Society for the History of the Philosophy of Technology (HPT)
@hptsociety.bsky.social
The Society for the History of the Philosophy of Technology (HPT) is dedicated to the study of how we think about technology in all its facets. #philtech #histtech
In works such as Le travail en miettes (The Anatomy of Work, 1956), he examined how industrial automation and the rationalization of labor were transforming not only production but the human experience of work itself.
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November 15, 2025 at 11:49 PM
In works such as Le travail en miettes (The Anatomy of Work, 1956), he examined how industrial automation and the rationalization of labor were transforming not only production but the human experience of work itself.
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Today we commemorate Georges Friedmann, who died on this day in 1977. A French sociologist and philosopher, Friedmann was among the first to study technology as a social and philosophical problem in the 20th century.
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November 15, 2025 at 11:48 PM
Today we commemorate Georges Friedmann, who died on this day in 1977. A French sociologist and philosopher, Friedmann was among the first to study technology as a social and philosophical problem in the 20th century.
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This week, we commemorate the work of Harold Innis, who was born on 5 November 1895 and died on 8 November 1952.
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November 8, 2025 at 4:11 PM
This week, we commemorate the work of Harold Innis, who was born on 5 November 1895 and died on 8 November 1952.
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Strongly influenced by the nineteenth-century American transcendentalists (Emerson, Thoreau, Melville) Mumford was an early American philosopher of technology, whose work "Technics and Civilization" (1934) was one of the first books dedicated to philosophical reflection on technology.
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October 19, 2025 at 11:00 AM
Strongly influenced by the nineteenth-century American transcendentalists (Emerson, Thoreau, Melville) Mumford was an early American philosopher of technology, whose work "Technics and Civilization" (1934) was one of the first books dedicated to philosophical reflection on technology.
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On this day in 1895, Lewis Mumford was born in Flushing, New York.
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October 19, 2025 at 11:00 AM
On this day in 1895, Lewis Mumford was born in Flushing, New York.
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In recognizing technology as central to our being, Ortega helped establish the groundwork for the humanistic and phenomenological traditions in the philosophy of technology that followed.
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October 18, 2025 at 8:08 PM
In recognizing technology as central to our being, Ortega helped establish the groundwork for the humanistic and phenomenological traditions in the philosophy of technology that followed.
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In Meditations on Technique (1933), he argued that technology is not merely a means to satisfy needs but a defining expression of human existence itself.
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October 18, 2025 at 8:06 PM
In Meditations on Technique (1933), he argued that technology is not merely a means to satisfy needs but a defining expression of human existence itself.
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OTD in 1883, José Ortega y Gasset was born. Best known as one of Spain’s leading philosophers, Ortega also offered one of the earliest systematic reflections on technology in the 20th century.
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October 18, 2025 at 8:06 PM
OTD in 1883, José Ortega y Gasset was born. Best known as one of Spain’s leading philosophers, Ortega also offered one of the earliest systematic reflections on technology in the 20th century.
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OTD in 1859, Henri Bergson was born. Though best known for his philosophy of life and time, Bergson was also a foundational figure for the philosophy of technology.
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October 18, 2025 at 2:12 PM
OTD in 1859, Henri Bergson was born. Though best known for his philosophy of life and time, Bergson was also a foundational figure for the philosophy of technology.
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In his work, Kittler explored numerous topics, including universities and education as media systems; gramophone, film, and typewriter as media that broke print's monopoly on what could be recorded, stored, and transmitted.
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October 18, 2025 at 7:36 AM
In his work, Kittler explored numerous topics, including universities and education as media systems; gramophone, film, and typewriter as media that broke print's monopoly on what could be recorded, stored, and transmitted.
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On this day in 2011, Friedrich Kittler died in Berlin. Born in Rochlitz, Germany in 1943, Kittler was, and for many still is, the leading figure in German media theory, or Medienwissenschaften.
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October 18, 2025 at 7:33 AM
On this day in 2011, Friedrich Kittler died in Berlin. Born in Rochlitz, Germany in 1943, Kittler was, and for many still is, the leading figure in German media theory, or Medienwissenschaften.
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Arendt’s thought remains vital today, reminding us that technological power must not eclipse the political dimensions of human life, and that freedom depends on more than making and consuming—it depends on acting together in the world.
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October 14, 2025 at 7:12 PM
Arendt’s thought remains vital today, reminding us that technological power must not eclipse the political dimensions of human life, and that freedom depends on more than making and consuming—it depends on acting together in the world.
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On this day in 1906, Hannah Arendt was born. Best known for her political philosophy, Arendt also offered profound reflections on technology in, among others, The Human Condition (1958).
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October 14, 2025 at 7:11 PM
On this day in 1906, Hannah Arendt was born. Best known for her political philosophy, Arendt also offered profound reflections on technology in, among others, The Human Condition (1958).
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Postman is well known for his book Amusing Ourselves to Death (1985) in which he argued that television reduces complex ideas to easily digestible visual content, diminishing important topics like politics to nothing more than simplistic entertainment.
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October 5, 2025 at 9:04 PM
Postman is well known for his book Amusing Ourselves to Death (1985) in which he argued that television reduces complex ideas to easily digestible visual content, diminishing important topics like politics to nothing more than simplistic entertainment.
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On this day (5 October) in 2003, Neil Postman died. Postman was strongly influenced by the media theory of Marshall McLuhan and his work is associated with the field of research called "media ecology."
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October 5, 2025 at 9:00 PM
On this day (5 October) in 2003, Neil Postman died. Postman was strongly influenced by the media theory of Marshall McLuhan and his work is associated with the field of research called "media ecology."
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Ten years ago, François Dagognet died. A philosopher of science and technology, Dagognet extended the work of Gaston Bachelard by turning attention to the material traces and inscriptions produced by scientific instruments.
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October 3, 2025 at 4:33 PM
Ten years ago, François Dagognet died. A philosopher of science and technology, Dagognet extended the work of Gaston Bachelard by turning attention to the material traces and inscriptions produced by scientific instruments.
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Simondon's thought left a lasting mark on later philosophers such as Herbert Marcuse, Gilbert Hottois, and Bernard Stiegler, and remains central to contemporary reflections on the role of technology in shaping human life.
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October 2, 2025 at 7:17 PM
Simondon's thought left a lasting mark on later philosophers such as Herbert Marcuse, Gilbert Hottois, and Bernard Stiegler, and remains central to contemporary reflections on the role of technology in shaping human life.
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On this day in 1924, Gilbert Simondon was born. A pioneering French philosopher of technology, Simondon challenged us to see machines not as passive tools but as entities with their own modes of existence.
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October 2, 2025 at 7:16 PM
On this day in 1924, Gilbert Simondon was born. A pioneering French philosopher of technology, Simondon challenged us to see machines not as passive tools but as entities with their own modes of existence.
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On this day in 1889, Martin Heidegger was born. Heidegger holds a prominent place in the history of the philosophy of technology as he is often taken to be one of the first philosophers to take technology seriously.
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September 26, 2025 at 10:20 AM
On this day in 1889, Martin Heidegger was born. Heidegger holds a prominent place in the history of the philosophy of technology as he is often taken to be one of the first philosophers to take technology seriously.
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He argued that we must critically engage with technological advancements, considering their impacts not just in terms of utility but in their broader social, moral, and human dimensions.
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September 21, 2025 at 10:29 AM
He argued that we must critically engage with technological advancements, considering their impacts not just in terms of utility but in their broader social, moral, and human dimensions.
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Today, we celebrate the life and contributions of Mario Bunge (1919–2025), a prominent philosopher of science who also reflected on technology.
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September 21, 2025 at 10:26 AM
Today, we celebrate the life and contributions of Mario Bunge (1919–2025), a prominent philosopher of science who also reflected on technology.
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His ideas about the technical mediation of human existence helped shape their explorations of technics as a form of individuation, communication and memory, making him a foundational figure in French philosophy of technology.
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August 25, 2025 at 9:48 AM
His ideas about the technical mediation of human existence helped shape their explorations of technics as a form of individuation, communication and memory, making him a foundational figure in French philosophy of technology.
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André Leroi-Gourhan was a pioneering French archaeologist, anthropologist, and philosopher whose work deeply influenced French philosophy of technology through his studies of human evolution, tools, and culture.
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August 25, 2025 at 9:48 AM
André Leroi-Gourhan was a pioneering French archaeologist, anthropologist, and philosopher whose work deeply influenced French philosophy of technology through his studies of human evolution, tools, and culture.
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Thus, any chance of developing a familiarity with the same technology over years or decades is difficult (and ideologically undesirable for many), resulting in a form of alienation in which most people feel no control over the pace of their own lives.
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August 15, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Thus, any chance of developing a familiarity with the same technology over years or decades is difficult (and ideologically undesirable for many), resulting in a form of alienation in which most people feel no control over the pace of their own lives.
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In an age of AI, automation, and transhumanist ambition, Lyotard’s work remains vital—challenging us to think critically about what it means to be human in a digital and posthuman future.
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August 10, 2025 at 6:25 AM
In an age of AI, automation, and transhumanist ambition, Lyotard’s work remains vital—challenging us to think critically about what it means to be human in a digital and posthuman future.
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