Science, engineering and technology

The distinction between science, engineering and technology is not always clear. Science is the reasoned investigation or study of phenomena, aimed at discovering enduring principles among elements of the phenomenal world by employing scientific method. Technologies are not usually exclusively products of science, because they have to satisfy requirements such as utility, usability and safety.

Engineering is the goal-oriented process of designing and making tools and systems to exploit natural phenomena for practical human means, often (but not always) using results and techniques from science. The development of technology may draw upon many fields of knowledge, including scientific, engineering, mathematical, linguistic, and historical knowledge, to achieve some practical result.

Technology is often a consequence of science and engineering — although technology as a human activity precedes the two fields. For example, science might study the flow of electrons in electrical conductors, by using already-existing tools and knowledge. This new-found knowledge may then be used by engineers to create new tools and machines, such as semiconductors, computers, and other forms of advanced technology. In this sense, scientists and engineers may both be considered technologists; the three fields are often considered as one for the purposes of research and reference.

The exact relations between science and technology in particular have been debated by scientists, historians, and policymakers in the late 20th century. In immediate wake of World War II, for example, in the United States it was widely considered that technology was simply " applied science" and that to fund basic science was to reap technological results in due time. An articulation of this philosophy could be found explicitly in Vannevar Bush's treatise on postwar science policy, Science—The Endless Frontier: " New products, new industries, and more jobs require continuous additions to knowledge of the laws of nature... This essential new knowledge can be obtained only through basic scientific research." In the late-1960s, however, this view came under direct attack, leading towards initiatives to fund science for specific tasks. The issue remains contentious—though most analysts resist the model that technology simply is a result of scientific research.

 

Exercise 16. Master the active vocabulary.

distinction – разница

endure – длиться

utility – полезность

usability – пригодность

safety – безопасность

to exploit – разрабатывать

electrical conductor – проводник электрического тока

in this sense – в этом смысле

to reap – пожинать

explicitly – ясно, подробно

treatise – [tri: tiz] – трактат

Exercise 17. Answer the following question:

1. Can we define the distinction between science, engineering and technology?

2. What is engineering?

3. Are technologies exclusively products of science?

4. What does the development of technology depend on?

Exercise 18. Find in the text the English equivalents to the following words and word combinations:

последствие, полупроводник

прикладная наука

отвергать

спорный

удовлетворять требованиям

собирать технологические результаты вовремя

Exercise 19. Find the words with similar meanings:

tool aim

investigation advanced

to involve to create

purpose to decline

to innovate machinery

to resist implement

modern research

equipment to include

contemporary

Exercise 20. Insert the necessary word. Consult the text.

1. Technology is often … of science and engineering.

2. The … knowledge may be used by engineers to create … and machines.

3. Science is the reasoned … or study of phenomena, aimed at discovering enduring principles among elements of the phenomenal world by employing scientific ….

4. In immediate wake of World War II in the United States it was widely considered that technology was simply " … science" and that to fund basic science was to … technological results in due time.

5. The development of … may draw upon many fields of knowledge, including scientific, engineering, mathematical, linguistic, and historical knowledge, to … some practical result.

6. Technologies are not usually exclusively products of science, because they have to satisfy … such as utility, … and safety.

(achieve, technology, to reep, usability, method, consequence, applied,

new-found, requirement, tools, investigation).

 

Exercise 21. Find the meaning of each word.

1. способность	a) opportunity, b) ability, с) difficulty, d) property
2.значение	a)understanding, b) beginning, c) meaning, d) opening
3. повреждать	a) to injure, b) to kill, c) to explode, d) to abolish
4. избегать	a) to threaten, b) to expect, c) to avoid, d) to deserve
5. заслуживать	a) to respect, b) to encourage, c) to occur, d)to deserve
6. выбирать	a) to choose, b) to offer, c) to develop, d) to install
7. выигрывать	a) to grow, b) to need, c) to win, d) to build
8. отмена, упразднение	a) consideration, b) education, с) competition, d) abolition
9. шахта	a) site, b) mine, c) field, d) tube
10. оправдывать	a) to justify, b) to threaten, c) to cause, d)introduce

Exercise 22. Find the synonym of each word.

1. plenty of	a) much, b) little, с) enough, d) few
2. to occur	a) to injure, b) to avoid, c) to happen, d) to justify
3. to make	a) to choose, b) to do, c) to master, d) to win
4. believe	a) to respect b) to abolish, c) to deserve, d) consider
5. to care	a) to like, b) to encourage, c) to govern, d) to use
6.to come back	a) to leave, b) to return, c) to retreat, d) to avoid
7. too	a) while, b) almost, c) again, d) also

Exercise 23. Find the words with similar meanings.

seldom	peace
excellent	to open
plenty of	now
never	busy
useless	to leave
to come back	rich
full	empty
easy	difficult
poor	often
then	usefull
war	always
to close	bad
free	little
to offer	to refuse

Exercise 24. Read and translate the following word combinations into Russian.

to care for children	to have an excellent opportunity
while he was translating the article	to win victory
scientific research work	to be injured at the car accident
to be a famous scientist	to invest the capital into the new fields of industry
it occurred during the war	to master two foreign languages
to come back late	to choose the best translation
to see something with one's own eyes	to avoid driving during rush hours
to think about the meaning of life	the explosion occurred in the old mine
to justify one's hopes	to use explosive materials for the experiment
to find the meaning of the new word	to work in the mine
to be seldom free	the threat of nuclear war
to achieve excellent results	to encourage one's initiative
to be a really good doctor	to respect old people
to have plenty of tree time	to deserve a good mark for the answer
to believe in progress	to win the first prize at the championship

Exercise 25. Play the game.

Word Bingo

Look at the list of words given below. Write down any five words. The teacher is going to read the definitions of all the words in' random order. If you hear the definition of one of the words you have chosen, cross it out. The first student to cross out all the words he or she has chosen calls out “Bingo” and reads the words to prove his/her claim.

Words: foot, language, examination, physics, explanation, mathematics, traffic, invention, history, nature, achievement, time, steam coal, tunnel, sandwich, experience, experiment, speed, accident, clay, science, discovery, railway, problem.

 

Exercise 26. Read the text again and divide it into four parts. Give titles to these parts choosing the most suitable from the list below:

1. The childhood and youth of Alfred Nobel.

2. The career of Alfred Nobel's father.

3. The contrasts in the life of Alfred Nobel.

4. The life ideals of Alfred Nobel.

5. Alfred Nobel as a scientist.

6. Alfred Nobel's will.

7. Nobel prize winners.

 

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