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In this session, we explore the concept of 'soft determinism' as proposed by Heilbroner, focusing on how machines influence history. We will outline our papers, emphasizing systematic arguments to examine whether technology shapes societal structures. Topics include the impact of war technologies, the effects of media, and the socio-economic order established through production technologies. Importantly, we address the interaction of technology and social relationships, exploring anonymity in online communities and its potential to foster or inhibit community building.
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Session 18 Scoping Your Final Paper Topic & Argument (revisiting Heilbroner’s ‘Soft Determinism’) Outlining Exercise
ScopING your TOPIC + argument Revisiting Heilbroner’s “Soft Determinism”
Do Machines Make History? • “that machines make history in some sense—that the level of technology has a direct bearing on the human drama—is of course obvious” [….BUT…..] • How to “say something systematic” and “order the problem so that it becomes intellectually manageable” [SCOPE THE CLAIM IN ORDER TO MAKE IT MORE CREDIBLE]
Heilbroner - Scope • Possibilities for examining this claim that machines make history: • The political course of history – i.e. technologies of war • The social attitude underlying history – i.e. effects of radio or TV • The content of life – its texture and substance as connected to tech order • “the effect of technology in determining the nature of the socioeconomic order” – specifically “technologies of production” (i.e the hand mill, steam mill)
Heilbroner - Argument • Initial Claim – there is a fixed sequence to technological development • Evidence: innovations happen at the same time (without connection btwn) • Evidence: inventions are evolutionary (no sudden leaps) • Evidence: we seem to know what is coming next (general predictions)
Heilbroner - Argument • Initial Claim – there is a fixed sequence to technological development • Evidence: innovations happen at the same time (without connection btwn) • Evidence: inventions are evolutionary (no sudden leaps) • Evidence: we seem to know what is coming next (general predictions)
Heilbroner – More Scoping • Initial Claim – the impact on “society” is on “relationships of production” • Specifically – composition of the labor force (skilled vs. unskilled, at home vs. at factory site) • Specifically – orders of supervision and coordination (men-manager confrontations, industrial managers)
Heilbroner - Qualifications • Heilbroner makes clear his case is one of a SOFT Determinism • Qualification 1: there is a social element in the design of technology – “the machine will reflect…the social relationships of work” • Qualification 2: technological progress is a social activity that not all societies puruse • Qualification 3: the course of tech advance is responsive to social directions • Qualification 4: tech change must be compatible with existing social conditions
Heilbroner – Problem Space? • Not entirely clear. • Perhaps – the very question of scoping and arguing this claim “do machines make history?” • “to see if there is an empirical content—in the idea of technological determinism…” • “see if we can place the salvageable elements of the theory in historical perspective—” • What do we mean by problem space?
Topic: anonymity • Problem space: • How does anonymity either foster or inhibit community building? • How is ‘community’ possible given extreme full anonymity? • Case: 4chan • What do we gain or lose from different forms of anonymity or pseudonymity in online spaces? • Case: 4chan • Case: World of Warcraft
