Public Speaker: Hajer Mohammed Said Alriyami

1. “3rd Millennium’s Technological Impact to Medicine, Education, and Society”
By: Adelyn Chavez-Villafuerte
Public Speaker: Hajer Mohammed Said Alriyami
The essence of humanity in this Common Era is defined and shaped by the unimaginable and
remarkable technological innovations. Yes! The 21st century is the century of science, the
gateway to technology.
Most esteemed people of this educative community, distinguished panel of judges, friends,
ladies and gentlemen, good morning.
A compelling history of science and technology from ancient to present time depicts centuries
of unprecedented changes in a global scale. Undeniably, technology is changing everything. I
mean- everything in this world. Everything has become automated, upgraded, modern,
scientific and cybernetic – all expanding the scope of human possibilities.
If we look back to the pages of history, mankind held a Neolithic viewpoint of the world until
the invention of the refracting telescope which was invented approximately more than 400
years ago. It took centuries for anyone to make the inventive leap of assembling two lenses into
a telescope. Thanks to Hans Lippershey and Galileo Galelei. However, on the contemporary
history, ladies and gentlemen, science has made a giant leap by inventing and launching the
Gaia Space telescope which can 3D map a billion stars in the Milky Way galaxy. According to
the European space agency, the Gaia can precisely measure a human thumbnail from the moon
and accurately detect the width of a human hair from 1,000 kilometers away, and can make 40
million celestial observations per day. Incredible! Yet, we have to understand, that, this is NOT
a science fiction, ladies and gentlemen. Can you imagine what more can science and technology
do to redefine and reshape our society?
The revolution of science is magnanimously immense. In the field of medicine on a global
perspective, technological advancements contribute enormously to the maintenance and
sustainability of healthcare. Historically, from ancient civilizations of Babylonia, China, Egypt
and India, it’s clear that disease and death are among the humanity’s oldest preoccupations.
However, with the birth and growth of science and technology from the ancient to the
Renaissance, and to the 21st century, countless lives have been prolonged and saved. Thanks
to the discoveries of vaccines and antibiotics and various pharmaceuticals, and as well as the
inventions of modernized and digitalized medical and surgical equipment used for accurate
analysis, diagnosis, prognosis and treatment. To mention a few, the MRI or the Magnetic
Resonance Imaging, DNA technology, Stem Cell Therapy or the Therapeutic Cloning and a lot
more.

2. Ladies and gentlemen, technology has also revolutionized the field of education. In fact, with
the onset of computers, it has become easier for teachers to impart knowledge and for
students to acquire it. With the aid of computers and internet, the plethora of information is
endless, allowing researches, curricular web designs, communications, PowerPoint
presentations, networking, on-line studies, and all possible transactions …… easier and faster.
This isn’t only true to education but in the fields of business as well. Everything is just a click
away! Google, Yahoo, Facebook, Twitter, Viber, Skype, Microsoft office, Amazon, YouTube,
name it, your cellphones, your tablets, your computers have it! Ladies and gentlemen, it is
important to note that according to researches, in the year 2012, there were 5 billion clicks per
day and 1.2 trillion searches worldwide. In 2013, 80 percent of the world's population used
mobile phones and internet. Indeed, we are living in a technology age!
Ladies and gentlemen, undoubtedly and unarguably, technology has offered us boundless array
of opportunities, progress and success. It is my humble opinion as an Omani and a citizen of the
world, that each of us has to take individual responsibility and obligation to maintain and
sustain symbiosis. It is a challenge and an appeal, that even in the midst of the earth’s
technological innovations and explosions in this third millennium, we must preserve and save
the world and make it a better place for the entire race for the next generation.