So I often read science fiction, and I think about the problems (both physical and metaphysical) in the not-too-distant future. I saw this post today though that really made me think, and realize just how much human perceptions and ideals are going to have to play catch up in the coming decades. http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2006/11/o_brave_new_world_please_come.php
That link was far and away the best discussion thread I've read this week. I'm concerned, however, that the mass of humanity (and their political handlers) have shown their tendency to react with ever more restrictive laws and blanket prohibition. Eventually, this must lead to the end of the current 'Big Science' era, as funding becomes restricted to incremental advances along the edge of current tech. Of course, the breakthroughs still be made, but only in secret defence-funded labs, or by 'mad' scientists working in hidden castles in Transylvania!
Heheh... After read that thread last night, I stayed up and read "The Island of Dr. Moreau" in whole. The funny thing is this scene where Moreau explains how people reacted to his early experiments in London... pretty much forcing him away to this lone island. It always amazes me how stuff from two centuries ago (well, technically, as 1896 was the publication date) can still be so relevant. I wouldn't declare the end of "Big Science" just yet... Orwell implied the same thing 110 years ago, and Mary Shelly before that, yet we've all seen the wonders of science since then. As much as we oft like to think we're at the end of an era, or the dawning of a new age, truly very little changes in human behavior. Scientists on the cutting edge tend to get burned at stakes (or whatever the contemporary equivalent is for their era.) And every era likes to think that it is suddenly more sinful or worse than earlier generations. One of my favorite quotes, "The children of today are lazy, without respect for their elders, and lacking God" was supposedly found engraved on a Sumerian tablet.
On the topic of "Science!" (the exclamation mark is important) check this out. http://undeniablefacts.blogspot.com/2006/11/undeniable-friday-floating-apple-trick.html