From: Yona Fares Maro
Date: Wed, Sep 23, 2009 at 7:55 AM

Science and technology has made the world look more like something out of a fairy tale, but how many of those who now toy with all kinds of technological devices really do realize the wizardry of science and technology? As a young man growing up, I used to hear stories of witches and wizards, their magical powers and how they flew at night and used diabolical means to inflict harm on whoever they choose. Indeed some Tanzanian communities still routinely torture and even kill those accused of being witches or wizards.

But the ignorant beliefs and tales of witchcraft in primitive societies such as Tanzania pales in comparison to the real practical wizardry of science and technology. Many of us regularly employ the services of airplanes to fly to different destinations without ever pausing to ponder the wizardry of having such a large and heavy device flying effortlessly at unbelievable speeds for hours on end, with hundreds of passengers. Try throwing up your mobile phone or shoe as light as they are and see how fast it will fall and hit the ground.

If a mobile phone or shoe can hit the ground that fast, imagine the miracle in having an object as large and as heavy as an airplane with so many passengers, luggage’s and cargo hurtling through the sky like a giant bird and you will begin to better appreciate the wizardry of science and technology. Jump into the sea and you will sink before you can blink your eyes, but a large ship, loaded with container cargoes weighing hundreds of tons will sail the sea without sinking for weeks and months.

Science and technology has gone as far as probing other planets in search of human life. Imagine the space vessel or rocket that travels through space, breaking through the earth’s crust on its way to other planets. Imagine the breathless speed at which the rocket travels and the unending wizardry of science and technology becomes ever more evident. The revolution in the wizardry of science and technology has continued at a dizzying pace that it is becomingly increasingly difficult to catch up for many. Among the recent technologies is the GSM mobile phone technology that has made mobile phones practically available to all and sundry.

Another recent entry is the “email,” an electronic mail system that is delivered immediately to your electronic mailbox. This invention has kept friends and family in constant communication and almost eliminated the use of good old conventional letters. For academics and general research, the “Google” search engine, an electronic library has virtually put all possible information at the fingertips of every individual. From history to medicine, bomb making to love making, there is practically no information you cannot find on the Google library. Other electronic search engines such as Yahoo, MSN have since joined the bandwagon, further enriching the cyber world.

For drivers, life has been made much easier by “Satellite navigators,” an electronic device that locates addresses. With a Satellite navigation system, it is possible to trace routes and addresses that would ordinarily have been frustrating and time consuming to locate. For long lost friends and potential new friends, “Facebook” has become the new craze where old friends hook-up and new friends are made. Together with similar sites such as Twitter and Netlog, these highly interactive sites where photo albums, events and other activities are shared have virtually created a whole new world on the web.

Movie and music lovers, news and sports enthusiasts alike have come to cherish “YouTube,” an online video machine that amasses a limitless array of videos on practically every issue under the sun, keeping individuals glued to their screens for hours on end. The wizardry in these technologies goes far beyond the tales of the mythical exploits of witches and wizards I was told as a child. At the speed with which new technologies continue to be churned out, it numbs the mind to imagine what new innovation we are going to be toying with by this time next year.

Yet, even as we await new technologies and as nations across the world continue to make technological progress in leaps and bounds that has brought the many solutions and pleasures we now enjoy and even take for granted, Tanzania remains at odds with modernity. Still at the crossroads of civilization, it beggars belief that in spite of the solutions technology has provided, Tanzania has ironically edged Tanzania further into darkness, incapable of generating electricity. There are no proper roads, no pipe borne water, no functional hospitals to name but a few.

Any surprises? The criminal leaders that hibernate in The Bunge are more interested in robbing and wrecking the nation to be bothered about any investments in science and technology. As a consequence, Tanzania has remained stuck in the 19th century while other nations are racing across the 21st and into the 22nd century.

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Yona Fares Maro
I.T. Specialist and Digital Security Consultant
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Subject: TANZANIA AT ODDS IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY