Science, Technology and Society

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This summer I’m enrolled in an online course through the University of Southern Maine’s Lewiston-Auburn College called “Science, Technology and Society.” I’ll be reading from these two books:

Society and Technological Change

by Rudi Volti

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Technological marvels; technological failures. Basic features of technology: do things not otherwise possible; do things cheaper, faster, easier. Application of implements and techniques allows humans to transcend meager physical endowments. Group effort: many energies & skills come together. System: combination of devices, skills & organizational structures – think of the light bulb itself and all the systems that need to be in place for its usage. Some new technologies create their own needs.

Technology and the Future

by Albert H. Teich

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Does improved technology mean progress? The change in seeing progress as negative rather than positive stems from WWI, WWII, Holocaust, Stalinist terror, nuclear threats; many examples of unforeseen disastrous effects of new technology; improved machinery was expected to improve all the conditions of life: social, political, moral and intellectual, material. Authors/poets writings show foreboding of machinery taking over lives and depersonalizing human interactions.

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