Question 3- Inherently Political Technologies

This section of chapter 6 talks about technology and how it relates to politics.  “None of the arguments and examples considered thus far address a stronger, more troubling claim often in writings about technology and society- the belief that some technologies are by their very nature political in a specific way.” (Teich 59)

With the presidential election just ending this is a good opportunity to talk about this subject. Do you think that people in politics use technology to get ahead of their competition? Explain with some form of examples.

Question 2- Technical Arrangements as Forms of Order

Page 54 (Teich) our author talks about all the low hanging overpasses in Long Island and New York.  Our author goes on to say this: “It turns out, however, that the 200 or so low-hanging overpasses on Long Island were deliberately designed to achieve a particular social effect.” “According to evidence provided by Robert A. Caro in his biography on Moses, the reasons reflect Moses’s social-class bias and racial prejudice.” 

 I know this was in the 1920-1970’s but do you think there are any forms of technology today that reflects “social-class bias” or “racial prejudice”?

Question 1- Do Artifacts Have Politics?

This chapter is all about how technology is used for power and wealth, and politics. To get our brains moving on this chapter I will start off with a simple, yet effective question.

Do you think people in the past and the present have used technology for the personal gain of power and authority over others?  There are plenty of examples from the book, so use that to your advantage.