Science mankind's friend or enemy

Hand-made goods took inordinately long to make, and they were neither very refined in appearance nor very durable. Large-scale industry ensures quicker, cheaper production of goods which are aesthetically more satisfying to use. Machines relieve man of all heavy and unpleasant work. They create new openings of employment; at the same time they provide man with more leisure. Science has made the means of transport and communication incredibly year ensured quicker. Present-day travel amenities have made travelling a luxury. Only a couple of centuries ago, people going on pilgrimages said final good-bye to their friends and relatives before they left for they were never sure of safe return. Today man has reached the moon and safely come back. And the whole journey does not take more than six days. The speed at which messages can now be communicated to any part of the world is simply astonishing. With facilities like mobile phones, video phones, e-mail, voice mail, tele-conferencing being easily available, physical presence for any form of consultation or conference has become unnecessary and trade and commerce have become faster and simpler. This quickness has very far-reaching consequences. It is now possible to rush help to any part of the world in case of an epidemic, flood, earthquake, etc. It has reduced the world to the size of a small family. It has promoted trade relations among even most distant countries. It has brought everything within the reach of everybody. Even an ordinary man can command at his table the daintiest dishes beyond the reach of the past emperors. But above all, it has multiplied interdependence and released mankind from narrow nationalism and promoted a new spirit of internationalism. Science has helped large-scale dissemination of knowledge. Scholarship is now no longer the monopoly of a few. First printing press and now the advent of computers and the internet have taken knowledge to every household. These devices have expelled ignorance and promoted enlightenment, thus bringing about a radical change in outlook. Modern man is a rational being. He works by reason and logic. He does not attribute disease to black magic and is no longer the slave of superstition and blind faith, mortally afraid of the wrath of gods. Science has brought innumerable comforts to human life. We need no longer sweat in heat, nor shiver from cold. Nor do we have to cower in the dark at night. Electric gadgets can finish entire cooking in half an hour. Washing, drying and pressing can be mechanically done. This liberates the housewife from much also provided us with very quick means of entertainment. There is the radio, the monotonous work and makes her free for more useful employment. Science has cinema, the television, with cable-television and video games; there are entertainment programmes for people of all ages and all tastes. We can relax in our bed and witness a cricket match being played in some far-away stadium. The cinema transports us to a world of fantasy.