How have science and technology impacted society?

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To what extent have the advances in science/technology impacted North American society? Please explain your reasoning.

Science and Technology. It is a combination almost as American as peanut butter and jelly, ice cream and apple pie, or fireworks and the Fourth of July. In most mainstream newspapers across the nation there is a special section called SciTech devoted exclusively to the wonders and possibilities as well as the promised and fulfilled miracles made possible through this amazing combination. Many people pine for the "good old days" of yesterday. However most of those in this category are actually longing for the morality and society of yesterday not the technology.

Can anyone seriously wish for the days of shared party phone lines, cars that had to be started with a hand crank, childhood polio or oceanic as opposed to airline travel? Of course not! Most of us love the convenience of our cell phones. We love our shiny new cars some of which don't even need a key anymore we just push a button and they start up. Diseases have been seriously diminished through the wonders of health technology. With these wonders we have overcome smallpox, polio and a wide range of other debilitating and potentially lethal diseases. And travel has also been revolutionized by technology. Gone are the days of trips to Europe that used to take 10 days. We now get there in 10 hours and still complain about the "long" trip.

Of course Science and Technology is not a new fascination held by the American public. Since the days of the Sears and Roebuck catalog, regular Americans have dreamed of owning or seeing the latest invention or time saving device from which they could benefit. The promise of science and technology has always been to make our lives simpler, easier and more enjoyable. As we sit from our vantage point in the 21st century can we determine to what extent science and technology has delivered on these promises? Are we better off and enjoying simper, easier and more enjoyable lives? Or do the promises made by "scitech" ring hollow in our ears? In order to analyze how science and technology has affected American society we will look specifically at how it has affected the family, women in the workplace and interpersonal relationships in general.

What are some of the images that come to mind when we visualize the family of the 20th century? The Cleaver family, the Cosby's, maybe the Cunningham's? Typically we think of small problems, innocent adolescence, families eating around the dinning room table or maybe occasionally enjoying a TV dinner while watching the Lawrence Welk ...