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A philosophy of technology [electronic resource] : from technical artefacts to sociotechnical systems / Pieter Vermaas [and others]

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Bibliographic Details
Online Access: Full Text (via Morgan & Claypool)
Other Authors: Vermaas, Pieter E.
Format: Electronic eBook
Language:English
Published: San Rafael, Calif. (1537 Fourth Street, San Rafael, CA 94901 USA) : Morgan & Claypool, ©2011.
Series:Synthesis lectures on engineering, technology, and society ; #14.
Subjects:
Technology > Philosophy.
Technology > Social aspects.
Aeronautics > Technological innovations.
Table of Contents:
  • Introduction
  • 1. Technical artefacts
  • A world made by humans
  • Technical artefacts and natural objects
  • Technical artefacts and social objects
  • Technical functions
  • The moral status of technical artefacts
  • Conclusion: the dual nature of technical artefacts
  • A few more issues
  • 2. Technical designing
  • Characterising technical designing
  • The structure of technical designing
  • Reasoning in technical designing
  • Engineers, designers, users and other roles
  • Conclusion
  • A few more issues
  • 3. Ethics and designing
  • Ethics
  • Engineers as designers of actions
  • Values and the design process
  • The development of quieter aeroplane engines
  • Regulative frameworks
  • Conclusion
  • A few more issues
  • 4. Technological knowledge
  • Engineers and knowledge
  • What engineers know: two examples
  • Forms and features of technological knowledge
  • Conclusion
  • A few more issues
  • 5. Sociotechnical systems
  • Hybrid systems
  • System roles for people: user and operator
  • Rules and coordination mechanisms
  • System designs and system boundaries
  • The mid-air collision above Überlingen
  • System design and controllability
  • Conclusion
  • A few more issues
  • 6. The role of social factors in technological development
  • Utopian and dystopian views of technological development
  • Technological determinism
  • Social constructivism
  • The role of physical-technical and social factors in designing
  • The evolution of civil aviation
  • Conclusion
  • A few more issues
  • 7. Ethics and unintended consequences of technology
  • Unintended consequences and risks
  • Sociotechnical systems and responsibility
  • Technology as a social experiment
  • Conclusion
  • A few more issues
  • Bibliography
  • Authors' biographies
  • Index.

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