Doctor who is a science fiction programme that was created in 1963 by Sydney Newman and Donald Wilson, this was show was initially created as a children’s programme that combines adventure in time and space, and also the educational aspects about science and history. This programme became very popular with adults too. This is the longest running TV show even though there was a 16 year gap. There are many reasons as to why this show is so popular worldwide: its success worldwide and the ranges of audience the show appeals to, longevity and also philosophy.
Doctor Who tells us about the science and technology and also the Britain of its time. The Doctor has a machine in which he travels in, the T.A.R.D.I.S (Time And Relative Dimension(s) In Space); this method of transportation allows him to travel through time and space. The technology behind the TARDIS is that it is a police box, which is bigger on the inside and even it was changed over time, as they changed Doctor’s which is the “regeneration” part. It is known that the Doctor has many companions that accompany him on the T.A.R.D.I.S whilst travelling around space and time. As the doctor‘s exploration of space makes it more intriguing for the companions as well as for us. The companions’ eagerness for them to come back to the TARDIS even though they know they will face many dangers along the way shows their curiosity and also they drive to develop their scientific knowledge and also the discovery. Since the show began in 1963, we have managed to send men to the moon, satellites, rovers and also sending satellites mars.
The Daleks, the Doctor’s biggest enemies of all time are said to echo the Nazis as they say “exterminate” and the exploitation and genocide of humans, which is...
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... had occurred at the time. It does tell us about science and technology too but not as much the Britain of its time.
References:
BBC Doctor Who. 2013. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006q2x0/features/characters . [Assessed 29th December 2013].
The Humanism of Doctor Who: A Critical Study in Science Fiction and Philosophy.2013. [ONLINE] Available at: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=_auhi5IvRKwC&pg=PA5&lpg=PP1&focus=viewport&output=html_text . [Assessed 29th December 2013].
The Doctor Who Site. 2013. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.thedoctorwhosite.co.uk/tardis/interior/ . [Assessed 29th December 2013].
Daily Mail Online UK. 2013. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2426424/NASA-says-NO-life-Mars-Curiosity-rover-discovered-clues-atmosphere-supports-living-things.html [Assessed 29th December 2013].
The essay starts off by stating, “One could say that the dominant scientific world-view going into the 16th century was not all that “scientific” in the modern sense of the
People trust doctors to save lives. Everyday millions of Americans swallow pills prescribed by doctors to alleviate painful symptoms of conditions they may have. Others entrust their lives to doctors, with full trust that the doctors have the patient’s best interests in mind. In cases such as the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment, the Crownsville Hospital of the Negro Insane, and Joseph Mengele’s Research, doctors did not take care of the patients but instead focused on their self-interest. Rebecca Skloot, in her contemporary nonfiction novel The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, uses logos to reveal corruption in the medical field in order to protect individuals in the future.
is only a snapshot of one moment in history. It does not tell us about
Dr. Gawande emphasizes the value of making mistakes, and how it is a core component of his daily life as a physician. His mistakes are dependent on the “good choices or bad choices” he makes, and regardless of the result that occurs, he learns more about himself as a physician, and more about his connection with patients (215). Critic Joan Smith of The Guardian newspaper mentions that although his various stories about “terrifying” mistakes that doctors make induce fear and a sense of squeamishness within the reader, it is the “emphasis that human beings are not machines” that is “oddly reassuring” (Smith). For example, in the essay, “When Doctors Make Mistakes”, Gawande is standing over his patient Louise Williams, viewing her “lips blue, her throat swollen, bloody, and suddenly closed” (73).
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is the creator of the character Sherlock Holmes and John Watson. He was a Scottish writer and physician, he wrote many things in his life. Doyle did not just write detective mysteries he also fantasy and science fiction stories, plays, romances, poetry, non-fiction and historical novels. Even though he wrote many other thing he is mostly well known for writing all of the canon Sherlock stories. Doyle himself had a career in the medical field there he meet many influential people to base his characters from. A letter was found where he wrote to one of his colleagues whose name was Joseph Bell that the most important traits of his character Sherlock was mostly based on him. Bell himself had the career title of forensic
Citizenry. His own principled idealism exacerbates the conflict. The well-meaning doctor is publicly labeled an enemy of the people, and he and his family are all but driven out of the town he was trying to save.
In the late 18th century, Britain was a parliamentary monarchy, this ideology meant that the parliament passed the laws and maintained expenditure. This encouraged the pursuit of scientific breakthrough where people sought profit. There was an exchange of scientific and revolutionary ideas that did not suffer censorship by church or state in Britain which otherwise happened in other European nations. This is where scientific discovery took over, Newton was able to explain the forces of gravity. This gave birth to the Age of Reason, which challenged the idea of God. The intellectual freedom in Britain saw groups of people sharing ideas and creating revolutionary ideas, one group was called the Lunar Society. One of its members, Matthew Boulton, a manufacturer and a businessman discovered that his factory in Birmingham, Soho Factory, required a source of energy that wasn’t restricted by the climate. This inspired him to switch from water to steam powered engines. Matthew Boulton was a good friend of James Watt, the founding father of the most effective steam engine during its time. Because Boulton had the skilled workers who had the engineering expertise, Watt was able to build his
Wells does not doom his Invisible Man to existence as a monster. Griffin is not mad. He has choice and is conscious of what he is doing. He also has a history of grievances against society at large. Griffin is seen as a deeply pitiful and sympathetic character at times, surrounded by a hysteria he has set off while trying to avoid attention. The battered, broken white form of the Invisible Man revealed on his death is not to induce revulsion in reader at the “monster's” corpse, but to plant a feeling of pity and a discomfort with the ordinary people who were his killers. As a work coming on the leading edge of science fiction, The Invisible Man raises questions of the proper role of science in society, and on the ethical applications of scientific knowledge. Griffin is ...
Who would have thought you could grow attached to someone you disliked in the first place? Actors of British Sci-Fi drama series “Doctor Who” have that effect on their fans and never have I thought ever that Matt Smith would have that effect on me after seeing him leave the show on Christmas day. Matthew Robert Smith is a British actor best known for his role as the eccentric Eleventh Doctor in the series and though fans of the show doubted him because of his age and lack of experience and exposure, Whovians had learned to love him after he showed and proved to the world that he epitomized The Doctor.
Through the use of our sociological imagination this paper investigates whose interests the medical model of health serves, and why? The concept of sociological imagination was coined by Charles Wright Mills, the American Sociologist (1916-1962). To use our sociological imagination we need to look at, at least one or more of the following four perspectives: Cultural/Anthropological, Historical, Critical, or Structural and make the link between personal troubles and public issues. (Germov, 2014) In doing this we take a look at the concepts of medicalisation, medical -industrial complex and pharmaceuticalisation.
Science fiction is a genre, which depicts what life would be like in a world with major scientific and technological developments. When it comes to science fiction, the exploration of future technology is a major element. Many stories and films focus on space, robots, aliens, a mad scientist, and/or artificial intelligence. “The universal themes found in science fiction—themes of freedom and responsibility, power, love, individuality and community, good versus evil, technology run amok, and more—present ample opportunity to explore complex issues and compelling controversies at length and in depth in ways that not only engage the intellect, but involve the emotions and expand the imagination.” The story “Flowers for Algernon,” by Daniel Keyes, is an example of science fiction that examines the impact of artificial intelligence. “The End of the Whole Mess,” by Steven King, is an example of science fiction that focuses on the fall of a mad scientist. The film “Gravity” is an example of a science fiction movie that explores the use of major technological advancement within space. In this paper I will assess the major themes portrayed in “Flowers for Algernon,“ “The End of the Whole Mess,” and the film, “Gravity.” Additionally, I will examine how these models of science fiction teach a major lesson about the imperfections of future scientific and technological advancements on society.
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is ‘one of the pioneering works of modern science fiction’, and is also a frightening story that speaks to the ‘mysterious fears of our nature’. Mary Shelley mocks the idea of “playing God”, the idea that came from the Greek myth of Prometheus, of the Greek titan who stole Zeus’ gift of life. Both the story of Frankenstein and Prometheus reveal the dark side of human nature and the dangerous effects of creating artificial life. Frankenstein reveals the shocking reality of the consequences to prejudging someone. The creature’s first-person narration reveals to us his humanity, and his want to be accepted by others even though he is different. We are shown that this ‘monster’ is a ‘creature’ and more of a human than we think.
Torchwood’s third season “Children of Earth,” contains many momentous events which question human rationality, having good sagacity, judgment, and equanimity. Throughout these events two ethical philosophies unravel. The first philosophy, egoism, actions with solely one’s interests in mind, plays a major role in the season. Ethical egoists believe that one should look out for no one else but themselves, and a theory of psychological egoism states that whatever the reasoning is behind an action, the action is always an individual’s self-interest. The inconceivable enthralling events in the season are due to the 456’s yearning for ten percent of the children population. However, their request is not based upon a life-supporting necessity, but merely an egotistical longing for a pleasurable “high” the children supply them with. The second philosophy, utilitarianism, is based on Jeremy Bentham’s principle of utility, actions which amplify happiness and diminish pain for the majority of people, play an essential role. To restrain the heinous act from occurring, Jack sacrifices his own grandson, Steven, to spare the lives of the other children on Earth.
In this essay I am going to examine how Dr Watson is used as a
First, Appleby, Lynn, and Jacob discussed the ideas concerning history. The first idea described how Newton and Darwin became chief examples of the Heroic model of science. Then, in a later chapter, the authors’ show how Newton and Darwin fell from grace and the effect this had on history as a discipline. Nevertheless, early historians felt that the way to find the truth was though science. Early historians felt that through science they could become neutral and reconstruct the past exactly as it happened (241). I analyze tha...