1. PSTS: A philosophical approach to science, technology and society How are information and communication technologies affecting our privacy? Can we anticipate the future implications of nanotechnology for society? Are there ethical limits to genetic modifications of animals and human beings? How do new technologies change our behaviour and our perceptions of the world? These are just some of the questions explored in the Master of Science programme Philosophy of Science, Technology and Society (PSTS). The PSTS programme has as its domain the philosophy of technology, which is a field that is concerned with the philosophical study of technology and its implications for and interactions with society. In the PSTS programme, the philosophy of technology is understood broadly as a field that includes, next to philosophical approaches, empirical and multidisciplinary approaches from the field of science, technology and innovation studies (STS). PSTS is a two-year English-language Master’s programme with a strong international orientation. The aim of PSTS is to enable students to perform philosophical and multidisciplinary analyses of applied science and technology and their place in society. Two disciplines contribute to realizing this aim: Philosophy and the multidisciplinary field of Science, Technology and Innovation Studies (STS).
1.1 Philosophy Philosophy as it is practiced at the Department of Philosophy (faculty of Behavioural Sciences) at the University of Twente is philosophy of technology. Philosophy of technology aims to understand and assess the pervasive role of technology in society. Every major activity in our lives, such as work, play, learning, communication, and travel, depends on technology. All major institutions of society, such as government, healthcare, defense, education, religion, and law, are increasingly fixated around technology, and changes in them are to a large extent driven by technology. Modern technology has had many benefits for humanity, enhancing welfare and individual freedom, but has also brought harms, ranging from environmental problems to issues of rationalization and alienation. In light of these developments, the philosophy of technology has both an interpretive and a normative aim. Its interpretive aim is to understand the way in which technological artifacts and practices give shape to, and are themselves shaped by, core aspects of modern culture and society. Its normative aim is to provide evaluations and assessments of technologies and their correlated social and cultural impacts. Philosophy of technology at the University of Twente can be characterized by its ‘empirical’ orientation. Rather than only studying the philosophical tradition, or aiming to understand technology in general, research starts from analyzing specific technologies and technological practices and discourses. And rather than using pre-given philosophical theories to analyze technology, the ambition is to understand how technologies encourage us to expand existing philosophical concepts and frameworks. On the one hand, this orientation utilizes ideas and theories from the philosophical tradition, and on the other, it aims to contribute to mainstream discussions of philosophy. It does so by studying how technology alters the concepts and realities traditionally studied by philosophy (how, for instance, medical technologies and human enhancement technologies change our notion of the subject and of the body) and by studying how technology uncovers and provides new perspectives on old philosophical issues
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