Two experts introduce the podcast focusing on technology and ethics. They recommend further readings and explore topics like technology as tools, symbolic artifacts, and the influence of technology on perception and action. They also discuss mediation theory, expanding ethics perspective, and provide recommendations for additional texts on technology ethics.
Technology can take on additional roles beyond being mere tools, impacting values and behaviors.
Ethics provides practical guidance for human action, encompassing principles and reflections on right or wrong.
Technology shapes how we perceive the world and act within it, prompting broader ethical discussions.
Deep dives
Technology Ethics Podcast Introduction
This podcast serves as a general introduction to the ethics of technology. It covers core themes, concepts, and debates in the field. The podcast follows the format of Sven Nihel's book, 'This is Technology Ethics.' It aims to provide independent and standalone discussions on technology ethics that appeal to a broad audience. The podcast series consists of nine episodes, each focusing on a different theme or question addressed in the book. The length of the episodes varies from one to one and a half hours.
Defining Technology
The podcast explores the question of what technology is. It delves into Heidegger's perspective, which sees technology as a means to ends and part of human activities. While the instrumentalist view considers technology as inherently value-neutral tools, the podcast acknowledges that technologies can take on additional roles beyond being mere tools. It discusses how technologies can be co-opted, develop symbolic value, and shape values and behaviors. The podcast emphasizes the need to consider the broader ethical questions of how technology plays a role in a good life and impacts meaningful human experiences.
Understanding Ethics
The podcast provides an overview of ethics as a field of study. It distinguishes ethics from metaethics, normative ethics, and applied ethics. Ethics is seen as practical guidance for human action, encompassing principles, theories, and reflections on what is right or wrong, good or bad. The podcast emphasizes the complexity and interconnectedness of ethical questions in technology ethics. It highlights the significance of considering meta-ethical aspects, such as the sources of values and the impact of technology on shaping our preferences and ethical understandings. Broader philosophical traditions, including virtue ethics, Kantian ethics, and consequentialism, are mentioned as influential perspectives, while also acknowledging the importance of non-Western ethical traditions.
Technology as Mirror Tools
The podcast episode discusses the views of Joanna Bryson, who believes that technology should be seen as mirror tools and kept in their box. She argues that forming attachments and relationships with technology can be socially disruptive and create ethical problems. However, this view assumes that humans have more control over technology than they actually do, as technological development may have a life of its own beyond our management.
Technology as Mediation and Ethical Perspectives
The podcast explores the concept of technology as a mediator of human perception and action. It delves into the post-phenomenological tradition in the philosophy of technology, which suggests that technologies shape how we perceive and understand the world, as well as how we act within it. The episode highlights the importance of incorporating ethical perspectives from different traditions, such as the Ubuntu tradition in African philosophy and Confucian ethics. It also raises questions about how certain technologies, like social media, may affect our relationships and values, and prompts the need for broader discussions in technology ethics.
In this episode, John and Sven introduce themselves and the general themes of the podcast series. The podcast follows the structure of Sven’s book This is Technology Ethics. In this episode, they focus in particular on the concepts of technology and ethics. If you are interested in buying a discounted copy of the book, then please go directly to the publisher’s website (here) and use the discount code ‘TEC20’ to get 20% off the regular retail price.
You can listen to the full episode below or download here. You can also subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon and a range of other services.
