Precis Paragraph 6

The man in the street now takes for granted the ideas of science and the fruits of technology, without asking from what seeds they spring, how they worked, or what may be their social repercussions. Rising standards of living spreading through the world generate a demand for and more and more applications of science. Throughout the world rich and poor alike insist that science, technology and industry should prosper as a guarantee against poverty and as the signpost to happiness. Rarely, if even, as has mankind turned its back on any new discovery or invention that has been produced through the technological exploitation of scientific knowledge. We accept electric light and power without knowing how they came about or how they work. We use the telephone and play the gramophone without knowing the scientific principles by which either operates. Radio and television we take for granted. We wear clothes of synthetic textiles, and take aspirin, anti-biotic and tranquillizers as and when we want, without knowing either the chemistry of these substances or worrying about possible side-effects. We do so in the assurance that the technological world of today is a firm and sound one, and one which promises to be rich tomorrow. Only rarely does our confidence break down or threaten to break down. (213 words)