The Rise of Information Age – Science and Technology Essay – HIST 405 American History
The Rise of Information Age – Science and Technology Essay – HIST 405 American History
The Rise of Information Age – Science and Technology
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HIST 405 American History
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The Rise of Information Age – Science and Technology
The 20th century is considered to be the century of science and technology especially in the USA where great advancements made during this period changed the present world in terms of space research, medical facilities and computing. From the period of reaching President Kennedy’s target of taking a man to the moon to technology advancement created by cold war competition, USA became a world power in scientific development. The main focus of this paper will be dedicated to the technical and political challenges of the NASA, innovative technological issues of the Cold War, biotechnology as well as development of the contemporary medicine, computing and internet grounding.
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Technical and Political Dilemmas Faced by NASA in Meeting Kennedy’s Goal
When President John F. Kennedy declared in 1961 that the United States intends to take a man to the Moon before the end of the decade, NASA had to overcome numerous technical and political problems to accomplish this huge task. The technical issues were focused on major problems of scientific and engineering nature that had to be solved (Logsdon, 2011). NASA needed technologies that were out of this world and did not exist. The technologies that could successfully launch the Saturn V rocket far enough into the space to allow the astronauts to travel to that last little bit to get to the Moon. This contest also involved designing a craft that would take astronauts to the Moon and back, safely land on the lunar surface and leave. The space exploration and travel subjected humanity to major challenges such as space navigation, management of the life support systems and the actual physical manner in which the lunar module was to land on the moon’s surface. The Rise of Information Age – Science and Technology Essay – HIST 405 American History.
Politically, NASA came under much pressure because by the time it was formed, the Soviet Union had already embarked on space exploration having put the first artificial satellite in orbit and sending the first man (Yuri Gaggarin) to space. The political importance of showing American’s superiority to the Soviets added to the pressure on NASA. Anything could be considered a national shame, and therefore, the project was not only a scientific one, but also a major political gamble (Lambright, 2010). A truly effective collaboration with politicians on the one hand and internal engineers and scientists on the other, as well as the struggle for support within the Congress, all of was based on the interactions between different governmental bodies and NASA. President Kennedy’s spirited vision was not to bring a new style of living in space. Instead, it was all about the Cold War power game to demonstrate American technology superiority and gain an added advantage (Lambright, 2010).
Technological Advances in Space Exploration and Military Initiatives During the Cold War
The conflict of the Cold War led to very rapid technological development especially in space and defense technologies. The superpowers conducted science for war because both the United States and Soviet Union spent significant portions of their resources on research & development to support their global struggle (MacDonald, 2017). The most dramatic technological advancements of the technological phase of space exploration were the space race that led to the Apollo Moon landings and produced important advancements in rocket propulsion, satellite communication, and material science. All these inventions had a civil space use as well as military purpose.
In the period of the Cold War, military innovations included ICBMs, nuclear submarines and stealth aircraft which required technology (Moltz, 2019). This has made the rocketry innovations that further moved spacecraft to also create missiles that can deliver nuclear warheads at long ranges. Also, it is pertinent to note that official global positioning system (GPS), also known as global positioning satellite, which was invented to help military at this period was one of the most important technological advancements of the period that was later used for public use.
Space exploration was inseparable from military rivalry since both the US and the USSR aimed at proving their tech supremacy. The physical achievement of the Apollo 11 mission in 1969 was a splendid technological feat, which helped maintain the military might position of United States during the Cold War (Moltz, 2019). Aside from geopolitical perspective, the scientific information in the concept of finding out about space also contributed to future technological advancement in telecommunication, meteorology, and remote sensing.
The Role of Civilian Science in Biotechnology and Medical Research
From the mid to late 20th century, civilian science started to be appointed to this position, different from the military push of the Cold War era. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other agencies of the federal government invested in research that would later pay off in genetics, pharma and health care technologies (Corbett et al., 2023). Thus, there was a significant change which was mainly due to a growing understanding of the possibility to enhance public health and quality of life through scientific research.
Among these, the most popular and most dynamically developed in civilian science was biotechnology after DNA structure discovery in 1953. These advancements in the biotechnology revolution included the genetically modified organisms (GMOs), Gene therapy and the direct to the patient, ailment matching medicine (Egbe, 2018). The federal government was involved in funding and also in regulating such research and thanks to them that many scientists have been able to find other treatment and technologies which form the basis of most advanced medical treatment today.
Furthermore, medical research not only concerns a society’s health, but also turned into an economic sector as well. The strengthening of this connection between the National University of Singapore and biotechnology companies contributed to the economic success of the health care and pharmaceutical areas through the development of the industry (Inshakova et al., 2021). Self-generated by civilians and backed by government funding, it made the United States the world’s hub of biotechnology ranging from agriculture to medicine industry.
Technological Advances in the 20th Century and Their Impact on Medicine and Computing
The advancements of the twentieth century further revolutionized the field of medicine in addition to computers as well the advances in the internet. The biggest medical advancement that science was able to bring is the introduction of antibiotics that dramatically changed the way people fought infectious diseases. New technologies like the simple X-rays, CT scan, and MRI machines put into use helped the doctors diagnose and treat diseases or conditions which previously could not even be seen (Pesapane et al., 2018). Vaccines, anesthetics, and surgeries were also crucial in transforming healthcare, thus improving life and life expectancy.
Along with this medical advancement came computers and informatics which are becoming mandatory in research and healthcare fields. The first computer, which includes the ENIAC built during the 1940s, created the basis of the modern computers and the internet at the end of 20th century, the development of personal computer, software technology and networking enabled medical records, online consulting, and computer aided diagnosis systems (Campbell-Kelly et al., 2023). The internet, which was first conceived as an option for military usage as a means of communication, expanded into a vehicle for conveying knowledge across nations, and thus affecting both medicine and science The Rise of Information Age – Science and Technology Essay – HIST 405 American History.
These advances also facilitated the emergence of large-scale medical research capable of using data analysis based on the use of computer systems. For example, the human genome project which was successfully completed in 2003 undergone a computational ability developed in 20th century (Pesapane et al., 2018). This program was the beginning of PHR and gave a new understanding of the genetic foundations of diseases as well as opening the way to individualized treatment.
The United States as a Scientifically Oriented Society
At the end of the 20th century, American society was ranked as one of the most scientifically advanced societies globally. Such a shift was enabled by a large-scale investment into scientific research, growth of the research university model, and strong research culture. Federal government’s support for rethinking on scientific research came through organizations like NASA, National Institute of Health (NIH), and National Science Foundation (NSF) (Lerner et al., 2021). For example, these organizations offered grant to scientists and institutions through the pursuance of many fields including outer Space exploration and Biotechnology among others.
The U.S education system also signed up to the scientific orientation of United States. Every American university turned into one of the world’s leading institutions for scientific research, drawing talent from across the world. Almost all the technological advances of the Information age such as the internet, GPS, and biotechnology were fostered by tripartite collaborations between academic, government, and private sector. Moreover, post-World War II America, the emergence of the Silicon Valley and the concept of new age technology industry put the United States on the scientific map of the world (Routh, 2017). Digital and software giants like Apple, Microsoft, and Google revolutionized computing and communication, and made America the technology capital of the world. This environment of scientific research and technological advancement fostered a society of research and technology innovation and advancement, putting the United States at forefront of science and technology.
Conclusion
In a recap, the technical and the political problems that NASA locked to in the 1960s together with the Cold War technology helped create one period of quick growth that modified both military and the civilian science. In the end of the twentieth century, the bio and medical techs along with computer technologies prepared the setup for today’s scientific society in which the United States had a leading role.
References – The Rise of Information Age – Science and Technology Essay – HIST 405 American History
Campbell-Kelly, M., Aspray, W. F., Yost, J. R., Tinn, H., & Díaz, G. C. (2023). Computer: A history of the information machine. Routledge.
Corbett, P. S., Janssen, V., Lund, J. M., Pfannestiel, T., Vickery, P., & Waskiewicz, S. (2023, July 6). U.S. History. OpenStax, OER Commons. Retrieved January 2, 2024, from https://openstax.org/details/books/us-history
Egbe, N. (2018). BIOTECHNOLOGY REVOLUTION AND POTENTIAL MILITARY APPLICATIONS. Academy Journal of Science and Engineering, 12(1), 73-85.
Inshakova, A. O., Baltutite, I. V., Epifanov, A. E., & Abesalashvili, M. Z. (2021). Biotechnology as a type of converged technologies in industry 4.0 and a source of increased danger in civil law of The Russian Federation. In Modern Global Economic System: Evolutional Development vs. Revolutionary Leap 11 (pp. 1558-1567). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-69415-9_172
Lambright, W. H. (2010). Exploring space: NASA at 50 and beyond. Public Administration Review, 70(1), 151-157. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6210.2009.02119.x
Lerner, R. M., Fisher, C. B., & Weinberg, R. A. (2021). Toward a science for and of the people: Promoting civil society through the application of developmental science. In Individuals as Producers of Their Own Development (pp. 175-190). Routledge. 1st Edition
Logsdon, J. M. (2011). John F. Kennedy’s Space Legacy and Its Lessons for Today. Issues in Science and Technology, 27(3), 29-34. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43315485
MacDonald, A. C. (2017). The long space age: The economic origins of space exploration from Colonial America to the Cold War. Yale University Press.
Moltz, J. C. (2019). The changing dynamics of twenty-first-century space power. Journal of Strategic Security, 12(1), 15-43. https://www.jstor.org/stable/26623076
Pesapane, F., Codari, M., & Sardanelli, F. (2018). Artificial intelligence in medical imaging: threat or opportunity? Radiologists again at the forefront of innovation in medicine. European radiology experimental, 2, 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41747-018-0061-6
Routh, D. K. (2017). The first new nation: The United States in historical and comparative perspective. Routledge.
The Rise of Information Age – Science and Technology Essay – HIST 405 American History
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Introduction
Describe the technical and political dilemmas experienced by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in its efforts to meet Kennedy’s goal of putting an astronaut on the Moon before the end of the 1960s.
Assess technological advances during the Cold War in space exploration and military initiatives.
Differentiate how civilian science led to the prominence of biotechnology and other medical research from the government.
Examine how the technological advances in the 20th century revolutionized medical science and opened the way for computers and the internet.
Distinguish how the United States during the 20th century became one of the most scientifically oriented societies in the world today.
Conclusion
The Rise of Information Age – Science and Technology Essay – HIST 405 American History
