ABSTRACT
The prominence attributed to science and technology by technocratic elites tends to obscure the possibility that it may be the very technocratic approach which prevents or impedes the solution of urgent social problems because the acceptance of certain solutions of other than purely technical nature might entail consequences that amount to “rocking the boat,” i.e., transform the social status quo. The coalition working against a serious consideration of agrarian reform includes the relevant scientific and technological communities in developed countries because their expertise is geared primarily toward large-scale farming, which is more capital- and therefore more technology-intensive than small-scale farming. The principal document for this special emphasis on science and technology as levers for accelerating the development process of developing countries has been the action program of the General Assembly for the Second United Nations Development Decade. The United Nations documents on the establishment of a new international order and development strategy stress the problem-solving role of science and technology.
