"The pervasive lack of understanding of science and technology throughout American society is, just about everyone agrees, a major problem. That our technological illiteracy extends even to those most educated of Americans -- our college graduates--verges on national scandal."

This quote by David Saxon is a disturbing illustration of the reality in which we live. A reality in which we are inundated by science and technology but have little comprehension of what it is or how to make any sense out of it. Ironically enough, the roots of this technological and scientific illiteracy can be traced to the very place where students are actively engaged in the process of higher education, the university. This then leads one to wonder what the purpose of a higher education should be at the university level in respects to solving our scientific illiteracy. The solution is simple: education, integration, and finally application. In other words, the purpose of a higher education should be to 1) educate all students in a basic understanding of the sciences, 2) help students to appreciate science by integrating it into their own course of study, and 3) aid students in the ability to apply science to their individual lives.

The first purpose of higher education, that of educating all students to understand science at its most fundamental levels is something that is in serious need at our universities today. Evidence of what C.P. Snow called 'the two cultures' permeates our modern day campus with those majoring in liberal arts on one side and those majoring in science and technology on the other. Although Snow took a hard-line position that it was the job of those studying in the arts to 'bridge the gap,' in reality, it is equally the responsibility of those in sciences to extend an olive branch. Too often science classes that are taught for non-majors are devoid of relevance and genuine interest. It is ironic that this is so given that these courses are suppose to be teaching science at its most fundamental and practical levels. In other words, something closer to 'pure science' that is not entrenched in complicated technical procedures and wordy jargon used by those at the more advanced levels. Courses such as these should be the most interesting courses in the university (perhaps even the envy of science majors) because they should be striving to give a whole new way of seeing the world to someone who has had little or no formal education in the sciences. Instead of just explaining topics like the cell cycle, the instructors should be bringing in live tissues samples from bacteria, plants. and animals and actually showing the students how cellular division is occurring all around them in the things that they see and (in the case of bacteria) things they don't see everyday. It is only when science begins to show students its relevance in their everyday lives can they really begin to appreciate its usefulness and move on to the next step, that of integration.

The second purpose of higher education , that of helping students to appreciate science by integrating it into their own course of study, is critical to the students ability to get the most out of a formal education. In the Curriculum & Calendar Task Forces "Commitment to Visionary Pragmatism" the committee defines the characteristics of a Cal Poly Graduate as a person who will "possess a uniquely balanced and integrated knowledge and understanding of technology, mathematics, humanities, and social sciences." This in a nutshell is what any student, regardless of whether they attend Cal Poly, should hope to achieve in his or her quest for a higher education. Once a student has learned the basics of science it then becomes critical that they be able to actively integrate that knowledge into their own course of study for both academic and personal benefit. This may translate into the English major taking into account a consideration of environmental and meteorological factors that may have influenced the more stoic nature of British writings. In the same way perhaps Biology majors should give more consideration to the social and religious factors that played such a key role in the scientific contributions of people like Gregor Mendel (who is widely regarded as the father of modern day genetics.) After all, these people weren't just one dimensional figures whose only purpose was either literature or science, but they were human beings just like us who were undoubtedly influenced by a plethora of factors that they then integrated into their respective interests.

The third purpose of higher education is a natural bridge from the second, that is, to help students apply science to their own personal lives. Although this may seem like a repeat of my second purpose, I am in fact addressing the lives that student will lead long after they walk through commencement and receive their degrees. What I am speaking of is the life that lies outside of academia and the critical need for students (who will eventually become citizens of our society) to take both the fundamental and the integrated knowledge of science out into the world with them. As David Saxon points out in his keynote address "The place of science and technology in the liberal arts curriculum," it is precisely because many of us don't have this combined knowledge that we are unable "to distinguish between sense and nonsense when it comes to science." Instead we are left at the mercy of what we perceive to be a 'knowledgeable elite' body of persons to interpret the meanings of scientific knowledge for us. Having a basic understanding of scientific principles and processes today can aid our citizens of tomorrow in feeling empowered enough to question the 'knowledgeable elite' and seek out an answer that will fit their personal understanding of the scientific world.

There can be little doubt that what Saxon called a national scandal is disturbingly evident on our university campuses and in our society today But the real problem isn't that the two cultures of science and the liberal arts exists. The real tragedy is that no one has really attempted to reconcile the two fields such that each can provide something rich, purposeful, and rewarding to the other. Even more ironic is the fact that these two cultures sit right next to one another on the university campus and their unwillingness to communicate with one another is tantamount to a couple of selfish children sitting in the same room. If we ever hope to truly educate our students than we must provide them with a higher education that not only affords them with a basic knowledge of scientific principles, but one that teaches them how to integrate science into their particular course of study and then into their own personal lives. In a world where technology surrounds us 24 hours a day and pervades even our most routine of tasks, a higher education must equip the future citizens of our society (and our world) with the knowledge and ability to make rational and informed decisions. In other words the power to make sense out of the world in which we live.