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Books > Science & Mathematics > Science: general issues > Impact of science & technology on society
Medical care and biomedical research are rapidly becoming global. Ethical questions that once arose only in the narrow context of the physician-patient relationship in relatively prosperous societies are now being raised across societies, cultures, and continents. For example, what should be the "standard of care" for clinical trials of medical innovations in poorer countries? Are researchers obligated to compare new therapies or drugs with the best known ones available, or can they use as a benchmark the actual treatments (or lack of treatments) available to poor people? Should pharmaceutical companies seeking to lower the costs of new drug trials be allowed to enroll citizens of less developed countries in them even when those individuals cannot afford and will not be eligible for the resulting drugs? More generally, should the norms of medicine and research be the same across cultures or can they adapt to local social, economic, or religious conditions? Global Bioethics gathers some of the world's leading bioethicists to explore many of the new questions raised by the globalization of medical care and biomedical research. Among the topics covered are the impact of globalization on the norms of medical ethics, the conduct of international research, the ethics of international collaborations, challenges to medical professionalism in the international setting, and the relation of religion to global bioethics.
"A strength of the volume is its coverage of the "applied" aspects of knowledge, from Anthropology through to Eugenics and state and social planning. There is also a commendable sensitivity to the unique ethnic dynamics of southern Africa, not least, for example, the complications of an "indigenized" and powerful Afrikaner nationalism." Donal Lowry, Oxford Brookes University This collection, dealing with case studies drawn from South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Mauritius, examines the relationship between scientific claims and practices on the one hand and the exercise of colonial power on the other. It challenges conventional views that portray science as a detached mode of reasoning with the capacity to confer benefits in a more or less even-handed manner. That science has the potential to further the collective good is not fundamentally at issue, but science can also be seen as complicit in processes of colonial domination. Not only did science assist in bolstering aspects of colonial power and exploitation, it also possessed a significant ideological component: it offered a means of legitimating colonial authority by counter-poising Western rationality to native superstition and it served to enhance the self-image of colonial or settler elites in important respects. This innovative volume ranges broadly through topics such as statistics, medicine, eugenics, agriculture, entomology and botany. Its interdisciplinary approach will find a readership amongst historians, sociologists, anthropologists and historians of science and medicine, both at an undergraduate and at a specialist level. Contributions are drawn from South Africa, Britain and North America.
The pilot-less drones, smart bombs and other high-tech weapons on display in recent conflicts are all the outcome of weapons research. However, the kind of scientific and technological endeavour has been around for a long time, producing not only the armaments of Nazi Germany and the atomic bombs dropped on Japan, but the catapults used in ancient Greece and Rome and the assault rifles used by child soldiers in Africa. In this book John Forge examines such weapons research and asks whether it is morally acceptable to undertake such an activity. He argues that it is in fact morally wrong to take part in weapons research as its primary purpose is to produce the means to harm others, and moreover he argues that all attempts to then justify participation in weapons research do not stand up to scrutiny. This book has wide appeal in fields of philosophy and related areas, as well to a more general audience who are puzzled about the rate at which new weapons are accumulated. "
Since 9/11 and the U.S. anthrax attacks, public, and policy concerns about the security threats posed by biological weapons has increased significantly. As a result, there are now active international deliberations about what restrictions should be placed on the openness of scientific research. "Biotechnology, Security and the Search for Limits" examines these security implications for life science research as well as the methodological issues associated with conducting social research. In doing so the book considers the place of biological and social research in creating and responding to societal problems through drawing on diverse academic traditions such as discourse analysis, social problems studies, philosophy, action research, science and technology studies, politics, and public policy.
The series Religion and Society (RS) contributes to the exploration of religions as social systems- both in Western and non-Western societies; in particular, it examines religions in their differentiation from, and intersection with, other cultural systems, such as art, economy, law and politics. Due attention is given to paradigmatic case or comparative studies that exhibit a clear theoretical orientation with the empirical and historical data of religion and such aspects of religion as ritual, the religious imagination, constructions of tradition, iconography, or media. In addition, the formation of religious communities, their construction of identity, and their relation to society and the wider public are key issues of this series.
First published in 1989, this book presents a unique comparative perspective on the relationship between technological change and human resource management. Following a detailed introduction, chapters deal with a variety of issues, including managing change, industrial democracy and employee involvement, gender and structural change. International and well-renowned authors provide an authoritative analysis, which will be of particular interest to students of Business and Management, organisational and technological change, Economics and Sociology.
Sinceits founding by Jacques Waardenburg in 1971, Religion and Reason has been a leading forum for contributions on theories, theoretical issues and agendas related to the phenomenon and the study of religion. Topics include (among others) category formation, comparison, ethnophilosophy, hermeneutics, methodology, myth, phenomenology, philosophy of science, scientific atheism, structuralism, and theories of religion. From time to time the series publishes volumes that map the state of the art and the history of the discipline.
This book examines the globalisation of technology and innovation in the modern world. Enterprises globalise in several ways, e.g. by exporting, sourcing components and materials from other countries (B2B commerce), outsourcing, licensing their technologies and production, and foreign direct investments (FDI). Transaction costs and location advantages play a crucial role in selecting the best mode of globalisation. A number of important questions - like what are the pull and push factors contributing to FDI, does outward FDI from a developing country like India contribute to participation in international production networks, and does FDI mitigate business cycle co-movements - keep cropping up in the growing body of knowledge on the globalisation of technology. This book addresses these issues, as well as the consequences of FDI - in particular, with regard to technology, productivity, and R&D spillovers. Issues related to innovations, R&D, intra-industry trade, and knowledge management are also discussed.
Yu gives Western readers a full view of China's science and technology policy, plus a historical perspective on the development of her science, technology, and industrial enterprises. A realistic, objective review that will help overcome tendencies to under- or overestimate China's technological and industrial strength and potential for the future, his book focuses on the transition of her scientific, technological, and industrial systems from a planned to a market economy. It identifies the latest science-technology policy readjustment in China and gives Westerners a way to assess the successes and failures of technological-industrial development attributable to policy causes. Yu describes the evolution of China's scientific and technological systems before and after her economic reforms. He covers changes in science-technology policy in their socioeconomic context, and highlights all major steps in her economic development that have spurred China's scientific-technological progress. Mr. Yu views these as a driving force for economic development, while the success of science-technology policy is determined by its effectiveness in implementing various economic activities. His book also provides in-depth coverage of changes in major industrial sectors, including agriculture, infrastructure, mainstay, high-tech, and township industries and non-governmental science-technology enterprises. The result is a unique opportunity to gain an authoritative, reliable understanding of China's scientific and technological activities, her industrial development, and the interaction between them.
Sinceits founding by Jacques Waardenburg in 1971, Religion and Reason has been a leading forum for contributions on theories, theoretical issues and agendas related to the phenomenon and the study of religion. Topics include (among others) category formation, comparison, ethnophilosophy, hermeneutics, methodology, myth, phenomenology, philosophy of science, scientific atheism, structuralism, and theories of religion. From time to time the series publishes volumes that map the state of the art and the history of the discipline.
This book critically examines the phenomenon and the consequences of the increasing inter-dependence between industry, universities and national laboratories. It explores the contrasts and similarities between the patterns of formal and informal links in a technologically dynamic industry (electronic components) with those in a traditional industry (flow measurement) in the UK, France and Belgium. It uses evidence from interviews with firms, academics and industry organisations in the three countries to identify the major factors which regulate links.
The articles collected in this volume point out that society as a whole is changing. Social change is due not only to changes in technology and economy, but also to the changing strategies and discourses of social scientists. To what exactly will this change lead in the 21st century? What kind of society lies ahead? In this book the reader will find many arguments and hints pertaining to these questions. She/he will be confronted by a plethora of enriching conceptions of the relationships between social sciences and social changes.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is everywhere, yet it causes damage to society in ways that can't be fixed. Instead of helping to address our current crises, AI causes divisions that limit people's life chances, and even suggests fascistic solutions to social problems. This book provides an analysis of AI's deep learning technology and its political effects and traces the ways that it resonates with contemporary political and social currents, from global austerity to the rise of the far right. Dan McQuillan calls for us to resist AI as we know it and restructure it by prioritising the common good over algorithmic optimisation. He sets out an anti-fascist approach to AI that replaces exclusions with caring, proposes people's councils as a way to restructure AI through mutual aid and outlines new mechanisms that would adapt to changing times by supporting collective freedom. Academically rigorous, yet accessible to a socially engaged readership, this unique book will be of interest to all who wish to challenge the social logic of AI by reasserting the importance of the common good.
This book (hardcover) is part of the TREDITION CLASSICS. It contains classical literature works from over two thousand years. Most of these titles have been out of print and off the bookstore shelves for decades. The book series is intended to preserve the cultural legacy and to promote the timeless works of classical literature. Readers of a TREDITION CLASSICS book support the mission to save many of the amazing works of world literature from oblivion. With this series, tredition intends to make thousands of international literature classics available in printed format again - worldwide.
First published in 1906, these four lectures were originally delivered in the Vacation Term for Biblical Study at Cambridge. Evidence is derived from the native tribes of Australia in particular, whom Jevons compares for his discussion. The first lecture considers whether religion has evolved from, or was preceded by a pre-religion, or non-religious, stage of humankind. The following lectures discuss the science of religion and the theory of Evolution, and the relationship between the evolution of religion and the philosophy of religion. This is a fascinating text that will be of particular value to students interested in the history and development of religion in general.
While corporate governance has been a successful concept throughout the centuries, it is in question whether this concept can remain sustainable in the digital era and during a time of technological and managerial disruption. Under the pressure of new economic, social, and ecologic challenges, it is vital to understand how this concept needs to transform. Challenges and Opportunities of Corporate Governance Transformation in the Digital Era is an essential reference source that discusses concepts, trends, and forecasts of corporate governance and examines its transformation under the pressure of new technologies and economic changes. Featuring research on topics such as corporate identity, e-commerce, and cost management, this book is ideally designed for corporate leaders, managers, executives, business professionals, consultants, professors, researchers, and students.
This book analyzes mobile gaming in the Asian context and looks into a hitherto neglected focus of inquiry - a localized mobile landscape, with particular reference to young Asians' engagement with mobile gaming. This edition focuses not only on the remarkable success of local mobile games, but also on the significance of social milieu in the development of Asian mobile technologies and gaming culture. It analyzes the growth of the current mobile technologies and mobile gaming not as separate but as continuous developments in tandem with the digital economy. It is of interest to both academics and a broader readership from the business, government, and information technology sectors
The influence of scientific paradigms is much more widespread than usually realized. According to Harris, it permeates the whole of the culture of which science is an integral part. The paradigm of Newtonian science was essentially mechanistic and atomistic, and thinking in these terms not only penetrated philosophy, economics, morals and politics for the next three centuries, but remains latent in 20th century ways of thought. As Harris illustrates, the Newtonian paradigm is obsolete in confronting today's global problems. While Planck and Einstein introduced a new scientific revolution at the beginning of the century, it has yet to be reflected in common habits of thinking. It is now urgently necessary to adopt the new conceptual scheme in other fields as it has come to dominate science if global issues are to be resolved. A provocative analysis that will be of particular interest to students, teachers, and policymakers involved with public policy, the history of science and philosophy, and ethics.
Many debates about the moral status of things-for example, debates about the natural rights of human fetuses or nonhuman animals-eventually migrate towards a discussion of the capacities of the things in question-for example, their capacities to feel pain, think, or love. Yet the move towards capacities is often controversial: if a human's capacities are the basis of its moral status, how could a human having lesser capacities than you and I have the same "serious" moral status as you and I? This book answers this question by arguing that if something is human, it has a set of typical human capacities; that if something has a set of typical human capacities, it has serious moral status; and thus all human beings have the same sort of serious moral status as you and I. Beginning from what our common intuitions tell us about situations involving "temporary incapacitation"-where a human organism has, then loses, then regains a certain capacity-this book argues for substantive conclusions regarding human fetuses and embryos, humans in a permanent vegetative state, humans suffering from brain diseases, and humans born with genetic disorders. Since these conclusions must have some impact on our ongoing moral and political debates about the proper treatment of such humans, this book will be useful to professionals and students in philosophy, bioethics, law, medicine, and public policy.
For the developing countries to take advantage of the accumulated and growing body of scientific and technological information, they must develop competence in choosing technology through an institutionalized technology policy. Third World experiences in developing and implementing technology policies are documented and analyzed in this volume. Issues such as the values shaping technology, selection of appropriate technology, technology transfer, technological self-reliance, planning, and development control are discussed in detail. Ideas for future policy development are evaluated.
In a global and digital society, businesses are constantly being challenged by innovative and disruptive management strategies. The dramatic changes that took place in all quadrants of the world during COVID pandemic confirmed companies need to constantly update their resources and anticipate trends. The new normal demands dedicated approaches to the markets, where technology and the digital channels have been gaining importance. Success will depend on the swift adaptation to change and to leading-edge practices that ultimately require digital transformation. Overall, companies are using digital channels to achieve a diversified set of business objectives. Indeed, digitalization offers endless innovation scenarios that companies take advantage of, some with resistance, others leveraged by gains in profitability and market share. The current changes demand an accurate and structured knowledge of strategies, drivers, and motivations for a digital transformation of companies, as well as an in-depth perspective of this new reality for students, educators and managers. This book analyzes the drivers of digital transformation of businesses, assesses digital transformation success factors, and presents case studies of digital adoption by companies in different business sectors. Overall, it provides valuable insights on the best practices and success factors of digital transformation for relevant stakeholders, namely managers, researchers, educators, students, digital strategists, business associations, communication and marketing agencies, future entrepreneurs, and all potential audiences with a specific interest in these topics. |
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