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Philosophy and Ethics of Technology
Last Updated: 2026-06-01 11:31:13
Abstract
This seminar will provide a historical overview of the philosophy and philosophical ethics of technology and a systematic discussion of important positions in contemporary philosophy.
Objective
Students will be given an overview of various historical and contemporary approaches in the philosophy and ethics of technology. They are supported in further developing their ability to understand, critically reflect on and discuss complex texts.
Content
Technology shapes our way of life as individuals and societies enormously and decisively and always has done. Nevertheless, there is still controversy to this day: what exactly is technology and how exactly does it affect what? For example, it is disputed whether only certain types of material artifacts (and which ones exactly?) are technology or also certain practices. There is also the view that technology can only be understood as an instrument for individuals and societies. Equally, however, there is the view that technology forms the (usually not explicitly conscious) conditions under which individuals and societies develop an understanding of what their possibilities for action are, indeed, who they are in the first place. Along with the lack of clarity about the definition of technology, there is disagreement about how to describe the history of the development of technology and how this is connected to the history of societies. For example, it is controversial whether modern societies are essentially defined by certain technologies and also driven forward in their development by them or whether this connection is more complex (and possibly even the other way round). How technology in general and individual technologies are to be evaluated ethically is - unsurprisingly - also one of the fundamental historical social points of contention in history and to this day (in general, for example: Technology-averse versus technology-affine; specifically, for example: how are attention-manipulating recommendation algorithms be evaluated ethically?). This seminar will provide a historical overview of the philosophy and philosophical ethics of technology and a systematic discussion of important positions in contemporary philosophy.
General Information
- Language
- English
- Levels
- DS , MSC
Examination
- Type
- graded semester performance
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| seminar | Philosophy and Ethics of Technology |
|
2 h semesterly |
Offered In
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Wissenschaft im Kontext (Science in Perspective) (In Kursen aus dem Programm “Wissenschaft im Kontext” lernen Studierende, die MINT Fächer der ETH aus der Perspektive der Geistes-, Sozial- und Staatswissenschaften zu reflektieren. Nur die in diesem Abschnitt aufgelisteten Fächer können als "Wissenschaft im Kontext" angerechnet werden.)
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Typ A: Förderung allgemeiner Reflexionskompetenz (WiK-Kurse werden für Bachelorstudierende nach dem ersten Studienjahr sowie für alle Masterstudierende und Doktorierende empfohlen. Alle WiK-Kurse sind in Typ A gelistet. Bei den unter Typ B aufgeführten Kursen handelt es sich lediglich um Belegungsempfehlungen für bestimmte Departemente.)
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