Philosophy of technology
1. Instrumentalism „standard“ modern view, Modernity values
progress, the more progress the better society gets
2. technological determinism autonomy have own agenda,
technology pursues power and domination and pretends this is for
efficiency
3. social constructivism technical design not ruled by efficiency,
social process behind technical choices based on variety of case
specific criteria
Alternative interpretations of technology and its relationship
Connects them to design and functions of artefacts
How technology is shaped and acquires meaning through social
interactions
Opinion Heidegger: technical conquest of the world, only god could save us,
we are our own machines
Langdon Winner- Do artefacts have politics
Intersection between technological determinism and social constructivism
The ways artefacts can contain political qualities
Invention, design, arrangement of a specific technical device or system
becomes a way of settling an issue in a particular community
When men-made systems appear to require or be strongly suitable
with particular kinds of political relationships
Using technologies to express power over people
Technical arrangements as forms of order
Technological change expresses a panoply of human motives, not the
least of which is the desire of some to have dominion over others, even
though it may require an occasional sacrifice of cost-cutting and some
violence to the norm of getting more from less
It is obvious that technologies can be used in ways that enhance the
power,authority, and privilege of some over others, for example, the
use of television to sell a candidate(p.125)
Moses bridge and tomato harvester as example
moses bridge only allows rich white people in private vehicles to go to the
beach
big machines to harvest more tomatoes are too expensive for local farmers,
cant compete quality and amount of big fish in industry and have to give up
The things we call technologies build an order in our world
Different people possess unequal degrees of power and unequal levels of
awareness
Inherently political technologies
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