ReginaLiu(22)3T30/5/15 599words

Scienceshouldbedrivenbymoralityfirstandknowledgesecond.Whatisyourview?

I believe that science should be driven by morality first and knowledge second. Mark Twain
oncesaid,Alwaysdowhatisright.Itwillgratifyhalf ofmankindandastoundtheother.Morality
is such an important aspect in everyones livesthatitrestrictsourwordsand deedstoestablish
a world of virtuosity. Although advancement of technology mayprovetobeuseful,beingdriven
by knowledge only constructs a setback in moral standards in which ethical goals are not
achieved.

Science should be driven by morality first because morality should bethe basisofourthoughts
and actions. Moral requirements are widely used as critics for our actions in todays society.
Since science is seen as something widely influential, researches or inventions without an
upright moral basis would greatly influence future scientific developments and the world
negatively. Scientific researches are carried forward for the good of mankind. If these
developments bring damages to humanethicsorinany otherform,itisnotworthinvestinginat
allasitalreadyharmsthebasisofourthoughtsandactions.

Many people across various counties do not accept any acts of immorality and seldom do
people support scientific researches without a morallyuprightstand.Thisismostlybecausethe
number of religious people constitutes 84% of the worlds population. This huge majority have
been educated based on values which they strictly regulate their lives on. This means that
technology built on unethical research would not last for long in a community filled with people
of clear moral standards. An example of such a community would be the Silver Spring
monkeys case in 1981. The cofounder of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals)
found out about the mistreatment of monkeys and documented about it, which led to the very
first police raid of an animal research facility, the amendment to the 1985 Animal Welfare Act
and established PETA as an internationally known animalrights group. The monkeys were
found to have their backs cut open and their nerves severed. This resulted in a public uproar
and the confiscation of monkeys from the laboratory, hence showing thatmoralityshouldcome
beforeknowledgeasunethicalresearchesareconsideredblemishedintheeyesofthepublic.

Acts of immoralities resultinbringingdisadvantagesorharmtoonesideoftheparty.Itisbound

to bring unhappiness to certain members of the public at the very least but simultaneously, it
can also develop the most serious consequences and bring permanent damage to many lives.
The Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment was conducted to record the history of syphilis in Negroes
and out of all the participants, 399 had syphilis. There were no proven treatments when the
experiment began, but when penicillin was acknowledgedasthestandardtreatment forsyphilis
after a period of time, medicine was withheld for the participants in this study. This immoral
action resulted in the deaths of dozens of men, their wives being affected and their children
being born with congenital syphilis. The lack of moral sense turned this incident into a horrific
tragedy which was undeserved. Although the improvement of scientific development and
research is extremely vital in benefiting mankind, society will not move forward by bringing
unwantedconsequencesasaresultofimmoralityalongwithit.

In conclusion, the importance of morality undoubtedly triumphs over knowledge as mankind

recognises the need for humanity over rapid scientific advancement though all the examples
stated above. True, many scientific progressions can occur without interfering with moral
standards,butmoralitymustprecedeknowledgeintermsofscienceforatrulybetterworld.