5 min read•june 18, 2024
Isabela Padilha Vilela
Isabela Padilha Vilela
Contemporary life is shaped by our lifestyles, our history and the social values that we cherish. In this topics, we will explore the innovations that mark our daily life and understand how science and technology shaped the daily life of people in spanish speaking countries. 🇪🇸
In Latin America, there is a predominance of and appreciations for one's community and place in society. For this reason, helping others, whether it is your vecinos or the barrio as a whole is a noble and appreciated action.
The areas/issues that are mainly addressed through volunteer work in the region, include:
Technology can more easily help to close these gaps and help with the improvement of the quality of life of Latin Americans. In the next section you will read about the challenges posed by the pandemic and the role of access and technology to mitigate its impact.
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The year 2020 will undoubtedly go down in the history books. Experiencing a global pandemic, switching to remote working and learning, and choosing between public trust or apprehension towards the CDC and WHO were all new concepts to nearly every generation in every country. Yet after only about one year of a pandemic, those experiences became normalized. In the meantime, scientists around the world were working around the clock to create multiple vaccines to combat the deadly spread of COVID-19.
Creating a vaccine in under 12 months is quite an accomplishment. In comparison, the mumps vaccine took 4 years to develop. So while the pandemic made new habits, such as mask-wearing and enforcing social distancing in public situations, it also created a global alliance for vaccine research and distribution.
However, the vaccine’s effectiveness means nothing if the majority of people choose not to receive it. On one hand, it’s amazing that the vaccine was developed in under a year so “normal life” can resume, yet on the other hand, many fear the vaccine was rushed or have other hesitations regarding its use, thereby making its availability meaningless.
Below is data from what COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy looks like in Spanish-speaking countries, as of May 3, 2021. As a comparison, in the United States, 52.9% of Americans would agree to be vaccinated.
While you may not think of South America as a powerhouse continent for technological or scientific advances, it most certainly can be considered one. Latin America has given birth to some of the greatest inventors and innovators of all time. Moreover, Latin America has had a hand in some of the massive changes in the tech industry, such as liquid-fueled rocket engines and color television, innovations that shook the world when they were first introduced. Historically, Latin America has always been on the map.
Let’s zoom in on a few of the innovations below, but before we do, remember, Brazil is NOT a Spanish speaking country, so you should NEVER refer to it during the AP test (for example, during your comparación cultural).
Strive for Five Vocab 🔑