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S&T - Coggle Diagram

- - - - Potential source for regenerative medicine
      - Cures developed for many diseases
    - - Many attempts required
      - Destruction of embryo is controversial
      - Fear of leading into reproductive cloning of humans
  - - - Allow for potential donors to be created to help children suffering from genetic diseases.
      - Allows babies to be born free of hereditary genetic diseases and hence better QOL
      - Provide child with head start in life
    - - There is a possible violation of the sanctity of life
      - Should scientists tamper with nature?
      - Should scientists play God (i.e. total control of genetics)?
      - Devalues meaning of parenthood (child is treated as a consumer good)
      - Demean each individual's uniqueness
      - Drastically reduce human genetic variation, increasing vulnerability of human race
      - Increased social inequality
      - Raises the spectre of eugenics (the idea of improving humans by allowing only particular people to produce children)
  - - - Embryonic (pluripotent; easy to grow)
      - Adult (limited; rare)
  - - - Bt-corn
      - GM Salmon
      - Golden Rice
      - CRISPR-Cas9 Pigs
      - GM Turtles
    - - Much is unknown
      - Food allergies
      - Non-mandatory labelling of GM food
      - Big companies using GM crops
  - - - Inaccuracy
      - Privacy violation risk
      - Genetic profiling & labelling
      - Sanctity of life violated when genetically-abnormal embryos are destroyed
  - - - Cruel and unnecessary experiments on animals without regard for the emotions and rights of the animal subjects.
      - The idea of human-animal hybrids is abhorred as "unnatural" as it violates/blurs the boundaries between species.
    - - "Knockout Mice"
      - Sheep producing therapeutic protein
      - Glow-in-the-dark worms
      - Green protein in cats
      - Neuro-degenerative diseases in monkeys
      - Stem cell and human disease research in pigs
      - Xenotransplantation
    - - Helps scientists better understand the cause of diseases and how to cure them, thereby potentially saving millions of lives and alleviating suffering.
      - Human welfare should, arguably, take precedence over animal rights.
  - - - Deal with world hunger using longer-lasting foods
      - Slow ageing
      - Reduce environmental footprint via clean energy usage
      - Fabrication of new materials for clothing, plastics & construction
      - Combat debilitating & rare diseases genetically
  - - - Provides opportunities for long-term sustained research to develop a cure and provides the patient with a fighting chance to combat his/her disease.
      - (for comatose patients) There is always hope that the patient may miraculously wake up one day, or may benefit from a new cure n the future
      - Provides more time to be with one's loved ones or pursue interests/goals which one had neither the time nor resources to pursue when young
    - - Emotional and financial burden on families of patients
      - Blurring vital distinctions between natural death, euthanasia and suicide
      - Prolonging death and denying the patient the dignity of death, for the brain-dead
      - Prolonging pain and suffering for those suffering from severe diseases
      - Maintaining hope at the end of life is very important, but managing expectations and changing outlooks so that this hope is focused towards quality of life, not just quantity of life, might mean that more people get the good death they deserve.
  - - - Artificial Insemination: Specially-prepared sperm put directly into uterus
      - IVF: Fertilisation occurs outside, embryo put into womb
      - Fertility Meds
      - Surrogacy: Another woman carries & gives birth to a baby for the couple who wants to have a child.
  - - - Active & Passive
      - Voluntary & In- & Non-
      - Direct & In-
  - - - Immune system interference, decreased effectiveness
      - Adverse reactions to reformation of virus from viral vectors used in therapy
      - Too specialised, hard to treat disorders affected by many genes
      - Insertional mutagenesis risk, risk inducing tumour growth
      - Short-lived, requires multiple treatments
      - Viability questioned, tampering with nature
- - - - For: Helps engineer pest-resistant plants with short harvest time, alleviating world hunger
      - Against: Health concerns (allergy, side effect), inadequate testing
      - GM Crops (See "GMOs")
    - - For: Empowering common people (Youtube; Arab Spring)
      - Counter: Cannot actualise event if people are unwilling to participate / tight control (Great Firewall of China)
      - For: Increased access to info & knowledge to improve SOL (Health Internetwork)
      - Counter: Platform of self-radicalisation (SS)
  - - - Vaccines and drugs to prolong life
      - Stem Cell Research
      - Many tools and procedures to alleviate health problems
    - - Controversies with Stem Cell Research
      - Many hidden dangers to using possibly unknown tech
  - - - Wind: >341k turbines ard globe
      - Solar: 1kW system eliminates 135kg CO2 emissions
      - Hydroelectric: Lower cost option (cheaper than fossil fuels)
      - Nuclear: Touted most efficient alternative energy source
    - - Wind: Unreliable due to unpredictability, areas near Equator do not receive much wind
      - Solar: (Initially) High installation costs, Low efficiency (22%)
      - Hydroelectric: Problematic construction of plant and related infrastructure (Three Gorges Dam)
      - Nuclear: Radioactive waste and large-scale disasters (Chernobyl 1986; Fukushima 2011)
  - - - More integrated community due to easier info sharing (s. media)
      - More convenient for indiv. and companies to communicate globally without need for travel
      - Proliferation of transportation tech facilitated travel and enhanced accessibility and connectivity
    - - Health diseases and obesity now pervasive problems in many well-developed countries than in the past
      - Traditional social relationships broken down, indiv. increasingly self-absorbed in internet lives
      - Automated physically active jobs, increased sedentary lifestyle
      - Often unregulated social media websites
  - - - For: Creation of new jobs in pharmaceutical, medical, research, and biotech fields
      - For: Heavy govt investment in nurturing talented indivs (A*STAR)
      - Counter: Job creation limited to above industries; S&T devt led to decline of manufacturing, port services, low-skilled jobs
    - - For: WFH via video-conferencing, internet, virtual office
      - Against: WFH decreases social interactions in physical office
      - For: Improved telecom tech
      - Against: Blurred lines between work and home, deteriorating work-life balance
  - - - Increased monitoring of places & cheaper way to deter crimes (CCTV)
      - Realisation of an armed force that can fight decisively and swiftly with few casualties (drone, 4G SAF)
    - - Criminals may use surveillance cameras to monitor the public
      - Storage of extensive personal info online raises security & privacy infringement issues (online crimes & fraud)
      - Removes human elements of compassion & guilt from violence and conflict, making killing "easier"
      - Rise of cyber warfare (SingHealth Attack)
      - Unable to account for human errors and tech glitches
  - - - Universal Law of Gravitation
      - Theory of Plate Tectonics
      - Big Bang Theory
      - Darwin's Evolution and Natural Selection Theory
      - Hubble's Law of Cosmic Expansion
      - Germ Theory of Disease
    - - Scientific revolutions take a long time to happen because of the reluctance of experts to accept seemingly foreign alternative theories
      - Example: Copernican Revolution took 200 years
- - - - The systematic study of structure & behaviour of physical & natural world through observation & experiment.
    - - The application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes.