The Internet as network,world, co-construction,and mode of governance

The Internet is unlike anything else in the history of technology. It is neither a tool nor a machine, but a network. As such, it is a new type of technical system. It resembles the telephone system in some respects, but it also has similarities to broadcast networks that distribute entertainment, shopping malls that distribute goods, and transportation systems insofar as it opens new “worlds” to its users. What is more, the users of the Internet take on new capacities and identities through their participation in the network, most obviously the unprecedented absorption in mediated social relations exemplified by Facebook. This Perspective article will attempt to put some order in the understanding of the Internet in terms of three theoretical approaches, loosely interpreted to suit this new object. These approaches are actor network theory, the phenomenological concept of world, and Simondon’s concepts of individuation and concretization.     

对合理性的合理批判

对合理性的社会批判有两个来源,一个是18世纪的浪漫主义,另一个就是马克思。马克思对剩余价值的分析证实了社会组织的合理原则会产生一个带有偏见的结果。由于现代社会的合理性主要是由市场、组织和技术围绕着合理性的原则建立的,因此作者认为,马克思用于分析市场的方法也可以用于分析技术,而法兰克福学派就是在此基础上提出了一种对技术的合理批判。技术政治学的出现使我们看到技术发展的模式逐渐类似于日常的政治活动,而社会建构论从社会因素的角度强调技术发展的不确定性。作者从法兰克福学派和科学技术论研究出发,提出了一种新的两级“工具化理论”。指出在不同的社会条件下,技术能够被重新设计,以便服务于人类和自然,而不是统治人类和自然。     

Community Technology and Democratic Rationalization

The objective of this paper is to explore questions of human agency and democratic process in the technical sphere through the example of "virtual community." The formation of relatively stable long-term group associations--community in the broad sense of the term--is the scene on which a large share of human development occurs. As such it is a fundamental human value mobilizing diverse ideologies and sensitivities. The promise of realizing this value in a new domain naturally stirs up much excitement among optimistic observers of the Internet. At the same time, the eagerness to place hopes for community in a technical system flies in the face of an influential intellectual tradition of technology criticism. This eagerness seems even more naive in the light of the recent commercialization of so much Internet activity. Despite the widespread skepticism, we believe the growth of virtual community is significant for an inquiry into the democratization of technology.We show that conflicting answers to the central question of the present theoretical debate--Is community possible on computer networks?--generalize from particular features of systems and software prevalent at different stages in the development of computer networking. We conclude that research should focus instead on how to design computer networks to better support community activities and values.