CC1 Philosophies of Technology

The course runs across five days, with each day covering one dimension of philosophy of technology: metaphysics, (meta)ethics, politics, applied ethics. For each topic there will be at least one invited lecture from someone from the 4TU.Ethics network, and at least one interactive exercise. Every day, the course will also entail interactive activities in which students will discuss the course’s authors and topics in relation to their own research interests.

You are expected to pre-read around 15 papers to participate (given the relatively short daily schedule, some pre-reading can be done also during the course).

Sample Reading List

(This is a sample list of readings from the past year’s course. A new, updated list – not too different from this – will be published a couple of months before the start of the course.)

• Brey, Philip, Anticipatory Ethics for Emerging Technologies. Nanoethics, (2012) 6(1), 1-13.
• Ellul, Jacques, “On the Aims of a Philosophy of Technology,” from The Technological Society (1954/64) in: Scharff R.C. & V. Dusek (2014) Philosophy of Technology: The Technological Condition: An Anthology, Second Edition
• Franssen, Maarten, Gert-Jan Lokhorst, and Ibo van de Poel, “Philosophy of Technology”, The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2018 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), URL = <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2018/entries/technology/>
• Foucault M. (1975), Panopticism. In Discipline & Punish: TheBirth of the Prison, translated by A. Sheridan, 195-228. Vintage Books, 1995. In: Scharff R.C. & V. Dusek (2014), Philosophy of Technology: The Technological Condition: An Anthology, p. 654-667. https://foucault.info/documents/foucault.disciplineAndPunish.panOpticism/
• Haraway, Donna, “A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology, and Socialist- Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century” (Excerpts)
• Heidegger text: t.b.d.
• Hoye JM, Monaghan J. Surveillance, freedom and the republic.European Journal of Political Theory. 2018;17(3):343-363. doi:10.1177/1474885115608783
• Jacobs, N., Huldtgren, A. Why value sensitive design needs ethical commitments.Ethics Inf Technol 23, 23–26 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10676-018-9467-3 
• Jonas, Hans, “Toward a Philosophy of Technology,” Hastings Center Report 9/1 (1979). Scharff R.C. & V. Dusek (2014) Philosophy of Technology: The Technological Condition: An Anthology, Second Edition
• Nickel, Philip J., Olya Kudina, Ibo van de Poel; Moral Uncertainty in Technomoral Change: Bridging the Explanatory Gap. Perspectives on Science 2022; 30 (2): 260–283. doi: https://doi.org/10.1162/posc_a_00414
• Roeser S. Emotional Deliberation on Technological Risks in Practice. In: Risk, Technology, and Moral Emotions, chapter 8.
• Scharff R.C. & V. Dusek (2014). The Task of a Philosophy of Technology (p. 187-190), in:  Scharff R.C. & V. Dusek (2014) Philosophy of Technology: The Technological Condition: An Anthology, Second Edition
• Van den Hoven, J (2013). Value Sensitive Design and Responsible Innovation, in Richard Owen, John Bessant, Maggy Heintz, Responsible Innovation: Managing the Responsible Emergence of Science and Innovation in Society, Wiley and Sons
• Verbeek & Rosenberger A field-guide to Post-phenomenology, In: Postphenomenological Investigations: Essays on Human-Technology Relations. Lexington
• Winner L. (1980), Do Artifacts have a politics? Daedalus, Vol. 109, No. 1
• Text on the dual nature of technological artefacts: t.b.d
• Text on Technology, Democracy and Confucianism: t.b.d.

Aim / objective

The primary aim of this course is to introduce students to classic themes, concepts and authors in ethics and philosophy of technology via a selection of key academic articles.

Assessment

You will be requested to actively participate in group activities including short presentations every day; you will have to submit an individual assignment (ca. 1000 words) within one week after the end of the course

Attendance: compulsory for at least 80% of the activities (max two half-day sessions can be missed)

Credit points

Study load is the equivalent of 5 ECTS

Registration/application form

Registration for 2025 is not open yet.

There is a maximum of 25 students for this course. When this number is reached, a waiting list will open. 

Research master students are welcome to register, but 4TU.Ethics and OZSW PhD students have priority. ReMa students can email education@ethicsandtechnology.eu to let us know you are interested. You will be informed about whether you can join the course after the registration deadline of 30 April.

Costs

This course is free for ReMa and PhD students who are a member of the 4TU.Ethics or the OZSW.

More information

For more information contact education@ethicsandtechnology.eu

For more information please contact one of the coordinators at education@ethicsandtechnology.eu.