TECHONOLOGY AND SCIENCE
THE TECHONOLOGY AND SCIENCE OF WAR 8
Research Paper: The technology and Science of War
Princess K. Nyarko
Running head: THE TECHONOLOGY AND SCIENCE OF WAR 1
Hawaii Pacific University
Abstract
In search of high technology, biological advancement had a closer and closer relationship with the strategies of power in the twentieth century. In 1970, a high technological breakthrough reinforced the war relation of science and completely overpassed the traditional biology manipulation of genetically recombined pathogenic agents. The biotechnology revolution began with a new approach to the military and political science. From this point on a scene came a new standard of war as well as new challenges to international health and new concepts for life science. This paper is meant to present the mechanism of connection between science and power and to understand how the military field is investing in biotechnological development to produce technologies and bioweapons that can be used in war.
Introduction
With respect to science and technology, the main outcome of WWI was the development of weapons, which was never known before in the result of unprecedented rationalization of production. Anyhow the historical research has focused on more concrete outcomes such as inventions and development tanks, submarines, planes, cameras and lenses, wireless radio transmission, or on the development of scientist’s political consciousness and the role of science in propagandas (Lehmann & Morselli, 2016). For example, the famous 1914 manifesto of German scientists “A die Kulturwelt”, signed by 93 dominant intellectuals of that time, was completely ignored during the inventions in WWII like short-range rockets, radar technologies, and atomic bombs compared to this, WWI did not result in exceptional inventions like these.
Major research issues
Industrial mass production and the logistical supply was the key to win any war. Here at the production level, the significant impacts of science in war can be researched. From a general perspective, Germany was the most advanced country before WWI scientifically; their scientists had developed an organized industry of their scientific output. Which eventually is very beneficial in the times of war. Due to war, the shared European intellectual’s community broke into pieces. The German science became isolated as well as with Russia where due to the outbreak of war, communication and collaboration with colleagues from the belligerent nation was broken until the end of civil war in 1920; the allies were able to maintain their scientific collaboration, and they expanded it to make institutions. The priority after the WWI was to rebuild the network of international scientific collaboration, which was done by the foundation of institutes like the International Research Council and the Union Academies International in 1919, and which followed a long-term policy of exclusion of Germany (Lehmann & Morselli, 2016). This development led to a shift of power and strength within the scientific network, resulting in the increase of the position of the US, which rises as the leading scientific power during WWI, and Germany completely losing its dominant position in the scientific field.
To characterize the development of the network between science, the military, and the industry, biographical sources of the persons involved as well as the documentation on the institutions between science and military during and after the war must be studied. While diaries, letters, journals, and memories can be used to research the networks of individual scientists, to get information on the development of the scientific-military-industrial-complex the records of the institutions found during and after the war can be researched (Lehmann & Morselli, 2016). Named Entity Recognition and the visualization of most common persons provided in CENDARIs Note Taking Environment tools can help researchers understand the developments within the networks.
War Histories and the role of science
In the field of International collaboration and the role of transnational agencies in financing inventions, the idea and instruments, the movement of people and material across national borders have been a constant topic. These movements did not begin with the Cold War, but previous methods do not match the level of international collaboration and involvement. Now, in the local configuration of Cold War scientific practices played out in the global movement of knowledge between West-East and North-South. Global and bi-polar tensions cannot properly explain all research carried out during this period. Collaboration and International aid in developments program played a key role. East-West and North-South relationships were equally politically charged during the Cold War. In these times, the use of nuclear technologies has been one of the main development policy points and has been recognized by all parts of the world involved.
Initiating science and technology programs around the world, the Atoms for Peace programs played a key role. The IAEA played an important role in establishing a connection between nuclear science producers and consumers, primarily third world countries. The Geneva Conference on the Peaceful Use of Atomic Energy in 1955 was a landmark in this regard. (Suárez-Díaz, Mateos, & Barahona, 2015). All these exchanges were negotiated directly or indirectly in the papers of this case by Cold War concerns, especially dangers and uses of radiation and radioisotopes.
Science and technology under siege
There were a time people reduced the persons who misrepresented facts, but those days are gone (Berghel, 2017). Apparently, society has developed an extreme tolerance for such frauds, misrepresentation, and humbug from politicians, commercial media personalities, group think-tank spokesperson, and other misinformation.
Dual use of biotechnology
Familiarization with the structure and dynamics of the modern world system where the fight for technological and scientific power is inserted is necessary to understand the dual use of biotechnology. The paths of civilization and society technology from the five major continents developed in a different time and formed diversity in the world. Merging societies and causing their technological development wars and their threats played a very fundamental role. For the issue of conquest, centralized political organization along with technological innovation and diffusion were fundamental. The studies by McNeil7 shows that in the search for power deep transformation, the discovery of the gunpowder in China in the 10th century until the 15th century, was where fire guns arrived in the western world and improved warfare.
The study of kennedy9 shows us that the coalition financial and military powers of the state are the key in the modern world system and that this system is made up of states with more power and states with less power. The states with more power are also called “Great Powers” in political, international and economic fields. These states do not only hold financial and military powers but also technological powers as well. Natural dynamics caused by technological and economic aspects affect the political system, social structures, the status, and the military power of states in the world system. Holding high technologies by Great Powers is the evidence to increase their military strength. The main purpose is to become strong and rich at the same time within the system and be able to threaten and start a war, to proclaim peace and to be victorious.
According to the studies in the rise and fall of empires, technological innovation has always had a power of decision and those who could not follow high scientific development fell in the rank of world power and as a result lost their power. Fiore says there has been an endless war race which has never stopped since the world emerged. The reason is that the world system’s great powers compete with each other, forcing the nations to be ready for war every time with high technology, expanding their national people’s potential for peace and security .War in the world system is a continuous possibility, the origin of the threat and an essential component of the strategic measure of power (Almeida, 2015). To have power in hand and to safeguard its place in the world system is fundamental for the state to continuously develop their technologies. For the military use of biological developments, this is the way to understand the strategic field.
The big science
In the political-military field of science, the term Big Science is used. It aims at preparing and implementing research projects dedicated to world scientific leadership and war. The structure of military-industrial-academic complex, also known as an integral political-operational institutional system capable of responding to state projects. The reason for this complex is to develop a science for the manufacture of high-tech weapons. The state supports its dynamics through an articulated system of strategic research for new weapons (higher arms). This a concept which overlooks the construction of radical weaponry and sophisticated arm with the help of political-military strategies. Higher arms have all the strategic secret and modern knowledge. And this secret is the end-product of Big Science (Almeida, 2015). For the field of biotechnology, biotechnologies of the finest generation represented by this end-product.
The biology races
Biological war has continued over thousands of years and studies trace it back to Fifteenth Century B.C. Colonists and Imperialists treated diseases as a strategy in the fight for power who used them to conquer territories. The science of microbiology was the cause of the discovery pathogenic microorganisms and ultimately the dual use of science along with the perspective of curing diseases of that time. The nuclear bomb and chemical weapons have been the most powerful weapons of mass destruction since the end of the Second World War. (Almeida, 2015). However, due to its complex characteristic variable dissemination in the air, biological weapons are the ones with the most potential for destruction
Evidence related to science and world war
After WWI, expectations of the natural sciences were significantly raised by powerful groups in society. For developments in technology, and consequently, in the economy and society, scientific research became a promise. These expectations were not new before the war. Scientific research was used to answer practical technological problems but during the war, scientists were only focused on military-related research only. The significant success of military research proved that science and research could be of practical value for technology and society, as well as military. Benefits of science were economic and technological growth, but there is also a threat from its wrong use and from its use by the enemy. Especially at the International level, the threat of competition was strong (Katzir, 2017). Increase in science funding and the establishment of government, commercial and military institutions for the use of science and its technological applications were the result of the promise and threat alike.
The risk and potential of science
From Industrial technologies, other challenges also arose, such as methods from the 19th century machine building techniques were not based on scientific knowledge. Trenches were effective defense tactics made by the machine guns and barbed wire that resulted in the death of millions. Both sides planed new techniques to purge the trenches. Some of these, like the sound ranging techniques and poison gas, were based on science. On the other hand, tanks were the more traditional method of the invention. The submarine was another pre-war industrial technology which was a threat to the allied powers. This threat led to a major research project of detecting objects underwater involving many scientists in those countries.
Due to war, there was also a shortage of industrial products and raw materials on both sides due to the blockage of supply routes and increasing demand for materials to make explosives. This was one of the biggest challenges of that time to substitute materials, which were used in peace for civil and military authorities especially for Central powers who called for scientists for help. Countries responded differently to this challenge in terms of pace and scope but shared the same general trend. For example, the French, for technological work were quick to mobilize scientists. Norman started working on sound ranging in October 1914 (Katzir, 2017). A few organizations were established in France to employee scientists. Technologies like Radio communication was also improved with the help of mathematician Paul Pain Leve and recruited scientists.
Science’s new role in the war strength
High expectations from science begun from late 19th century developments in technology and science, especially in chemistry and physics; which led many technology experts to consider science as necessary for advancements in practical methods and devices. The chemical and electrical industries were science-based industries to a large extent and were co-conceived by most contemporaries. However, many people in the industry thought that for technological developments, scientific knowledge was enough. According to this point of view, inventory and engineers should have access to scientific knowledge, but its holders considered further research was unnecessary. For the development of industry, techno-scientific education was given more importance but the value of original research for development in technology held in doubt.
The policy changed with long duration of the war. Many scientists were preparing for research and development in war-related technologies. This changed to create two main factors. One, was the unexpectedly long duration of the war and the fact that it would continue for a long time. This fact made research relevant to the current need of that time; but urgent technological challenges put immense pressure in civil and military organizations. Science-based technologies originated some of these challenges. Gas warfare and wireless communication are the two most important examples in this regard. A more urgent challenge raised by poison gases of developing a prevention method against this frightful weapon (Katzir, 2017). With technologies like poison gases, science was much more of a threat than a promise. Still, while science-based technologies produced problems, scientific-technological research found a way to cop the threat of gasses.
Conclusion
To conclude, the expectations that science would foster technological development and consequently economic growth, as already conceived by Francis Bacon and enhanced by developments in science and technology in the late 19th century, contributed to the use of science and scientists in WWI-related military research. This experience persuaded a large and dominant group of decision-makers that natural science investment promised material and practical gains. Scientists and science advocates overcame opposition to investing substantial resources in conducting original research. The research was a promise for further technological developments, not just scientific education and existing knowledge. In line with these expectations, scientists and the scientific effort enjoyed increasing importance as well as funding. However, expectations and money changed science as well. It turned to societal needs in larger portions, which often meant applied research. Some fields received more attention than others and more funds. Scientific research has gained more resources and more prestige from scientists, but they have also lost some autonomy.
References
Almeida, M.E.d. (2015). The permanent relation between biology, power and war: The dual use of the biotechnological development. Ciencia & saude coletiva, 20(7), 2255-2266.
Berghel, H. (2017). The new science wars. Computer, 50(11), 72-76.
Katzir, S. (2017). “In war or in peace:” the technological promise of science following the first world war. Centaurus, 59(3), 223-237.
Lehmann, J., & Morselli, F. (2016). Science and technology in the first world war.
Suárez-Díaz, E., Mateos, G., & Barahona, A. (2015). Across borders: Science and technology during the cold war: An introduction. Dynamis, 35(2), 271-278.
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