to execute the
technologys routine operations (e.g. key-punching, typing, welding, metal-pressing, casting, etc.)
and dynamic aspect - refers to the know-how and skills which endow its possessor with a comprehension
of the scientific principles underlying the technology and thus with a capacity to develop and design an
improved version of the technology

2.) Advanced Technologies, Frontier Technologies, or High Technologies
the modern, sophisticated technologies
began to develop since the 1950s out of modern research findings in the basic sciences
Ex. solid-state electronics, computers, cryogenics, lasers, polymers, genetic engineering, materials science,
nuclear fission power, nuclear fusion power, space technology, oceanic technology, automation, robotics,
etc.
3.)Appropriate Technologies, Intermediate Technologies, or Alternative Technologies
technologies which are low-cost, low-level in complexity, small scale, labor-intensive, suited to local
materials and skills, designed for decentralized and renewable energy sources, and oriented towards rural
industries ( These terms have gained prominence in recent years in the context of Schumachers book,
Small Is Beautiful.)
In a rural setting, appropriate technologies would be intermediate between a carabao-drawn plow and a
tractor

Technological Innovation
the process by which R & D results are applied, implemented, utilized, and diffused.
a complicated process requiring considerable human, material, and financial resources. -------- the
magnitude or expenditure on innovation is usually much greater (by at least ten times) than the amount
spent on R & D
not an automatic consequence of R & D --- results more from the pull of national development needs or
of market requirements rather than from the push of scientific discoveries or technical inventions.

The need for technological innovation may arise in response to either of the following:
(a) market opportunities or requirements at the business enterprise level; or
(b) national development goals and objectives ( or missions ) at the government level

Prerequisites of technological innovation:
1.) clear and concrete delineation and prioritization of objectives and needs, whether at the national or enterprise
level------- social, economic, or political objectives and needs should be translated into a set of specific S & T
objectives, targets, and requirements
2.) availability of an adequate pool of resources -- human, infrastructural, informational, and financial -- which can
be mobilized to carry out the process of technological innovation. Attributes of these resources : scientific and
technological potential, entrepreneurial and managerial capabilities, financial resources, infrastructure for
production and distribution, and international resources.
3.) technological innovation strategy = specifies the ways and means through which the resources ought to be
harnessed in pursuit of the selected objectives
*These three prerequisites thus entail the formulation of a national science and technology plan at the
government level or an equivalent plan at the enterprise level.

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----Such a plan is essentially an attempt to formulate a coherent set of answers to the following questions:
(a) What are the scientific and technological components (or required S & T inputs) of the selected socio-
economic objectives?
(b) What are the optimal ways and means of harnessing scientific and technological resources in order to
attain these objectives?
(c) What are the scientific and technological resources that ought to be developed in order to insure an
adequate supply of needed S & T inputs?

Two Modes of Technological Innovation
Domestic Generation and Utilization of New Technology
process in which scientific knowledge is locally developed and applied through the sequence of
research --- experimental --- development --- engineering --- production or implementation --- diffusion

Importation and Assimilation of Operative Technology
process of technology transfer, whereby an operative technology developed elsewhere is
transplanted into the country through commercial or other channels.
transfer of technology = transplanting an operative technology from one social/economic/political/ cultural
setting to a different one

Accdg to UNESCO:
vertical transfer of technology = domestic generation of technology
horizontal transfer of technology = importation of an operative technology
inappropriate because what is involved in this process is not a mere displacement or relocation of a
technology, as the word transfer connotes, but a qualitative transformation of knowledge from usable
knowledge into used knowledge, from science to technology

Channels and Types of Technology Transfer
(a) Non-commercial Transfer - These are transfers of technical expertise, information, or equipment through
bilateral or multilateral S & T assistance and cooperation programs

(b) Commercial Transfers - These are transfers carried out through contractual arrangements with
transnational corporations (TNCs) and other commercial firms.

Main types of commercial transfer of technology from HDCs to LDCs are the following:
(a) Sale by HDC firms of machineries, equipment, tools, and accessories to LDCs through marketing
agreements with LDC agents and distributors;
(b) Sale by HDC firms of complete industrial plants to LDCs on a turnkey basis;
(c) Lease by HDC firms of their operative technologies to LDC firms for the manufacture of foreign-brand
products under a licensing agreement;
(d) Direct investment of a TNC in an LDC through the establishment of an LDC subsidiary of the TNC;
(e) Entering of a TNC into a joint venture with an LDC firm; and
(f) Sale by HDC firms of technical services to LDCs through service contracts or management contracts.

TNC Constraints to Technology Transfer
(a) Concentration of all R & D in their parent company based in an HDC;
(b) Restriction of the know-how transferred to an LDC to the static aspect of the technology;
(c) Distribution of the manufacture of product components among several LDCs to prevent a single
LDC from acquiring the complete technology;
(d) Closed-door manufacturing of a high-technology product within free trade zones in an LDC to
prevent absorption and diffusion of advanced technologies;
(e) Attempt to obtain monopoly and then monosony on the national market in an LDC.

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Costs of Commercial Technology Transfer
Direct Costs:
(a) Expenses incurred in acquiring the necessary technical know-how at the pre-investment,
investment, and operational stages of the commercial transfer
(b) Payments for patents, manufacturing licenses, trademarks, etc.
Indirect Costs:
(a) Outflow of foreign currency due to overpricing by TNC subsidiaries of imports of intermediary
products, spare parts, and equipment
(b) Outflow of foreign currency due to repatriation by TNC subsidiaries of their profits to the TNC
parent
(c) Indirect costs arising from contractual restrictions by TNCs on the export of products by their
subsidiaries
(d) Indirect costs arising from accounting manipulations of TNC subsidiaries which enable them to
minimize payment of local taxes or customs duties
(e) Indirect costs of various other inputs, resources, and expertise linked to commercial transactions
of technology transfer with TNCs
(f) Indirect costs entailed by the stifling of domestic technological innovations and the perpetuation of
technological dependence on TNCs.

Measures to Reduce Costs of Technology Transfer
(a) Unpackaging
(b) Unbundling
(c) Alternative Sourcing