Humanist Discussion Group, Vol. 14, No. 485.
Centre for Computing in the Humanities, King's College London
<http://www.princeton.edu/~mccarty/humanist/>
<http://www.kcl.ac.uk/humanities/cch/humanist/>
Date: Fri, 10 Nov 2000 09:56:07 +0000
From: Arun-Kumar Tripathi <tripathi@statistik.uni-dortmund.de>
Subject: Prof. Albert Borgmann and issues on philosophy of
technology --His Wonders of the Information Age
Greetings Humanist Scholars,
Hello --here are some pointers related to the work of Prof. Albert
Borgmann..the authors, Prof. Hubert Dreyfus and Dr. Charles Spinosa have
expressed their views..in below essay..as..Albert Borgmann an American
frontiersman's version of the question concerning technology that was
pursued by Heidegger almost half a century ago among the peasants in the
Black Forest. --Hubert Dreyfus and Charles Spinosa have written an
article on Highway Bridges and Feasts: Heidegger and Borgmann on How to
Affirm Technology is at <http://www.focusing.org/dreyfus.html>
Prof. Albert Borgmann besides writing excellent books, such as Crossing
the Postmodern Divide: Holding On to Reality and The Character of
Contemporary Life, he has also contributed to books like, Richard
Buchanan & Victor Magolin's "Discovering Design: Exploration in Design
Studies (University of Chicago Press, 1995) as *The Depth of Design*.
Review on his latest book, *Holding On to Reality: The Nature of
Information at the Turn of the Millennium* is available online at
<http://www.library.ucsb.edu/istl/99-summer/review3.html>
Review of his book, "Crossing the Postmodern Divide" by Stewart Brand,
co-founder of Global Business Network..is available online at
<http://www.gbn.org/public/services/bookclub/books/bk_crossing.htm>
Review: Albert Borgmann on the Technological Paradigm (Part I)
<http://platon.ee.duth.gr/data/maillist-archives/cyberurbanity/msg00124.html>
Prof. Borgmann has also written an essay in THE WASHINGTON QUARTERLY,
on Global Trends: A Glimpse Ahead on the Society in the Postmodern Era
-the essay is available online at
<http://www.twq.com/winter00/231Borgmann.html>
Review of _Holding On to Reality_ by David Rieder is published in
Cybersociology is available online at
<http://www.socio.demon.co.uk/magazine/7/rieder.html>
Web-pointers related to the Albert Borgmann's work..
Elements of a Postmodern Holiness Hermeneutic Illustrated by way of The
Book of Revelation by John E. Stanley [The author dicussed his book,
"Crossing the Postmodern Divide"]
<http://wesley.nnc.edu/theojrnl/28-2.txt>
>From Essentialism to Constructivism: Philosophy of Technology at the
Crossroads -by Andrew Feenberg [The author has discussed his books,
"Technology and the Character of Contemporary Life", and "Crossing the
Postmodern Divide"] -the article is available online at
<http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/faculty/feenberg/talk4.html>
In 'Culture Of Technology' --Prof. Albert Borgmann has also expressed his
views..and..stressed on Consumption, Community and Celebration..as in
his own words.."The Character of contemporary culture is best captured, I
believe, by the term technology. It reminds us of the artifacts and
procedures that distinguish our time. And, on Consumption he
said..Consumption is the adversary of community. In a philosophical sense,
consumption is the unencumbered enjoyment of glamorous commodities.."
Scholar/Philosopher Prof. Albert Borgmann wants you to pry yourself free
and grasp actual reality. With its uniqueness, and great in weight and
"burden" it will command your serious attention. Virtual reality merely
requires your fast-fingered manipulation. The flood of Information today
threatens to overflow, suffocate and even obliterate actual reality, says
the University of Montana philosophy professor Albert Borgmann. The
"lightness" of technological information seems bent on overcoming the
"moral gravity" and "material density" that real things naturally possess
and that demand our mindful engagement..Virtual reality, in this regards
seems amoral at best. Professor Borgmann is not asking us to abandon
technological information, but he is calling us (giving us a warning
--play safe) to link it effectively to "things and practices that provide
for our material and spiritual well-being. So, his latest
classics..*Holding On to Reality: The Nature of Information at the Turn of
the Millennium* published by University of Chicago Press, 1999, is a
highly recommended classics and brilliant coverage of History of
Informations, Signals and Technological Informations.
In the essay "Trees, Forestry, and the Responsiveness of Creation" written
by Brian Walsh, Marianne Karsh and Nik Ansell..the authors discussed
his works, as..In Crossing the Postmodern Divide, Albert Borgmann
contrasts his own version of postmodern realism with the epsitemological
despair of postmodernity. For complete reading of this essay, please point
your browser to (http://www.crosscurrents.org/trees.htm)
In other essay, "Colonizing the Imagination: Disney's Wilderness
Lodge" written by Jennifer Cypher and Eric Higgs --an eloquent written
essay, discussed heavily the latest researches of "Albert Borgmann" --as
Albert Borgmann, an American philosopher of technology, provides a theory
of technology that accounts for a distinctive pattern underlying
contemporary life. His theory of the device paradigm includes a
decomposition of focal things --things which affirm bodily and social
engagement with things that matter deeply to us --into two constituent
parts: a commodity and machinery. For complete reading of the essay,
please point your browser to
(http://www.ethics.ubc.ca/papers/invited/cypher-higgs.html)
I hope, these findings of mine, related to the work and research of
Professor Albert Borgmann would be helping you. Please free to use these
findings in your teaching schedules. Thank you for your listening!!
Sincerely yours
Arun Tripathi
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