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This ninth volume is one of the most arnbitious in the Philosophy and Technology series. Edited by technopolitical philosopher Langdon Winner, it assembles an impressive collection of philosophers and political theorists to discuss one of the most important topics of the end of the twentieth century - the bearing of technology, in all its rarnifica tions, on the practice of democratic politics in the developed world. When set beside the previous volume in the series - Europe, America, and Teehnology - the two together open a philosophical dialogue of great significance about the ways technology challenges democracy at its very roots. Some philosophers think the attack is fatal. Others are optimistic that democratic means can be discovered, or invented, for the control of technology. Still others object to an optimism-versus-pes simism formulation of the issue. But alI agree that the issue is highly significant, one that demands serious philosophical inquiry. The Society for Philosophy and Technology was fortunate in being able to draw this group of writers to Bordeaux, France, in 1989, along with a large number of others whose contributions to the debate could not be included here. It is equally fortunate to have chosen Langdon Winner as president when the time carne to select the best of the papers to fashion this volume. University of Delaware PAUL T.
List of contents
I The Nature of the Problem.- Technology, Power, and Truth: Political and Epistemological Reflections on the Fourth Revolution.- Technology and Democracy.- Mechanical Dreams: Democracy and Technological Discourse in Twentieth-Century France.- II Some Proposed Solutions.- Marxism and the Democratic Control of Technology.- Populism and the Cult of the Expert.- Autonomous Technology, Democracy, and the Nimbys.- Technology, Bayesian Policymaking, and Democratic Process.- The Nuts and Bolts of Democracy: Democratic Theory and Technological Design.- III Historical and Cultural Reflections.- Instrumentalists and Expressivists: Ambiguous Links Between Technology and Democracy.- Politics, Progress, and Engineering: Technical Professionals in Russia.- Heidegger on Technology and Democracy.- The Moral Assessment of Technology.- Political Morality under Radical Conditions.- Name Index.
Summary
Edited by technopolitical philosopher Langdon Winner, it assembles an impressive collection of philosophers and political theorists to discuss one of the most important topics of the end of the twentieth century - the bearing of technology, in all its rarnifica tions, on the practice of democratic politics in the developed world.
