Strategies for alternative technology assessment in …summit.sfu.ca/system/files/iritems1/6193/b16169694.pdfIvan Illich's concept of convivial technology which holds that tech- nologies

STRATEGIES FOR ALTERNATIVE TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT

I N THE INFORMATION SOCIETY

John Lawrence Olsen

B.A. Simon F r a s e r U n i v e r s i t y , 1970

A THESIS SUBMITTED I N PARTIAL FULFILLMENT

OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF

MASTER OF ARTS (COMMUNICATIONS)

i n t h e Department

0 f

Communication S t u d i e s

John O l s e n , 1983

SIMON ERASER UNIVERSITY

JANUARY 1983

A l l r i g h t s r e s e r v e d . T h i s t h e s i s may n o t b e reproduced , i n whole o r i n p a r t ,

by photocopy o r o t h e r means, w i t h o u t p e r m i s s i o n of t h e a u t h o r .

APPROVAL

Name : John Lawrence Olsen

Degree : Master of Arts (Communication)

Title of Thesis: Strategies for Alternative Technology Assessment in the Information Society.

Examining Camittee :

Chairperson: Dr. Thmas J. Mallinson, Professor.

- ---- . - / L

Gail M. Martin Assmiate Professor Senior Supervisor

Nilliam 'kiss Professor

Margaret Pens ton Assistant Professor

Computing Science and Women ' s Studies,

Simon Fraser University Fxternal Examiner

Date A~~roved : January 11, 1983

PARTIAL COPYRIGHT LICENSE

I hereby g ran t t o Simon Fraser U n i v e r s i t y t h e r i g h t t o lend y

my thes i s , proJect o r extsnded essay ( t h e t i t l e of which I s shown below)

t o u s e 1 5 ot the Slmon Fraser U n i v e r s i t y L ib rary , and t o make partial or

< j i n g l e copies o n l y f o r such users or i n response to a request f rom t h e

l i b r a r y of any o ther un lvo rs l t y , o r o the r educat ional Institution, on

i t s own behalf or f o r on@ of I t s users. I f u r t h e r agree t h a t permfssion

f o r m u i t i p l e copying o f t h i s work f o r s c h o l a r l y purposes may be granted

by me or the Ooan o f Graduate Studies. It i s understood t h a t copying

o r publication of t h i s work f o r f l n a n c l a l g a i n s h a l l not be a l lowed

wi thout my w r i t t e n permission.

l i t l o o f Thosis/Projoct/Extended Essay

Strategies for Alternative Technology Assessment

in the Infomation Society.

Author: --- - - - V

( s igna tu re )

John Lawrence Olsen

January 11, 1983 - (date

iii

ABSTRACT

Conventional technology assessment s t r a t e g i e s a r e based on t h e

premises t h a t

1) t h e t o o l s of s c i e n t i f i c technology can r e v e a l p o t e n t i a l l y undes i r ab le e f f e c t s of i n d i v i d u a l t echno log ie s , and

2) t h e c o l l e c t e d f i n d i n g s of such s t u d i e s w i l l c o n s t i t u t e an adequate check on technology qua technology.

The e f f e c t of t h e former is t o deny t h e a b i l i t y of o rd ina ry people

t o dec ide about technology; t h e e f f e c t of t h e l a t t e r i s t o render

t echno log ica l growth u n c o n t r o l l a b l e .

A review of t h e l i t e r a t u r e of bo th dys topian and u topian c r i t i c s

of technology r e v e a l s a f a l s e dichotomy and sugges t s t h e need f o r a

t h i r d p o s i t i o n . To addres s t h a t t h i r d p o s i t i o n , t h e t h e s i s employs \

Ivan I l l i c h ' s concept of c o n v i v i a l technology which ho lds t h a t tech-

no log ie s may be s o c i a l l y f u n c t i o n a l up t o a c r i t i c a l t h re sho ld , be-

yond which dysfunct ion s e t s i n .

However, s i n c e I l l i c h f a i l s t o p rov ide a conc re t e s t r a t e g y f o r

l o c a t i n g such t h r e s h o l d s , an a l t e r n a t i v e model of technology a s ses s -

ment i s developed, employing t h e concepts and p r a c t i c e s of a p p r o p r i a t e

technology. From t h a t model, f o u r s p e c i f i c t e s t s a r e der ived . The

model sugges t s both an a n a l y t i c a l framework f o r t e s t i n g technologies

f o r c o n v i v i a l i t y and a process t h a t r e t u r n s t h e r i g h t t o t h e community

t o accept o r r e j e c t them.

It i s argued t h a t a n a l t e r n a t i v e technology assessment t o o l

should b e u s e f u l f o r p o s t - i n d u s t r i a l a p p l i c a t i o n s . Accordingly, t h e

e f f i c a c y of t h e de r ived model i s t e s t e d on t h e emerging information

technology -- v i d e o t e x / ~ e l i d o n . The p re l imina ry t e s t s t r o n g l y sug-

g e s t s t h a t v i d e o t e x / ~ e l i d o n s i g n i f i c a n t l y exceeds t h e th re sho ld of

in format ion technologies .

The s tudy concludes t h a t a n a l t e r n a t i v e s t r a t e g y f o r technology

assessment i s p r a c t i c a l and sugges t s a r e a s of cont ingent concerns

f o r f u t u r e r e sea rch .

DEDICATION

For

DONNA MOFFATT

and t h e memory of

KAJ OLSEN

QUOTATION

Many years ago, the good burghers of Warsaw discovered a special clay out of which they could mould a man-like servant whom they called the Golem. Af ter fashioning the Golem, they would write 'emethr ( t ru th ) on i t s forehead, thus bringing it t o l i f e . Every day it grew larger and every day it could perform even greater tasks given t o it by i t s master, for the GoZem was completely d e r the control of whoever made it.

When it became too large, the master would reach up and erase the l e t t e r ' e r from i t s forehead t o rend the word 'meth' (death), and the Golem would collapse i n t o a l i f e l e s s heap of clay a t the master's feet . I t was then a simple task t o fashion a new one.

One day, a careless master l e t h i s Golem grow too t a l l for him t o reach i t s forehead. As it continued t o grow, it threatened injury and damage t o the mas- t e r ' s property and might even have k i l l ed him -- not because the Golem was e v i l , but because it was out of scale for the master's world.

I n desperation, the master ordered the Golem t o bend down and t i e h i s shoe laces. When the Golem complied, the master quickly erased the ' e ' from i t s forehead and the Golem collapsed on the master, crushing him t o death.

Anon.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

A s w i t h a l l who e n t e r l a t e i n t o academic

s t u d i e s , I owe much t o many unnamed f r i e n d s

who encouraged, c r i t i c i z e d , t o l e r a t e d my

e f f o r t s and p a t i e n t l y outwai ted my c o n c e i t s .

Congra tu la t ions a r e a l s o due t o t h o s e of

my t e a c h e r s who triumphed over educa t iona l

technology t o a c t u a l l y h e l p me t o l e a r n .

F i n a l l y , my s p e c i a l thanks t o f e l l ow s t u d e n t s

who ga thered around a t a mid-thesis c r i s i s

i n concep tua l i za t ion and h o i s t e d me over

t h e b a r r i e r .

TmLE OF CONTENTS vii

................................................ Approval

Abstract ................................................ Dedication ................................................ Quotation ................................................

......................................... Acknowledgements

......................................... Table of Contents

List of Tables ........................................... List of Figures ...........................................

............................................. Introduction

Chapter I ..................................... The Dystopians

The Utopians ...................................... The Synthesis .....................................

Chapter I1 The Third Position Theory .......................... The Third Position Applications:

Transportation ................................. Health ........................................ Agriculture ................................... Energy ........................................ Education .....................................

............................. Human Settlements ....................................... Control

..................................... Knowledge Chapter I11

The Theoretical Problem .......................... Technology Assessment ............................ Appropriate Technology and TA ..................... Alternative Technology Assessment (ATA) .......... An ATA Framework ................................. ATA Tests ........................................

Chapter IV Videotex .. A Case Study .......................... The Tests:

.......................... Environmental Impact ~olitical/~conomic Control ..................... Vulnerability .................................

............................ ~abourl~nergy Ratio Assessment Conclusions .............................

Chapter V ............................................ Summary

Contingent Concerns : 1) An Organizational Technique .................. 2) Emerging Technologies ....................... 3) Established Technologies ....................

.......................................... Conclusion

List of References ......................................... Bibliography ...............................................

i i

iii

vii

viii

viii LIST OF TABLES

Table 3:l Column/centimetres of copy by subject category in randomly selected issues of Canadian Renewable Energy News ............. 69

Table 3:2 Technology Families ............................ 80

ix

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 3: 1 A 'state of the Art' Model of Conventional Technology Assessment .......... 59

Figure 3: 2 Functional Roles in Conventional Technology Assessment .......... 7 5

Figure 3:3 Functional Roles in Alternative Technology Assessment ........... 7 6

Figure 4 : l Videotex Hybrid Cable/~elephone Distribution System ........................ 8 7

INTRODUCTION

There i s a pe rvas ive sense a t l a r g e t h a t t h e i n d u s t r i a l e r a i s

be ing d i sp l aced by one c h a r a c t e r i z e d by t h e prominence of in format ion

based on e l e c t r o n i c technology: an in fo rma t ion s o c i e t y .

The l i t e r a t u r e sugges t s t h a t t h e t r a n s i t i o n w i l l be a t l e a s t a s

r a d i c a l a s t h a t which marked t h e r i s e of i n d u s t r i a l s o c i e t y from t h e

a g r i c u l t u r a l e r a i t d i sp l aced .

I n each of t h e s e t r a n s i t i o n s , p i v o t a l t echno log ie s emerged as

t h e engines of change. Moreover, i t i s t e c h n o l o g i c a l changes i n t h e

o l d o r d e r t h a t g ive r i s e t o t h e p o s s i b i l i t y of t h e new. For example,

i t has been pu r suas ive ly shown t h a t a g r i c u l t u r a l t echnologies such as

t h e c h i s e l plough, crop r o t a t i o n and f e n c i n g of t h e commons produced

s u f f i c i e n t food s u r p l u s e s t o permit t h e r i s e of l abour - in t ens ive

i n d u s t r i a l t echnologies . They i n t u r n y i e l d e d even more e f f i c i e n t

a g r i c u l t u r a l t o o l s . I n t h e c u r r e n t t r a n s i t i o n i t can be shown t h a t

s o l i d - s t a t e and mic ro -c i r cu i t ry i n d u s t r i a l t echniques a r e necessary .

minimum techno log ie s f o r t h e emergence of an informat ion dominated

technology. It too r ende r s i n d u s t r i a l p roces ses more e f f i c i e n t .

The popular n o t i o n of t h e d i f f e r e n c e between t h e two s h i f t s i s

t h a t modern c i t i z e n s a r e more consc ious of t h e r o l e of technology i n

shaping t h e i r l i v e s . While t h e a c t i o n s of t h e Luddi tes ques t ion t h a t

pe rcep t ion , what can be seen a s s u b s t a n t i a l l y d i f f e r e n t i s t h e degree

of complexity of t h e i s s u e a r i s i n g from t h e e x t e n t t o which technology

pervades t h e s o c i a l m i l i e u and t h u s a l t e r s consc iousness about i t s e l f .

Out of t h i s consciousness comes a n awareness of e i t h e r t h e i m -

pac t of technology o r t h e o p p o r t u n i t i e s it o f f e r s . While one segment

of c r i t i c a l s o c i e t y s e e s technology as a t h r e a t t o human autonomy,

ano the r s e e s i t a s p o t e n t i a l l y l i b e r a t i n g mankind from t o i l and want.

The dys top ians , l i k e Rousseau, seem t o s e e humans as e s s e n t i a l l y

f r e e , spontaneous and " r ea l " u n t i l they a r e overwhelmed by t h e t r ap -

p ings of s o c i e t y . The u top ians tend t o s t a r t from ~ o b b e ' s view t h a t

. t h e appa ra tus of s t a t e can remove manxind from savage compet i t ion ,

lengthen l i f e and reduce s c a r c i t y . The l i t e r a t u r e of t h e dys topians

concen t r a t e s on ana lyses of t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p between t echno log ica l

developments and r e s t r i c t i o n s on human autonomy, whi le t h a t of t h e

u top ians sea rches f o r t h e promise of g r e a t e r human s t r e n g t h through

technology.

What they s h a r e i n common i s t h e b e l i e f t h a t technology i s a t

l e a s t a major , and f o r some t h e e x c l u s i v e , determinant of t h e human

cond i t i on .

Accordingly, both s i d e s wish t o be a b l e t o make r a t i o n a l pur-

pos ive d e c i s i o n s about t h e d i r e c t i o n s technology should t ake . Both

pursuas ions can t h e r e f o r e be s a i d t o favour some process by which

technologies can be a s ses sed f o r t h e p o s s i b l e impacts o r t h e oppor-

t u n i t i e s they p re sen t .

Even i n t h e midst of t h i s agreement , disagreement occurs . Con-

s i s t e n t w i t h t h e i r b e l i e f i n autonomous mankind, dys topians sea rch

f o r human c o n t r o l of t h e assessment p roces s ; u top ians tend t o r e l y

on s o c i a l t echnologies t o - c a r r y o u t t h a t p roces s .

This t h e s i s ho lds t h a t t h e r e i s a t h i r d p o s i t i o n t h a t borrows

a b i t from t h e p o s i t i o n s of bo th p r o t a g o n i s t s .

E s s e n t i a l l y , t h e t h i r d p o s i t i o n s t a t e s t h a t technology o f f e r s

l i b e r a t i o n from t o i l and want -- up t o a c r i t i c a l t h re sho ld p o i n t ,

beyond which technology begins t o r e s t r i c t human autonomy. I n

s h o r t , once t h e th re sho ld i s breached, p r e v i o u s l y f u n c t i o n a l tech-

nology becomes dys func t iona l .

Thus, t h e t a s k of technology assessment becomes one of l o c a t i n g

t h e t h r e s h o l d and r e j e c t i n g a l l t e chno log ie s t h a t exceed i t .

However, t echno log ica l mankind a l r e a d y e x i s t s . Technology has

shaped t h e h a b i t s and e x p e c t a t i o n s of a l l people t o t h e e x t e n t t h a t

judgments about where t o p l a c e t h e t h r e s h o l d a r e not f r e e of techno-

c r a t i c i n f l u e n c e s .

What i s needed i s a decision-making mechanism t h a t can inc re -

menta l ly de- technologize human p e r c e p t i o n s , a technology assessment

s t r a t e g y t h a t can invade t h e c o l l e c t i v e consciousness . To f a i l t o

do s o w i l l be t o s h i f t from autonomous humanity t o autonomous tech-

nology.

To unfo ld t h e c a s e , t h i s t h e s i s w i l l examine t h e l i t e r a t u r e of

bo th dys top ia and u top ia b e f o r e s e t t i n g ou t t h e t h i r d p o s i t i o n . A

t e n t a t i v e assessment model can then be de r ived which w i l l be t e s t e d

a g a i n s t an emerging informat ion technology. The cont ingent ques t ions

t h a t emerge and which a r e beyond t h e scope of t h i s t rea tment can then

be i d e n t i f i e d f o r f u t u r e s t u d i e s .

CHAPTER I

The changeover t o free industry, based not on tools and craf t processes alone, but greatly aided by labour- freeing machines, began around the tenth century, and was f i r s t marked by a steady increase i n the number of watermiZZs i n Europe. As early as 1066, when W i l l i a m the Conqueror seized England, there were 8,000 watermills, serving Zess than one mil l ion people. A t the very modest estimate of 2.5 horsepower per m i l l , t h i s was twice the energy that was available through the assemblage of the 100,000 men who b u i l t the Great Pyramid, and probably more than twenty times i n rela- t i o n t o the population of t h e i r respective countries.

Lewis Ihmford, The Myth of the Machine

The Dystopians:

The b a s i c premise underpinning t h e dys top i an viewpoint i s t h a t

technology i s i n some way s e l f - p e r p e t u a t i n g , t h a t i t a l t e r s human

awareness of what i s p o s s i b l e . I n i t s most r a d i c a l form, t h e dys-

t o p i a n p o s i t i o n h o l d s t h a t technology h a s a l i f e of i t s own and i s

t h e r e f o r e n e a r l y completely autonomous.

Without a doubt , Jacque E l l u l p r e s e n t s t h e most r a d i c a l and

unequivocal s t a t emen t of t h e dys topian view. Not o n l y i s techno-

logy o p e r a t i n g f r e e of t h e c o n t r o l of mankind, b u t we a r e becoming

i t s s u b j e c t s .

Let no one say that man i s the agent of technical progress ... and tha t it i s he who chooses among possible techniques ... He i s a device for recording e f f e c t s and resu l t s obtained by various techniques ... He can decide only i n favour of the technique tha t gives the max imum ef f ic iency. (1)

This s t a t e of a f f a i r s does n o t a r r i v e because technology has f a l l e n

under t h e heavy hand of a d i c t a t o r o r a r u l i n g e l i t e . It a r i s e s because

human consc iousness i s formed by technology, i n t h e i n t e r e s t of techno-

l o g i c a l p rog res s .

Furthermore, t h e process i s l a r g e l y i r r e v e r s i b l e . E l l u l a l lows

only t h r e e p o s s i b l e even t s t h a t might r e v e r s e t h e t r end :

1) I f a general war breaks out, and i f there are any survivors, the destruction w i l l be so enormous, and the conditions o f survival so d i f f e ren t , that a technological society w i l l no longer e x i s t .

2 ) I f an increasing number of people become ful ly aware of the threat the technoZogicaZ world poses t o man's personal and sp ir i tual l i f e , and i f they determine t o assert t he i r freedom by upsetting the course of t h i s evolution, my forecast w i l l be invalidated.

3) I f God decides t o intervene, man's freedom may be saved by a change i n the direct ion of history or i n the nature of man. ( 2 )

Such a r a d i c a l a n a l y s i s r e q u i r e s a c a r e f u l r ead ing of h i s l i n e

of reasoning .

F i r s t o f a l l , i t i s impera t ive i n unders tanding E l l u l t o

s e p a r a t e t h e machine from technique . Technique i s t h e sys t ema t i c

o r g a n i z a t i o n o f t h e e n t i r e human environment i n t o r a t i o n a l , purpo-

s i v e methods and ends. It is t h e sum of a l l i n d i v i d u a l techniques

which have been used t o s e c u r e any chosen ends. It is consc ious ,

f l e x i b l e , e f f i c i e n t , numerical . Technique has become a n end i n

i t s e l f w i t h mankind b u t a component of i t s autonomous f o r c e . It

i s g l o b a l , u n i v e r s a l , monol i th ic .

I t takes what was previousZy ten ta t ive , unconscious and spontaneous and brings it i n t o the realm of clear, voluntary and reasoned concepts. (3 )

I n E l l u l ' s view, t h e machine i t s e l f is no t t h e problem, however

much it may c o n t r i b u t e t o t h e process . What technique does i s t o

he ighten t h e problems brought about by t h e machine, bu t i t does no t

descend from o r depend on t h e machine f o r i t s ex i s t ence . To r e l y on

ref inements of o r g a n i z a t i o n a l technique i n an e f f o r t t o c o n t r o l t h e

abuses of t h e machine, such a s might b e proposed by env i ronmen ta l i s t s

t o c o n t r o l t h e machine, i s t o employ t h e methods t h a t c r e a t e d t h e

problem i n t h e f i r s t p l a c e .

This i s the age-old procedure of digging a n m hole t o f i l l u p an old one. ( 4 )

He d i v i d e s t echn ique i n t o f o u r branches:

1) Mechanical technique i s t h e f a m i l i a r machine, which h e says con-

fu ses by i t s ve ry v i s i b i l i t y ou r unders tanding of technique .

2) Economic technique i s t h e p r a c t i c e s of product ion , ranging from

labour o r g a n i z a t i o n t o long range economic f o r e c a s t i n g .

3) Organ iza t iona l technique a r r a n g e s and r eco rds t h e ' t h i n g s ' t h a t

make up t h e b u i l t environment, such a s informat ion , people, re-

sou rces , s t r u c t u r e s and s o on.

4) Human technique i s employed i n medicine, propaganda, educa t ion

and a l l realms of a c t i v i t y t h a t make man himself t h e o b j e c t .

Although he d o e s n ' t make t h e c a s e e x p l i c i t l y , i m p l i c i t l y what

renders t echn ique p rob lema t i ca l today i s t h e r i s e t o dominance of

t h e l a t t e r t h r e e branches , p a r t i c u l a r l y human technique .

E l l u l p rovides a u s e f u l framework f o r a n a l y s i s by developing

a schema t h a t p o i n t s t o t h e conf luence of f i v e c r i t i c a l f a c t o r s

t h a t account f o r t h e quantum l e a p of technique t h a t r e s u l t e d i n

t h e b i r t h of t e c h n o l o g i c a l s o c i e t y .

I feel that t h i s transformation of c iv i l i za t ion can be explained by the conjunction i n time of five phenomena: the f m i t i o n of a long technical experience; population expansion; the su i tab i l i t y of the economic environment; the p las t ic i ty of the social milieu and the appearance of a clear technical intention. (5)

Each of t h e s e h i s t o r i c a l f a c t o r s has been c e n t r a l l y t r e a t e d by

c l a s s i c a l s o c i a l c r i t i c s such a s Marx, Weber, Malthus and Tonnies.

E l l u l ' s t h e s i s i s t h a t t hey needed t o occur t o g e t h e r i n o rde r t o

g ive b i r t h t o t echno log ica l s o c i e t y . .

The obvious ques t ion t h a t fo l lows i s what generated t h e r ise

t o prominence of each of t h e f i v e f a c t o r s ? E l l u l p r o f e s s e s no t t o

know.

Of cour se , i t might w e l l b e s a i d t h a t t h e f i r s t phenomenon

-- accumulated t e c h n i c a l c a p a b i l i t y -- may account f o r a l l of t h e

o t h e r s . For i n s t a n c e , i t has been claimed by James Burke (6) t h a t

t h e inven t ion of t h e modern plough and r e l a t e d a g r i c u l t u r a l t echni -

ques was an e s s e n t i a l s t e p i n c r e a t i n g s u f f i c i e n t food su rp luses t o

permit t h e f r e e i n g of a g r i c u l t u r a l workers f o r i n d u s t r i a l i z a t i o n a s

w e l l a s a l lowing p o p u l a t i o n - t o i n c r e a s e . I n t u r n , t h e invent ion of

t h e more modern moldboard plough had t o awai t t h e development of

s u i t a b l e m a t e r i a l s f o r which h i g h tempera ture energy technologies

were needed f o r f a b r i c a t i o n .

Never the less , h i s requirement f o r conf luence of s e v e r a l c r i t i -

c a l f a c t o r s does answer t h e q u e s t i o n about why e a r l y i nven t ions such

a s steam power, gunpowder o r submarines, a l l a t t r i b u t e d t o pre-indus-

t r i a l i nven to r s , d i d n o t immediately r e s u l t i n p r a c t i c a l a p p l i c a t i o n s .

According t o E l l u l , one of t h e powerful agen t s of t h e growth of

technique was t h e r i s e of t h e s t a t e and i t s i n e v i t a b l e adopt ion of

o rgan iza t ion technique. He c h a r a c t e r i z e s t h e r i s e of t h i s phenomenon

with t h e example of Napoleon's government.

This systemization, uni f ica t ion and c lar i f ica t ion was applied t o everything -- it resul ted not only i n the establishment of budgetmy ru les and i n f iscal organization, but i n the systemization o f weights and measures and the planning of roads. AZZ t h i s represented technique a t work. ( 7 )

Here we s e e a c l e a r example of t h e importance of o rgan iza t ion

technique and a conc re t e example of E l l u l ' s a s s e r t i o n t h a t technique

has t o be d i s t i n g u i s h e d from s imple machine technology. ( C r i t i c a l l y ,

i t must be poin ted ou t t h a t a s i m i l a r . d e g r e e of s t a t e use of technique

was found 2,500 y e a r s e a r l i e r when t h e Egyptian k ings mobilized a v a s t

army of workers , s u p e r v i s o r s , c r a f t smen , fa rmers , s c r i b e s and s o l d i e r s

t o e r e c t t h e i r g r e a t a r c h i t e c t u r a l works long b e f o r e t h e t echno log ica l

s o c i e t y can be s a i d t o have emerged.) (8)

The r i s e of what E l l u l c a l l s s o c i a l p l a s t i c i t y -- t h e most deci-

s i v e of h i s f i v e congruent phenomena -- h a s been thoroughly documented

by Tonnies and Weber. E s s e n t i a l l y , t h e t h e s i s i s t h a t an o rgan ic , i n -

t e g r a t e d , land based, normative e t h i c gave way t o one cha rac t e r i zed by

d i s s o c i a t i o n , i nd iv idua l i sm, f l e x i b i l i t y and mob i l i t y . Not only does

such a v a l u e s h i f t engender t o l e r a n c e f o r o r g a n i z a t i o n technique, it

even demands i t . Seen i n t h e l i g h t of Hegel ian d i a l e c t i c s , i t i s easy

t o s e e how technique beg ins t o i n s e r t i t s e l f a t every s o c i a l i n t e r s e c -

t ion .

What r o l e d id popu la t ion growth p l ay? Did i t genera te t h e need

f o r t h e machine, o r d i d t h e machine permit popu la t ion growth? E l l u l

does no t say. I t i s only neces sa ry t h a t popu la t ion p re s su re b e pre-

s e n t a t t h e same t ime as t h e o t h e r phenomena. I t s func t ion i s t o pu t

p r e s s u r e on con t inu ing t e c h n o l o g i c a l growth.

Much less e a s i l y demonstrated i s h i s requirement f o r t h e r i s e of

t e c h n i c a l i n t e n t i o n , by which h e means,

... the w i Z Z t o a t ta in certain ends, appZication i n aZZ areas and adherence of the whole of society t o a conscious technicaZ objective. ( 9 )

C e r t a i n l y , p l a s t i c i t y of t h e s o c i a l m i l i e u i s a necessary condi-

t i o n . Is it a l s o s u f f i c i e n t ? Not accord ing t o E l l u l .

He has e a r l i e r i d e n t i f i e d t h e o t h e r f o u r cond i t i ons t h a t must b e

p re sen t b e f o r e technique beg ins t o c h a r a c t e r i z e s o c i e t y t o t h e e x t e n t

t h a t i t may b e s a i d t o be e s s e n t i a l l y t e c h n o l o g i c a l i n na tu re . I f we

t u r n t h i s o v e r - a l l argument around, i t - b e c o m e s c l e a r t h a t t h e absence

of t e c h n i c a l i n t e n t i o n would render t echn ique and technology amenable

t o change by such s imple exped ien t s a s s t a t u t e s o r pub l i c educa t ion

programs which would no t have t o encounter en t renched va lues and ex-

pec t a t ions .

The problem a s E l l u l s e e s i t i s t h a t a ben t towards technique

has become ing ra ined i n t h e va lues and ways of t h i n k i n g of t h e masses

t o such an e x t e n t t h a t i t i s un th inkab le f o r people t o adopt any o t h e r

mode of behaviour . It i s t h i s c h a r a c t e r i s t i c of technique t h a t makes

i t p r a c t i c a l l y i r r e v e r s i b l e .

The l a s t p i e c e t h a t weaves technique f i r m l y i n t o t h e f a b r i c of

s o c i e t y is t h e marr iage of s c i e n c e and technology which occurred i n

t h e twen t i e th century . A s a r e s u l t of a l l of t h e s e f o r c e s ,

Technique has penetrated the deepest recesses o f the human being. The machine tends not only t o create a new human environment but also t o modify man's very essence ... He must adapt himself ... t o a universe for which he was not created. ( l o )

Technica l i n t e n t i o n , t hen , becomes a s s i m i l a t e d i n t o t h e very

be ing of man. A s a r e s u l t , h e beg ins t o become amenable t o t h e l a s t

f r o n t i e r of technique -- human technique .

For E l l u l , human technique i s no th ing l e s s t han t h e invas ion of

an a l i e n f o r c e i n t o t h e spontaneous, n a t u r a l , s e n s a t e be ing t o render

i t r a t i o n a l and s u b j e c t t o mediat ion and t h e r a p e u t i c re -cons t ruc t ion .

For human technique t o become u n i v e r s a l , a body of r a t i o n a l explana-

t i o n s f o r human behaviour becomes neces sa ry . Sc iences of mankind's

mot iva t ion , a s p i r a t i o n s , d e l u s i o n s , h a b i t s and d e v i a t i o n s begin t o

emerge.

Eventua l ly t h e r e a r i s e s a body of behavioura l t heo ry -- endorsed

by s c i e n t i f i c c r e d i b i l i t y borrowed from t h e a l r e a d y proven phys i ca l

s c i ences -- which becomes accepted a s t r u t h , a s t h e on ly t r u t h , by i t s

very s u b j e c t s . The t e c h n i c a l language of Freud, Pavlov, Durkheim and

Darwin becomes o rd ina ry language. P a r e n t s begin t o r a i s e c h i l d r e n

not acco rd ing t o normative r u l e s i n h e r i t e d from t h e i r own r o o t s bu t

by s c i e n t i f i c a l l y proven techniques .

I f t h e s e s c i e n t i f i c d e s c r i p t i o n s of human behaviour a r e t o have

p r e d i c t a b i l i t y , people must be t ransformed t o f i t t h e model: mass

man comes i n t o be ing through t h e ins t rument of technique -- a t a

g r e a t p r i c e :

But t o become mass man enta i l s a tremendous e f f o r t of psychic mutation. The purpose of the techniques which have man as t h e i r object, the so-called human techniques, i s t o a s s i s t them i n t h i s mutation, t o help t o find the quickest way, t o calm h is fears and re-shape h i s heart and brain. ( 1 1)

What makes t h e inexorab le advance of human technique d i s t u r b i n g

is no t t h a t i t is t h e t o o l of some malevolent human agency, some

d i c t a t o r s h i p , bu t t h a t i t i s w i l l i n g l y en te red i n t o by i t s s u b j e c t s

i n p u r s u i t o f happiness and well-being wi thout awareness t h a t t h e

process i s e s s e n t i a l l y i r r e v e r s i b l e and t h a t i t e n t a i l s t h e r i s k of

maladapta t ion .

I n a t t e m p t i n g t o understand E l l u l on technology it i s e s s e n t i a l

t o understand t h a t l a s t po in t . H i s Ca tho l i c b i a s e s do n o t overwhelm

h i s c r i t i c a l f a c u l t i e s ; he i s n o t simply say ing t h a t a w i l f u l 1 e v i l

f o r c e i s t h r e a t e n i n g t o overwhelm mankind from o u t s i d e of h imsel f .

What h e f e a r s i s t h a t technology h a s developed a t t h e hand of people

and t h a t t h e p roces s is n o t on ly i r r e v e r s i b l e b u t a l s o benign. Only

t h e end r e s u l t i s d e s t r u c t i v e .

With the f inal integration o f the ins t inc t i ve and the sp ir i tual by means of these human techniques, the edi- f ice o f the technical society w i l l be completed. I t w i l l not be a universal concentration camp for it w i l l be gui l ty o f no a troc i ty . I t w i l l not seem insane, for everything w i l l be ordered, and the s tains of human passion w i l l be l o s t amid the chromium gleam. We shal l have nothing more t o lose, and nothing t o win. O u r deepest i n s t i n c t s am1 our most secret passions w i l l be analyzed, published and exploited. We shall be rewarded with everything our hearts ever desired. ( 1 2 )

While perhaps ho ld ing t h e most r a d i c a l dys topian p e r s p e c t i v e ,

E l l u l i s by no means a lone .

Herber t Marcuse, f o r example, working from a somewhat l e s s

metaphysical ou t look , a r r i v e s a t an e q u a l l y dys top ian p o s i t i o n .

He a l s o s e e s technology a s having captured mankind and h i s i n s t i -

t u t i o n s , bu t i s l e s s i n c l i n e d t o s e e i t a s i n h e r e n t l y co r rup t ing .

Never the less , i t has given r i s e t o a n e u r o t i c form of humanity

t h a t he c a l l s one dimensional which, i n t u r n , t ends t o produce a

t o t a l i t a r i a n s o c i e t y . The prospec t of s o c i e t y breaking away from

t h i s vo lun ta ry submission t o t h e machine is n o t hopefu l .

How can the administered individuals -- who have made the i r mutilations i n t o t h e i r o m l i b e r t i e s and sa t i s - factions, and thus reproduce it on an enlarged scale -- l iberate themselves from themselves as well as from t h e i r masters? How i s it even thinkable that the vicious c i rc l e can be broken? ( 1 3 )

Like E l l u l , Marcuse s e e s t h e hegemony of technology a s s u f f i -

c i e n t l y entrenched t o r e s i s t fundamental change; a l l t h a t i s l i k e l y

i s t h a t technology can t i n k e r w i t h i t s subord ina t e i n s t i t u t i o n s t o

diminish t h e w i l l t o d i s s e n t .

Nothing indicates tha t it w i l l be a good end. The economic and technical capabi l i t ies of the estab- Zished soc ie t ies are su f f i c i en t l y vast t o allow for adjustments and concessions t o the underdog, and t h e i r armed forces s u f f i c i e n t l y trained and equipped t o take care of emergency s i tuat ions. ( 1 4 )

Theodore Roszak a l s o r e p e a t s t h e theme of s e l f - d e n i a l of humanity

through t h e ins t rument of technology:

I t i s not easy t o question the thoroughly well intentioned, but nevertheless reductive humanism with which the technocracy surrounds i t s e l f without seeming t o speak a dead and discredited language. Especially so i f one a h i t s -- as I do -- that it may wel l be u i t h i n the capability of the technocracy t o u t i l i z e i t s industr ial prowess, i t s social engineering, i t s sheer aff luence and i t s well developed diversionary tac t i c s t o reduce, i n ways that most people w i l l find perfect ly acceptable, a l l the tensions born of disorganization, privation and in jus t i ce which currently unset t le our l i v e s . ( 1 5 )

Unlike t h e o t h e r s , Roszak s e e s t h e prospec t of a popular up r i s -

i n g of human consc iousness , such a s E l l u l mentioned a s h i s second

cont ingent v a r i a b l e , and p r e d i c a t e s h i s s tudy of t h e c o u n t e r c u l t u r e

on t h e p o s s i b i l i t y t h a t i t h a s s t a r t e d .

The f a c t t h a t he may have s t aked too much on a seemingly t r a n -

s i t o r y phenomenon should n o t d i s c r e d i t h i s t h e s i s t h a t a revolu-

t i o n a r y consc iousness can arise a s a c o n t r a d i c t i o n of t h e p r e v a i l i n g

e thos of technocracy. The q u e s t i o n begs an answer: whether t h a t i s ,

a l o g i c a l p r o p o s i t i o n o r even a n e m p i r i c a l l y demonstrable one re -

mains f o r h i s t o r y t o comment on.

To sum up: The d y s t o p i a n s have adequate ly made t h e i r c a s e t h a t ,

t o t h e e x t e n t t h a t any era can b e c h a r a c t e r i z e d , a t l e a s t t h e no r the rn

people of t h e world p r e s e n t l y l i v e i n a t echno log ica l s o c i e t y . Whether

i t i s c a p i t a l i s t , s o c i a l i s t , i n d u s t r i a l o r cybe rne t i c , i t i s above a l l

t e chnoc ra t i c . They have a l s o e f f e c t i v e l y argued t h a t technology i s

more than j u s t t h e u b i q u i t o u s machine. This i s so because t h e e s sence

of technology i s i ts b a s e i n a r a t i o n a l system t h a t makes t h e un ive r se

l a r g e l y p r e d i c t a b l e . The r o o t of t h i s r a t i o n a l i t y i s t h e so -ca l l ed

s c i e n t i f i c method. Because of t h a t foundat ion , technology a t t empt s

t o master t h e n a t u r a l wor ld , t o c o n t r o l i t f o r mankind.

Because technology dominates a l l of t h e environment, i t a l s o

dominates mankind. This a s s e r t i o n i s supported by evidence t h a t

people adapt t h e i r behaviour t o t h e r a t i o n a l systems t h a t they

_ . r e l y on t o make l i f e more o r d e r l y and 'comfortable: t h e c lock ,

b u r e a u c r a t i c r u l e s , t h e machine and s o on. To t h e e x t e n t t h a t

such a d a p t a t i o n s l i m i t human freedom, technology oppresses people.

A more con ten t ious a s s e r t i o n is t h a t , because i t r e q u i r e s u s

t o adapt o u r s e l v e s t o t h e machine, technology a l t e r s ou r e s s e n t i a l

c h a r a c t e r , r e q u i r e s u s t o be re-made t o s u i t t h e machine. Out of

t h a t re-making comes a s e t of v a l u e s and behaviours t h a t is unique

t o t echno log ica l s o c i e t y . It even becomes accep tab le t o employ

human technique t o ensure t h e f i t between mankind and t h e machine.

I n t h a t very s p e c i a l s ense , technology becomes autonomous, reducing

t h e o p p o r t u n i t i e s f o r humans t o e scape t h e v i c i o u s c i r c l e .

The Utopians:

The r a d i c a l u topian p o s i t i o n i s n o t t o b e found i n t h e inc lu -

s i v e t h e o r e t i c a l form t h a t E l l u l p rov ides f o r t h e dys topians .

Never the less , t h e u topian p o s i t i o n i s c l e a r and t h e assumptions

under ly ing i t a r e n o t d i f f i c u l t t o e x t r a c t .

B r i e f l y s t a t e d , u top ians hold t h a t technology has begun t h e

p roces s of f r e e i n g humanity from want and i t s a t t e n d a n t c o n f l i c t .

While t r a n s i t i o n a l d i f f i c u l t i e s a r e unavoidable and even dangerous,

i n t h e end technology o f f e r s t h e real and imminent hope of salva-

t i o n of mankind. There is no s e n s e among u top ians t h a t technology

is i n h e r e n t l y dangerous i n i t s e l f ; o n l y humans a r e , and technology

can reduce t h a t danger.

The c a s e i s pu t most c o n c i s e l y by Herman Kahn. He says t h e

world i s p r e s e n t l y a t about t h e mid-point of a "Great ran sit ion"

which began about 1775 and w i l l be completed by about 2175. (16)

He bases t h a t obse rva t ion on what he s e e s as a n e s s e n t i a l c h a r a c t e r i s -

t i c of h i s t o r y .

We tend t o emphasize cont inui t ies more than discont inui t ies because we believe that history i s r e la t i ve l y continuous, t ha t in s t i tu t ions and other social constructs are grown rather than created overnight, and tha t a h o s t every aspect of tomorrow ' s society w i l Z have h is tor ica l roots. ( 17)

He a l s o r e v e a l s i n h i s w r i t i n g s a c h a r a c t e r i s t i c t h a t i s f r e -

quent ly found among e m p i r i c i s t s : t h e n o t i o n t h a t h i s s t u d i e s a r e

somehow value- f ree and f r e e t h e r e f o r e of t h e a l l e g e d co r rup t ions

of p o l i t i c s .

A l l our conclusions -- optimist ic or otheruise -- are the resu l t s of our studies and considered judgments, and not of wishful thinking, pol i t ica l ideology or an attempt t o provide an inspirational message. (18)

The message i s c l e a r then . The world i s un fo ld ing i n a cont inuous

f a sh ion which i s t e c h n o l o g i c a l l y p rog res s ive . C r i t i c s who hold

o t h e r views a r e r e l y i n g more on f a i t h o r ideology than on c a r e f u l

a n a l y s i s of t h e f a c t s and speak i n a "dead and d i s c r e d i t e d lan-

guage." While t h e r e i s s u r e l y evidence t h a t technology can do

harm, i t i s no t i nhe ren t i n i t s c h a r a c t e r , on ly t h e r e s u l t of bad

luck o r inadequate management of technique .

However, t h e r e i s a h i n t t h a t t h e p roces s by which technology

unfo lds i s i n some way inexorab le . P u t t i n g t h e b e s t f a c e on t h a t

i n e v i t a b i l i t y , t h e r e i s every reason t o b e l i e v e t h a t it w i l l work

f o r mankind.

Humanity should go ahead and take i t s chances because the prospects are so exci t ing, because it i s s t i l l probably safer t o go ahead than t o t r y t o stop prema- ture ly the growth process, and because it i s imprac- t i c a l t o do anything e lse . (19)

What i s t h e n a t u r e of t h e u topian s o c i e t y a f t e r t h e Great Tran- . s i t i o n ? ~ a h n ' s a n a l y s i s i s e s s e n t i a l l y economic. He says t h e world

w i l l en joy an i n c r e a s e of r e a l income of something l i k e t e n t imes t h e

- c u r r e n t l e v e l s : t h e Advanced C a p i t a l i s t Nat ions l i k e t h e United S t a t e s

w i l l en joy even h i g h e r l e v e l s of income. Indeed, t h e l e v e l of a f f l u -

ence w i l l b e such t h a t t h e p r i n c i p a l problems of consumption w i l l n o t

be of cho ices among s c a r c i t i e s bu t choices of abundance: want w i l l

be e l imina ted .

Like E l l u l a t t h e o t h e r end of t h e continuum, Kahn s e e s t h e r i s e

of s e r v i c e s and a c t i v i t i e s t h a t b r i n g man h imsel f i n t o t h e realm of

technology. The d i f f e r e n c e , of course , i s i n t h e way i n which each

d e s c r i b e s t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p between man and technology.

Kahn d e s c r i b e s h i s "quaternary" economic system, which i s des-

t i n e d t o fo l low t h e s e r v i c e o r t e r t i a r y system, a s f r e e i n g people

from onerous work b u t g iv ing r i s e t o occupa t iona l r o l e s t h a t s e r v i c e

peop le ' s s o c i a l and emotional needs.

Such high l e v e l personal service r o l e s as teacher, p sych ia t r i s t , doctor, author, p r i e s t and public en ter ta iner w i 2 Z increase. (20)

H e does n o t a s k what might be t h e e f f e c t of t h e use of human

technique o r what r o l e technology p l ays i n making such s e r v i c e s

necessary . Neve r the l e s s , he does seem t o a g r e e t h a t technology

w i l l a l t e r t h e n a t u r e of mankind, most ly by r e l i e v i n g economic

impera t ives . Here we s e e t h e no t ion t h a t c o n f l i c t and meanness

a r e t h e r e s u l t of compet i t ion f o r s c a r c e r e sou rces and w i l l d i s -

appear w i t h t h e advent of abundance.

The keys tone t h a t suppor t s Kahn's whole c a s e l i e s i n h i s

r e a d e r s ' a b i l i t y t o accep t a number of assumptions which h e says

a r e bo th commonsensical and widely accepted . These assumptions

hold t h a t technology i s i n e v i t a b l e , r i s k y , amenable t o some degree of

i n t e r v e n t i o n ( c o n t r a d i c t i n g i t s i n e v i t a b i l i t y ? ) and t h e r e f o r e demands

u n i v e r s a l commitment. F i n a l l y ,

I t i s simply untrue t h a t there i s no p o s s i b i l i t y o f having an a t t r a c t i v e , human, high qua l i t y , a f f l u e n t technological soc ie ty . ( 2 1 )

Being commonsensical, t h e s e assumptions a r e not supported by

evidence. What i s r e v e a l i n g about t h e l i s t , and Kahn's s ense t h a t

people g e n e r a l l y a g r e e w i t h i t , i s t h e fundamental va lue t h a t ho lds

t h a t technology i s a t l e a s t benign, i f no t a b s o l u t e l y b e n e f i c i a l ;

t h a t i t s growth i s no th ing more than t h e i n c r e a s i n g p rog res s ive

development of mankind.

To summarize ~ a h n ' s e s s e n t i a l l y economic argument, two c o r e

theses can be de r ived :

1) A r a t i o n a l , l o g i c a l a n a l y s i s of t h e evidence i n d i c a t e s t h a t

technology i s on t h e march and t h e r e i s no good reason t o

expect i t w i l l b e i n t e r r u p t e d .

2) There i s no reason why i t cannot b e shaped t o s e rve human ends

and provide f o r an e g a l i t a r i a n , f r e e and wealthy s o c i e t y .

The second a s s e r t i o n i s made i n s p i t e of h i s e a r l i e r judgment

t h a t t h e so -ca l l ed Advanced C a p i t a l i s t Nat ions w i l l be many t imes

r i c h e r t han t h e r e s t of t h e world. Presumably, s i n c e abundance

w i l l p r e v a i l , d i s p a r i t i e s of income w i l l b e unimportant.

For a more mechan i s t i c c a s e of t h e extreme u top ian p o s i t i o n ,

we t u r n t o Arthur C. Clarke. C la rke ' s i n t e r e s t s a r e only techni -

c a l : he under takes no a n a l y s i s of t h e impact f u t u r e technologies

may have on s o c i e t y . Never the less , h e too i s ope ra t ing wi th some

assumptions, t h e most obvious of which i s t h a t t h e r e i s no human

l i m i t t o t e c h n o l o g i c a l innovat ion . I n f a c t ,

Anything that is theoretically possible will be achieved in practice, no matter what the technical difficulties, if it is desired greatly enough. ( 2 2 )

The a b s o l u t e e l i m i n a t i o n of want and s u f f e r i n g h i s f o r e c a s t s

seem t o promise cannot p o s s i b l y l e a v e any doubt about how g r e a t l y

they a r e t o be d e s i r e d .

From t h e p e r s p e c t i v e of a s c i e n t i s t and a f u t u r i s t , Clarke

p r e s e n t s a s o l i d , i f s p e c u l a t i v e , c a s e f o r an unprecedented r i s e

i n t echno log ica l i nnova t ion between now and t h e year 2100, n e a r l y

p e r f e c t l y matching Kahn's Great T r a n s i t i o n per iod . I n s h o r t , h i s

evidence o f f e r s a r ea sonab le p r o s p e c t , based on t h e rise of tech-

nology over a 300-year pe r iod beginning i n 1800, of u n i v e r s a l

l i b e r a t i o n from t h e c o n s t r a i n t s of t h e n a t u r a l world. ( 2 3 ) I f

t h e t echnoc ra t s can r e s o l v e t h e energy demands of such technolo-

g i e s and i f t h e i r use f o r d e s t r u c t i v e purposes can be prevented ,

u top i a becomes t a n t a l i z i n g l y p o s s i b l e .

Given such a v i s i o n , i t i s l i t t l e wonder t h e u top i ans grow

impat ien t w i th t h e Cassandran doubts of t h e dys topians . Never-

t h e l e s s , i t is p e r f e c t l y l e g i t i m a t e f o r t h e dys top i ans t o a s k

what happens t o people i n t h i s E l y s i a n march.

S ince u top ians seem t o a g r e e w i t h t h e i r c r i t i c s t h a t human

technique w i l l be i n c r e a s i n g l y impor t an t , i t w i l l be i n s t r u c t i v e

t o s e e how a u top i an d e a l s w i t h t h e e t h i c a l q u e s t i o n s i t r a i s e s .

A t l e a s t one of them h a s a t t empted t o a d d r e s s t h o s e ques t i ons .

A s B.F. Skinner sees t h e f u t u r e , man i n h i s p r e s e n t form i s a hind-

rance t o h i s own p r o s p e c t s , perhaps even a danger .

In short, we need to make vast changes in hwnan behaviour. ( 2 4 )

The popular concept ion of man a s b e i n g f r e e and having d i g n i t y

-- autonomous man -- a r i s e s from ignorance and f a i l u r e t o s e e our-

s e l v e s from t h e pe r spec t ive of t h e s c i e n t i f i c method.

Autonomous man i s a device used tb explain what we cannot e q l a i n i n any other way. He has been constructed from our i.gnorance, and as our xderstanding increases, the very s t u f f of which he i s composed vanishes. Science does not dehumanize man, it de-homnculizes him, a d it must do so i f it i s t o prevent the abolit ion o f the hwmn species. (25)

We have f a i l e d t o apply t h e s c i e n t i f i c method t o t h e s tudy of

man. A s a r e s u l t , our advances i n technology r a i s e t h e r i s k of man

des t roy ing himself wi th h i s t o o l s .

What we need i s a tec3znol0,cy of hzman behaviour. ( 2 6 )

Autonomous man i s s t i l l an i n p o r t a n t and dangerous f i g u r e i n

p o l i t i c s , law, economics, r e l i g i o n and a h o s t of o the r domains t h a t

a r e c r i t i c a l t o t h e f u t u r e of mankind.

For Skinner , c o n t r o l of human behaviour i s a s c i e n t i f i c f a c t

and no t a bogeyman t o be exorc ized . The ques t ion i s no t whether

c o n t r o l over people is be ing p r a c t i c e d , b u t by whom and t o what

ends.

There e x i s t s a l a r g e body of l i t e r a t u r e and myth t h a t has

taught people t o b e l i e v e i n t h e i r own autonomy: t h e i r a b i l i t y and

r i g h t t o be f r e e . Yet no one is f r e e of behavioura l c o n s t r a i n t s

and t h e b e l i e f t h a t freedom i s p o s s i b l e i s dangerously misleading.

!.hat i s more, i t p reven t s us from developing r a t i o n a l and e f f e c t i v e

coun te rcon t ro l methods.

A preference for methods which make control inconspi- cuous or allow it t o be disguised has condemned those who are i n a position t o e zer t constructive counter- control t o the use of weak measures. This could be a 'ZethaZ cuZturaZ mutation. ( 2 7 )

It i s t h e o r e t i c a l l y p o s s i b l e , h e s a y s , t o engineer a s o c i e t y t h a t

avoids d e s t r u c t i v e behaviours and rewards t h o s e t h a t advance s o c i e t y .

While i t i s n o t p o s s i b l e now t o des ign any th ing l i k e a p e r f e c t s o c i e t y ,

we have enough t o o l s i n t h e technology. of human behaviour t o begin i n

a piecemeal fash ion . Like Clarke, h e s e e s a c l e a r t h e o r e t i c a l frame-

work f o r proceeding , s e c u r e i n t h e f a i t h t h a t t h e means w i l l thereby

be found. Because w e have t h e key t o o l s t o begin t h e p roces s , t h e

end r e s u l t must be sanguine.

Our cu2tv.e 1x1s produced the science and technology it needs t o save i t s e l f . ( 2 8 )

To t h e charge t h a t such eng inee r ing , i f s u c c e s s f u l , would fo r -

ever s t o p growth and change, Skinner answers t h a t i t i s p o s s i b l e t o

des ign f o r v a r i e t y . Furthermore, v a r i e t y i n t h e p a s t has been a by-

product of a n o the rwi se d e s t r u c t i v e a c c i d e n t a l p roces s on which we

cannot a f f o r d t o con t inue t o depend. Of cou r se , such eng inee r ing

might be employed f o r co r rup t purposes. That i s not s u f f i c i e n t

reason f o r remaining ignoran t s i n c e such c o n t r o l l i n g has always

been p r a c t i c e d and we have lacked t h e knowledge t o r a i s e e f f e c t i v e

coun te rcon t ro l s .

The l i t e r a t u r e of freedom and d i g n i t y has t augh t u s t o f e a r o r

desp i se t h e c u l t u r a l manipulator a s i f he were i n t e r f e r i n g wi th

some i n n a t e o r n a t u r a l q u a l i t y of t h e human cond i t i on .

Tae designer of a culture i s not an interloper or meddler. He does not step i n t o disturb a nut-urn2 process; he i s part of a natural process. ( 2 9 )

The n a t u r a l p roces s has l e d mankind t o t h e s e c r e t of t h e

s c i e n t i f i c technique and i t is only n a t u r a l we u s e i t on ourse lves .

A s f o r t h e complex i t i e s of t h e d i s t i n c t i v e l y human mental pro-

c e s s e s , t h e y a r e no th ing more than a f i n e l y tuned set of contingen-

c i e s of re inforcement .

The p roces ses of d i s c r i m i n a t i o n , g e n e r a l i z a t i o n , a b s t r a c t i o n ,

memory and a s s o c i a t i o n which we c a l l c o g n i t i o n a r e conceptua l con-

s t r u c t s de r ived from observable responses t o environmental cont in-

gencies . S ince we d i d n o t understand t h e i r i n t e r n a l workings, we

adopted l a b e l s o r language codes t o e x p l a i n them. Man i s e n t i r e l y

made of h i s environment, i nc lud ing h i s own physiology. I n t h e end,

t h e i n c r e a s i n g l y s o p h i s t i c a t e d t o o l s of human technology w i l l per-

m i t s o c i e t y t o c o n t r o l a l l of h i s behaviours . A f t e r a l l ,

Man i s a machine i n the sense that he i s a complex system behaving i n Zmful ways ... ( 3 0 )

To h i s c r i t i c s , d i s t r e s s e d by t h i s formula, Skinner o f f e r s t h e

prospec t of becoming whatever we wish t o be .

Man himself may be ( i s ) controZZed b y h i s environment, but it i s an environment which i s almost wholly of h i s own making. ( 3 1 )

I n e v i t a b l y , t h e ques t ion a r i s e s : what va lues w i l l determine

what we ought t o become? I n Sk inne r ' s formula, v a l u e i s t h e code

word f o r a s e t of behaviours t h a t a s o c i e t y adopts which seem t o

ensure cont inued s u r v i v a l . Such behaviours become organized i n

some kind of code o r norms f o r t r ansmis s ion t o t h e s o c i e t y ' s newer

members and u s u a l l y c a r r y s a n c t i o n s f o r non-conformity. H i s t o r i -

c a l l y , such codes -- o f t e n c a r r i e d i n myths o r o t h e r i r r a t i o n a l

v e h i c l e s -- have been based on ignorance . With t h e p rospec t of

t h e sys t ema t i c a p p l i c a t i o n of t h e s c i e n t i f i c method, r a t i o n a l

bases can now begin t o d i s p l a c e t h e i r r a t i o n a l .

Unlike many o t h e r u top ians , Skinner has c a r e f u l l y and sys t e -

m a t i c a l l y d e a l t w i t h t h e va lues t h a t inform h i s t heo ry . Indeed,

such e x p l i c i t n e s s h a s l e d t o much of t h e abuse he h a s taken f o r

h i s t h e o r i e s .

S k i n n e r ' s p o s i t i o n i s e a s i l y summed up. I f we d o n ' t engage i n

a s c i e n t i f i c s tudy of man and develop from i t a body of human tech-

n ique , w e can make no u s e of ou r f u l l t e chno log ica l p o t e n t i a l and

may even employ machine technology t o d e s t r o y ourse lves .

To sum up: The u top ians a g r e e wi th t h e dys topians t h a t we

l i v e i n a t e c h n o l o g i c a l s o c i e t y . They a l s o ag ree t h a t t h e essence

of technology i s i t s r o o t s i n a r a t i o n a l system t h a t makes t h e uni-

v e r s e p r e d i c t a b l e and t h e f u t u r e promises more of t h e same. They

f u r t h e r a g r e e t h a t i t i s p o s s i b l e f o r mankind t o dominate t h e na-

t u r a l environment. Here t h e two p o s i t i o n s d ive rge .

For t h e u t o p i a n s , i t is n o t on ly p o s s i b l e bu t a l s o d e s i r a b l e

t o do s o , towards t h e v e r y f e a s i b l e goa l of ending s c a r c i t y . It

i s only f a i r t o p o i n t ou t t h a t u top ians a r e n o t s i m p l i s t i c a l l y

p u t t i n g b l i n d f a i t h i n technology t o s o l v e a l l problems wi thout

g iv ing r i s e t o o t h e r s . I n f a c t , most a r e quick t o recognize t h e

p o s s i b i l i t y t h a t technology may b e abused by mankind, r e s u l t i n g

i n a p o s s i b l e c a t a s t r o p h e . For t h e t r u e u top ian , t h a t r i s k merely

p o i n t s up t h e need t o g e t on w i t h b e t t e r management of human

technique.

To ana lyze t h e ev idence i n suppor t of t h e i r o the rwi se o p t i -

m i s t i c p o s i t i o n t h e u top ians employ t h e ve ry method they say

c h a r a c t e r i z e s t h e t e c h n o l o g i c a l world: s c i ence . Those who r e l y

on o t h e r means a r e r e l y i n g on p r e - s c i e n t i f i c reasoning and a r e

t h e r e f o r e bound t o r each t h e wrong conclus ions : t hey do n o t s e e

t h e o b j e c t i v e p roo f s t h a t surround them.

While t h e r e i s no s i g n i f i c a n t disagreement about t h e ten-

dency of technology t o shape human r e l a t i o n s and va lues , t h e

u topians s e e t h i s a s an oppor tun i ty t o improve people r a t h e r

than a s a t h r e a t t o oppres s them.

The Svn thes i s :

The key t o unders tanding t h e deba te between dys topians and uto-

p i ans i s t h e ques t ion of autonomy, e i t h e r of man o r of machine. S ince

both s i d e s ag ree about t h e pe rvas iveness of technology i n human l i f e ,

a judgment of t h e d i s p u t e w i l l depend on whether we accept t h a t e i t h e r

mankind o r machine i s o r can be autonomous.

Sk inne r ' s c a r e f u l l y a r t i c u l a t e d argument a g a i n s t autonomous man-

kind i s d i f f i c u l t t o t u r n a s i d e u n l e s s , of cou r se , one r e j e c t s ou t of

hand h i s mechanis t ic view of human behaviour .

The answer t o t h a t dilemma l i e s i n t h e v a s t l y ph i lo soph ica l

domain of t h e Nature of Man deba te and i s f a r beyond t h e scope of

t h i s t h e s i s and s u b j e c t t o i n t e n s e l y pe r sona l judgment.

I f t h a t ques t ion must remain unanswerable, t h e ques t ion about

t h e autonomy of technology does n o t . The theme of ' technology ou t

of c o n t r o l ' -- s o c l e a r l y developed by E l l u l and o t h e r s such a s

Marcuse, McLuhan, G a l b r a i t h , Goodman, e t c . -- seems on t h e s u r f a c e

t o be a t t r i b u t i n g t o technology n e a r l y a n i m i s t i c q u a l i t i e s and thus

d i s c r e d i t s t h e idea of autonomous technology.

But t h e r e is another s ense i n which technology can be autonomous.

For most o rd ina ry people, t h e l i f e suppor t s t h a t s u s t a i n them

a r e s o v a s t l y complex and o f t e n so d i s t a n t from them both p h y s i c a l l y

and p o l i t i c a l l y t h a t t hey simply cannot comprehend t h e network.

Koes t l e r d e s c r i b e s t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p between t h e c i t i z e n and t h e ne t -

work t h i s way:

His relationship t o the objects of h i s daily use, the tap which supplies h is bath, the pipes which keep him warm, the switch which turns on the l igh t -- i n a word, t o the environment i n which he l i ves , i s impersonal and posses- s ive ... Modem man l ives isoZated i n h i s a r t i f i c i a l environment, not because the environment i s e v i l as such, but because of h is Zack of comprehension of the forces which make it work -- of the principles which re la te h i s gadgets t o the forces of nature, t o the universal order. ( 3 2 )

I n f a c t , much of our c u r r e n t technology, i nc lud ing human tech-

n ique , i s d e l i b e r a t e l y designed t o permit o rd ina ry people access

wi thout having t o understand i t s i n n e r workings.

The common te lephone i s a ready example. Telephone t e c h n i c i a n s ,

aware of t h e v a s t l y complex c e n t r a l o f f i c e machinery t h a t makes up

t h e system, a r e t o l e r a n t l y amused by t h e s u b s c r i b e r who, exper ienc ing

t r o u b l e w i th t h e te lephone , demands someone come and check out t h e

elementary b lack machine t h a t acces ses t h e system from home o r o f f i c e .

I n informat ion theo ry , t h i s masking of t h e t echno log ica l com-

p l e x i t y i s termed "transperancy" and i s o f t e n c a l l e d f o r i n design-

i n g t e l e m a t i c s systems.

Given t h e v a s t complexity of modern technology, i t is r e a d i l y

apparent t h a t no s i n g l e human can hope t o master a l l t echnologies .

Winner i s a b l e t o conclude from t h a t r e a l i t y t h e e x i s t e n c e of a

kind of t echno log ica l autonomy.

The gap between the r e a l i t i e s of the world and the pic- tures individuals have of tha t world grows ever greater. For t h i s reason, the poss ib i l i ty of directing technological systems toward clearly perceived, consciousZy chosen, widely shared aims becomes an increasingly dubious matter . . . What one finds therefore are highly developed systems of control, which are themselves beyond intel l igence, beyond control . . . ( 3 3 )

I f t h e foregoing i s accepted , t h e conclus ion t h a t must be reached

is t h a t technology i s a l r e a d y autonomous.

Yet t h e r a d i c a l dys topian argument seems t o l e a v e mankind wi th

no op t ion bu t t o r e j e c t a l l t e chno log ie s ; t o go back t o Eden. Aside

from t h e p o s s i b i l i t y t h a t t h e r e may b e no means of g e t t i n g t h e r e o r

even t h a t t h e r e i s no such p l a c e , t h e c a l l i gno res t h e p o s s i b i l i t y

t h a t i t i s no t technology per se t h a t i s t h e problem, bu t t h a t

c e r t a i n k inds of technology may b e t h e problem.

I n o t h e r words, t h e i s s u e may n o t be t h a t posed by t h e debate

between t h e dys top ians and t h e u topians . There may be a t h i r d

p o s i t i o n .

CHAPTER I1

Since I began work i n futures research, i n 1967, it has seemed clearer and clearer t o me that industr ial ized society i n particu- h r and the world i n general are headed for a climacteric which may well be one of the most fateful i n the history of c i v i l i - zation.

W i Z l i s Harman, An Incomle te Guide t o the Future

The Third P o s i t i o n Theory:

The t h i r d p o s i t i o n h o l d s t h a t technology has both t h e power

t o reduce want and ha rdsh ip and t h e power t o overwhelm humanity.

What i s needed t o ach ieve t h e d e l i c a t e ba lance between optimum

human use of technology and oppress ion by t h e machine i s a tech-

nology t h a t i s benign and subord ina t e t o human c o n t r o l .

One model t h a t approaches t h a t s t a t u s i s Ivan l l l i c h l s theory

of a c o n v i v i a l technology which he has developed through s e v e r a l

of h i s publ i shed works.

An a n a l y s i s of I l l i c h ' s major works r e v e a l s a c o n s i s t e n t theme

and an o v e r - a l l s t r u c t u r e t h a t p l aces Tools f o r Conv iv i a l i t y ( 3 4 )

a t t h e c e n t r e . Working w i t h i n t h a t t h e o r e t i c a l framework, h i s o t h e r

major works can b e seen t o be e x p l i c a t i o n s of t h e c e n t r a l theme, be-

ginning w i t h educa t ion , followed by t r ea tmen t s of energy, t ranspor-

t a t i o n , medicine, p ro fe s s iona l i sm, p o l i t i c s and s o c i a l i n s t i t u t i o n s .

The c e n t r a l concept of c o n v i v i a l i t y i s worth summarizing. I n

h i s i n t r o d u c t i o n , I l l i c h p o s t u l a t e s a p o s s i b l e modern, post-indus-

t r i a l s o c i e t y c h a r a c t e r i z e d by freedom from domination by i n d u s t r y

and f u n c t i o n i n g w i t h i n n a t u r a l s c a l e s and l i m i t s . H e d e f i n e s a -

c o n v i v i a l s o c i e t y a s one,

... i n which modem technologies serve politicaZZy related individuaZs rather than managers. (35)

While acknowledging t h e p o t e n t i a l l y f r i v o l o u s meanings a s s o c i a t e d

wi th t h e te rm ' c o n v i v i a l ' i n t h e Engl i sh language, h e chooses i t s more

c a r e f u l r o o t s i n Spanish and French and a s s o c i a t e s i t wi th a concept

of j o y f u l a u s t e r i t y . The l i t e r a t u r e of t h e American a p p r o p r i a t e tech-

nology movement o f t e n employs t h e term ' f r u g a l i t y , ' which a l s o has

nega t ive conno ta t ions .

More impor tan t than i t s l i n g u i s t i c r o o t s a r e t h e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s

t h a t d e f i n e t h e i d e a of c o n v i v i a l technology:

- t h e c i t i z e n h a s f r e e acces s t o t o o l s ; - he can c o n t r o l t h o s e t o o l s and use them f o r h i s own purposes; - such t o o l s employ h i s pe r sona l energy; - they e n r i c h h i s environment; - t h e c o l l e c t e d technology g ives him autonomy and ensures j u s t i c e .

I l l i c h does no t d i r e c t l y s t a t e t h a t a s o c i e t y which employs con-

v i v i a l technology w i l l n e c e s s a r i l y be a c o n v i v i a l s o c i e t y , b u t he has

such a d e t e r m i n i s t i c r e l a t i o n s h i p i n mind. Given t h e broad meaning

he a s s i g n s t o t h e word ' t o o l , ' such a r e l a t i o n s h i p i s p l a u s i b l e . I n

h i s meaning, t o o l s i nc lude , b e s i d e s smal l hardware and machinery,

... productive in s t i tu t ions such as factories ... and productive systems for intangible comodi t ies such as those which produce 'education, ' 'health, ' 'knowledge ' or 'decisions. ' I use t h i s term because it aZZows me t o subsume i n t o one category aZZ rationaZZy designed devices, be they a r t i f a c t s or rules , codes or opera- tors . . . ( 3 6 )

I n s h o r t , e x a c t l y t h e d e f i n i t i o n E l l u l employs f o r technology.

A l i t e r a l i n t e r p r e t a t i o n of h i s l i s t of c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of con-

v i v i a l technology would be r e l a t i v e l y s imple and s i m p l i s t i c , revea l -

i n g a s o c i e t y o p e r a t i n g wi th only those k inds of t o o l s i n u se i n pre-

i n d u s t r i a l s o c i e t y . However, I l l i c h elsewhere moderates t h e s e

a b s o l u t e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s i n two ways.

F i r s t , h e u ses a number of a d j e c t i v a l mod i f i e r s i n c i t i n g exam-

p l e s , such a s "most," " l e a s t , " "beyond a c e r t a i n poin t" and " to t h e

e x t e n t t h a t . . . ' I C l e a r l y he sees his a b s o l u t e c r i t e r i a as some s o r t

of s c a l e a g a i n s t which t o a s s e s s technology f o r c o n v i v i a l i t y . Second,

he s e e s a c o n v i v i a l s o c i e t y be ing a b l e t o employ i n some s p e c i a l ca ses

non-convivial o r i n d u s t r i a l t o o l s .

what i s fundamental t o a convivial society i s not the to ta l absence of manipulative i n s t i t u t i o n s and addic- t i v e goods and services, but the balance between those tools which create the spec i f ic demands they are spe- c ial ized t o s a t i s f y and those complementary, enabling tools which foster se l f - real i za t ion . ( 3 7 )

Here we s e e t h e f i r s t of a number of occas ions i n which I l l i c h ,

i n a t tempt ing t o o f f s e t t h e mistaken i d e a t h a t he i s advocat ing some

s o r t of l i f e of t h e nob le savage, f a i l s t o s e t out a formula f o r

mixing t h e two k inds of technology. I n a t t empt ing t o d e s c r i b e t h e

mix, he r e s o r t s t o sometimes o v e r l y convenient but reasonable terms

such a s :

... a convivial society does not exclude a l l schools. I t does exclude a school system which has been per- verted i n t o a compulsory tool ... A convivial society does not exclude some high speed in t e r -c i t y transport, as long as i t s layout does not i n fact impose equally high speeds on a l l other routes. Not even te lev is ion must be ruled out . . . as long as the over-all struc- ture of society does not favour the degradation of everyone i n t o a compulsory voyeur. The c r i t e r ia of convivial i ty are t o be considered as guidelines t o the continuous process by which a soc ie ty ' s members defend the i r l i ber t y , and not as a s e t of prescrip- t ions which can be mechanically applied. (38)

Elsewhere, however, I l l i c h r e - a s s e r t s some s o r t of abso lu te

s tandard by r e j e c t i n g h i g h p r o f i l e manipula t ive technologies .

Networks of multi-lane h ighays , long range, wide band width transmitters, s t r i p mines or compulsory school systems are (des truc t ive) tools . (They) must inevi- tably increase regimentation, dependence, expZoitation or impotence, and rob not only the r i c h but also the poor of convivial i ty . ( 3 9 )

A t t h i s t h e o r e t i c a l l e v e l , t h e boundary between conv iv i a l and

manipulatory t o o l s i s broad f o r I l l i c h , b p t i s made somewhat more

p r e c i s e a s he exp lo re s t h e s p e c i f i c a r e a s of conten t ion i n h i s

. l a t e r work.

It i s r e a d i l y apparent t h a t h e d i s a g r e e s w i th t h e s o c i a l i s t s

who argue t h a t i n d u s t r i a l technology i s manipula t ive only because

of i t s c a p i t a l i s t i c ownership and c o n t r o l .

Certain tools are destructive no matter who owns them, whether it be the Mafia, stockhoZders, a foreign company, the s ta te , or even a workers' c o m n e . ( 4 0 )

As a r e s u l t , I l l i c h does n o t s e e t h e promise of a s o c i a l i s t

r e v o l u t i o n a s o f f e r i n g s a l v a t i o n . I n f a c t , such a r evo lu t ion ,

launched from t h e foundat ion of a manipulatory s o c i e t y , may even

l e a d t o g r e a t e r manipulat ion i n t h e name of p r o l e t a r i a n d i c t a t o r -

s h i p un le s s i t i s imbued w i t h a c o n v i v i a l consciousness . (Here

I l l i c h i s more of an a n a r c h i s t than a s o c i a l i s t . )

I f t h e problem of i n d u s t r i a l technology cannot be l a i d a t

t h e door of t h e bourgeois r e v o l u t i o n , where d id i t come from?

I l l i c h says t h a t some t ime e a r l y i n t h i s cen tu ry i n d u s t r i a l tech-

nology reached a f i r s t watershed where i t began t o func t ion more

e f f e c t i v e l y and more u b i q u i t o u s l y than t h e v a r i o u s folkways it

d ispossessed . Roughly, j u s t b e f o r e World War I ,

. . . a patient began t o have more than a f i f t y - f i f t y chance that a graduate of a medical schooZ W O U Z ~ provide him with a speci ficaZZy e f f e c t i v e treatment. ( 4 1)

He has n o t s o p r e c i s e l y f i x e d t h e t r a n s i t i o n a l pe r iods f o r

o t h e r technologies b u t h e h a s shown t h e t r a n s i t i o n i n educa t ion

and t r a n s p o r t a t i o n . For example, i t is obvious t h a t such a water-

shed must have occurred i n North America some t ime du r ing t h e second

o r t h i r d decade wi th t h e r i s e of highway networks and s e r v i c e f a c i l i -

t ies f o r motor t r a n s p o r t .

By t h e m i d - f i f t i e s , he s a y s , i t had become obvious t h a t a second

watershed had been reached, t h i s one marked by t h e r i s e i n medicine,

f o r example, of doctor-induced d i s e a s e s and t h e f u l l p ro fe s s iona l i za -

t i o n of h e a l t h c a r e . I n f a c t , h e a l t h - h a s become t h e monopoly of

h e a l t h p r o f e s s i o n a l s t o t h e exc lus ion of a l l o t h e r p r a c t i t i o n e r s , in-

c lud ing t h e p a t i e n t . I n t r a n s p o r t a t i o n , a network of high speed

highways has v i r t u a l l y become t h e d e f i n i t i o n of s u r f a c e t r a n s p o r t a t i o n .

These t r a n s i t i o n s mark t h e r i s e of " r a d i c a l monopolies" i n

which t h e func t ion becomes de f ined by mainly one means of i t s

expres s ion . A number of t echno log ie s a r e approaching o r have

reached t h i s second watershed, t he reby s e t t i n g up t h e impending

c r i s i s .

A s technology begins t o c r e a t e more problems than i t s o l v e s ,

people w i l l r e b e l a g a i n s t i t , demanding more freedom of choice and

more meaningful communities. Presumably, a l t hough I l l i c h doesn ' t

extend t h e metaphor, a t t h a t p o i n t a t h i r d watershed w i l l have been

reached: t h e t r a n s i t i o n t o a c o n v i v i a l s o c i e t y when i n d u s t r i a l tech-

nology c o l l a p s e s of i t s own weight .

Exac t ly how t h i s w i l l happen, I l l i c h does no t c l a im t o know.

I can only conjecture on how the breakdown of industrial. society will ultimately become a critical issue. (42)

He i s c e r t a i n , however, t h a t i t w i l l b e a f a i l u r e "of" indus-

t r i a l s o c i e t y , and n o t " in" i t , a s was t h e c a s e i n t h e g r e a t depres-

s i o n s of t h e 19th and 20th c e n t u r i e s . Nearly i n s t a n t l y , people w i l l

l o s e conf idence i n t h e convent iona l i n s t i t u t i o n s a s s e v e r a l techno-

l o g i e s s imul taneous ly c o l l a p s e . There i s no guarantee , however,

t h a t such a c o l l a p s e w i l l i n e v i t a b l y l e a d t o t h e c r e a t i o n of a

c o n v i v i a l s o c i e t y .

I l l i c h o f f e r s o n l y two p o s s i b l e outcomes: manager ia l fasc i sm

marked by Sk inne r i an c o n t r o l s o r a c o n v i v i a l , hence f r u g a l , p a r t i -

c i p a t o r y and de -cen t r a l i zed s o c i e t y . H e s u g g e s t s t h e r e a r e t h r e e

o b s t a c l e s t o recovery from manipula tory technology.

The f i r s t of t h e s e , t h e i d o l a t r y of s c i e n c e , p r even t s t h e func-

t i o n i n g of r e s p o n s i b l e p o l i t i c a l community because s p e c i a l i s t s , no t

t h e peop le , a r e seen t o have t h e c o r r e c t answers t o s o c i e t a l prob-

1 e m s .

The second o b s t a c l e i s t h e c o r r u p t i o n of everyday language t o

make i t r e p r e s e n t t h e i n d u s t r i a l mode of v a l u e ; t h e f r u i t s of crea-

t i v e work a r e made synonomous w i t h i n d u s t r i a l o u t p u t . The r e s u l t

. . . r e f Zects a transformation i n t he idea o f ounership

. . . Fully i ndus t r i a l i z ed man c a l l s his own principazly what has beenmade for him. ( 4 3 )

H i s t h i r d o b s t a c l e i s caused by t h e l o s s of " l e g a l procedure."

To I l l i c h , t h e p o l i t i c a l p rocess h a s become pe rve r t ed from t r a d i t i o n

and community decision-making,

... t o t he ideology t h a t c ~ r p o r a t i o n s ought t o produce more. ( 4 4 )

Ideology p rec ludes c o l l e c t i v e examinat ion of t h e commonwealth when

such p o l i t i c a l p roces se s endanger i n d u s t r i a l p r o d u c t i v i t y . Like

E l l u l , I l l i c h sees t h e e x i s t e n c e of a dominant mode of thought and

behaviour which i s " technic ized" by v i r t u e of t h e u n i v e r s a l hegemony

of t echn ique .

The removal of t h e s e o b s t a c l e s r e q u i r e s t h e emergence, r a t h e r

t h e re-emergence, of what he c a l l s t h e " c r i t i c a l u s e of o rd ina ry

language' ' and groups of people who, through "counterf o i l r e s e a r c h , I'

w i l l b e p repa red t o u se t h a t "ord inary language" t o r e v e a l t h e con-

v i v i a l way a t t h e Apocalypse.

The same general c r i s i s t ha t could eas i ly lead t o one- man mile, expert government and ideoZogicaZ orthodoq i s also the great opportunity t o reconstruct a po t i t i - caZ process i n which a l l participate. ( 4 5 )

What does no t emerge from t h e fo rego ing b r i e f summary i s t h e

r o o t va lue of u n i v e r s a l e q u i t y which shapes I l l i c h ' s concerns.

Cen t r a l t o h i s t h e s i s i s t h e n o t i o n t h a t e q u i t y is no t p o s s i b l e

when technology develops beyond use-value t o exchange-value. When

i t advances s t i l l f a r t h e r , r a d i c a l monopoly emerges, e l i m i n a t i n g

more f r u g a l o p t i o n s and l e a d i n g t o coun te rp roduc t ive i n d u s t r i a l

p r a c t i c e s .

The c u r e f o r such d e s t r u c t i v e and mindless p u r s u i t of techno-

logy i s f o r s o c i e t y t o r ecogn ize t h e v a l u e and p r a c t i c a l i t y of

vo luntary f r u g a l i t y ; t o choose what I l l i c h t h i n k s a r e n a t u r a l l i m i t s

t o t echno log ica l development. Moreover, n e i t h e r e q u i t y nor f r u g a l i t y

should be achieved a t t h e expense of autonomy. Free people should be

a b l e t o func t ion wi thout coe rc ion o r c o n t r o l from remote fo rces .

Understanding t h e s e unde r ly ing v a l u e s i s c r u c i a l t o fo l lowing

t h e c a s e developed by I l l i c h . Equal ly e s s e n t i a l t o h i s theory of

conv iv i a l technology a r e t h e key concepts of r a d i c a l monopoly and

t echno log ica l t h re sho lds .

Radical monopoly occu r s when a p a r t i c u l a r t o o l subord ina t e s o r

even d i s p l a c e s a l l o t h e r means f o r ach iev ing a d e s i r e d end ( f o r exam-

p l e , t h e automobile f o r s u r f a c e t r a n s p o r t a t i o n ) . I n t h e t e c h n i c a l

sense , monopoly means a b s o l u t e ownership o r c o n t r o l ; i n t h e popular

sense , i t r e f e r s t o dominance which, w h i l e i t doesn ' t exclude t h e

p o s s i b i l i t y of a l t e r n a t i v e s , r e n d e r s them imprac t i ca l . It i s i n t h i s

l a t t e r s ense t h a t I l l i c h employs t h e term. It a r i s e s because t h e

dominant technology o f f e r s mechanical e f f i c i e n c y and/or u t i l i t y a t an

unacceptable c o s t i n terms of f r u g a l i t y , e q u i t y o r autonomy.

The concept of a t h r e s h o l d s u g g e s t s t h e e x i s t e n c e of a po in t

where r i s i n g u t i l i t y of a given technology t i p s over t o become a

d i s - u t i l i t y . This occurs because t h e n e g a t i v e e f f e c t s of t h e tech-

nology outweigh t h e marginal i n c r e a s e s . i n u t i l i t y . An example of

how t h i s might occur i s t h e c a s e where improvements i n mechanical

func t ion ( f o r example, au tomat ic t r ansmis s ions ) r e s u l t i n l o s s of

autonomy (simply t h e a b i l i t y t o e f f e c t owner r e p a i r s ) . A s t h e

t h r e s h o l d s of a number of t echno log ie s a r e passed , technology as

a whole begins t o oppress people .

A s w i l l be shown l a t e r , a s v a l u a b l e a s t h i s concept i s , i t i s

o f t e n d i f f i c u l t t o c o n c r e t i z e a s p e c i f i c t h re sho ld . I n such c a s e s ,

t h e s i s t e r concept of r a d i c a l monopoly may r e s o l v e t h e ambiguity

by revea1ing.symptoms of l o s s of autonomy o r equ i ty .

I n o rde r t o s e e t h e f u l l development of I l l i c h ' s argument, i t

i s u s e f u l t o examine i t s more e x p l i c i t development i n o t h e r works

which descend from t h e t h e o r e t i c a l framework of Tools f o r Convi-

v i a l i t y .

It w i l l a l s o be r e v e a l i n g t o l ook a t some of t h e c r i t i c a l

a r e a s of technology no t examined by I l l i c h . It w i l l become appar-

e n t t h a t h i s t h e o r i e s f i n d t h e i r most c o n c r e t e a p p l i c a t i o n i n what

E l l u l c a l l e d mechanical technique . Neve r the l e s s , i n s p i t e of t h e

l a c k of concre teness , they a r e r e v e a l i n g a l s o f o r t h e soc io-

p o l i t i c a l environment.

I l l i c h ' s publ i shed s t u d i e s of c o n v i v i a l i t y i n t h e phys i ca l

environment have d e a l t e f f e c t i v e l y w i t h t r a n s p o r t a t i o n and h e a l t h ;

l e s s e f f e c t i v e l y wi th energy and human s e t t l e m e n t s ; n o t a t a l l wi th

a g r i c u l t u r e o r r e sou rce u t i l i z a t i o n . I n t h e c a s e of t h e f i r s t two

examples of technologies h e h a s been a b l e t o demonstrate r e l a t i v e l y

conc re t e t h re sho lds beyond which t h e t echno log ie s begin t o l o s e use-

va lue and, w i th f u r t h e r advances, e v e n t u a l l y a c q u i r e d i s - u t i l i t i e s :

t h e second watershed.

Appl i ca t ions : TRANSPORTATION

H i s s t u d i e s of t r a n s p o r t a t i o n u n f o r t u n a t e l y exclude t h e move-

- ment of goods o r messages, which he s a y s would n e c e s s i t a t e a d i f -

f e r e n t , a l b e i t p a r a l l e l , l i n e of r ea son ing . (46) Never the less ,

h i s a n a l y s i s of t h e th re sho lds of human t r a n s p o r t a t i o n y i e l d s an

e x p l i c i t f i g u r e .

... free people must travel the road t o productive social relations a t the speed o f a bicycle . ( 4 7 )

I l l i c h c l e a r l y demonstrates t h e c o s t s of h i g h speed automo-

b i l e t r a n s p o r t a t i o n . A North American c a r owner devotes an average

of 1 ,600 hours a year t o h e r c a r i n o r d e r t o t r a v e l 7,500 mi l e s ; an

average speed of l e s s than f i v e m i l e s pe r hour . (48) A s a l l forms

of t r a n s p o r t a t i o n a c c e l e r a t e t o c u r r e n t speeds , up t o 28 percent of

t h e c i t i z e n ' s t ime i s devoted t o t r a n s p o r t a t i o n .

T ranspor t a t ion thus becomes an i n d u s t r y ( a c q u i r i n g exchange-

va lue) and t h e c i t i z e n becomes an h a b i t a u l passenger ; t r a v e l t ime

becomes s c a r c e by d e f i n i t i o n , r e s u l t i n g i n a l o s s of l i f e - t i m e

( i . e . t ime no t determined by exchange-value).

While i t i s c l e a r from t h i s l i n e of r ea son ing t h a t a c c e l e r a t i n g

speed a r r i v e s a t some po in t where i n e q u i t i e s and d i s - u t i l i t i e s become

unavoidable , i t i s l e s s c l e a r why 15 m i l e s pe r hour should be t h a t

po in t . The answer t o t h a t ques t ion is c r i t i c a l t o understanding why

some advances i n technology a r e b e n e f i c i a l w h i l e s t i l l f u r t h e r ad-

vances become dys func t iona l . I f t h i s p o i n t cannot b e reso lved , then

~ l l u l ' s c o n t e n t i o n t h a t technology i s c o r r u p t i n g l e a v e s us wi th

an i r r e s o l v a b l e dilemma.

By i m p l i c a t i o n , t h e r e i s an equa t ion h e r e t h a t should show a t

l e a s t a margina l increment i n u t i l i t y a s mechanical ly a s s i s t e d speed

i n c r e a s e s t o an optimum, followed by a growing d i s - u t i l i t y a s t h e

optimum speed i s exceeded. ( I t must b e understood t h a t u t i l i t y and

d i s - u t i l i t y as used h e r e a r e n o t r e s t r i c t e d t o t h e i r merely quant i -

f i a b l e dimensions; t h e r e f o r e a l i t e r a l mathematical equat ion i s no t

intended .)

The key f o r I l l i c h i s t h e concept of a r a d i c a l monopoly.

Beyond some point , compulsory schooling destroys the environment for learning, medical del ivery systems dry up t he non-therapeutic sources o f heal th , and transportation smothers t r a f f i c . ( 4 9 )

I n s p i t e of t h e f a c t t h a t he has e a r l i e r dec l a red an a b s o l u t e

t h re sho ld of speed f o r t r a f f i c , I l l i c h now o f f e r s an a d d i t i o n a l

c r i t e r i o n f o r s e t t i n g such a p o i n t .

The fact t ha t it i s possible theore t ica l ly t o determine t he range o f speed wi th in which transportation develops a radical monopoly over t r a f l i c does no-t mean t h a t it i s possible t heore t i ca l l y t o determine jus t how much of such a monopoly any given soc ie ty w i l l t o lera te . . . Only re- course t o jur idical and, above a l l , t o p o l i t i c a l process can Zead t o the s p e c i f i c , ihough provisional measures by which speed or compulsory education w i l l ac tual ly be l imi ted i n a given soc ie ty . ( 5 0 )

The p h y s i c a l t h re sho ld then i s not a l l t h a t p r e c i s e . The

b i c y c l e seems t o r e p r e s e n t a n e a r op t imal technology, no t so much

because i t s speed i s l i m i t e d t o under 15 mi les pe r hour bu t be-

cause i t does n o t d i s p l a c e o t h e r autonomous a l t e r n a t i v e s , a s do

t h e automobile and t h e j e t p lane .

Notwi ths tanding t h e n e c e s s i t y f o r p o l i t i c a l judgment, t h e r e

does e x i s t a need f o r r e s e a r c h i n t o t h e threshold-determining

process -- c o u n t e r f o i l r e s e a r c h , i n ~ l l i c h ' s terms -- i f t h e p o l i -

t i c a l p roces s i s t o have c o r r e c t in format ion on which t o o p e r a t e .

Because i t is t e c h n i c i z e d , c u r r e n t t r a f f i c engineer ing wisdom

is n o t a b l e t o s e e t h e low energy, low speed a l t e r n a t i v e s s i n c e i t

d e f i n e s a l l t r a f f i c problems i n terms of an i n d u s t r i a l i z e d speed-

d i s t a n c e equat ion . Research d a t a a v a i l a b l e now demonstrate , bo th i n

. numerical and s o c i a l t e r m s , a d i s t i n c t i n c r e a s e i n u t i l i t y of t h e

b i c y c l e over walking. The b i c y c l e can ach ieve about fou r t imes t h e

speed of t h e p e d e s t r i a n a t about one - f i f t h t h e energy output wi thout

d i s p l a c i n g t h e a b i l i t y of a l l people t o walk over t h e same r o u t e and

d i s t a n c e . Furthermore, i t can be shown t h a t i t can t r a v e l up t o t h r e e

t imes a s f a s t a s t h e pe r sona l automobile i n terms of t o t a l suppor t and

ope ra t ing t ime. I n t h e f a c e of t h a t i n c o n t r o v e r t i b l e ev idence , no

modern t r a f f i c engineer has suggested t a k i n g c a r s o f f c i t y s t r e e t s .

What i s n o t a n t i c i p a t e d by e x i s t i n g knowledge i s t h e e f f e c t of

a s y e t uninvented t r a n s p o r t a t i o n t echno log ie s which may be s o c l o s e

t o a t h e o r e t i c a l t h r e s h o l d a s t o cha l l enge t h e c a p a c i t y of a c o n v i v i a l

s o c i e t y t o accommodate change.

Also l e f t o u t of t h e equat ion is t h e r o l e of motor power. There

a r e c l e a r l y advantages i n motor iz ing a t l e a s t some forms of t r anspor -

t a t i o n ( f o r example, t o c a r r y t h e s i c k o r t h e p h y s i c a l l y handicapped).

I l l i c h sugges t s t h a t such motorized v e h i c l e s should be made subordi-

n a t e t o autonomous t r a n s p o r t , implying a l s o t h a t t h e i r speed should

l i k e w i s e b e l i m i t e d .

Without a n t i c i p a t i n g t h e d i scuss ion t o come l a t e r about t h e socio-

p o l i t i c a l environment f o r c o n v i v i a l technology, i t i s apparent t h a t

some kind of r e s e a r c h schema would be u s e f u l i n de te rmining a t l e a s t

t h e ques t ions t h a t must be asked of t h e p o l i t i c a l p rocess .

Appl ica t ions : HEALTH

There i s no t i d y equ iva l en t t o t h e b i c y c l e i n t h e h e a l t h f i e l d .

Never the less , I l l i c h c la ims t h e r e i s such a t h i n g as primary medical

ca re . It c o n s i s t s of a combination of p reven t ive p r a c t i c e s and b a s i c

therapy f o r t h e most common d i s o r d e r s and f o r b i r t h i n g c a r e .

The key t o s e t t i n g t h e l e v e l of such primary c a r e i s once aga in

equi ty .

Insofar as medicine i s a public u t i l i t y ... no person is t o receive services so extensi.ve that h is treatment deprives others of an opportunity for considerably less cost ly care per capita. (51)

That l e a v e s untouched t h e q u e s t i o n of a h e a l t h technology s o

complex a s t o r e q u i r e advanced e x p e r t i s e t o manage i t . It w i l l be-

come c l e a r a s t h i s s t udy deve lops t h a t e q u i t y i s o f t e n b e s t a s su red

by complex, mass produced technology -- b u t a t a c o s t t o autonomy

and sometimes f r u g a l i t y .

J u s t a s c l e a r l y a s i n t r a n s p o r t a t i o n , r a d i c a l monopoly o p e r a t e s

i n t h e h e a l t h f i e l d , bu t i n t h e form of p r o f e s s i o n a l i z a t i o n of a l l

t h e r a p i e s . (We w i l l r e t u r n t o t h a t d i s c u s s i o n i n t h e s e c t i o n on

s o c i o - p o l i t i c a l environment.)

The dys func t iona l m a n i f e s t a t i o n i n medicine t a k e s t h e form of

i a t r o g e n i c d i s e a s e s . A s w i t h o t h e r t echno log ie s , medicine r eaches

t h e p o i n t where i t begins t o c r e a t e problems which, w i t h i n t h e in -

d u s t r i a l mind-set, demand e v e r more technology a s t h e i r s o l u t i o n .

A s highway networks c r e a t e d i s t a n c e s t h a t can only be br idged by

b e t t e r c a r s , s o t h e damage done by exces s ive r e l i a n c e on X-rays

f o r d i a g n o s i s can only b e r e p a i r e d by r e s o r t t o e x o t i c c o b a l t tech-

nology.

I n t h e f a c e of technology-created problems, organized medicine

a t t empt s t o e l i m i n a t e " the l a s t v e s t i g e s of empiricism" (52) from

medical p r a c t i c e i n favour of s c i e n t i f i c methods which a r e beyond

t h e comprehension of t h e p a t i e n t . The r e s u l t i s t h a t t h e p a t i e n t

ha s l e s s c o n t r o l of h e r own h e a l t h ; h e a l t h c a r e a c q u i r e s exchange-

va lue and i t t o o becomes s c a r c e .

Here i s a c a s e where i t i s d i f f i c u l t t o e s t a b l i s h a measurable

t h re sho ld . I n s t e a d , i t is necessary t o r e l y on t h e evidence of an

emerging r a d i c a l monopoly, i n t h i s c a s e t a k i n g t h e form of profes-

s i o n a l i z a t i o n of t h e h e a l t h i n d u s t r y . -

However, t h e r e may be a major impediment t o adopting f r u g a l

p r a c t i c e s i n h e a l t h c a r e , even i f c i t i z e n s become aware of t h e i r

l o s s of c o n t r o l . Whatever inconveniences t h a t may come from t h e

adopt ion of limits t o technology i n o t h e r f i e l d s , l i m i t s i n medi-

c i n e s t r i k e people l i t e r a l l y where they l i v e and b rea the . More-

ove r , humans have t h e unique c a p a c i t y t o a n t i c i p a t e t h o s e l i m i t s .

"(Mankind) i s the sole being who can and must resign himself t o l imi t s when he becomes mare of them. (53)

I n t h e f a c e of m o r t a l i t y and pa in , t h e d e s i r e t o postpone

f a t e i s s t r o n g enough t o overcome even t h e most i n c o n t r o v e r t i b l e

evidence i n favour of c o n v i v i a l technology. Faus t i an ba rga ins

a r e nowhere more a p t t o be s t r u c k than i n t h e f a c e of t h e menace

of ag ing o r t h e hope of r e l i e f from pa in and f e a r .

I l l i c h seems t o recognize t h e weight of t h i s argument when

he once aga in accep t s t h e need f o r a mix of conv iv i a l and indus-

t r i a l technologies .

Autonomous production can, of course, be supp Zemented by industria2 outputs that w i l l have t o be designed and o f ten manufactured beyond direct community controZ. ( 5 4 )

A s h e has a l r e a d y poin ted o u t , t h e means of determining t h e

n a t u r e of t h a t mix of technologies is t o r e l y on t h e p o l i t i c a l

p roces s , i . e . t h e c o l l e c t i v e judgment of o rd ina ry people. Even

acknowledging t h e co r rup t ion of c u r r e n t p o l i t i c a l p rocesses , it

can b e r e a d i l y demonstrated t h a t people a l r e a d y adopt a mix of

t echno log ie s they f i n d s u i t a b l e and it is overwhelmingly indus-

t r i a l , as I l l i c h w i l l qu i ck ly acknowledge.

While i t seems p l a u s i b l e t o imagine a widespread r e j e c t i o n of

i n d u s t r i a l t echnologies i f and when t h e c o l l a p s e occurs , i t seems

l e s s l i k e l y t h a t t h e l o s s of l i f e - p r e s e r v i n g t h e r a p i e s -- however

i n e q u i t a b l e -- w i l l be e a s i l y accep ted .

Of cou r se , e f f e c t i v e c o u n t e r f o i l r e s e a r c h may be a b l e t o demon-

s t r a t e t h e long term b e n e f i t s o f c o n v i v i a l h e a l t h technology, such a s ,

... sanitation, innoculation, and vector control, well distributed health education, healthy architecture, and safe machinery, general competence i n f i r s t aid, equally distributed access t o dental and primary medical care, as well as judiciously selected complex services ... ( i n ) a t ru ly modem culture tha t fostered self-care and autonomy. ( 5 5 )

But i n s i t u a t i o n s demanding t h e r a p e u t i c t r ea tmen t s , no doubt

t h e a l t e r n a t i v e s w i l l be a s r a d i c a l a s t h o s e of t h e Hiroshima dilemma.

W i l l t h e circumstances b e a s c r i t i c a l ? A t any r a t e , i t was t h e doc-

t o r s of Hiroshima, no t t h e v i c t i m s , who reso lved t h e dilemma.

Apparently much depends on t h e t i m e t a b l e of t h e c o l l a p s e of in -

d u s t r i a l technology. I f i t i s s u f f i c i e n t l y p r o t r a c t e d f o r people t o

come t o understand t h e c o n t r i b u t i o n made by i a t r o g e n i s e s , i t may be

e a s i e r f o r many t o accep t t h e n e c e s s i t y of a l t e r i n g t h e i r h e a l t h ex-

p e c t a t i o n s . One s u s p e c t s I l l i c h ' s C a t h o l i c t r a i n i n g may a l s o have

provided him w i t h a more sanguine a p p r e c i a t i o n of t h e p l ace of dea th

i n l i f e .

A t any r a t e , c o u n t e r f o i l r e s e a r c h i n t o h e a l t h a l t e r n a t i v e s w i l l

b e a t l e a s t neces sa ry i f t h e h e a l t h c a r e t h r e s h o l d i s t o be estab-

l i s h e d and adopted by c i t i z e n s .

Elsewhere, I l l i c h a s s e r t s ,

Iatrogenesis ( i s ) but one instance of that paradoxicaZ counterproductivity which i s now surfacing i n a l l major industr ial sectors. ( 5 6 )

Nowhere i s t h i s phenomenon more ev iden t than i n a g r i c u l t u r e . Un-

happ i ly , I l l i c h h a s no t undertaken a c r i t i q u e of t h e s u b j e c t i n any way

equ iva l en t t o t hose he p rov ides f o r t r a n s p o r t a t i o n and medicine. It

_ w i l l s e r v e t h e o b j e c t i v e s of t h i s paper t o t a k e a moment t o look a t

a g r i c u l t u r e from t h e p e r s p e c t i v e of c o n v i v i a l technology.

Appl ica t ions : AGRICULTURE

U n t i l about t h e mid 1950s i n North America, t h e m a j o r i t y of t h e

food product ion came from t h e fami ly farm. A s t h e farm popula t ion

dec l ined , t h e number of farms f e l l , t h e i r average s i z e i nc reased and

t h e t o t a l acreage committed t o a g r i c u l t u r e r o s e g radua l ly . With in-

c r e a s i n g urban growth, t h e t o t a l p roduc t ive ac reage i s now f a l l i n g ,

p u t t i n g even g r e a t e r demands on technology t o improve p roduc t iv i ty .

(57) Furthermore, u n t i l m u l t i p l e dwel l ing r e s i d e n t i a l development

emerged i n t h e s e v e n t i e s , many non-farm urban and suburban households

produced a t l e a s t p a r t of t h e i r annual f r e s h vege tab le and f r u i t

needs i n backyard p l o t s . (58)

I n t h e e a r l y s e v e n t i e s , s i m i l a r s h i f t s began appear ing i n

Third World a g r i c u l t u r e w i t h t h e i n t r o d u c t i o n of t h e h igh technology

based "green r evo lu t ion . " Within t h i s coming decade over h a l f of t h e

wor ld ' s people w i l l be l i v i n g i n urban environments, i n c r e a s i n g l y

removed from food producing c a p a b i l i t i e s .

I n o r d e r t o main ta in p r o d u c t i v i t y , t h e demographic s h i f t from

a g r a r i a n t o urban forms n e c e s s a r i l y had t o b e accompanied by c a p i t a l

i n t e n s i v e i n d u s t r i a l technology. (59) A s w i t h t r a n s p o r t a t i o n and

medicine, t h e s h i f t was accompanied by l o s s of autonomy.

I n many ways, t h e counterproduct ive consequence of i n d u s t r i a l i z e d

a g r i c u l t u r e has more profound i m p l i c a t i o n s f o r human s u r v i v a l than

even medicine and c e r t a i n l y t r a n s p o r t a t i o n . The reason t h e - r i s k is s o

40.

high i s because of widespread, sometimes i r r e v e r s i b l e damage t o , and

even l o s s o f , s o i l a s s o c i a t e d w i t h i n d u s t r i a l t echniques i n a g r i c u l -

t u r e . The a g r i c u l t u r a l e q u i v a l e n t s t o i a t r o g e n e s i s a r e s o i l e ros ion ,

a d d i t i v e t o x i c i t y and s a l i n a t i o n of ba th ground and s u r f a c e water . (60)

There i s a l s o , of cou r se , a d i r e c t l i n k t o i n d u s t r i a l i z e d medicine i n

t h e form of i n d u s t r i a l and environmental d i s e a s e s d i r e c t l y de r ived

from modern a g r i c u l t u r a l p r a c t i c e s .

Here a g a i n t h e t r a n s i t i o n t o c o n v i v i a l a g r i c u l t u r e technology

w i l l n e c e s s i t a t e bo th a r a d i c a l s h i f t i n deep-seated a t t i t u d e s and

some k ind of remedia l s t r a t e g y t o add res s t h e accumulated s t r e s s of

decades of i n d u s t r i a l technology. A s Murray Bookchin p o i n t s o u t ,

Radical agriculture ... implies not merely neu techniques i n food cul t ivat ion, but a n m non-promethean sens ib i l i t y toward land and society as a whole. (61)

It seems l i k e l y t h a t t h e th re sho ld f o r c o n v i v i a l a g r i c u l t u r e

w i l l b e found around t h e concept of s u s t a i n e d y i e l d . There i s rea-

son t o b e l i e v e t h a t dys func t ion s e t s i n when a g r i c u l t u r a l i n p u t s

exceed o u t p u t .

Whereas t r a d i t i o n a l Chinese wet r i c e c u l t u r e -- employing only

re-cycled n u t r i e n t s and s o l a r energy -- w i l l r e t u r n about 53.5 BTU

of energy f o r each BTU of human and mechanical energy inves ted i n

farming i t , i n t h e 1970s i n d u s t r i a l a g r i c u l t u r e consumed about 4 BTU

f o r every one r e t u r n e d .

That equa t ion demonstrates perhaps t h e most fundamental c r i -

t i q u e t h a t can be made about i n d u s t r i a l technology. Regre t t ab ly ,

I l l i c h gave i h e s u b j e c t of energy only s u p e r f i c i a l a t t e n t i o n .

Appl ica t i o n s : ENERGY

I n Enerpy and Equi ty , I l l i c h employs an i n t r o d u c t o r y chapter on

energy t o underpin h i s main t rea tment of t h e speciail c a s e of t r ans -

p o r t a t i o n energy. According t o him t h e energy c r i s i s i s an i n d u s t r i a l

c r i s i s , n o t one of s u r v i v a l .

The energy c r i s i s focuses concern on the scarcity of fodder for (energy) slaves. I prefer t o ask whether free men need them. (62)

I n a n i n d u s t r i a l mode of t h i n k i n g t h e energy c r i s i s l e a d s t o

concern about h igh e f f i c i e n c y of energy t r ans fo rma t ion r a t h e r than

t h e more b a s i c q u e s t i o n of how much mechanical energy s o c i e t y

a c t u a l l y needs t o ach ieve a c o n v i v i a l way of l i v i n g .

Again t h e r e is a t h r e s h o l d , beyond which e x t r a energy erodes

e q u i t y and e v e n t u a l l y r e s u l t s i n d i s - u t i l i t i e s . I n a t t empt ing t o

e s t a b l i s h t h a t t h r e s h o l d , I l l i c h r e s o r t s t o a p o t e n t i a l l y mislead-

i n g analogy.

The per capita wattage that i s c r i t i c a l for social well-being Zies within an order of magnitude which i s far above the horsepower knom t o four-fi f ths of hwnanity and far below the power commanded by any Vo Zkswagen driver. (63)

While t h e image is compell ing, an a t tempt t o use i t t o estab-

l i s h t h e t h r e s h o l d range immediately r e v e a l s t h a t i t imp l i e s an

upper l e v e l of power about t h r e e t imes g r e a t e r than i n d u s t r i a l man

a c t u a l l y uses . (The e r r o r d e r i v e s from t h e f a c t t h a t power-in-use

must be measured over t ime.)

A more u s e f u l base can b e der ived from a comparison of d a i l y

human energy needs and c a p a b i l i t i e s a g a i n s t a c t u a l pe r c a p i t a

energy consumption i n i n d u s t r i a l s o c i e t y .

A human working s t e a d i l y ove r e i g h t hours can d e l i v e r about

500 K-cals of work pe r day. S ince he r e q u i r e s an energy i n t a k e

of about 2,600 K-cals pe r day j u s t t o ma in t a in h i s metabolism, he

works a t an average e f f i c i e n c y of 20 pe rcen t i n i n d u s t r i a l terms.

The a c t u a l per c a p i t a consumption i n i n d u s t r i a l s o c i e t y i s

something l i k e 230,000 K-cals p e r day, a t a n average n e t e f f i -

c iency of fou r p e r c e n t , f o r a t h e o r e t i c a l y i e l d of about 9,200

K-cals of work; about 19 t imes t h e c a p a b i l i t y of human metabol ic

energy. (64)

Current convent ion says t h a t we each have, t h e r e f o r e , 18

energy "s laves" a v a i l a b l e t o u s through t h e " g i f t " of technology.

That e s t a b l i s h e s a n a b s o l u t e range somewhere between b a s i c su rv i -

v a l and c u r r e n t i n d u s t r i a l s o c i e t y consumption.

The r e s u l t i n g equat ion i s f a r s h o r t o f u s e f u l ; a more u s e f u l

formula i s needed. What I l l i c h seems t o b e sugges t ing as a way

t o avoid having t o undertake t h a t daun t ing t a s k i s t o examine t h e

energy q u o t i e n t of a number of components of c o n v i v i a l technology

-- a s h e h a s at tempted f o r t r a n s p o r t a t i o n -- and then add them up

t o a r r i v e a t a t o t a l c o n v i v i a l energy t h r e s h o l d .

The problem w i t h t h a t formula is t h a t i t i m p l i e s a l o s s of

autonomy f o r i n d i v i d u a l s and communities t o choose f o r themselves

how they w i l l employ l i m i t e d energy.

There appea r s t o b e no t h e o r e t i c a l reason why a c o n v i v i a l

energy t h r e s h o l d cou ldn ' t be der ived: i n f a c t , o t h e r s have done

so . I n p u r s u i t of t h a t goa l , i t i s neces sa ry t o summarize t h e

b a s i c energy ques t ion .

I n s imple terms, t h e energy problem has two doorways: supply and

demand. A s I l l i c h p o i n t s o u t , much of t h e a c t i v i t y aroused by t h e

energy c r i s i s i s e v i d e n t l y on t h e supply s i d e . Given t h e p re sen t

and p r o j e c t e d consumption l e v e l s p l u s t h e v a s t and unmistakable glo-

b a l i n e q u i t y , t h e r e i s c l e a r l y a s h o r t f a l l i n supply.

Technocra t ic s o l u t i o n s t o t h a t problem t a k e two forms, sometimes

pursued s e p a r a t e l y , more o f t e n i n combination. The b l a t a n t l y opt imis-

t i c t e c h n o c r a t s a l t e r n a t e l y look f o r a d d i t i o n a l convent iona l s u p p l i e s

-- new f o s s i l f u e l s -- and promise n e a r l y unbounded new t echno log ie s

such as f u s i o n r e a c t o r s . The more r e s p o n s i b l e "conse rva t ion i s t s "

devote t h e i r a t t e n t i o n t o s i g n i f i c a n t l y improving t h a t d i smal f o u r

percent convers ion e f f i c i e n c y f i g u r e .

E i t h e r way o r i n combination, t h e s o l u t i o n s demand a n inescap-

a b l e commitment t o advanced technology w i t h , i f I l l i c h i s c o r r e c t ,

i n c r e a s i n g i n e q u i t y , en t renching r a d i c a l monopoly and encouraging

g r e a t e r d i s - u t i l i t i e s , poss ib ly of a c a t a s t r o p h i c na tu re . A t t h e

very least , h i g h technology supply-side s o l u t i o n s tend t o cen t r a -

l i z e energy convers ion , l e a d i n g t o a very conc re t e i nequ i ty . A s

Lovins e x p l a i n s i t ,

CentraZized energy systems are inequitable i n principle because they separate the energy output from i t s side e f fec ts , a Z Zocating them t o di f ferent peop Ze a t oppo- s i t e ends of the transmission Zine. (65)

The demand s i d e can, of course , a l s o be t h e r o u t e t o t h e con-

s e r v a t i o n i s t s o l u t i o n . I f people can b e induced through educa t ion ,

moral pursuas ion o r p r i c i n g p o l i c y t o reduce t h e i r needs through

c a r e f u l and e f f i c i e n t use of r e sou rces , t h e employment of b e t t e r

conversion t echno log ie s w i l l be made more e f f e c t i v e .

A more r a d i c a l , o r c o u n t e r f o i l , e x p l o r a t i o n would be t o f i n d

I l l i c h ' s t h r e s h o l d i n t e r m s of t o t a l u n i t s of energy.

The upper l i m i t of t h a t energy r ange cannot be g r e a t e r t han t h e

l e v e l of s u s t a i n e d y i e l d o r renewable supply. To do o the rwi se would

be t o s t e a l f o s s i l f u e l and o t h e r one-time r e sources from f u t u r e

genera t ions . An upper l i m i t s e t by t h i s means w i l l y i e l d a substan-

t i a l l y more p r e c i s e f i g u r e than I l l i c h h a s been a b l e t o de r ive .

The e a r t h ' s thermal l oad c a p a b i l i t y h a s been es t imated t o be

about o n e - f i f t h of t h e p r e s e n t i n d u s t r i a l i z e d pe r c a p i t a consumption.

(66) To t u r n t h a t formula around, w e can s a y t h a t , i f everyone i n

t h e world consumed energy a t t h e rate of i n d u s t r i a l s o c i e t y , t h e

thermal l oad would b e t o o g r e a t f o r t h e g lobe t o handle.

It fo l lows t h a t t h e upper l i m i t o f t h e th re sho ld must be less

than 45,000 K-cals p e r c a p i t a , p e r day, o r about 17 t imes more than

i s needed f o r b a s i c s u r v i v a l .

I f t h e convers ion e f f i c i e n c y could be improved through more

a p p r o p r i a t e uses of energy and by reducing t h e average 40 percent

t ransmiss ion l o s s e s caused by long d i s t a n c e movement of energy,

t h a t should l e a v e s u b s t a n t i a l l y more energy per c a p i t a t han is

needed, s a y by about 10 o r 12 energy s l a v e s .

Eventua l ly , t h a t c a l c u l a t i o n a r r i v e s a t about t h e same p o i n t

as t h a t reached by t h e t echno-conse rva t ion i s t s such a s Amory Lovins.

A l l we have t o do t o ach ieve t h a t k ind of ba lance i s t o swi tch from

t h e hard p a t h t o t h e s o f t p a t h and forego u topian v i s i o n s of un-

l i m i t e d f u t u r e growth: CS2 i n t h e language of t h e Gamma study. (67)

I l l i c h would n o t a l l o w t h a t such a s h i f t was a s i g n i f i c a n t move

toward c o n v i v i a l i t y . H e p o i n t s o u t t h a t a c a r running on s o l a r

energy i s no less a r a d i c a l monopoly f o r be ing opera ted on renewable

energy. A l a r g e biomass p l a n t a t i o n s e r v i n g a met ropol i s w i th a l l of

i t s e l e c t r i c a l energy needs would s t i l l compel i t s s u b s c r i b e r s t o buy

energy from i t , j u s t a s they would from a s i m i l a r s i z e d n u c l e a r f i s s i o n

p l a n t .

A t t h e extreme o t h e r end o f t h e range -- a b s o l u t e autonomy -- one might imagine f o r t h e s a k e o f d i s c u s s i o n a s i n g l e fami ly having

immediate c o n t r o l of s u f f i c i e n t r e s o u r c e s t o meet a l l of t h e i r own

needs f o r food, s h e l t e r , p r o c r e a t i o n and h e a l t h i n i s o l a t i o n from

everyone e l s e .

From t h a t could be de r ived a shopping l i s t of minimum needs

f o r a g iven b ioregion . Assuming a b a s i c technology f o r s u r v i v a l

i n a tempera te zone, a b a s i c p e r c a p i t a energy need of 10,000 K-cals

pe r day of energy could be a r b i t r a r i l y a l l o c a t e d , a l e v e l s l i g h t l y

lower t han t h a t which p r e v a i l s i n China.

To summarize s o f a r , we have an upper l i m i t of 45,000 K-cals

and a lower one of 10,000 K-cals.

~ l l i c h ' s t h e s i s , of cou r se , is t h a t t h e r e is a p o s i t i v e r e l a -

t i o n s h i p between energy and e q u i t y r i g h t up t o t h e th re sho ld . Thus

t h e range o f 35,000 K-cals between t h e lower and upper l i m i t s may

concea l a s u b s t a n t i a l c a p a b i l i t y of i n c r e a s i n g t h e number of energy

s l a v e s wi thout breaching t h e t h r e s h o l d : more accuracy is needed.

Furthermore, a c o n v i v i a l l i f e s t y l e cou ldn ' t countenance a

h i g h l y i n d i v i d u a l i s t i c s o c i a l form. Some p o r t i o n of t h e energy

budget must t h e r e f o r e be a l l o c a t e d t o human s e t t l e m e n t s , t r a f f i c ,

r e c r e a t i o n and s o c i a l i z i n g . A t l e a s t ano the r 5,000 K-cals might

be needed t o meet t h o s e a c t i v i t i e s . Even w i t h t h e s e crude e s t i -

mates, t h e range between t h e l i m i t s is s t i l l l a r g e a t a spread

of 30,000 K-cals.

The c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of technology t h a t cause l o s s of equ i ty ,

r i s e of r a d i c a l monopoly and dysfunct ion a r e s t i l l not determined

f o r energy. A s y e t , w e have f o r energy nothing l i k e h i s 15 m i l e

per hour upper speed l i m i t f o r t r a n s p o r t a t i o n .

The foregoing survey of four important components of t h e physi-

c a l technology environment has i d e n t i f i e d a l e s s than concre te b a s i s

f o r developing s t r a t e g i e s f o r conv iv ia l technology.

While a t l e a s t a p rov i s iona l l i m i t has been advanced f o r t rans-

p o r t a t i o n , t h e r e a r e s t i l l no c l e a r gu ide l ines f o r t h e adoption of

supplementary motor power. The ou t s t and ing problem i n h e a l t h is

t h a t of demonstrating t h e need f o r vo lun ta ry l i m i t a t i o n s of immor-

t a l i t y . The ques t ions p e r t i n e n t t o food technology a r e ba re ly even

i d e n t i f i e d , while t h e upper and lower limits of t o t a l per c a p i t a

energy a r e too wide t o be of concre te va lue .

It needs t o be acknowledged he re a l s o t h a t t h e r e a r e o the r

components of technology t h a t have no t even been approached.

For example, how could a u t i l i z a t i o n formula f o r non-renewable

. resources be worked out t o t a k e i n t o account equ i ty f o r uncount-

a b l e f u t u r e generat ions?

Before a t tempt ing t o work up some answers t o t h e s e quest ions,

i t w i l l be d e s i r a b l e t o examine t h e less concre te but no l e s s impor-

t a n t s o c i o - p o l i t i c a l a s p e c t s of technology.

Remembering t h a t I l l i c h def ined t o o l s a s being " a l l r a t i o n a l l y

designed devices," it i s evident t h a t t h e non-material a spec t s of

technology a r e c r i t i c a l l y important t o conv iv ia l soc ie ty . It might

even b e argued they a r e a c t u a l l y more c r i t i c a l than mechanical t o o l s

i n t h a t they o f t e n form t h e very i n s t i t u t i o n s t h a t address the tech-

no log ica l environment.

A c l e a r example of t h a t c o n d i t i o n is t h a t of educat ion. Not

only is i t an i n s t i t u t i o n a l forum f o r d e a l i n g wi th technology, i t

is a powerful shaper of va lues , a t t i t u d e s and h a b i t u a l behaviour.

Applicat ions: EDUCATION

Published b e f o r e Tools f o r Conv iv ia l i ty , Deschooling Socie ty

(68) l a c k s t h e c a r e f u l a n a l y t i c a l s t r u c t u r e and t h e c o n s i s t e n t

theme found i n t h e o t h e r works t h a t followed.

Furthermore, I l l i c h at tempted i n t h e educat ion essay t o set

f o r t h concre te a c t i o n s appropr i a t e t o h i s a n a l y s i s which were

widely adopted by educat ion p r a c t i t i o n e r s i n a b r i e f bu t unpro-

d u c t i v e f l u r r y of enthusiasm t h a t gave rise t o such innovat ive

but s h o r t l i v e d experiments a s t h e Parkway P r o j e c t , t h e Free

U n i v e r s i t i e s and t h e Learning Networks.

What i s missing i n t h e e a r l y work i s t h e t i g h t l y organized

t h e o r e t i c a l framework t h a t followed l a t e r , even though i t s emer-

gence was foreshadowed i n Deschooling Socie ty . It may b e ins t ruc -

t i v e t o adopt t h e l a t e r t h e o r e t i c a l framework t o analyze h i s e a r l y

e f f o r t s .

A s school ing t akes on i n s t i t u t i o n a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s , i t begins

t o supplant informal l e a r n i n g , even though t h e most s i g n i f i c a n t

human l e a r n i n g period -- e a r l y childhood -- t a k e s p lace mostly out-

s i d e of t h e school . The l e a r n e r su r render s h e r autonomy t o school-

ing as t h e schools acqu i re t h e r i g h t t o c e r t i f y process and achieve-

ment. When school ing becomes compulsory, r a d i c a l monopoly begins t o

s e t i n and schools become i n c r e a s i n g l y i n e f f i c i e n t a s schools become

sca rce . Dysfunction fol lows. I n t h e f a c e of modernized poverty,

school c r e a t e s demands i t cannot f i l l and t h e system n e c e s s a r i l y

becomes f i n a n c i a l l y non-viable i n a f r u i t l e s s p u r s u i t of equi ty .

I n t h i s p roces s , s choo l s r e p r e s e n t bo th a model f o r o t h e r

s o c i a l i z i n g t o o l s and a pe rvas ive c a r r i e r of t h e u n i v e r s a l ideology

of t h e va lue of progress .

I have chosen the schooZ as my paradigm ... ( f o r ) the consumer family, the party, the army, the church, themedia. ( 6 9 )

A s a paradigm, schoo l ing might r e v e a l some p r i n c i p l e s t h a t

could be employed f o r a n a l y s i s of t h e o t h e r s o c i a l i z i n g i n s t i t u -

t i o n s . In s t ead of fo l lowing t h a t cou r se , I l l i c h a t t empt s t o set

ou t some p r a c t i c a l s t r a t e g i e s .

The f i r s t of t h e s e i s a formula by which t h e s t a t e can sup-

p o r t l e a r n i n g wi thout v i o l a t i n g I l l i c h ' s v a r i a t i o n of t h e U.S.

C o n s t i t u t i o n ' s F i r s t Amendment:

The State shall make no Zaw with respect t o the estab Zishrnent of education. ( 70)

P r o h i b i t i o n s a g a i n s t a schoo l system need n o t r e s u l t i n an

i l l i t e r a t e popula t ion , he says . Equi ty could be assured by

i s s u i n g a kind of "edu-credi t card" which would e s t a b l i s h an equal

educa t iona l c r e d i t f o r every c i t i z e n a t b i r t h , t o be app l i ed when

and where she o r h e r guard ians wish. I l l i c h even a n t i c i p a t e d head-

s t a r t problems caused by t h e d i f f e r e n c e s between middle c l a s s and

poor households by sugges t ing t h e i n d i v i d u a l ' s c r e d i t ba lance could

accumulate i n t e r e s t t o compensate l a t e starters.

The o t h e r major c o n c r e t e p roposa l was t o sugges t t h e u s e of

computers t o b u i l d l e a r n i n g networks, o r webs a s he c a l l e d them.

Such a mechanism would a l l o w peop le t o c o n t a c t o t h e r s having simi-

l a r i n t e r e s t s and t o i d e n t i f y s k i l l r e s o u r c e s wi thout having t o

r e l y on t h e school c u r r i c u l a .

Two s i g n i f i c a n t i n c o n s i s t e n c i e s emerge. F i r s t , I l l i c h seems

not t o have looked f o r a t h r e s h o l d f o r s choo l ing as he has f o r o t h e r

t o o l s h e h a s examined. It would seem reasonab le t o a rgue , as he has

f o r o t h e r t o o l s , t h a t schools can c o n t r i b u t e t o c o n v i v i a l i t y up t o

some y e t t o b e determined optimum l e v e l , a t which po in t they would

begin t o become dys func t iona l .

I f t h a t were s o , t h e c o u n t e r f o i l r e s e a r c h t a s k would b e t o

e s t a b l i s h t h e c r i t i c a l e lements of educa t ion t o determine what

f a c t o r s should b e a s se s sed . It could b e t h a t b a s i c l i t e r a c y might

be t h e educa t iona l equ iva l en t t o t h e 15 m i l e pe r hour speed l i m i t

i n t r a f f i c ; i t could b e t h a t t h e a u t h o r i t y t o c e r t i f y may be t h e

c u l p r i t . Indeed, he sugges t s a t one p o i n t t h a t a human r i g h t s

code could p r o h i b i t t h e t a k i n g of educa t iona l h i s t o r i e s as i t now

does f o r r a c e , r e l i g i o n o r sex . It may b e a l s o t h a t p r o f e s s i o n a l

c e r t i f i c a t i o n marks t h e beginning of t h e dys func t iona l turnaround.

More l i k e l y it w i l l b e found as a combination of t h e s e and o t h e r

f a c t o r s .

The second incons i s t ency i s more i n t h e o r d e r of a s t r a t e g i c

s l i p . I n h i s a t tempt t o i l l u s t r a t e how a l e a r n i n g web might work,

he bea rds t h e l i o n i n i t s den by us ing New York C i ty a s h i s example.

Perhaps because of t h e d i s t o r t i o n s of h i s t h e o r i e s t h a t have

plagued I l l i c h f o r a t l e a s t 12 y e a r s , a number of a t t empt s a t

l e a r n i n g networks have f a i l e d f o r a v a r i e t y of reasons. Basic t o

a l l of t h e w e l l researched f a i l u r e s is t h e f a c t t h a t l e a r n i n g webs

a r e an a t t empt t o e s t a b l i s h a c o n v i v i a l t o o l i n a n an t i - conv iv i a l

environment.

I l l i c h has i n d i r e c t l y acknowledged t h i s i n h i s later works

where h e asserts t h a t t h e whole s t r u c t u r e of i n d u s t r i a l s o c i e t y

w i l l c o l l a p s e when t h e t h i r d watershed h a s been reached by

s e v e r a l t echno log ie s more o r l e s s s imul taneous ly . One of t h e

l e a s t c o n v i v i a l t o o l s t h a t must s u r e l y b e r a d i c a l l y a l t e r e d a t

t h a t t i m e must be t h e modern metropol is , such a s New York City.

Attempting t o b u i l d human networks i n such an environment must be a s

f u t i l e a s t r y i n g t o bu i ld se l f -he lp h e a l t h c a r e i n s t i t u t i o n s i n t h e

face of t h e r a d i c a l monopolv of i n d u s t r i a l medicine.

Applicat ions: HUMAN SETTLEMENTS

I n f a c t , t h e s t r u c t u r e and substance of human se t t l ements may

have t o be t h e most r a d i c a l l y a l t e r e d of a l l technologies. Unhap-

p i l y , t h i s mat ter a l s o has not y e t received I l l i c h ' s a t t e n t i o n .

Since I l l i c h i s s o obviously f o r e c a s t i n g not a piecemeal modi-

f i c a t i o n of technology bu t a t o t a l r e -o r ien ta t ion of soc ie ty , it is

c l e a r t h a t t h e new s o c i e t y must come t o terms with t h e b u i l t environ-

ment. I n l i g h t of what h e has s a i d about thresholds o f , f o r example,

t r a n s p o r t a t i o n , h e a l t h c a r e and energy consumption, t h e modern metro-

p o l i s cannot funct ion a s it now e x i s t s .

I n t h e face of a speed l i m i t of 15 m i l e s per hour, a l l of t h e

world's major c i t i e s a r e too l a r g e t o be conveniently encompassed;

t h e func t ion of l a r g e , h igh ly c e n t r a l i z e d h o s p i t a l s w i l l be use less

t o a h e a l t h c a r e system t h a t r e l i e s on l o c a l community and pa t i en t

resources; wi th t r a n s p o r t a t i o n a lone demanding c l o s e t o ha l f of a l l

c u r r e n t l y a v a i l a b l e energy, an energy budget reduced t o one-f i f th

i ts present l e v e l w i l l demand l e s s redundancy than t h e modern c i t y

can accommodate.

Y e t , a s f a s t a s i n d u s t r i a l technology al lows, t h e e a r t h ' s

people a r e moving i n t o ever l a r g e r urban conglomerations. Accord-

ing t o t h e United Nations, during t h e 25 years between 1950 and

1975, t h e wor ld ' s urban populat ion grew from 2.5 t o 4 b i l l i o n

people whi le t h e r u r a l populat ion grew from 1.8 t o 2.5 b i l l i o n . (71)

By t h e yea r 2000, t h e c i t i e s of Bombay, New Delhi and Calcut ta a r e

expected t o hold 100 m i l l i o n people between them.

While such concen t r a t ions of popula t ion may n o t b e n e c e s s a r i l y

t h e i n e v i t a b l e consequence of advancing technology, t h e h i s t o r y of

u rban iza t ion from t h e beginning of t h e i n d u s t r i a l e r a r e v e a l s a geo-

. m e t r i c a l l y a c c e l e r a t i n g growth rate as y e t undiminished.

In fact, one can argue that, i n a variety of ways, the kind of settlements we have slipped in to i n the nine- teenth and twentieth centuries, i n t h i s f i r s t tentative fwnbZing phase i n man's use o f high science and high technoZogy are .. . exactZy the kind o f 'habitat' which a sane, stabZe and conserving society ought t o reform. (72)

C l e a r l y , t h e s i z e of human s e t t l e m e n t s -- a t least i n s p a t i a l

terms -- is a c r i t i c a l de te rminant i n e s t a b l i s h i n g t h r e s h o l d simply

because t h e r e i s a l i m i t t o t h e a b i l i t y of c o n v i v i a l technology t o

s e r v i c e it. Popula t ion s i z e would a l s o appear t o be impor tan t ,

both because i t c o n s t r a i n s t h e s p a t i a l dimensions -- e i t h e r by

l i m i t i n g t h e per imeter o r by f o r c i n g h igh d e n s i t y , h igh technology

bu i ld ing c o n s t r u c t i o n -- and because t h e p o l i t i c a l u n i t demands

b u r e a u c r a t i z a t i o n beyond t h e l i k e l y th re sho ld .

Experience w i t h s e t t l e m e n t s i z e i s bo th l i m i t e d and l a c k i n g

i n t h e o r e t i c a l foundat ions. Much of t h e contemporary l i t e r a t u r e

agrees on t h e f i g u r e of 50,000 as a base-uni t popula t ion of s e t t l e -

ments. Of ten , sma l l e r d i s t r i c t s o r neighbourhoods a r e p o s t u l a t e d

a s sub-uni ts .

For example, i n an a l l - i n c l u s i v e typology of human s e t t l e -

ments, Doxiadis d e f i n e s a neighbourhood as having a popula t ion of

about 1,500 people and t h e "pol i" o r c i t y as having 75,000 people.

(73) During t h e y e a r s between t h e r e v o l u t i o n and World War 11,

t h e Russian town p l anne r s s y s t e m a t i c a l l y b u i l t over 900 new s e t t l e -

ments under a r i g i d formula based on t h e i d e a of a m i c r o d i s t r i c t o f

8-12,000 people organized i n b locks of 25-50,000 people. (74)

The concept around which t h e s e numbers are de r ived i s t h a t cer-

t a i n a c t i v i t i e s a r e most e f f i c i e n t l y s e rved i n a c e n t r a l p l ace around

which r e s idences a r e c l u s t e r e d . The a c t i v i t i e s -- work, educa t ion ,

r e c r e a t i o n , h e a l t h s e r v i c e s and shopping -- are assumed t o t a k e p l a c e

i n a convent iona l i n d u s t r i a l mode. Furthermore, p l anne r s adopt ing

t h i s approach r e l y on r a w empi r i ca l behav iou ra l d a t a r a t h e r t han on

p r i n c i p l e s of human s a t i s f a c t i o n . I n s h o r t , c o n v i v i a l i t y is n o t a

de terminant .

Of cou r se , a s t r a t e g y i n p u r s u i t o f c o n v i v i a l human s e t t l e -

ments would have t o t a k e i n t o account I l l i c h ' s v a l u e c r i t e r i a :

f r u g a l i t y , e q u i t y and autonomy. While t h e c e n t r a l p l a c e concept

appears a t l e a s t t o begin t o a d d r e s s t h e c r i t e r i o n of f r u g a l i t y ,

i t s a y s no th ing about e q u i t y o r autonomy.

A t t h e very least , a c o n v i v i a l human s e t t l e m e n t would have

t o ensu re t h e oppor tun i ty f o r a f ami ly t o c o n s t r u c t i t s own s h e l t e r

ou t of m a t e r i a l s e q u a l l y a v a i l a b l e t o a l l and i n a c o n f i g u r a t i o n

t h a t a s s u r e s equal acces s t o amen i t i e s . These c r i t e r i a sugges t an

upper l i m i t set by t h e unique c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of each s e t t l e m e n t

s i t e and by t h e p h y s i c a l l i m i t a t i o n s of r e l a t e d technologies such

a s t r a n s p o r t a t i o n , m a t e r i a l r e sou rces , c o n s t r u c t i o n techniques

and t o o l s .

Again, however, t h e e x a c t t h re sho ld cannot y e t b e determined

s i n c e i t must t a k e i n t o account t h e a b i l i t y of t h e s e t t l e m e n t t o

func t ion e f f e c t i v e l y as a democrat ic p o l i t i c a l u n i t . Here I l l i c h

has provided some l e a d s .

Appl ica t ions : CONTROL

For I l l i c h , t h e bottom l i n e of technology i s i t s e f f e c t on t h e

democrat ic p o l i t i c a l p rocess .

What I do want t o call attention t o i s ... the fact that rising productivity and supply of services results i n the irrecuperable loss of conviviality. (75)

The l o s s occurs because t h e growth e t h i c of t echno log ica l

s o c i e t y inexorab ly l e a d s c i t i z e n s t o su r r ende r t h e i r r i g h t t o

d e f i n e and a c t t o people s p e c i a l l y s e l e c t e d , t r a i n e d and c e r t i f i e d

t o do so : t h e " d i s a b l i n g p ro fe s s ions . " The p r o f e s s i o n a l s have

acqui red

. . . the sapientiaz authority t o advise, instruct and direct; the moral authority that makes i t s acceptance not just useful but obligatory; and charismatic author- i t y that allows the professional t o appeal t o some supreme interest of his cl ient that not only outranks conscience but sometimes the raison d 'e ta t . (76)

Mat te r s once c l e a r l y i n t h e p o l i t i c a l domain a r e t r a n s f e r r e d

t o t h e p r o f e s s i o n a l u n t i l even tua l ly t h e p o l i t i c a l p rocess can only

choose between competing p r o f e s s i o n a l - i n d u s t r i a l a l t e r n a t i v e s .

According t o I l l i c h , t h e r e a r e f i v e i l l u s i o n s widely he ld i n

i n d u s t r i a l s o c i e t y t h a t encourage t h a t t r a n s f e r :

1) Use-value i s d iscounted i n favour of exchange-value wi th t h e rise of consumerism.

2) Technologica l p rog res s i s seen t o be unavoidably a s s o c i a t e d w i t h r i s i n g complexi ty, which i n t u r n r e q u i r e s s p e c i a l l y t r a i n e d ope ra to r s .

3) Tools must b e c e r t i f i e d f o r u se by e x p e r t s .

4 ) Confusion about r i g h t s versus l i b e r t i e s . (Liberties protect use-values as rights protect access t o commodities.) (77) As t e c h n o c r a t s c e r t i f y t o o l s , a demand f o r equal r i g h t s of acces s t o them c louds t h e l o s s of freedom n o t t o u s e them a t a l l .

5) I n i t s most modern form -- p r o f e s s i o n a l " r a d i c a l ch ic" -- even s e l f - h e l p becomes p ro fe s s iona l i zed . Nat ive s o l u t i o n s a r e analyzed by e x p e r t s and f ed back t o t h e people w i t h t h e stamp of profes- s i o n a l app rova l and, even tua l ly , c o n t r o l .

Appl ica t ions : KNOWLEDGE

Here I l l i c h l e a v e s us wi th very l i t t l e d i r e c t i o n towards a con-

c r e t e mechanism f o r e f f e c t i v e c i t i z e n c o n t r o l of technology po l i cy .

Having pursuas ive ly demonstrated t h e l o s s of community c o n t r o l

through t h e r i s e of e x p e r t i s e , h e o f f e r s no means f o r d i s s o l v i n g

t h e f i v e i l l u s i o n s .

It i s c l e a r t h a t t h e r o o t s of t h e i l l u s i o n s a r e a l l bur ied i n

t h e d i s t o r t i o n of s c i ence t o make it s e r v e technology. So long a s

i t is seen t o do s o , i t may even b e t h a t a conv iv i a l s o c i e t y w i l l

no t t r u s t s c i ence t o pursue i ts own means and ends and may demand,

i n s t e a d , t h a t i t become subordina te t o t h e w i l l of t h e people.

Hei lbroner a n t i c i p a t e d t h a t p o s s i b i l i t y :

... might not the people of ... a threatened society look upon the 'self-indulgence ' of unfettered i n t e Z- Zectual expression with much the same mixed feelings that we hold with respect t o the ways of the vanished aristocracy -- a way of l i f e no doubt agreeable t o the few who benefited from it, but of no concern, or even of actual disservice, t o the vast majority? ( 7 8 )

What sc i ence has n o t done b u t is capable of doing i s t o re-

p l ace human s l a v e r y w i t h mechanical s l a v e s wi thout a t t h e same t i m e

ens l av ing people t o t h e machine. To I l l i c h ,

. . . t h i s i s not the fault of s c i e n t i f i c input i n i t s e l f . I t i s rather the resul t of the in t en t with which science i s applied. Science could be equally well used t o increase the too2 k i t available t o every man, endowing individuals and tran- s ien t gatherings of associates t o constantly re- create the ir environment with wzdreamt of freedom and formerly unthinkable self-expression. ( 7 9 )

Holding t h a t view, I l l i c h cannot be a fu l l - f l edged dys topian

o r a s i m p l i s t i c neo-Luddite. However, h i s problem of f i n d i n g a

t h re sho ld i s found i n i t s most pe rp l ex ing form i n t h e domain of

s c i ence .

Science i s n o t a p h y s i c a l e n t i t y o r a t a n g i b l e q u a n t i t y of a c t i -

v i t y t h a t can b e measured l i k e speed o r Pe r c a p i t a energy. Moreover,

t h e r e is no l o g i c a l l e v e l of s c i e n t i f i c a c t i v i t y t h a t can be s e t t h a t

w i l l avoid t h e d i scove ry of new t echn iques which may t u r n ou t t o be

non-convivial. I f p a s t s c i e n t i f i c d i s c o v e r i e s have d i sc losed tech-

n iques and t o o l s t h a t prevent d i s e a s e , i n c r e a s e food y i e l d s and i m -

prove s h e l t e r , s u r e l y t h e r e may s t i l l b e o t h e r d i s c o v e r i e s t h a t

might b e n e f i t people i n t h e f u t u r e y e t s t i l l f a l l below t h e th re s -

ho ld a t which damage beg ins t o occu r .

Unquestionably, t h e mechanism by which t h e s p i r i t of i n q u i r y

can co-exis t w i t h limits t o a p p l i c a t i o n i s t h e u n i v e r s a l adopt ion

of f u l l democracy i n a n e t h o s shaped by c o n v i v i a l technology and

c h a r a c t e r i z e d by a deep commitment t o e q u i t y , f r u g a l i t y and auto-

nomy: no l e s s t han a new s c i e n c e , a new s c i e n c e t h a t i s informed

by a commitment t o e q u i t y and f i n d s its i n t r i n s i c rewards i n t h e

e legance of f r u g a l i t y and s i m p l i c i t y .

Such a v i s i o n invokes a J e f f e r s o n i a n image of a n en l ightened

c i t i z e n r y , a l b e i t unschooled; a kind of s c i e n t i f i c a l l y d isposed ,

b u t n o t possessed, Renaissance people , s u f f i c i e n t l y f r e e of t h e

burden of t o i l t o permit a l l t o p a r t i c i p a t e f u l l y i n t h e d i r e c t i o n

s o c i e t y w i l l go. They cannot s u r r e n d e r t h e i r r e s p o n s i b i l i t y t o

s p e c i a l i s t s of any k ind , p a r t i c u l a r l y t h o s e who would govern t h e

community on t h e i r b e h a l f : t h e p o l i t i c i a n s and bu reauc ra t s .

However grand t h e r each is t o t h a t image, i t i s u n a t t a i n a b l e

un le s s t h e t o t a l and i n d i v i d u a l t h r e s h o l d s of c o n v i v i a l technology

can y i e l d something s u b s t a n t i a l l y more than mere s u b s i s t e n c e f o r

people. Unless i t can be shown t h a t s u f f i c i e n t wel l-being can be

achieved e q u a l l y by a l l , t h e p rospec t o f s e c u r i n g a vo lun ta ry com-

mitment t o f r u g a l i t y is remote; w i thou t t h a t commitment, technology

can only be l i m i t e d by near -absolu te r e sou rce dep le t ion o r environ-

mental c o l l a p s e . I l l i c h i s say ing t h e r e i s a t l e a s t a t h e o r e t i c a l

p o s s i b i l i t y of d e f i n i n g a " t o o l k i t " t h a t would provide only enough

technology t o reach t h e t h r e s h o l d , and no more.

I n a d d i t i o n t o r e q u i r i n g t h e r i g h t kind of democratic environ-

ment t o enac t l i m i t s t o technology, t h e r e must a l s o be a p r a c t i c a l

framework f o r de te rmining t h e th re sho ld of each t o o l i n t h e t o o l

k i t and a comprehensible, o rd ina ry language r a t i o n a l e f o r r e j e c t -

i n g o u t r i g h t t hose t o o l s t h a t breach t h e threshold .

Furthermore, t h a t framework -- i t s e l f a t o o l -- must f i t t h e

hands, minds and exper iences of o rd ina ry people.

CHAPTER I11

Insofar as more spheres of decision-making are construed as ' technical problems ' re- quiring information and instrwnental stra- teg ies produced by technical experts, they are progressive Zy removed from po Zi t ical debate.

Trent Schroyer, M u r x and Habemnas

The T h e o r e t i c a l Problem:

There a r e two problems t h a t descend from ~ l l i c h ' s s ta tement of

t h e problem, n e i t h e r of which seems t o b e i n h i s grasp.

F i r s t , o r d i n a r y peop le need t o r e g a i n t h e r i g h t and a b i l i t y t o

make choices about t h e technology t h e y want t o l i v e wi th , without

having t o r e l y on t h e judgment of t e c h n o p h i l i c s p e c i a l i s t s . That

problem w i l l b e p u t a s i d e temporar i ly .

The second problem i s t h a t an a n a l y t i c a l t o o l is r equ i r ed t h a t

is capable o f d e t e c t i n g t h e t h r e s h o l d which I l l i c h c la ims l ies w i t h i n

each technology and which t h e p rev ious c h a p t e r has suggested can be

d iscovered , a l b e i t w i t h d i f f i c u l t y i n many cases . Moreover, t h e

c i t i z e n of a c o n v i v i a l s o c i e t y w i l l need t o a c q u i r e and s u s t a i n a

meta- technica l p e r s p e c t i v e of t h e e n t i r e t o o l k i t .

What is be ing asked f o r i s a new kind of technology assessment

s t r a t e g y which f o r convenience w i l l b e des igna ted h e r e as Alterna-

t i v e Technology Assessment (ATA).

Within t h e p a s t 20 o r s o y e a r s , r i s i n g p u b l i c concern about t h e

unintended o r unwanted e f f e c t s of technology ( I l l i c h ' s second water-

shed ) , l a r g e l y i n t h e a r e a s of environment and h e a l t h , has l e d t o a

widespread p o l i t i c a l conv ic t ion t h a t technology can and should be con-

t r o l l e d . To do s o r e q u i r e s some means of a s s e s s i n g emerging technolo-

g i e s f o r a l l of t h e i r p o s s i b l e consequences. I n a b e l i e f system t h a t

embraces " i d o l a t r y of s c i ence , " i t is n o t s u r p r i s i n g t h a t s c i e n t i f i c

s p e c i a l i s t s a r e asked by s o c i e t y t o develop countermeasures t o address

t h e t a s k . The commitment t o technology remains; it is only asked of

s c i e n t i s t s t h a t t hey e l i m i n a t e i t s n e g a t i v e e f f e c t s . The outcome i s

t h e p roces s u s u a l l y r e f e r r e d t o as Technology Assessment (TA).

Technology Assessment:

The body of p r a c t i c e s t h a t makes up TA c o n s i s t s of a h o s t of

t o o l s and s t r a t e g i e s a l r e a d y i n t h e armory of t h e p h y s i c a l and s o c i a l

s c i ences . What i s d i s t i n c t i v e t o TA are t h e purpose, scope and out-

comes o f t h e a c t i v i t y .

F i r s t , t h e r e i s an assumption t h a t c l o s e and thorough examina-

t i o n of i n d i v i d u a l t echno log ie s w i l l r educe t h e n e g a t i v e consequences

of technology a s a whole. Second, t h e p r a c t i t i o n e r s of TA must assume

t h a t t hey can e v e n t u a l l y a c q u i r e a u s e f u l degree of accuracy i n fore-

c a s t i n g environmental , economic and s o c i a l even t s : t h e r e i s a n assump-

t i o n o f c o n s i s t e n t and p r e d i c t a b l e c a u s a l i t y . F i n a l l y , TA has a d i s -

t i n c t i v e commitment t o a r a t i o n a l p o l i t i c a l decision-making process .

A l l t h r e e of t h e s e assumptions m e r i t c l o s e r a t t e n t i o n . However,

be fo re doing s o , a b a s i c model of TA should be s e t out.

The i d e a l TA sets o u t t o bound t h e assessment domain i n a s u f f i -

c i e n t l y c o n c r e t e and i n c l u s i v e way t o ensure t h a t a l l of t h e r e l e v a n t

e lements can b e examined i n some measurable form. Reasonable a l t e r -

n a t i v e p r o j e c t i o n s a r e developed which then form t h e b a s i s f o r t h e

assessment of l i k e l y impacts o r consequences, followed by examination

of t h e p o l i c y a l t e r n a t i v e s .

I d e a l l y , t h e whole process i s run through s e v e r a l t imes by a

mul t i -d isc ip l inary team u n t i l some kind of consensus is reached,

o f t en expressed i n a s e t of "if-then" a l t e r n a t i v e a c t i o n opt ions

f o r cons idera t ion by t h e p o l i t i c a l dec i s ion makers.

A progress ive TA, acknowledging t h e c r i t i c a l in f luence of

publ ic opinion and behaviour, seeks t h e input and even t h e p a r t i -

c i p a t i o n of non-expert s takeholders such a s r e l evan t entrepeneurs,

watchdog agencies, c i t i z e n o rgan iza t ions , po l i c ing agencies and

SO on.

A ' s t a t e of t h e a r t ' model is set out i n Figure 3 : l below.

Fig. 3: 1 (80)

The TA a c t i v i t y has become i n c r e a s i n g l y i n s t i t u t i o n a l i z e d , begin-

n ing w i t h t h e passage of t h e U.S. Technology Assessment Act i n 1972

and l a t e r t o t h e implementation of major and on-going s t u d i e s by

Congress, t h e OECD, t h e Commission of European Communities, and t h e

Science Council of Canada. (81) The Canadian bureaucracy now in-

c ludes an o f f i c e of technology assessment w i t h i n t h e Min i s t ry of

S t a t e f o r Sc ience and Technology. Most o t h e r i n d u s t r i a l c o u n t r i e s

have similar bodies .

To complete t h i s b r i e f d e s c r i p t i o n of TA, i t should b e poin ted

out t h a t a l i v e l y d i a logue con t inues t o examine t h e methodological

premises under ly ing TA. I n p a r t i c u l a r , t h e r e i s an unresolved ques-

t i o n about t h e scope and f e a s i b i l i t y of any i n d i v i d u a l TA. Some

c r i t i c s p o i n t o u t t h a t governments o p e r a t e w i t h i n " r e a l world" con-

s t r a i n t s t h a t do n o t permit them t h e luxury of f o r t h r i g h t acceptance

o r r e j e c t i o n of t echno log ie s because of t h e a c t i v i t i e s of s p e c i a l

i n t e r e s t p r e s s u r e groups on governments. That cond i t i on r e s u l t s i n

t h e adopt ion f o r p r a c t i c a l r ea sons of a decision-making p roces s

termed " d i s j o i n t e d incrementalism." (82)

I n t h i s mode, a TA cannot hope t o encompass such v a s t and long

term o r a b s t r a c t e lements as " s o c i e t a l f u t u r e s " o r " s o c i e t a l values"

a s suggested i n F igu re 3 : l . Furthermore, t h e p r a c t i c a l range of

a l t e r n a t i v e p r o j e c t i o n s and p o l i c y o p t i o n s i s narrow and t h e impact

a n a l y s k s t r & t e d t o t h e immediate and most obvious. I n essence , ,/

d i s j o i n t e d i n c r e m e n t a l i s t TAs are o n l y a b l e t o respond t o problems

a s they emerge and cannot a n t i c i p a t e t h e f u t u r e .

... incremental decision making i s described as reme- dially geared, as it i s more t o the aZZev.iation of present concrete social imperfections than t o the promotion of future goals. (83)

Current TA p r a c t i c e seems t o l i e somewhere between t h e i d e a l

and t h e i n h e r e n t l y c o n s e r v a t i v e d i s j o i n t e d incremental ism i n a

compromise termed "mixed scanning" which integrates higher order

goals with the more modest incremental processes. Typically, Cana-

dian government policy has adopted this compromise position. ( 8 4 )

Finally, there are two other characteristics associated with

conventional TA which are seldom discussed in the literature and

which will be only introduced here for later discussion.

In all jurisdictions currently carrying out TAs, the agencies

involved are a mixture of governmental, extra-governmental and pri-

vate institutions or firms. Since their active members are elites,

they maintain close contact with each other and are largely self-

recruited. Credentials for entering into the activity are both

organizational and academic: ordinary people do not do TA.

The decision about which technologies merit some form of TA

is also informally determined. For example, the rise to political

prominence of virtually all environmental and energy issues fre-

quently results in some form of assessment as the technologies

develop. Thus, major pipelines, new processing techniques such

as tar sands oil extraction, or rising public concerns like acid

rain bring to the surface concrete concerns that can readily be

phrased in the language of TA.

Other technologies, having less immediately obvious conse-

quences or of a technical configuration that permits incremental

development -- such as computers -- may escape formal assessment in their early development stages, at least until concrete effects

like unemployment begin to emerge into public consciousness. Low

profile technologies such as micro-biology receive little attention.

Most often, the technologies that quickly catch public attention

are in the category that Winner calls "apparatus" rather than

organizational or human techniques. Combinations of apparatus that

constitute essentially new organizational technologies, such as

telematics, seldom attract public attention until they are in place.

I n essence, t h e r e i s no formal process f o r determining which tech-

nologies merit assessment.

Having completed t h e o u t l i n e of t h e b a s i c TA model, i t w i l l be

useful t o r e t u r n t o t h e t h r e e assumptions mentioned e a r l i e r .

F i r s t of t h e s e i s t h e idea t h a t a c l o s e examination of a number

of apparent ly s i g n i f i c a n t technologies w i l l provide a check on tech- ,

nology a s a whole. I n t h e f i r s t p l ace , concern about technology

l o g i c a l l y cannot be addressed by examination of ind iv idua l technolo-

g ies . That i s so simply because meta-technology is not merely t h e

sum of i n d i v i d u a l technologies: i t a l s o inc ludes t h e a t t i t u d e s , be-

l i e f s and h a b i t s of t h e complex f a b r i c of s o c i e t y -- t h e ways i n

which t h e va r ious a c t o r s respond t o technology. Whatever s o c i a l

con t ro l over technologies may b e t h e o r e t i c a l l y poss ib le , t h e curnu-

l a t i v e f o r c e of meta-technology cont inues t o p r e s s soc ie ty , g iv ing

rise t o concerns about autonomous technology.

Aside from t h e p r o b a b i l i t y t h a t ind iv idua l TAs w i l l f a i l from

time t o t i m e t o c o r r e c t l y p r e d i c t consequences, t h e r e i s t h e l a r g e r

quest ion of shee r complexity of t h e whole technologica l p i c t u r e .

A s Winner a s s e r t s ,

... members of the technological society actually know Zess and Zess about the fundamental structures and processes sustaining them ... the possibility o f directing technological systems toward clearly perceived, con- sciously chosen, widely shared aims becomes an increasingly dubious matter ... With the overload of informa- t ion so monwnental, poss ibi l i t ies ... are neutralized. Active participation i s rep Zaced by haphazard monitoring. (85)

What TA does in t h i s s i t u a t i o n i s t o f u r t h e r technologize t h e

problem i n an e f f o r t t o manage t h e overwhelming complexity of t h e

problem. I n s h o r t , i n i ts convent ional s c i e n t i s t i c mode, TA cannot

s e e t h e f o r e s t f o r t h e t r e e s .

The second assumption is t h a t TA p r a c t i t i o n e r s can, o r a t l e a s t

expect t o be a b l e someday, t o accura te ly f o r e c a s t f u t u r e events. I f

decision-making about technology is ever t o become anything more than

remedial incrementalism, t h e a b i l i t y t o f o r e c a s t consequences is essen-

t i a l . The need t o do so becomes acu te ly apparent i n s c i e n t i f i c specu-

l a t i o n about poss ib le g lobal impacts such a s atmospheric buildup of

carbon dioxide o r d i sposa l of r ad ioac t ive energy by-products, both

bearing e s s e n t i a l l y i r r e v e r s i b l e consequences. I n these mega-impact

technologies, incrementalism cannot even c l o s e t h e barn door, l e t

alone b r i n g back t h e horse.

I n recogni t ion of this s i t u a t i o n , TA p r a c t i t i o n e r s a r e experi-

menting wi th a hos t of s t r a t e g i e s which seem t o o f f e r some degree

of accuracy. A t l e a s t 24 techniques have been i d e n t i f i e d a s fore-

c a s t i n g t o o l s (86), a l l of which can be subsumed under two broad

headings: ex t rapo la t ion and modelling, o r a combination of both.

The t o o l s most o f t e n assoc ia ted wi th ex t rapo la t ion a r e t rend

a n a l y s i s and consul t ing expert opinion by va r ious techniques, notably

t h e Delphi. The b a s i c premise h e r e is t h a t f u t u r e s a r e more o r l e s s

continuous wi th t h e pas t -- a view commonly held by utopians such a s

Daniel B e l l o r Herman Kahn.

The techniques have some evident l i m i t a t i o n s . Current know-

ledge i n t h e physical sc iences revea l s a number of n a t u r a l phenomena

where r a d i c a l dysjunction occurs ( f o r example, t h e behaviour of

e l ec t rons i n low versus h igh frequency conf igura t ions) . The biolo-

g i c a l and s o c i a l sc iences e x h i b i t s i m i l a r r a d i c a l turnover po in t s

where f u t u r e behaviour cannot be predicated on pas t behaviour.

The p o t e n t i a l of ex t rapo la t ion t o mislead is i n proport ion t o

t h e ex ten t t o which i t relies on quan t i f i ca t ion . The danger inherent

i n any a t tempt t o quan t i fy i s t h a t t h e numbers imply a degree of objec-

t i v i t y and o rde r they may no t b e e n t i t l e d t o claim. Thus, f o r example,

economists' a t t empts t o l o c a t e s u b s t i t u t i o n curves may employ a simple

quadra t i c equat ion , when a r a d i c a l s h i f t may i n f a c t occur a t some c r i -

t i c a l po in t .

The o t h e r family of s t r a t e g i e s -- modelling -- is being increas-

ing ly employed wi th t h e rise i n s o p h i s t i c a t i o n of low c o s t computing

f a c i l i t i e s . Modelling o f f e r s t h e freedom t o s t a t e any des i red s i t u a -

t i o n without having t o demonstrate how i t might come i n t o being.

Mathematical o r analagous models of any chosen condi t ion a r e formu-

l a t e d and set i n motion, a l lowing t h e modellers t o examine impacts

i n a l a b o r a t o r y s e t t i n g . War game scenar ios a r e probably t h e most

f a m i l i a r example of modelling a s a p r e d i c t i n g t o o l .

The obvious l i m i t a t i o n on t h i s t o o l i s t h e a b i l i t y of t h e model

des igner t o incorpora te a l l of t h e p e r t i n e n t elements i n t h e model,

some of which a r e i n h e r e n t l y r e s i s t a n t t o quan t i f i ca t ion . A f u r t h e r ,

and e x q u i s i t e l y c r u c i a l , l i m i t a t i o n i s t h e programmer's a b i l i t y t o

p r e d i c t human responses t o f u t u r e events . F ina l ly , models a r e power-

f u l purveyors of whatever b i a s is b u i l t i n t o them. They a r e more

works of a r t than of scholarship .

The important t h i n g t o n o t e i n both s t r a t e g i e s is t h e apparent

n e c e s s i t y f o r s c i e n t i f i c e x p e r t i s e and e s c a l a t i n g r e l i a n c e on t h e

very t o o l s t h a t form t h e s u b j e c t of study. There i s something c i r -

c u l a r about t h e p r a c t i c e of employing technology t o s tudy technology:

t h e subjec t -objec t r e l a t i o n s h i p becomes b lu r red o r even contradic tory .

The f i n a l assumption t o be d e a l t wi th i s t h a t of r a t i o n a l i t y i n

dec i s ion making. A r e c e n t OECD s tudy s t a t e s ,

TA i s a decision making tool which means that it i s best conceived as yielding systematic inputs into the larger poZiticaZ and economic system. ( 8 7 )

Unmistakably, t h e va lue underlying t h a t s tatement i s t h e not ion

t h a t t h e b e s t dec i s ions a r e those informed, even d i c t a t e d , by f a c t s .

What g ives TA i t s p o t e n t i a l power i s t h a t s o c i e t y a s a whole, not

j u s t s c i e n t i s t s and bureaucra ts , a s s igns high value t o r a t i o n a l i t y

-- a t l e a s t a t t h e conscious l e v e l .

Habermas has defined t h e emergence of t h a t e t h i c a s "sc ient iza-

t ion" (88) and n o t e s t h a t i t l e a d s t o an i n t e g r a t i o n of t h e r o l e s

of exper t and bureaucra t /po l i t i c i an . More po ten t ly , t h e p o l i t i c a l

system becomes technic ized with t h e r e s u l t t h a t key dec i s ions in-

c reas ing ly a r e made o u t s i d e of t h e pub l i c realm.

We are no Zonger able t o distinguish between practicaZ and technical power. (89)

A c o n s i s t e n t r a t i o n a l e under l i e s each of t h e t h r e e l i m i t a t i o n s

d e a l t wi th here : t h e idea t h a t sc ience and i t s o f f sp r ing , technology,

a r e n e u t r a l . Wherever f a i l u r e occurs, t h e cause i s u l t ima te ly human:

computers don ' t make mistakes, humans do. When undesirable s ide-

e f f e c t s occur ,

... the designer was short-sighted, we conctude, or perhaps he i s excused since, a f ter aZZ, the design was ' s ta te of the art ' for i t s time. The corrective invoZves more technoZogy -- for every technoZogicaZ dysfunction there i s a corresponding ' tech fix. (90)

I n t h i s view, t h e goal of sc ience i s a b s o l u t e r a t i o n a l i t y . While

t h e goal may be beyond reach a t t h i s moment, each advance i n knowledge

diminishes s o c i e t y ' s r e l i a n c e on i r r a t i o n a l causes and moves us c l o s e r

t o t h e a b s o l u t e t r u t h . Universal phenomena can and must be reduced t o

t h e i r d i s c r e t e elements and brought under human con t ro l . The s o c i a l

sc i ences , s t r u g g l i n g f o r c r e d i b i l i t y i n t h a t mi l i eu , attempt t o extend

t h e apparent c e r t a i n t y of t h e hard sc iences t o t h e study of human

o rgan iza t ion and behaviour.

While t h a t simple view of r e d u c t i o n i s t sc ience has long s i n c e

been r e j e c t e d by s e r i o u s philosophers of sc ience , it continues t o

be the i m p l i c i t model of des ign and engineering p r a c t i t i o n e r s .

More importantly, i t is manifest i n t h e c o l l e c t i v e e thos of indus-

t r i a l s o c i e t i e s .

I n schoolrooms, l i t e r a t u r e and t h e e l e c t r o n i c media, "pop"

science p resen t s explanat ion a s equivalent t o understanding;

ordinary language begins t o desc r ibe t h e world i n r e d u c t i o n i s t

terms and pub l ic expecta t ions rise t o a constant ly receding hor i -

zon of l i m i t a t i o n s . Paradoxical ly , a s t h e horizon expands, t h e

universe becomes less knowable, g iv ing r i s e t o an equal ly expand-

ing need f o r exper t s t o keep c o n t r o l of t h e human-built universe.

It is t h i s formulat ion of t h e problem t h a t l eads I l l i c h t o i d e n t i f y

t h e " three o b s t a c l e s t o recovery" mentioned i n t h e preceding chapter .

Operating i n t h a t con tex t , conventional TA can only hope t o

monitor i n d i v i d u a l technologies a s i f they were d i s c r e t e p a r t s of

a funct ioning whole. TA is a s r e d u c t i o n i s t a s t h e worldview it

der ives from; i n t h a t f a c t l ies i ts two major flaws.

The f i r s t f law -- a l ready introduced -- der ives from t h e ' p iece

by piece1 n a t u r e of TA which gives t o technology a l i f e of i t s own.

To say s o is no t t o imbue technology wi th e i t h e r a mind of i t s own

o r even ~ l l u l ' s technological determinism. It i s simply t o say

t h a t preoccupation wi th ind iv idua l technologies f a i l s t o ask c r i t i -

c a l ques t ions of meta-technology which advances l a r g e l y without

e f f e c t by i n d i v i d u a l TAs.

The second f law d e r i v e s from t h e assumption t h a t human beha-

viour can be made p a r t of t h e r e d u c t i o n i s t model of science. It

at tempts t o p r e d i c t human behaviour because i t i s an obvious deter-

minant of t h e va r ious outcomes of a given technology and the re fo re

l e g i t i m a t e l y i s p a r t of any purposeful assessment.

P r a c t i t i o n e r s of f u t u r e s s t u d i e s a r e bound t o concede t h a t t h i s

element of t h e i r c r a f t is unrefined and continues t o se r ious ly l i m i t

t h e i r accuracy.

The r e d u c t i o n i s t s o l u t i o n t o t h a t problem i s t o f u r t h e r r e f i n e

human techniques u n t i l t h e u n c e r t a i n t y i s l a r g e l y o r even t o t a l l y

removed. That i s p rec i se ly t h e preoccupation of Skinner. Such a

perspect ive s h i f t s t h e d e f i n i t i o n of t h e problem from t h e p r a c t i c a l

t o t h e t echn ica l realm.

Thus, while conventional TA p r e s e n t s i t s e l f a s a monitor of

technology's e f f e c t s on s o c i e t y , i n f a c t a t b e s t it can only t r y t o

assess ind iv idua l technologies and cannot even do t h a t wel l i f human

responses i n any way a r e a f a c t o r i n t h e outcome.

Nevertheless, t h e b a s i c e thos t h a t underpins TA continues

t o opera te . Indeed, t h i s argument contends t h a t t h e roo t s of con-

vent ional TA l i e i n t h a t e thos which, re-inforced by t h e r i s e of

an apparent ly n e u t r a l technology, pe rpe tua tes t h e " idola t ry of

science." The "corruption of everyday language" continues t o

de f ine t h e problem i n d i s c r e t e unconnected t e r m s and perpetuates

t h e b e l i e f t h a t t h e proper r e a l m of whatever remedial ac t ion may

be required is t h e t echn ica l , no t t h e p r a c t i c a l : l l l i c h l s "loss

of l e g a l procedure."

I n summary, conventional TA s u f f e r s from a reduc t ion i s t

methodology and i s unable t o f o r e c a s t human responses t o techno-

logy, a t l e a s t u n t i l s u b s t a n t i a l and p o t e n t i a l l y dangerous ad-

vances i n human technique a r e achieved. Given t h e problem set

out a t t h e beginning of t h i s chap te r and t h e immediately fore-

going a n a l y s i s , a con t rad ic t ion seems evident : t h e r e is a need

f o r ind iv idua l TAs t o r e v e a l t h e turnaround point where techno-

logy ceases t o be use fu l and begins t o become dysfunctional while

avoiding t h e reduc t ion i s t tendencies of s c i e n t i s t i c TAs, meanwhile

preserving a meta-technological pe r spec t ive .

Appropriate Technology and TA:

A cur ren t phenomenon t h a t has t h e p o t e n t i a l t o r e so lve t h a t

con t rad ic t ion i s t h e concept of a l t e r n a t i v e o r appropr ia t e techno-

logy. For a l l p r a c t i c a l purposes, a l t e r n a t i v e , appropr ia t e and

conv iv ia l a r e e s s e n t i a l l y equivalent modif iers t o desc r ibe a kind

of technology t h a t opera tes a t sub-threshold l e v e l s (although

I l l i c h may o b j e c t t o being put i n t h a t company). A shorthand

term f o r such technology, one commonly employed, is AT.

Dickson desc r ibes AT t h i s way:

This technology would embrace tools, machines and techniques necessary t o re f l ec t and maintain nonoppressive and non-manipulatory modes of social production, and a non-exploitative relationship t o the natural environment. (91)

AT proponents claim t h a t s c a l e i s an important dimension of

technology, arguing t h a t so-cal led economies of s c a l e a r e o f t e n

dis-economies when analyzed by l i f e - c y c l e accounting p r a c t i c e s

and, a t any r a t e , l a r g e s c a l e e n t e r p r i s e s a r e incompatible with

democratic work p rac t i ces . Furthermore, t h e labour-saving

r a t i o n a l e f o r advancing technology is based on a d i s t o r t e d and

anti-human view of work. A s Carpenter says ,

whereas the conventional wisdom accompanying modem industrial practice holds leisure time, f i ZZed with material consumption, as the reward for stuZtifying and unfulf i l l ing Zabour, AT emphasizes that ethical work i s , t o a substantial depee, i t s own reward. (92)

AT people a l s o maintain t h a t , wh i l e i n d u s t r i a l technology

favours mono-cultural a c t i v i t i e s i n t h e name of e f f i c i e n c y , AT

works from t h e premise -- borrowed from t h e ecology movement -- t h a t d i v e r s i t y p r o t e c t s s u r v i v a b i l i t y . That t r a n s l a t e s i n t o

concepts such a s d e c e n t r a l i z a t i o n of production and c o n t r o l ,

i n t e g r a t i o n of l i f e - s u s t a i n i n g a c t i v i t i e s i n t o r e g i o n a l l y a p p r o p r i a t e

p a t t e r n s , and r e l i a n c e on a v a r i e t y of l o c a l l y genera ted , renewable

energy sou rces .

The p o l i t i c a l va lues under ly ing t h e AT p e r s p e c t i v e a r e e a s i l y

e x t r a c t e d b u t seldom made e x p l i c i t . I n shorthand form, t hey a r e

t hose i d e n t i f i e d by I l l i c h as f r u g a l i t y , e q u i t y and autonomy. I n

p r a c t i c e , t h e va lues a r e seldom expressed i n a coherent and sys te -

matic form, a s w i l l be demonstrated s h o r t l y . AT va lues s e r v e a s

l i t t l e more than handy touchs tones t o test t h e app ropr i a t enes s of

s p e c i f i c t echno log ie s t o t h e vaguely h e l d image of what i s accept-

ab l e .

I n t h e meantime, i t i s a p p r o p r i a t e t o n o t e t h a t f a i l u r e t o

a r t i c u l a t e a p o l i t i c a l framework r ende r s AT almost a s prone t o

reduct ionism a s t h e i n d u s t r i a l technology i t wishes t o supplant .

AT p u b l i c a t i o n s f r e q u e n t l y , vaguely and b r i e f l y address t h e i r

va lue b a s e s i n gene ra l terms b e f o r e g e t t i n g on t o a more d e t a i l e d

examination of appa ra tus , sometimes even t o t h e e x t e n t of d e a l i n g

wi th on ly one s p e c i f i c k ind of appa ra tus , such as wind systems,

p h o t o v o l t a i c s o r e c o l o g i c a l a g r i c u l t u r e , j u s t a s i n d u s t r i a l tech-

nology e x p e r t s do. That c l a i m can e a s i l y b e demonstrated.

Undoubtedly, t h e AT succes s s t o r y of Canada i s t h e growth and

s t a b i l i t y of t h e j o u r n a l , Canadian Renewable Energy News (CREN). (93)

Table 3 : l shows t h e r e s u l t s of a summary con ten t a n a l y s i s of s e v e r a l

r e c e n t i s s u e s of t h a t j o u r n a l , r e v e a l i n g a heavy hardware b i a s .

~ o l u m n / c e n t i m e t r e s ( ~ / c m ) of copy by s u b j e c t ca t egory i n randomly s e l e c t e d i s s u e s .

4: 8 /81

4: 11/82

5: 1/82

Average :

Ap par - a t u s

B - Govt . Pol i cy

14 1

291

167

2 00

C - Organi- z a t i on

572

322

2 88

394

D - Pol i - t i c a l

Table 3 : 1 (94)

Even t h e movement's guru, F r i t z Schumacher, moved very quick ly

away from v a l u e s and i n t o t a n g i b l e exp res s ions of AT'S s u p e r i o r i t y

i n such m a t t e r s a s job c r e a t i o n , economies and environmental pro-

t e c t i o n . (To h i s c r e d i t , he l a t e r a t tempted t o d e a l wi th t h e human

component i n A Guide f o r t h e Perplexed, Harper & Row, 1977.)

With few excep t ions , t h e d i s c u s s i o n s , correspondence and meet-

i n g s of AT p r a c t i t i o n e r s a r e dominated by q u e s t i o n s of hardware:

improved e f f i c i e n c i e s of wind machines o r i n s u l a t i o n , reducing t h e

u n i t c o s t s of p h o t o v o l t a i c s , t h e labour-cos t r a t i o of b i o l o g i c a l

p e s t c o n t r o l s , and s o on. On t h e s u r f a c e , t h e p r a c t i c e s of AT ap-

pear t o be as narrow as, i f less massive i n impact than , t hose of

i n d u s t r i a l technology. While t h e c r i t i c i s m i s l e g i t i m a t e , t h e d i f -

f e r e n c e s a r e n e v e r t h e l e s s s u b s t a n t i a l ; t hey l i e i n t h e va lues t h a t

underpin each of them.

C r i t i c i s m of t h e r o o t s of i n d u s t r i a l technology a r e l eg ion ;

t h e r e i s a widespread r e c o g n i t i o n of t h e p a r t played by t h e c l a s s i -

c a l l i b e r a l t r a d i t i o n s of i nd iv idua l i sm, compet i t ion , u t i l i t y and

p o s i t i v i s m i n shaping modern i n s t i t u t i o n s , b e l i e f s and p r a c t i c e s .

What is needed is an e q u a l l y c l e a r unders tanding of t h e emerging

va lue b a s e s of AT. While a d e t a i l e d examination is beyond t h e

scope of t h i s e s say , a b r i e f summary would be appropr i a t e .

Given t h e h i s t o r i c a l r o o t s of s o c i a l i s m i n a s c i ence of

s o c i e t i e s , i t is t o be expected t h a t i t w i l l be a s prone t o

s c i e n t i s m as i t s l i b e r a l democrat ic c o u n t e r p a r t is. A s a po l i -

t i c a l t h e o r y t h e r e is no doubt about t h a t . I n f a c t , Marx con-

tended t h a t t h e r i s e of t h e machine i n t h e i n d u s t r i a l r e v o l u t i o n

was a neces sa ry pre-condi t ion of t h e p r o l e t a r i a n r e v o l u t i o n t o

fol low. What c a p i t a l i s m has done i s t o t u r n technology i n t o a

weapon a g a i n s t t h e working c l a s s .

The contradictions and antagonisms inseparable from the capital is t employment of machinery do not ex is t ( i n a free society) ... They do not arise out of machinery, as such, but out of i t s capital is t emptoyment. (95)

Here i s a s c l e a r a s t a t emen t a s can be found of t h e no t ion of

n e u t r a l technology. Contemporary s o c i a l i s t s r e t a i n t h a t b e l i e f . (96)

However, Gendron t r i e s t o make t h e c a s e t h a t on ly s o c i a l i s t s have a

p o l i t i c a l t heo ry t h a t has t h e p o s s i b i l i t y of add res s ing t h e s o c i a l

problems of technology, even though they have n o t y e t done so.

SociaZists ... claim that socialism, unlike capitalism, w i l l make use of technology i n a basicaZZy humane and emancipatory way. ( 9 7 )

That i s s o , presumably, because of t h e i r commitment t o u n i v e r s a l

l i b e r a t i o n . He goes on t o show t h a t t hey have n o t y e t proved t h e i r

claim. Indeed, a look a t e s t a b l i s h e d s o c i a l i s t economies -- o t h e r

than China, perhaps -- r e v e a l s an obvious t e c h n o p h i l i c tendency.

Elsewhere on t h e l e f t t h e r e a r e some s t r i k i n g c o r r e l a t i o n s be-

tween s t a t e d AT va lues and t h e s o c i a l t h e o r i e s of anarchism t h a t

sugges t a c l o s e r a n a l y s i s .

However, a n a r c h i s t theory i s a l s o roo ted i n t h e 19th century

f a i t h i n r a t i o n a l i t y . Both Bakunin and Kropotkin saw t h e p o t e n t i a l

of s c i e n c e and technology t o f r e e people. Kropotkin i n p a r t i c u l a r

devoted a good d e a l of e f f o r t t o demonstrate anarchism's b a s i s i n

s c i ence :

(Anarchism's) method o f investigation i s that of the exact natural sciences, by which every sc ient i f ic conclusion must be verified. (98)

H e t o o was no t a Luddite . Even more s t r i k i n g i n t h i s r e spec t

a r e t h e i d e a s of t h e contemporary American a n a r c h i s t , Murray Bookchin,

who goes s o f a r a s t o a s s e r t t h a t t h e h igh technology c a p a b i l i t i e s of

t h e emerging p o s t - i n d u s t r i a l e r a a r e e x a c t l y t h o s e needed t o s t i m u l a t e

t h e f i n a l r e v o l u t i o n .

Capitalism's capacity for abundance -- the soporific it employs for domination -- s t i r s up strange images i n the dream world of i t s victims ... the v is ion of freedom ... i f abundance were used for hwnan ends. ( 9 9 )

H e is sugges t ing t h a t t h e very e a s e of l i v i n g i n a t echno log ica l

world r e v e a l s t h e p o s s i b i l i t y of l i v i n g f r e e of t h e p o l i t i c a l and eco-

nomic dominat ion of c a p i t a l i s m . I n f a c t , on ly i n t h e l a t t e r h a l f of

t h i s c e n t u r y h a s t h i s p o s s i b i l i t y become imminent.

What appea r s t o b e common between t h e t h e o r i e s of anarchism and

t h e p r a x i s of t h e AT movement a r e such i d e a s a s "small i s b e a u t i f u l , "

de -cen t r a l i zed d e c i s i o n making, l o c a l autonomy, s o c i a l e q u a l i t y and

r e j e c t i o n of t h e dominance of t h e n o t i o n of economic man.

C e r t a i n l y , many of t h e s o c i a l c r i t i c s adopted as t h e movement's

t h i n k e r s have had a n a r c h i s t i c tendencies : Paul Goodman, Lewis Mumford,

Theodore Rozsak, Ivan I l l i c h , Barry Commoner. However, j u s t a s many

o t h e r s descend from t h e l i b e r a l t r a d i t i o n : F r i t z Schumacher, Amory

Lovins, Hazel Henderson, E rnes t Cal lenback, George McRobie.

It is n e v e r t h e l e s s c l e a r t h a t AT i s given a t l e a s t a genera l

s e n s e of d i r e c t i o n from a set of reasonably w e l l a r t i c u l a t e d va lues ,

even i f t hey l a c k a coherent p o l i t i c a l t heo ry framework. Phrases

l i k e " t h e end of economics" and "economics a s i f people mattered"

s i g n i f y a b e l i e f t h a t p r o f i t f e e d s t h e un res t r a ined sea rch f o r

h ighe r and more technology; i n t h a t s ense , t h e movement i s of t h e

l e f t . The language of t h e movement assumes some c a p a c i t y on t h e

p a r t o f o r d i n a r y people t o i n t e l l i g e n t l y e x e r c i s e l o c a l autonomy

and a t l e a s t a l a t e n t d e s i r e t o l i v e i n harmony w i t h n a t u r e ; i n

t h a t s e n s e , it is a n a r c h i s t i c .

AT proponents have no t embraced any p o l i t i c a l system. Yet wi thout

some k ind of p o l i t i c a l theory , they cannot come t o terms w i t h t h e means

f o r b r ing ing about a r e - d i r e c t i o n of technology t o make i t conform t o

t h e AT c r i t i q u e . Lacking a coherent p o l i t i c a l t heo ry t o e x p l a i n how

change may come abou t , AT advocates a r e l e f t w i t h a s e r i e s of norma-

t i v e s t a t emen t s and t h e conv ic t ion t h a t peop le w i l l grow t o understand

t h e advantages of AT as knowledge of AT becomes d isseminated among t h e

people. I n t h a t s ense , t h e AT movement i s r a t i o n a l i s t i c , and somewhat

na ive .

I n t h e absence of a coherent p o l i t i c a l t heo ry , t h e a l t e r n a t i v e

f o r a t t r a c t i n g widespread suppor t i s t o co-opt p u b l i c op in ion i n sup-

p o r t of AT through some means of invading t h e consc iousness of t h a t

t e c h n i c a l l y i l l i t e r a t e pub l i c . The a b i l i t y t o do s o may redeem AT

from i ts legalistic/technologistic t endenc ie s and p rov ide i t w i t h a

p o l i t i c a l base : a meta- technica l ly l i te ra te movement of o r d i n a r y

people.

I n v a r i a b l y , a t t empt s t o e x p l a i n AT t o uninformed people encoun-

t e r two conceptua l b a r r i e r s . S ince t h e term ' a p p r o p r i a t e ' i s r e l a -

t i v e , t h e obvious f i r s t ques t ion i s , a p p r o p r i a t e t o what?

I n t h e e a r l y days of t h e movement, t h e answer was, s imply, t h e

environment. L a t e l y , i t has become appa ren t t o AT p r a c t i t i o n e r s

t h a t i t i s a t l e a s t as important f o r technology t o b e s o c i a l l y appro-

p r i a t e , w i t h a l l of t h e implied r a m i f i c a t i o n s , no t t h e least of which

i s t h e q u e s t i o n of s o c i e t a l f u t u r e s .

The p roces s of d e s c r i b i n g environmental and s o c i a l app ropr i a t e -

nes s r e v e a l s t h a t t h e s c a l e of technology i s c r i t i c a l . The second

ques t ion , t hen , is , how b i g , how much? Current answers t o t h a t

ques t ion are a t b e s t imprecise: " s m a l l is b e a u t i f u l " and " i n t e r -

mediate" be ing two fundamental i deas .

A l t e r n a t i v e TA:

S ince t h e r e i s no coherent p o l i t i c a l t heo ry , some pragmatic

means a r e needed t o r ende r t h e s e n s e o f limits more p r e c i s e . It

i s t h e t h e s i s of t h i s s tudy t h a t an i n t e r i m means of answering

t h e s e ques t ions i s t h e adopt ion of an A l t e r n a t i v e Technology

Assessment (ATA) s t r a t e g y designed t o probe t h e l i m i t s t o tech-

nology. In t i m e , a workable p o l i t i c a l t heo ry may s u r f a c e d i a l ec -

t i c a l l y .

Some p r i n c i p l e s of ATA can b e s e t f o r t h a t t h i s p o i n t . There

a r e two elements of a n ATA t h a t w i l l s i g n i f i c a n t l y a l t e r c o n v e n t i a l 8

TA: t h e removal of s p e c i a l i s t s from t h e c o r e func t ion of t h e pro-

c e s s and t h e framing of t h e assessments e n t i r e l y around t h e

th re sho ld ques t ion .

It was argued e a r l i e r t h a t t h e r a t i o n a l e f o r g iv ing s p e c i a l i s t s

t h e co re f u n c t i o n i n TA i s t h e adopt ion of t h e e t h o s of s c i e n t i s m by

e s s e n t i a l l y t h e whole of s o c i e t y . The e t h i c assumes t h a t t h e whole

i s made up of d i s c r e t e p a r t s , each of which can be made t h e s u b j e c t

of c l o s e and e x c l u s i v e s tudy . A s a consequence, pub l i c consciousness

about technology i s shaped i n t h a t mold and t h e people accord ingly

look t o s p e c i a l i s t s f o r answers. A s t h e t e c h n o l o g i c a l dilemma con-

t i n u e s t o s p i r a l eve r deeper i n t o t h e t echno log ica l f i x , t h e only

ev ident means of changing t h e p a t t e r n is t o alter pub l i c awareness

of t h e problematique.

The pragmatic s o l u t i o n i s t o con f ron t t h e i s s u e by i n s e r t i n g

n o n - s p e c i a l i s t s i n t o t h e TA c o r e func t ion .

Simply employing o r d i n a r y people as p a r t o f t h e TA team has no t

brought about t h a t change. I n t h e U.S. TA program, c i t i z e n p a r t i c i -

pa t ion i n o the rwi se convent iona l TAs h a s done l i t t l e more than

s t r eng then t h e p o l i t i c a l power of organized groups l i k e t h e Nat iona l

Council f o r t h e P u b l i c Assessment of Technology (100) wi thout en-

gaging a wider p a r t i c i p a t i o n .

It can b e argued t h a t most c i t i z e n p a r t i c i p a t i o n models a r e

based on t h e assumption t h a t t h e p o l i t i c a l p rocess i s made up of

competing p r e s s u r e groups, r e p r e s e n t a t i v e of a p l u r a l i s t i c s o c i e t y ,

i n which organized s p e c i a l i n t e r e s t groups only need h e l p t o counter

t h e weight o f e s t ab l i shmen t groups. Such models do n o t propose t o

a l t e r t h e s t r u c t u r e of s o c i e t y , o n l y t o a t tempt t o ba lance t h e

c o u n t e r v a i l i n g f o r c e s .

E s s e n t i a l l y , t h e model h a s t o change. I n i t s c u r r e n t p r a c t i c e ,

TA t a k e s t h e c o n f i g u r a t i o n of F igu re 3:2.

Problem d e f i n i t i o n by :

Data management:

Decis ion making by :

s t a t u t e s ,

Fig. 3:2 (101)

I f an ATA were des igned t o add res s t h e problem of l a c k of p u b l i c

consciousness about t h e meta-technology problematique, i t would

have t o a d d r e s s a t least Elements B and C of t h e schematic and

would l i k e l y l o o k something l i k e F igu re 3:3.

Problem d e f i n i t i o n by :

Decis ion making by :

S t a t u t o r y mandate from:

Fig. 3:

s t a t u t e s , programs, s a n c t i o n s , funding , e t c .

I n t h e ATA conf igu ra t ion of F i g u r e 3:3, t h e e f f e c t of changing t h e

r e l a t i o n s h i p between t h e " d i s a b l i n g p ro fe s s iona l " and c i t i z e n s would

be t o a s s i g n e x p e r t i s e an a d v i s o r y r o l e . Of cou r se , e x p e r t s a l r e a d y

c la im t o be doing only t h a t , b u t , a s I l l i c h p o i n t s o u t , i n t h e sc ien- ,

t i s t i c e t h o s t h e e x p e r t s ' o p i n i o n s a r e o f t e n equated w i t h f a c t . Per-

haps more c r i t i c a l l y , t h e e x p e r t s a r e made v i s i b l y subord ina t e t o t h e

c i t i z e n s , making t h e a c t u a l r o l e s conform t o t h e perce ived r o l e s .

Concretely, a d i r e c t consequence of t h e change would b e t h a t

t h e e x p e r t s could n o t hope t o i n f l u e n c e t h e outcome of t h e dec is ion-

making process u n l e s s t hey made s u r e t h a t t h e c i t i z e n s f u l l y under-

s tand what w a s be ing s a i d . They would need t o a c q u i r e t h e a b i l i t y

t o phrase t h e i r t e c h n i c a l exp res s ions i n o r d i n a r y language. Equal ly

important i s t h e need f o r t h e f i n d i n g s of t h e c i t i z e n s ' body t o re-

s u l t i n conc re t e a c t i o n . While a p u b l i c body's op in ions may have

some a b i l i t y t o i n f l u e n c e p u b l i c op in ion , u n l e s s s p e c i f i c mechanisms

e x i s t f o r d i r e c t a c t i o n , p r o f e s s i o n a l groups w i l l cont inue t o u s e

t h e i r p r o f e s s i o n a l p r e s t i g e t o i n f l u e n c e t h e outcomes.

( I t should be noted t h a t t h i s schema does not address t h e c r i t i -

c a l quest ion of how technologies come t o t h e ATA process. It is s i m -

ply beyond t h e scope of t h i s s tudy t o do so. Nevertheless, i t should

be pointed out t h a t , i f an ATA process were crea ted which was under

the abso lu te c o n t r o l of a c i t i z e n body, t h e r e i s some l ike l ihood t h a t

technological innovators would at tempt t o by-pass t h e process. A

study of how technologies e n t e r t h e TA domain might y i e l d some i n t e r -

e s t i n g i n s i g h t s i n t o p o l i t i c a l power management v i s a v i s technology.)

The foregoing o rgan iza t iona l amendments do not address t h e more

subs tan t ive p a r t of t h e ATA process. I n s h o r t , t h e 'how' does not

encompass t h e 'what. ' For t h a t i t i s necessary t o r e t u r n t o I l l i c h ' s

concept of t h e technologica l threshold .

I n keeping wi th t h e e thos of o b j e c t i v e sc ience , conventional

TAs a sk ques t ions about t h e possible outcomes of an emerging tech-

nology, not t h e i r desirable outcomes. It i s thought necessary t o

expel normative cons idera t ions from t h e f o r e c a s t s , a t l e a s t t o t h e

g r e a t e s t p o s s i b l e ex ten t . Researcher b i a s is deemed a p o l l u t a n t .

One r e s u l t i s t h a t l i t t l e a t t e n t i o n i s given t o 'ought t o '

quest ions u n t i l they emerge under t h e heading of ' s o c i e t a l expec-

t a t i o n s , ' where they a r e made t h e s u b j e c t of expert a t t e n t i o n by

s o c i a l s c i e n t i s t s -- r e t a i n i n g t h e l o g i c of o b j e c t i v e sc ience .

The d i f fe rence between 'can w e ' and 'should we' i s t h a t t h e former

is progress ive while t h e l a t t e r is conserving. (Conservative

would be t h e t e r m of choice i f i t were no t a s soc ia ted wi th a body

of p o l i t i c a l theory.)

Inherent i n t h e idea of th resho lds is t h e recogni t ion of t h e

i n e v i t a b i l i t y of l i m i t s . A conv iv ia l s o c i e t y must re-acquire a

sense of t h e f i n i t e n e s s of technologica l c a p a b i l i t y : l o g i c a l l y ,

i t must have a conserving va lue base.

Accordingly, t h e q u e s t i o n s t h a t need t o b e asked of any new

technology a r e going t o be de f ined by t h a t sense .

Before l ook ing a t a n ATA paradigm f o r d e a l i n g wi th th re sho lds ,

i t may be f r u i t f u l t o b r i e f l y re-state t h e r o o t p r i n c i p l e s of con-

v i v i a l technology. The a p p r o p r i a t e q u e s t i o n s are going t o be

formed by t h e v a l u e t r i a d : f r u g a l i t y , e q u i t y and autonomy.

Given what has j u s t been s a i d about t h e l o g i c of t h re sho lds ,

t h e importance of t h e v a l u e f r u g a l i t y is se l f - ev iden t . C lea r ly ,

i f t h e r e a r e f i n i t e l i m i t s t o technology, it makes sense t o hus-

band a v a i l a b l e r e s o u r c e s and c a p i t a l . I f s o , t h e r e is an inhe ren t

l o g i c t o such a va lue .

A r a t i o n a l e f o r a society-wide commitment t o e q u i t y i s l e s s

ev iden t . Aside from i t s u n i v e r s a l p re sence as a va lue i n l i b e r a l ,

s o c i a l i s t and a n a r c h i s t t r a d i t i o n s , a l o g i c a l b a s i s f o r seeking

e q u i t y might b e t h a t r e d u c t i o n of c o n f l i c t must s u r e l y a l s o reduce

p r o f l i g a c y i n a f i n i t e world.

F i n a l l y , t h e c a s e f o r autonomy needs t o be made. Unfortunately,

I l l i c h was c a r e l e s s i n h i s d e f i n i t i o n o f t h a t term. I n t h e l i b e r a l

t r a d i t i o n , autonomy is t h e a b i l i t y of t h e i n d i v i d u a l t o o rde r l i f e

and oppor tun i ty wi thout having t o depend on o t h e r i nd iv idua l s . Not

only is t h a t a t h e o r e t i c a l assumption, i t i s a l s o t h e very essence

of t h e c a p i t a l i s t e t h i c . What I l l i c h f a i l s t o do is t o e x p l i c i t l y

d e f i n e autonomy i n communitarian terms.

I n co-exis tence w i t h e q u i t y and f r u g a l i t y , autonomy can only

be de f ined as community autonomy. While t h a t s t i l l l e a v e s t h e

l a r g e ques t ion of what c o n s t i t u t e s a community, a t l e a s t i t d i s -

penses w i t h t h e l i b e r a l i d e a o f pe r sona l autonomy and makes a

g r e a t d e a l of s e n s e f o r i t s t e c h n o l o g i c a l imp l i ca t ions .

( I t a l s o d i spenses w i t h t h o s e AT proponents -- drawn from t h e

l ibera l -democra t ic t r a d i t i o n -- who d e f i n e t h e a l t e r n a t i v e s as house-

hold windmil ls , composting t o i l e t s and " f i v e Acres and ~ndependence.")

I n f a c t , autonomy i s b e s t r e p r e s e n t e d i n a n h i e r a r c h i c a l model

which demonstrates t h e e x t e n s i v e connectedness of t h e b iosphere and

i t s component p a r t s , w i t h t h e u n i t be ing t h e l o c a l community -- how-

ever t h a t is de f ined -- r a t h e r t h a n t h e i n d i v i d u a l . Ecology a l r e a d y

provides a powerful a n a l y t i c a l t o o l based on t h a t model. There is

no such t h i n g as an ecosystem of t h e h d i v i d u a l .

Even a pre l iminary working up of t h e s e t h r e e r o o t va lues r e v e a l s

some i n t e r e s t i n g i n t e r - r e l a t i o n s h i p s t h a t w i l l emerge l a t e r on. For

t h e moment, i t i s enough t o n o t e t h a t f r u g a l i t y i s o f t e n b e s t se rved

by su r r ende r ing autonomy, e q u i t y a l s o may b e s t b e achieved a t c o s t

of autonomy, wh i l e e q u i t y and f r u g a l i t y a r e n o t n e c e s s a r i l y achieved

by t h e same mechanism. For a technology t o p a s s t h e t e s t of appro-

p r i a t e n e s s , i t must bea r a l l t h r e e q u a l i t i e s .

ATA Framewo r k :

It i s now t ime ly t o d r a f t a t e n t a t i v e framework f o r t h e sub-

s t a n c e of an ATA enquiry.

S ince t h e key t o ATA is t h e n o t i o n of t h r e s h o l d s , a l l ques t ions

asked of a s u b j e c t technology should b e designed t o a s s e s s t h e tech-

nology i n r e l a t i o n t o t h a t turnaround p o i n t . Obviously, t h e f i r s t

t a s k i s t o f i n d t h a t p o i n t , a t least p r o v i s i o n a l l y .

A s Chapter I1 h a s sugges ted , t h e means f o r do ing t h a t i s t o

organize technology i n t o a s e t of i n c l u s i v e f a m i l i e s of technolo-

g i e s , a l b e i t somewhat a r b i t r a r i l y . The purpose i n doing so i s t o

begin t o e s t a b l i s h th re sho lds a g a i n s t which a n i n d i v i d u a l s u b j e c t

technology may b e a s ses sed .

I The a l t e r n a t i v e would be t o d e r i v e an unacceptably long and

mul t i - level led l ist of appara tus-speci f ic thresholds wh,ich would

de fea t t h e o b j e c t i v e of r a i s i n g pub l i c consciousness about meta-

technology. The d i v i s i o n s wi th in t h e set need t o be a s d i s t i n c -

t i v e a s p o s s i b l e without r e s o r t i n g t o p o i n t l e s s reductionism.

Moreover, they should make sense t o ordinary people r a t h e r than

t o some s c i e n t i s t i c log ic .

A prov i s iona l l i s t of f a m i l i e s of technology i s provided

i n Table 3:2 .

TECHNOLOGY FAMILIES:

food /agr icu l tu re she1 t e r energy resource e x t r a c t i o n t r a n s p o r t a t i o n human se t t l ements manufacturing

education h e a l t h recreationlentertainment communications/information s e c u r i t y p o l i t i c a l organiza t ion j u s t i c e

Table 3:2

A pub l i c dialogue might o rde r t h e s e d i f f e r e n t l y , o r add o r

d e l e t e f ami l i e s . For example, i t might be argued t h a t energy

i s a component of a l l of t h e o t h e r f a m i l i e s and the re fo re be-

comes a sub-element. Nevertheless, t h e l ist is adequate f o r

t h e moment.

On examination of t h e l i s t it is immediately apparent t h a t

t h e r e i s some unavoidable overlapping a s w e l l a s a complex i n t e r -

r e l a t i o n s h i p between t h e technology f a m i l i e s which promises some

very dynamic s h i f t s around and ac ross s e v e r a l f ami l i e s a s changes

occur i n o the r s . This chain reac t ion- l ike e f f e c t , w e l l known t o

development consu l t an t s a s " c i r c u l a r causat ion ," (102) demands

an on-going a n a l y s i s a s technologica l changes occur wi th in indi -

v idua l f ami l i e s .

Thus, f o r example, a t r a n s p o r t a t i o n threshold of 15 miles per

hour must set l i m i t s on human se t t l ement p a t t e r n s , s h e l t e r design,

manufacturing, r e c r e a t i o n and p o l i t i c a l organizat ion. When c i rcu-

- l a r c a u s a l i t y i s a t work, such l i m i t s must r e f l e c t back on trans-

p o r t a t i o n , perhaps i n a l t e r a t i o n s of v e h i c l e manufacturing modes

o r i n some o t h e r way.

C lea r ly , it i s asking too much of an ind iv idua l assessment

t o address a l l such i n t e r - r e l a t i o n s h i p s d i r e c t l y . However,

assessments based on threshold a n a l y s i s should b r i n g them t o t h e

a t t e n t i o n of t h e l a r g e r p o l i t i c a l process i f f o r no other reason,

because of r i s i n g technological l i t e r a c y among t h e general popu-

l a t i o n , some of whom w i l l be required t o c a r r y ou t t h e assess-

ments.

What an ind iv idua l ATA can be expected t o do is t o test t h e

subject technology wi th in i t s appropr ia te family. The f i r s t

quest ion t o be asked i s what e f f e c t w i l l t h e sub jec t apparatus

o r technique have on t h e known threshold? I f t h e answer is t h a t

i t w i l l not push t h e family beyond t h e threshold , t h e subject

technology can then be submitted t o a number of subordinate

ques t ions which w i l l be discussed shor t ly .

The assumption he re , of course , is t h a t t h e family threshold

is known, which on t h e evidence would appear not y e t t o be so i n

most cases. Nevertheless, t h e threshold-oriented a n a l y s i s of a

number of r e l a t e d technologies should i n time a t l e a s t suggest

t h e approximate locus of t h e threshold .

A s has been pointed o u t e a r l i e r , t h e r e a r e technologies

f o r which a concre te , q u a n t i f i a b l e threshold may not be e a s i l y

o r ever made d i s c e r n i b l e . I n such cases , c l e a r evidence t h a t

t h e threshold has been exceeded w i l l t a k e t h e form of emerging r a d i c a l

monopoly. Unhappily, r a d i c a l monopoly is l i k e l y t o be v i s i b l e some

considerable way beyond t h e threshold . Rather than r e l y on such re-

mote secondary evidence, i t may be necessary t o search ou t o t h e r ,

e a r l i e r s i g n s of dysfunction. For t h a t evidence, t h e test c r i t e r i a

adopted by AT p r a c t i t i o n e r s a r e useful .

ATA Tests:

The f i r s t test , and one a l ready familar t o t h e TA process, is

the t e s t f o r environmental impact. The commitment t o f r u g a l i t y and

equity demands t h a t t h e technology should do no c r i t i c a l damage t o

t h e n a t u r a l environment. This aspect needs no f u r t h e r d iscuss ion

here.

The second t e s t , de r iv ing from t h e search f o r community auto-

nomy, is t o ask where pol i t ica l /economic c o n t r o l of t h e technology

w i l l be exercised. The simple answer i s t h a t i d e a l l y i t w i l l re-

s i d e wi th in t h e community t h a t w i l l employ t h e technology. In

p r a c t i c a l terms, t h e i d e a l is seldom r e a l i z a b l e because of t h e

inter-connectedness of a l l systems wi th in t h e biosphere. I n f a c t ,

dis-connectedness probably i s not even d e s i r a b l e , l e t a lone poss ib le .

Furthermore, t h e d e f i n i t i o n of a user community may be in te r -

communitarian i n nature . Distance t r anspor ta t ion , communications

and s e c u r i t y technologies a r e a l l examples of t h i s kind of commu-

n i t y of communities i n t e r e s t .

That i s not t o argue t h a t c e r t a i n technologies can only be

control led i n n a t i o n a l o r t rans-nat ional forums. Every community

must have t h e r i g h t t o withdraw from whatever technologies i t

f inds oppressive. J u s t a s t h e S t a t e of Oregon l e d i n banning

freon ae roso l conta iners be fore t h e na t ion responded t o t h e t h r e a t ,

any l o c a l community may t a k e a c t i o n u n i l a t e r a l l y , o f t en f o r no

other purpose than t o pursuade o t h e r s t o follow.

Of course, c o n t r o l of appara tus can b e s t be assured i f it is

l o c a l l y manufactured from l o c a l m a t e r i a l s by l o c a l people, under

l o c a l con t ro l . An assessment judgment could meet t h a t o b j e c t i v e

by bu i ld ing i n t o i t s approval of t h e technology condi t ions f o r

such d e c e n t r a l i z a t i o n of c o n t r o l , process ing and d i s t r i b u t i o n ,

much a s is now done by ' c a r t e l bus t ing ' l e g i s l a t i o n .

A t h i r d test , o f t e n overlooked even by AT proponents, is t h e

t e s t f o r v u l n e r a b i l i t y . The idea of d i v e r s i t y addresses t h i s con-

cern. The fewer sources of supply of goods and s e r v i c e s , t h e

g rea te r t h e r i s k i n t h e event of d i s r u p t i o n . I f , i n add i t ion , t h e

source l ies o u t s i d e of t h e community-locale-region, t h e r i s k of

d i s rup t ion is compounded by p o l i t i c a l r i s k .

I n d u s t r i a l technology profoundly e x h i b i t s t h i s c h a r a c t e r i s t i c .

S tudies of i n d u s t r i a l technology r i s k (103) acknowledge i t s i m -

portance bu t r e s o r t t o supposedly f a i l s a f e , add on technologies i n

an e f f o r t t o reduce t h e r i s k . The m u l t i p l e s t ack ing of s a f e t y de-

v ices i n nuc lea r power p l a n t s a f f o r d s a dramatic example of t h a t

s t r a t e g y .

An ATA would examine ways of d e c e n t r a l i z i n g and d i spe r s ing t h e

e r r o r o r c o n f l i c t elements t o minimize t h e consequences of f a i l u r e ,

r a t h e r than t r y t o e l imina te i t . For example, an ATA approach t o

energy supply would be t o develop s e v e r a l sources , preferably a l l

wi th in t h e phys ica l and p o l i t i c a l c o n t r o l of t h e community of users .

No p resen t day i n d u s t r i a l energy u t i l i t y meets those condit ions.

The v u l n e r a b i l i t y of B.C. Hydro t o n a t u r a l d i s a s t e r o r p o l i t i c a l / e c o -

nomic d i s r u p t i o n i s i n d i r e c t propor t ion t o t h e l eng th of i t s ground

l i n k t o t h e Peace River genera t ing s i t e o r i t s r e l i a n c e on fore ign

bond markets f o r funding.

Final ly , t h e r e i s t h e test of t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p between human and

mechanical power t h a t might be termed t h e labourlenergy r a t i o . Other

than t h e energy l i m i t s suggested i n Chapter 11, t h e r e is no r e a d i l y

apparent absolute number t h a t can be der ived f o r t h i s r e l a t i o n s h i p .

Nevertheless, an imbalance towards t h e mechanical energy s i d e of t h e

f r a c t i o n can be empir ica l ly shown t o r e s u l t i n reduced autonomy and

increased v u l n e r a b i l i t y . The l a r g e r t h e denominator, t h e less

e f f e c t t h e numerator can have.

AT p r a c t i t i o n e r s d i scuss t h e r a t i o i n terms of autonomy and

equity. Those who have access t o l a r g e u n i t s of mechanical energy

a r e more vulnerable and a l s o make i n e q u i t a b l e demands on a f i n i t e

resource.

A n even more concre te a n a l y s i s , a p p r o p r i a t e t o ATA, would be

t o examine t h e r a t i o i n terms of i ts e f f e c t on t h e work force . I n

t h e presence of a f i n i t e resource (energy) and a t h e o r e t i c a l work

load, scarce mechanical energy resources should be devoted mainly

t o those t a sks most harmful t o humans o r l e a s t responsive t o human

s k i l l and ingenuity. An example of t h e former might be a sbes tos

mining, while t h e l a t t e r might be micro-technology such a s t h a t

employed i n making p r in ted c i r c u i t s .

Perhaps t h e most d i f f i c u l t assessment t a s k of a l l w i l l be t o

avoid t h e temptation t o make t r ade -o f f s between f r u g a l i t y , equi ty

and autonomy. There is no reason t o a s s i g n h igher o r lower values

t o one element i n r e l a t i o n t o t h e o the r s .

An argument can e a s i l y b e made f o r surrender ing l o c a l auto-

nomy i n favour of equ i ty i n t h e case , f o r ins t ance , of c e n t r a l i z e d

mass production of a t o o l meant f o r popular use. I f such a t rade-

o f f i s t h e only way i n which t h e t o o l can b e made use fu l -- an

obvious example being p r i v a t e t e l e v i s i o n -- then t h e t o o l is not

convivia l and should not b e developed i n a conv iv ia l soc ie ty .

Finally, wherever a specific threshold can be located, it must

not be allowed to become fixed in society's expectations. The need

is to make maximum use of technology to liberate people short of it

becoming dysfunctional. It is quite conceivable that changes in re-

lated technologies may have the effect of allowing for a rise in

threshold level. The point of an effective ATA process is not to

limit surface transport forever to 15 miles per hour, but to avoid

having a technology that oppresses people.

With the foregoing preliminary model in mind, it will be in-

structive now to test it against a real-life emerging technology

to see if it can stand the test of conviviality.

CHAPTER I V

At the outset, the development of all technozogies reflects the'highest attributes of hwnan intelli- gence, inventiveness and concern. But beyond a certain point, the point at which the efficacy of the technology becomes evident, these qualities begin to have Zess and less influence upon the final outcome; inte Zligence, inventiveness and concern effectively cease to have any real impact on the ways in which technology shapes the world.

Langdon Winner, Autonomous Techno log2

A Case Studv: Videotex

In s e l ec t i ng a technology t o t e s t t h e ATA model against , the re

i s a na tu r a l temptation t o choose one from among a number of indus-

t r i a l technologies t h a t can c l e a r l y be shown t o be anti-convivial ;

i n e f f e c t , t o bui ld a straw man. A more c r i t i c a l t e s t demands t he

se lec t ion of one of t h e l i g h t e r pos t - indus t r i a l technologies. The

case se lected here is t h a t of videotex.

Videotex technology a l s o a f fo rds a c r i t i c a l t e s t case i n t ha t

i t is a technology t h a t c l e a r l y belongs i n Winner's "organization"

category, and thus presents a degree of complexity t ha t i s repre-

sen ta t ive of emerging pos t - indus t r i a l technology.

A s Winner descr ibes i t ,

A technical organization is an assemblage of hwnan beings and apparatus in structured reZationships designed to produce certain specified results. (104)

A descr ipt ion of a concrete videotex system w i l l quickly

demonstrate t h e f i t .

Telidon is t h e form of v ideotex most a c t i v e l y being promoted i n

Canada a t t h i s time. While t h e f i n a l conf igura t ion of t h e system has

y e t t o be adopted, h i s t o r i c a l developments and competition between

. t h e communications indust ry g i a n t s i n d i c a t e s t h e l i k e l y outcome w i l l

be a shotgun wedding between c a b l e and t e l c o opera to r s , o f f i c i a t e d

by government regula tory bodies. Godfrey e t a2 r ep resen t t h e l i k e l y

outcome i n Figure 4 : l below.

HYBRID CABLE/TELEPHONE DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM

INFO ItY SUPPLIERS

CABLE 1 I J

" OTHER HOMES

TELEPHONE COMPANY EXCHANGE

Fig. 4: 1 (105)

I I 1 SWlTCH

LOCAL STORAGE CODlNG

DECOMNG FORMAlTlNG

It is r e a d i l y apparent t h a t Telidon technology i s made up of a

number of p ieces of appara tus , a l l but one -- t h e i n t e r f a c e box -- al ready being i n widespread use: e x i s t i n g e l e c t r o n i c hardware, a num-

ber of i n s t i t u t i o n a l bodies and a sof tware protocpl . E s s e n t i a l l y ,

t h e only p iece of pa ten tab le appara tus dedicated t o t h e system i s t h e

small p iece of hardware t h a t i n t e r f a c e s t h e system.

What makes t h e whole system a technology is t h e over-a l l sys-

temic a r c h i t e c t u r e t h a t i s c rea ted t o achieve a s p e c i f i c ob jec t ive .

The des i red core funct ions a r e t o s t o r e and r e t r i e v e information.

(Information h e r e i s used i n i t s broades t meaning, inc luding t h e

spectrum from high u t i l i t y hard d a t a t o entertainment.) Obviously,

t h e technology is no t designed t o provide any new funct ions , a l -

though i ts most utopian advocates i n s i s t i t w i l l l ead t o a s y e t

unknown oppor tun i t i e s .

Information exchange is an on-going funct ion which belongs

t o t h e communications family of technologies , Therefore it should

t h e o r e t i c a l l y be poss ib le -- and probably d i f f i c u l t -- t o l o c a t e

i t s threshold and t h e r e f o r e t o a s s e s s t h e impact of Telidon on

t h a t threshold .

Before doing so , a p a r e n t h e t i c a l point should be made. The

probable systemic a r c h i t e c t u r e descr ibed i n Figure 4 : l i s not t h e

only poss ib le outcome. Indeed, t o t h e ex ten t t h a t d i v e r s i t y may

be t o l e r a t e d o r even encouraged, a number of d i f f e r e n t configura-

t i o n s could e x i s t s i d e by s ide . (Because of t h e protocol , however,

they may not e a s i l y b e inter-connected.)

What makes t h e conf igura t ion of Figure 4 : l l i k e l y is t h a t i t

a f f o r d s wi th in t h e foreseeable f u t u r e t h e maximum p o s s i b l e u t i l i z a -

t i o n of t h e technology. It w i l l b e shown l a t e r t h a t promotion of

t h e Telidon system i s based on t h i s maximization p r i n c i p l e .

A number of c r i t i c s have r e j e c t e d t h a t o b j e c t i v e i n favour of

a decent ra l ized model t h a t appears t o a f f o r d a g r e a t e r degree of

conv iv ia l i ty . They recognize t h a t a l l of t h e b a s i c funct ions of

Telidon can be achieved by a less s o p h i s t i c a t e d and less inherent ly

c e n t r a l i s t technology. Both t h e d i g i t a l d a t a funct ion and a slow-

scan v i s u a l funct ion can be provided on a voice q u a l i t y narrow band

f a c i l i t y . Furthermore, switching can be achieved through a system

of ad hoe temporary inter-connections, as and when they a r e needed.

It i s t h e o r e t i c a l l y poss ib le t o design such a system t o make

i t l o c a l i z e d i n character . Some form of community c o n t r o l could

be mandated by s t a t u t e . S imi la r ly , t h e d a t a bases could be mainly

indigenous and equal access may b e assured by s t a t u t e . Communities

of use r s could a s s o c i a t e on a voluntary b a s i s , ensuring user auto-

nomy and reducing v u l n e r a b i l i t y .

What i t may not be a b l e t o d e l i v e r i s equ i ty , because such

mini-systems w i l l not achieve economies of s c a l e inherent i n mass

media.

Advocates of t h e d i f f u s e model of v ideotex s e e m t o be say-

ing t h a t i ts adoption w i l l i n some way pre-empt t h e f i e l d , thus

preventing t h e rise of a l e s s conv iv ia l c e n t r a l i s t model.

Assuming f o r t h e moment they a r e c o r r e c t i n t h a t ana lys i s

( t h e h i s t o r y of telephone technology would seem t o quest ion t h e

a n a l y s i s ) , they seem t o be fac ing heavy odds. Since t h e telephone

and cab le i n d u s t r i e s have a l ready taken on a c e n t r a l i s t , non-con-

v i v i a l form, and s i n c e they have t h e economic and i n f r a - s t r u c t u r a l

resources t o move independently and qu ick ly -- a s they a r e already

doing -- i t s e e m s i n e v i t a b l e t h a t v ideotex w i l l shape i ts form t o

t h e e x i s t i n g o rgan iza t iona l ske le tons of t h e parent indus t r i e s .

The European experience would seem t o bea r t h a t out . (106)

The h i s t o r y of communications technology everywhere suggests

t h e c e n t r a l i s t tendencies a r e excep t iona l ly s t rong , perhaps even

i r r e s i s t a b l e .

A more c r i t i c a l judgment of t h e d i f f u s e model -- caeteris paribus

-- would be t o challenge it on grounds of l a c k of equi ty . While some

token moves towards t h e d i f f u s e model are s t i l l p o s s i b l e (even l i k e l y ,

s ince t h e c e n t r a l i s t model can e a s i l y accommodate ion-competitive

innovations) , over t i m e t h e c e n t r a l i s t model w i l l develop a r a d i c a l

monopoly through t h e rise of t h e so-cal led e l e c t r o n i c highway and

development of a t t r a c t i v e amenit ies through economies of s c a l e ( f o r

example, colour video d i sp lay u n i t s ) . I n t h e s e circumstances t h e

d i f f u s e model w i l l be reduced t o t h e s t a t u s of a middle income hobby

a c t i v i t y , t h e e l e c t r o n i c equivalent t o t h e ten-speed b i c y c l e i n an

automobile dominated t r anspor ta t ion system.

The conclusion t o be drawn from t h e foregoing d ive rs ion from

t h e main argument i s t h a t t h e videotex technology w i l l t a k e some

v a r i a t i o n of t h e Telidon configurat ion. Accordingly, t h a t i s t h e

technology t h a t warrants assessment. Before t e s t i n g it aga ins t

t h e ATA model, t h e a c t u a l assessment h i s t o r y of Telidon w i l l be

reviewed.

The o r i g i n of Telidon l i e s wi th in t h e bureaucracy of t h e

f e d e r a l Department of Communications. The r i s i n g currency of

t h e o r e t i c a l dialogue about videotex, followed by e a r l y experi-

ments i n Europe, l e d people i n t h e department t o b e l i e v e t h a t

a s t rong i n t e r n a t i o n a l market could be captured i f an e f f e c t i v e

technology could be assembled a t Canadian government and cor-

pora te i n i t i a t i v e s .

There were a number of precursors t o (Telidon), most notably i n Great Britain. However, the Telidon system was the f i r s t one t o incorporate advanced computer graphics techniques into either a videotex or a tele- t ex t system. I t i s widely believed that it will provide the general model on which future videokex and te le text systems w i l l develop, a situation which puts Canada, a t least temporarily, i n a position of tech- nicaZ Zeadership. (107)

The same argument was advanced 30 years ago t o j u s t i f y t h e

development of CANDU.

Telidon was developed by t h e Communications Research Centre of

t h e Department of Communications over t h e period 1969 t o 1978.

Patents f o r t h e i n t e r f a c e hardware were secured and manufacturing

. l i censes issued by 1976. (108)

By 1978, Telidon was formally launched and s e v e r a l government

programs w e r e i n i t i a t e d t o s t imula te p r i v a t e indus t ry t o respond t o

t h e oppor tuni t ies represented i n t h e new technology. The l a r g e r

corporate conglomerates moved quickly t o t a k e c o n t r o l of t h e tech-

nology; i n B.C., t h e telephone company has se ized c o n t r o l through

severa l of i t s subordinate f irms: B.C. Tel, AEL Microtel , Microtel

P a c i f i c Research, Viscount I n d u s t r i e s , Dominion Directory. A t a

cos t of $10 t o $50 a page, a f u l l da ta base could cos t a s much a s

$1 mi l l ion , e f f e c t i v e l y r e l e g a t i n g t o a subordinate p o s i t i o n t h e

small s c a l e information providers l i k e t h e Greater Vancouver In-

formation Refe r ra l Service.

For t h e purposes of t h i s s tudy it w i l l be necessary t o deter -

mine how and t o what ex ten t videotex-Telidon has been assessed.

According t o t h e Min i s t ry ' s Direc tor of Applicat ions Develop-

ment,

... assessment of the technoZogy is a continuous process in aZZ DOC programs which have a significant R&D content. (109)

While he has not d e t a i l e d t h e methodologies employed, t h e

response i s c o n s i s t e n t wi th t h e o r i e n t a t i o n of f e d e r a l government

assessment pol icy a s s t a t e d by t h e General Direc tor , Technology

Assessment Division of Science and Technology Canada, who s t a t e d

a t a recent conference,

... it is more important to have an effective Techno- Zogy Assessment capabiZity within the executive branch than it is to have an independent office of TechnoZogy Assessment. (1 10)

Thus, t h e DOC'S preference f o r conducting in-house and the re fo re

e f f e c t i v e l y in-camera assessments has t h e b l e s s i n g of o f f i c i a l policy.

More s i g n i f i c a n t l y , none of t h e quasi-governmental o r p r i v a t e

bodies t h a t normally ca r ry o u t independent assessments has y e t under-

taken an assessment of Telidon, al though elements of t h e technology

have been assessed i n t h e i r independent conf igura t ions ( f o r example: . microcomputers, micro-electronics, EFT, information revolut ion , d a t a

processing, information soc ie ty , e t c . ) .

There is , however, one p o t e n t i a l assessment body opera t ing

under t h e i n s t r u c t i o n s of t h e DOC -- t h e Canadian Videotex Consul-

t a t i v e Committee (CVCC). Made up of indus t ry , government and publ ic

agencies, t h e CVCC has a primary r e s p o n s i b i l i t y t o adv i se t h e Minis ter

on program developments, a s t h e t i t l e sugges ts .

But one of s e v e r a l sub-committees of t h e parent CVCC appears

i n name a t l e a s t t o have been given some kind of mandate t o ca r ry

out pub l i c assessment of v ideotex genera l ly , i f no t Telidon speci-

f i c a l l y : t h e "Social Impacts" sub-committee (formerly named the

"Effect of Videotex on Ind iv idua l s and Society"). Their terms of

reference q u i t e c l e a r l y give them t h e a u t h o r i t y t o c a r r y out a

public enquiry which could c o n s t i t u t e a full-blown assessment, i f

they should choose t o take t h a t course. The terms a r e s u i t a b l y

inc lus ive and a r e worth s e t t i n g out i n f u l l .

I n view o f the fact that the use of Videotex systems may i n time become as commonplace as telephone usage, the S u b c o d t t e e on the Effects of Videotex on Individuals and Society (our former m e ) seeks t o anticipate the impact o f t h i s developing technology on Canadians. Speci f ical ly , our concerns are broadly based t o include social, cul tural , pol i t ical , economic and other factors.

The Subcommittee w i l l seek t o iden t i f y as they emerge philosophical and moral issues fundamental t o the development of t h i s technology and encourage an integrative approach t o the solution of problems which m e ident i - fied, for the benef i t of a l l Canadians.

In particukr, the Subconanittee anticipates that among others the following issues w i l l require i t s considera- t ion:

The need t o facilitate and be responsive t o public coment on developing issues i n order t o ensure that the introduction o f videotex proceeds i n a manner which i s both acceptable and desirable t o the public.

The development of videotex systems which have the capacity t o be truly interactive and can provide an opportunity for participation by Canadians i n a l l walks of l i f e . To do otherwise could increase the widespread alienation already experienced by members of our society.

The technology must be developed so that the interests , needs and sk i l l s of differing age groups are satisf ied. In addition, the needs of other specif ic user groups (such as the handicapped) must be recognized.

The development o f techniques which w i l l e f fec t ive ly safeguard the privacy of individuals. Privacy must be considered paramount even when weighed against considerations of economic efficiency . The impact on quality and quantity of employment. The introduction of videotex systems w i l l a f f ec t work i n a variety of ways. Attention must be given t o dis- p Zacement of workers, retraining, education and per- hups even to a reappraisal of the nature of work i t s e l f .

The issue of equity. Lack of access t o videotex systems could create a new form of poverty.

The provision of adequate safeguards t o o f f s e t the potentially centralizing tendencies o f t h i s new technology. Techniques should be devebped t o faci l i tate the use of the system by individuals as information providers.

The need for suff icient untied funds from comercia2 information providers, as well as government, t o support data bases of specific comunity in teres t .

The adequacy of data bases so that overall homogenization of society i s not exacerbated. Systems that are developed must be responsive t o geographical needs and sensitive t o the social and cultural diversity of Canada.

(111)

I n p a r t i c u l a r , I t e m s 6 , 7 and 9 bear p r e c i s e l y on t h e concerns

of t h i s t h e s i s i n t h a t they address e x p l i c i t l y o r i m p l i c i t e l y key

quest ions of equi ty and autonomy. The ques t ion of f r u g a l i t y i s not

ra ised .

(In view of t h e f a c t t h a t t h e sub-committee's budget f o r t h e f i s c a l

years 81/82 and 82/83 was $34,000 each, i t i s un l ike ly they can hope

t o program f o r any of t h e above goa l s , but they w i Z Z n e c e s s a r i l y

. l ea rn t o p r a c t i c e f r u g a l i t y . )

Within t h e language of the sub-committee's r e p o r t t h e r e a r e two

assumptions t h a t need exp l i ca t ion .

The f i r s t of t h e s e r e l a t e s d i r e c t l y t o t h e e a r l i e r d iscuss ion

about t h e r o l e of technology i n shaping soc ie ty . The Soc ia l Impacts

sub-committee is not of t h e dystopian school , but does recognize

t h a t technology has some impact on soc ie ty . Moreover, t h e s t y l e of

the language of t h e r e p o r t very c l e a r l y r e v e a l s an acceptance of t h e

i n e v i t a b i l i t y of t h e emerging information technologies and the re fo re

seeks only t o mi t iga te t h e i r impending e f f e c t s . I n s h o r t , t h e sub-

committee undertakes i ts assessment wi th t h e assumption t h a t t h e

public choices about v ideotex do no t inc lude t h e op t ion of o u t r i g h t

r e j e c t i o n of t h e technology.

The second assumption is t h a t t h e v ideotex system can be f ine-

tuned a s i t develops t o make it responsive t o emerging s o c i a l goals;

t h a t i s an incrementa l i s t view of technology change. A s t h e Soc ia l

Impacts sub-committee proceeds wi th i t s t a s k s , f i v e o t h e r sub-

committees and t h e parent CVCC a r e a c t i v e l y promoting t h e technology

i n the name of economic opportunity. To put t h a t procedure i n per-

spec t ive , i t i s a s i f t h e Berger enquiry had been undertaken simul-

taneously with p i p e l i n e cons t ruct ion .

Nevertheless, t h e sub-committee i s aware t h a t t h e technology

is taking a form t h a t is p o t e n t i a l l y d i s r u p t i v e t o soc ie ty . They

argue t h a t Telidon can on ly achieve i t s p o t e n t i a l by becoming

f u l l y i n t e r a c t i v e .

The means they recommend to achieve that are:

- input of information by users; - terminal-to-terminal communication between users; - transactional services; - down-loading of computer programs; - interconnection with related services; - management of closed user groups. (112)

As with all advocates of the diffuse model, the sub-committee

has encountered here the inherent problem of how to reconcile the

expensive 'ideal' system with full and equitable access.

The problem arises because the technology possesses "poten-

tially centralizing tendencies" which, according to the sub-com-

mittee, can be overcome by deliberate interventions such as legis-

lation, public enquiries and governmental support of public advocacy

groups. Meanwhile, as the social issues gradually emerge, suggest-

ing appropriate interventions from time to time, the technology is

being rapidly developed and is taking an admittedly centralist con-

figuration.

In light of the foregoing, it is apparent that no known

satisfactory assessment of Telidon or videotex has yet been carried

out, even by conventional TA standards. There is, however, obviously

an assumption by DOC and industry officials that the technology should

proceed to full development or, at least, is unavoidable -- confirming Winner's concept of autonomous technology. The aggressive marketing

stance of the partners would seem to suggest a self-fulfilling pro-

phecy.

At this point it will be instructive to this thesis to frame

an outline of an assessment strategy for videotex/~elidon employ-

ing the ATA paradigm.

The f i r s t t a s k i s t o a t t empt t o f i n d t h e t h r e s h o l d f o r communi-

ca t ion / in fo rma t ion t echno log ie s . Here i s a c a s e where th re sho ld i s

a t l e a s t e l u s i v e , i f n o t downright imposs ib le t o f i n d .

Rather t han pursue t h e problem from t h a t end, it might b e more

product ive t o approach i t from t h e o t h e r end: What would c o n s t i t u t e

a r a d i c a l monopoly of in format ion technology? To answer t h a t , t h e

concept of i n fo rma t ion ecology may o f f e r i n s i g h t .

Informat ion ecology sugges t s t h a t in format ion i s made up of a

hos t of i n t e r - r e l a t e d types and sou rces of in format ion , much of it

c o n t r a d i c t o r y and elements of which hold d i f f e r e n t s i g n i f i c a n c e

f o r d i f f e r e n t p e r c e i v e r s . One might even extend t h e ecology meta-

phor by p o i n t i n g o u t t h a t in format ion i s made up of a h i e r a r c h y i n

which some k inds of in format ion "feed o f f " o r are made up of

sma l l e r b i t s . Others main ta in symbiot ic - l ike r e l a t i o n s h i p s , w h i l e

t h e whole system is a t r i s k when i t l o s e s v a r i e t y .

By way of example, it i s r e a d i l y apparent t h a t t h e informa-

t i o n eco-system i s made up of common languages, s k i l l s , t a c i t and

c o g n i t i v e knowledge, memory, exper ience , complex sensory mechanisms

and expec ta t ions .

The more t h e s e elements are shared , t h e l e s s need t h e r e i s

t o communicate them e x p l i c i t l y and t h e more informat ion t h e com-

munity can convey i c o n i c a l l y , a s it were. Conversely, t h e l e s s

they a r e shared , t h e more need t h e r e is t o convey t h e a f f e c t i v e

domain by t r a n s l a t i n g i t i n t o t h e cogn i t i ve . These two c o n d i t i o n s

r ep re sen t t h e c o n d i t i o n s found i n t r a d i t i o n a l and modern s o c i e t i e s

r e s p e c t i v e l y .

Klapp desc r ibes t h e s h i f t from t r a d i t i o n a l t o modern communicator

t h i s way:

There are four main dimensions of change:

1) i n channel, from personal (face t o face give and take) to broadcast (mediated, one-way) transmissions;

2) audience, from primary group t o heterogeneous mass of strangers;

3) comnica t ion content, from prescriptive (rules, norms) t o descriptive (news, facts); and

4 ) source, from hierarchical (status i n one ' s am system) t o professional ( s k i l l and job as comnica tor ) . (113)

A t some r i s k of employing a c i r c u l a r argument, it can be s a i d

t h a t , a s information technology is manufactured t o f i t i n t o t h i s

framework, it w i l l have t h e e f f e c t of s h i f t i n g s o c i e t y away from

t r a d i t i o n towards modernism. A s t h e s h i f t occurs, less and less

of the o r i g i n a l experiences a r e conveyed by t h e technology.

Memory, t a c i t knowledge, s k i l l s and f e e l i n g s a r e conveyed i n a

r epresen ta t iona l r a t h e r than l i t e r a l form. Writing, telephony

and t e l e v i s i o n have a l l demonstrated t h e a l t e r a t i o n of experience

through technological mediation.

A s t h e process of technologizing information advances, l e s s

a f f e c t i v e information is conveyed i n i t s t r u e form and t h e less

value such information i s given by members of socie ty . All t h a t

is needed t o c r e a t e a r a d i c a l monopoly i s t o s t reamline t h e tech-

nology s o t h a t i t can c a r r y most, o r poss ib ly even a l l , of t h e

res idua l information requirements on one medium.

Videotex promises t o be a b l e t o do t h a t within a very shor t

time frame. A s Gordon Thompson promised, t h e "new medium" t h a t

w i l l emerge from t h e d i r e c t i o n suggested by videotex w i l l provide,

- an easing of the access t o stored hwnan experience for the society a t Zarge:

- an increase i n the size of the connnon information space shared by cor/amuzicants (c i t i zens) . (114)

When Thompson speaks of "access t o s t o r e d human experience," he

c l e a r l y means t h a t which can be s t o r e d i n computers, on video o r audio

t ape and o the r e l e c t r o n i c s to rage media -- a l l of which a r e o r can be

in teg ra ted i n t o t h e v ideotex system.

That por t ion of human communications t h a t is non-verbal o r

t a c i t cannot be s o s to red ; it i s s t o r e d only i n c o l l e c t i v e human

experience and can only be conveyed f a c e t o face . Thus, any

" increase i n t h e s i z e of common information space" must be l imi ted

t o t h e cogn i t ive domain: metaphorical ly, a two dimension represen-

t a t i o n of t h r e e dimensions.

One r e s u l t of technologizing informat ion i n t h e e l e c t r o n i c age

. i s t h a t knowledge becomes segmented, a s r ep resen ted by t h e Telidon

page system. More than t h a t , information i s l i f t e d out of i t s en-

vironmental and s i t u a t i o n a l context . It becomes o b j e c t i f i e d . It

i s i n t h a t segmented and r e p r e s e n t a t i o n a l form t h a t v ideotex w i l l

s t o r e human experience and widen t h e common information space.

It needs t o be s a i d h e r e t h a t t h e c u r r e n t crude experiments

i n Telidon o f f e r no imminent t h r e a t of r a d i c a l monopoly. The

e a r l y o f f e r i n g s of Manitoba's "Grassroots" program, f o r ins tance ,

manifest an obviously Macluhanesque tendency t o employ t h e new

medium i n t h e o l d way: s tock p r i c e s , even t s ca lendars and weather

r e p o r t s t o farmers t h a t have been a v a i l a b l e by r a d i o f o r 50 years.

However, a s t h e system begins t o o f f e r more appropr ia t e i n t e r -

a c t i v e funct ions -- such a s down-loading of computation funct ions

l i k e b e s t use f i n a n c i a l a n a l y s i s -- it w i l l supplant newspapers,

radio , publ ic meetings and r e s i d u a l forms of informal communica-

t i o n s l e f t over from a more t r a d i t i o n a l era. A s t h e information

environment becomes more monolithic, what c o n s t i t u t e s information

inc reas ing ly w i l l be defined by Infomart and a r a d i c a l monopoly

w i l l begin t o emerge.

Nat ional ly , c o n t i n e n t a l l y , even g l o b a l l y , t h e process w i l l be

entrenched by t h e r i s e of t h e so-called e l e c t r o n i c highway which,

a s with i t s t r a n s p o r t a t i o n equivalent, w i l l degrade t h e secondary

rou tes u n t i l they become so de te r io ra ted a s t o j u s t i f y abandonment.

I n summary, i t can be readi ly seen t h a t t h e p o t e n t i a l of

videotex t o d i s p l a c e e x i s t i n g information technologies and d i s -

rupt r e l a t e d a c t i v i t i e s , such a s marketing o r education, sugges ts

i t l i k e l y w i l l become a r a d i c a l monopoly of information.

There a r e not y e t apparent means f o r f i x i n g t h e threshold

more p r e c i s e l y . It i s l i k e l y that c o u n t e r f o i l research w i l l y i e ld

a p o t e n t i a l l y u s e f u l formula based on t h e concept of information

ecology.

It remains only t o submit videotex t o t h e four tests of

appropriateness.

Test C r i t e r i a : ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

On cursory examination, a l l information technologies appear

t o r a t e low on environmental impact. I n conventional concepts of

t h e physica l environment, much l e s s damage i s done by processing

information ins tead of goods o r people. It is f o r c e f u l l y argued

by proponents of t h e "new medium1' t h a t e l e c t r o n i c publ ish ing, f o r

example, des t roys no t r e e s and consumes minute q u a n t i t i e s of energy.

While t h e mer i t of t h a t argument must be acknowledged, a

broader d e f i n i t i o n of impact w i l l inc lude t h e not ion of information

overload, a condi t ion i n which the amount of information a v a i l a b l e

t o t h e i n d i v i d u a l exceeds t h e human capaci ty t o use i t .

No doubt t h a t c o n d i t i o n h a s p reva i l ed a t l e a s t s i n c e t h e found-

i n g of Ptolemy's l i b r a r y a t Alexandria 2,300 y e a r s ago. What r a i s e s

modern concerns about over load i s t h e f a c t t h a t e l e c t r o n i c informa-

t i o n i s mass informat ion . A s such, t h e r e are no apparent ga tekeepers

between t h e in fo rma t ion r e sou rce and i t s use r . The f a c t is t h a t t h e

gatekeeping f u n c t i o n h a s changed l o c a t i o n : i t now occurs behind t h e

l i b r a r y . I n o t h e r words, in format ion mediated by e l e c t r o n i c tech-

nology is shaped b e f o r e i t goes i n t o t h e m a s s s t o r a g e medium, t o

make i t more a p p r o p r i a t e l y a commodity.

Of cou r se , i t can b e s a i d t h a t v ideo tex can r e s o l v e t h e i n f o r -

mation over load problem by purging redundancy and o rgan iz ing i n f o r -

mation f o r r a p i d e l e c t r o n i c scanning. The c o s t t o autonomy is un-

avoidably appa ren t .

On ba l ance , Te l idon merits a t l e a s t an ambivalent r a t i n g f o r

environmental impact: low i n narrow p h y s i c a l terms, but h ighe r i f

t h e concept o f environment is extended t o i n c l u d e t h e s o c i a l en-

vironment.

Test Criteria: POLITICAL/ECONOMIC CONTROL

A t a p u b l i c meeting i n Vancouver he ld i n February 1982,

John Madden o f P a c i f i c Micro te l , and a n e a r l y deve loper of Tel idon,

s t a t e d t h a t it was necessary t o mass produce Tel idon hardware so

t h a t t h e c o s t could be reduced i n p u r s u i t o f equa l acces s t o t h e

technology.

That abridgement of l o c a l autonomy i n t h e i n t e r e s t of economic

e q u i t y p r e s e n t s a c l e a r example of t h e p o t e n t i a l c o n f l i c t of e l e -

ments of t h e c o n v i v i a l paradigm which, i f n o t r e so lved by o t h e r

than a win-loss s o l u t i o n , l e a d s t o a n t i - c o n v i v i a l r e s u l t s .

I n pursuing equ i ty , economic c o n t r o l of t h e technology has been

given t o c e n t r a l i s t , non-democratic i n s t i t u t i o n s . Furthermore, pol i -

t i c a l c o n t r o l of t h e technology is p a t e n t l y c e n t r a l i s t , given t h e

o r i g i n of Telidon i n t h e f e d e r a l bureaucracy. F i n a l l y , t h e n a t u r e of

the da ta base w i l l a l s o r e f l e c t t h e i n t e r e s t s of t h e l a r g e corporate

information providers . (To counter t h i s a s s e r t i o n , t h e IPS claim

use r demand w i l l ensure t h a t t h e da ta base is responsive t o l o c a l

needs. The argument only s t a n d s i f i t can be shown t h a t market-

p lace mechanisms a r e inheren t ly democratic -- a po in t not conceded

by a l l c r i t i c s . )

Proponents of t h e d i f f u s e model -- i nc lud ing t h e Soc ia l Impacts

sub-committee of t h e CVCC -- have put forward system design c r i t e r i a

t h a t would meet many of t h e above c r i t i c i s m s , but they have no t ad-

dressed Madden's concern f o r economic equ i ty .

It would seem t h a t anything less than t h e i n d u s t r i a l mode of

implementation of v ideotex w i l l keep t h e c o s t of v ideotex out of

reach of ordinary people. I n s h o r t , v ideo tex f a i l s almost com-

p l e t e l y t o d e l i v e r l o c a l c o n t r o l of t h e technology i n an ega l i -

t a r i a n mode.

Test C r i t e r i a : VULNERABILITY

There a r e two aspec t s of t h e test of v u l n e r a b i l i t y t h a t seem

p e r t i n e n t t o an assessment of videotex.

The most obvious of t h e s e a r i s e s from t h e l ike l ihood t h a t the

technology w i l l d i s p l a c e e x i s t i n g d i v e r s e sources of information

simply because of i t s s u p e r i o r capac i ty t o s t o r e and disseminate

i t . In t h a t event , t h e l o s s of d i v e r s i t y of sources r a i s e s t h e

p o s s i b i l i t y of l o s s of information fol lowing c i v i l o r n a t u r a l

d i s rup t ion , p r e c i s e l y when it is most needed.

A more c r i t i c a l v u l n e r a b i l i t y a r i s e s from t h e ques t ion r a i s e d

e a r l i e r about who d e f i n e s t h e informat ion con ten t of t h e system.

Whereas t r a d i t i o n a l s o c i e t y ' s ga tekeepers were p l a i n l y v i s i b l e ,

s t and ing between t h e d a t a base and t h e c i t i z e n , t h e modern e l e c t r o -

n i c gatekeeper i s hidden behind t h e d a t a base. I f t h e r o l e of t h e

informat ion t echnoc ra t is a l t e r e d over t i m e t o t h a t of dec is ion-

maker about t h e con ten t , B e l l ' s p r e d i c t i o n of t h e rise o f a know-

ledge mer i tocracy may become t r u e . (115)

Habermas has a l s o desc r ibed how

... science, technology, industry and adninistration interlock i n a circular process . . . (1 16)

i n which acces s t o decision-making i s removed from what h e c a l l e d

t h e p r a c t i c a l realm: t h e p l ace where o r d i n a r y people i n t e r a c t

p o l i t i c a l l y .

It should be poin ted ou t h e r e t h a t t h e ve ry e f f o r t t o ensu re

equal acces s t o t h e technology w i l l r e s u l t i n more r e l i a n c e on

v ideotex as t h e s o l e informat ion sou rce of t h e masses. E l i t e s

and t h e economically advantaged may b e a b l e t o r e t a i n o t h e r more

expensive o r more p r i v i l e g e d sou rces , y i e l d i n g an informat ion

advantage.

A c r i t i c a l s o c i e t y , concerned about r e t a i n i n g d i v e r s i t y and

choice , would view t h e h igh v u l n e r a b i l i t y of v ideo tex as s u f f i -

c i e n t reason a l o n e t o r e j e c t t h e technology, even i f i t scored

h igh i n a l l t h r e e o t h e r tests.

Test C r i t e r i a : LABOUR/ENERGY RATIO

The t h e o r e t i c a l r a t i o of labour t o energy i n v ideo tex i s

appa ren t ly ve ry high.

The human e f f o r t requi red t o e x t r a c t information from a r i c h l y

d i v e r s e information ecosystem d e r i v e s n o t only from having t o search

out sources bu t a l s o from having t o i n t e r p r e t and weigh each p iece

f o r i t s re levance t o t h e whole. Videotex technology does most of

t h a t work f o r t h e information consumer.

From t h e pe r spec t ive of conv iv ia l technology, t h e p r i c e paid

f o r such convenience is a reduct ion i n "each man's a b i l i t y t o pro-

duce change. "

More concre te ly than t h a t , t h e n a t u r e of work i n t h e informa-

t i o n indus t ry is r a d i c a l l y a l t e r e d . A d i v e r s i f i e d information - system employs d i v e r s e , ind iv idua l s k i l l s . Videotex requ i res fewer

s k i l l s because of t h e a b i l i t y of t h e technology t o organize d a t a

and because t h e n a t u r e of t h e d a t a changes from being contextual

and continuous t o being d i s c r e t e and segmented.

From t h e information consumer's end of v ideotex , t h e system

is t r ansparen t -- t h a t i s t o say, i ts inner workings need not be

known (indeed, should not be known) i f t h e technology is t o remain

simple t o use. (The Soc ia l Impacts sub-committee would have it ,

both ways: t r ansparen t and understandable.) (117)

One of t h e consequences of t ransparency is t h a t t h e user can

become in t ima te wi th t h e technology because of i t s high u t i l i t y .

An obvious example of t h i s condi t ion is found i n t h e modern t e l e -

phone system. Its outs tanding u t i l i t y and t h e appearance of res-

ponsiveness t o t h e i n d i v i d u a l ( d i r e c t d i a l l i n g ) l e a d s some observers

( I l l i c h , Thompson) t o r a t e i t a s conv iv ia l . I n f a c t , t h e inaccess ib le ,

unknowable, inne r workings of t h e telephone system and of videotex

make them almost completely unresponsive t o user con t ro l . The a b i l i t y

t o command t h e machine t o perform deludes t h e user i n t o be l i ev ing he

c o n t r o l s it. What he commands is an overgrown Golem.

The ex ten t t o which videotex removes from t h e user t h e onus t o

f ind , organize and i n t e r p r e t information a l s o p ropor t iona l ly dimin-

i shes t h e u s e r ' s a b i l i t y t o shape t h e information environment. The

contention advanced by proponents of t h e d i f f u s e model of videotex

-- t h a t information use r s can a l s o be information providers and thus

influence t h e information environment -- f a i l s on e i t h e r of two

grounds :

1) t h e d i f f u s e model i s un l ike ly t o emerge i n t h e f a c e of t h e c e n t r a l i z i n g tendencies of t h e technology, o r

2) i f i t does p r e v a i l , e q u a l i t y of access w i l l be denied by cos t considera t ions .

Assessment Conclusions:

The f ind ings of t h e test f o r environmental impact a r e e i t h e r

ambivalent o r negat ive , depending on how t h e problem of information

overload is appraised; c o n t r o l of t h e technology l i e s w e l l beyond

e i t h e r t h e l o c a l use r community o r t h e ind iv idua l ; t h e system is

highly vulnerable , p a r t i c u l a r l y f o r o rd ina ry people; and t h e r a t i o

of labour t o mechanical energy is s o l a r g e a s t o render t h e tech-

nology unresponsive t o human in te rven t ion .

The dysfunct ional expression i n v ideotex i s t h e threatened

rise of r a d i c a l monopoly. I f i t can be shown t h a t widely acces-

s i b l e a l t e r n a t i v e sources of information would not be displaced

by videotex, t h e technology would be i n e f f e c t u a l and the re fo re

of l i t t l e concern t o t h e ATA process. I n t h a t case , i t may wel l

go t h e way of t h e i l l - f a t e d videophone o r be of no hore enduring

i n t e r e s t than t h e hu la hoop. I n view of t h e massive promotion

of t h e technology, it i s more l i k e l y t h a t i t w i l l p r e v a i l , unless

a public assessment s t r a t e g y can r e v e a l i t s evident l ack of con-

v i v i a l i t y .

CHAPTER V

Since we are technoZogicaZZy over-connnitted, a good genera2 maxim i n advanced countries a t present i s t o innovate i n order t o simplify the technical system, but otherwise t o innovate as sparingZy as possibZe.

Pad Goohan, N e w Reformation: Notes o f a Neolithic Conservative

Summary :

I n s p i t e of t h e i r profoundly d i f f e r e n t va lue premises ,

dys topians and u top ians a s s i g n equal importance t o technology a s

a prime shaper of t h e human cond i t i on . They a r e equa l ly agreed

t h a t a t t e n t i o n must be pa id t o t h e s u b j e c t s o t h a t i t can b e

understood -- as d e s t r o y e r f o r one, s a v i o u r t o t h e o t h e r .

Posed i n t h e terms of t h e two extremes, t h e problem becomes

i r r e s o l v a b l e : t h e dys topians must u t t e r l y r e j e c t technology; t h e

u top ians need t o hu r ry i t on p a s t i ts a l l t oo obvious f i s s u r e s

i n an a t t empt t o u s e technology t o ha rnes s technology f o r abun-

dance.

Of more p r a c t i c a l v a l u e t o o r d i n a r y people i s t h e i d e a t h a t

technology can b e both oppressor and l i b e r a t o r , depending on t h e

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s i n t r i n s i c t o t h e type of technologies employed:

on who has acces s t o i t , and who c o n t r o l s it.

This e s say h a s l a r g e l y engaged i n t h e f i r s t of t h e s e charac-

t e r i s t i c s by employing t h e a n a l y t i c a l concept of c o n v i v i a l tech-

nology. It h a s been shown t h a t most ( b u t n o t a l l ) t echnologies

possess a t l e a s t some c a p a c i t y t o r e l i e v e people from e i t h e r oppres-

s i v e , anti-human t o i l o r e q u a l l y oppres s ive , anti-human s l a v e r y -- a t

l e a s t up t o a t h r e s h o l d , beyond which t h e t o o l begins t o v i c t i m i z e

- i t s use r s .

A major impediment t o s o c i e t y ' s a b i l i t y t o recognize t h e e x i s t -

ence of t h r e s h o l d s h a s been shown t o b e n o t on ly t h e b l indness of t h e

e x p e r t s b u t a l s o t h e presence of a n e a r l y u n i v e r s a l t e c h n o c r a t i c e t h o s

which den ie s t h e e x i s t e n c e of l i m i t s . I n s h o r t , two k inds of t o o l s

a r e needed: one a r e s e a r c h methodology t h a t focuses on t h r e s h o l d s

and t h e o t h e r a p roces s by which o r d i n a r y people are fo rced t o t a k e

r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r adop t ing o r r e j e c t i n g t h e t echno log ie s t h a t a f f e c t

t h e i r own l i v e s .

It has been demonstrated t h a t even i n i t s i d e a l con f igu ra t ion

convent iona l TA cannot add res s t h e t a s k of r e v e a l i n g t h e consequences

of meta-technology because i t i s formed o u t of r e d u c t i o n i s t techno-

c r a t i c r o o t s . Therefore , an a l t e r n a t i v e TA s t r a t e g y has been c a l l e d

f o r which c o n c e n t r a t e s on l o c a t i n g t h e t h r e s h o l d s f o r a number of

technology " f ami l i e s . " It i s sugges ted t h a t a s e t of f o u r t e s t s ,

drawn from t h e pr&s of a p p r o p r i a t e technology, can f a c i l i t a t e t h e

search f o r t h e l o c u s of p a r t i c u l a r t h r e s h o l d s , even where they may

no t be d e f i n i t i v e l y l o c a t e d . I n t h o s e technologies where t h e pre-

sence of a t h r e s h o l d cannot be f u n c t i o n a l l y f i x e d , an unmistakable -

i n d i c a t i o n t h a t it h a s been exceeded i s t h e r i s e of a r a d i c a l

monopoly.

The ATA model p re sen ted here o u t l i n e s a process t h a t l i k e l y w i l l

g ive rise t o a growing p u b l i c consc iousness of t h e i n f l u e n c e of meta-

technology on t h e l i v e s of o r d i n a r y people. It does so by d i s p l a c i n g

technology e x p e r t s from t h e decision-making r o l e s and r e p l a c i n g them

wi th o rd ina ry people.

F i n a l l y , t h e t e n t a t i v e ATA paradigm was t e s t e d a g a i n s t t h e emerg-

ing v ideotex technology which was found t o be s i g n i f i c a n t l y a n t i -

convivia l and l i k e l y t o r e s u l t i n time i n a r a d i c a l monopoly of in fo r -

. mation technology.

What remains i s t o i n d i c a t e t h e cont ingent ques t ions and suggest

a reas of use fu l f u r t h e r research .

Contingent Concerns:

A t var ious p o i n t s i n t h i s exp lo ra t ion , contingent i s s u e s have

surfaced which, i f pursued, would have expanded t h e t a s k beyond

reason. Three of t h e s e , however, a r e s u f f i c i e n t l y p e r t i n e n t t o

t h e t o p i c t o mer i t a t l e a s t an o u t l i n e showing t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p s

and suggest ing a r e a s of p o s s i b l e f u r t h e r examination. Without

meaning t o imply a p r i o r i t y ranking, they a r e t h e following:

1) What o r g a n i z a t i o n a l techniques might be adopted t o ensure c o n t r o l of technology by ordinary people?

2) How should emerging technologies come t o an ATA process?

3) Can e s t a b l i s h e d an t i - conv iv ia l technologies be rendered conv iv ia l?

The scope and d i r e c t i o n of an i n v e s t i g a t i o n i n t o t h e s e t h r e e

quest ions w i l l now b e suggested.

1) AN ORGANIZATIONAL TECHNIQUE

Even t h e most r a d i c a l c r i t i q u e s of t h e conventional TA process

f a i l t o address t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p between e x p e r t i s e and p o l i t i c a l power.

I n t h e most s o c i a l l y c r i t ica l ana lyses , t h e r e i s usua l ly a c a l l f o r

c i t i z e n p a r t i c i p a t i o n i n TA, always a s l a y team members, inva r i ab ly on

t h e premise t h a t widespread information dissemination w i l l r e s u l t i n

t h e r i g h t course of a c t i o n being taken. As Hazel Henderson po in t s ou t ,

t h e r e is a l ready widespread support among p o l i t i c i a n s and bureaucra ts

f o r c i t i z e n p a r t i c i p a t i o n i n t h e TA process. (118)

What she and o t h e r c r i t i c s do n o t do i s exp la in how such nominal

c i t i z e n p a r t i c i p a t i o n w i l l a l t e r t h e decision-making s t r u c t u r e o t h e r

than by c r e a t i n g a handfu l of b e t t e r informed c i t i z e n a c t i v i s t s .

What is needed i s a fundamental r e - s t r u c t u r i n g of t h e process by

which t echno log ie s a r e adopted.

A b r i e f i n t r o d u c t i o n t o a p o s s i b l e o r g a n i z a t i o n a l s t r u c t u r e w a s

provided by Figure 3:3 , which may o f f e r t h e oppor tun i ty of r a d i c a l

r e s t r u c t u r i n g . The i n t e n t of t h e model i s t h a t t h e p a r t i c i p a t i n g

c i t i z e n s should f u n c t i o n somewhat l i k e a j u r y i n c r i m i n a l t r i a l s

and c i v i l t o r t proceedings -- t h a t i s t o s a y , w i t h i n e s t a b l i s h e d

r u l e s of procedure and evidence, t h e j u r y ' s f i n d i n g s a r e b inding on

a l l p a r t i e s , i nc lud ing t h e judge.

It is l i k e l y t h a t e x i s t i n g r u l e s of evidence would adequate ly

s e r v e t h e technology j u r y procedures ; i t i s l e s s l i k e l y t h a t t h e

e x i s t i n g j u d i c i a r y would be e i t h e r a p p r o p r i a t e t o o r competent f o r

t h e a d j u d i c a t i o n r o l e . (That s a i d , i t should be noted t h a t t h e

landmark s tudy of t h e environmental and s o c i a l impacts of t h e pro-

posed Mackenzie Val ley p i p e l i n e was c a r r i e d ou t by a j u s t i c e of

t h e Supreme Court , a l b e i t a n unusual one.)

I n e v i t a b l y , a procedure such a s t h i s would be a s a d v e r s a r i a l

a s t h o s e of t h e c r i m i n a l and c i v i l j u s t i c e systems. That outcome

need no t be of concern. The e x i s t i n g c o u r t procedures a l r eady

accommodate t h e i n t e r e s t s of t h i r d p a r t i e s and t h e r e i s , i n f a c t ,

a c o n f l i c t of i n t e r e s t between t echno log ica l en t repeneurs and

numerous groups of c i t i z e n s ( f o r example: t r a d e u n i o n i s t s , o t h e r

en t repeneurs t h rea t ened w i t h d i s l o c a t i o n , env i ronmen ta l i s t s ,

pregnant women, n a t i v e s , e t c . ) .

It s e r v e s no u s e f u l purpose t o p e r p e t u a t e t h e myth t h a t

technology i s n e u t r a l .

One o the r a spec t of t h i s t e n t a t i v e proposal needs t o be made

c l e a r . I f one of t h e important o b j e c t i v e s of an ATA mechanism i s

t o arouse publ ic consciousness about meta-technology, i t follows

t h a t t h e procedures should be of a c t i v e i n t e r e s t t o a l l c i t i z e n s .

Accordingly, a s wi th the l e g a l j u r y system, a l l c i t i z e n s should

be requi red t o s e r v e a s and when they a r e c a l l e d and wi th appro-

p r i a t e compensation and p ro tec t ion .

Needless t o say , t h e r e can be no assurance t h a t such c i t i z e n

j u r i e s w i l l avoid e r r o r s i n judgment, some of which may have pro-

found impl ica t ions f o r soc ie ty . However, i t has a l r eady been

pointed ou t t h a t e x p e r t i s e has not p ro tec ted s o c i e t y i n t h e pas t

from t h e unwanted o r unintended consequences of technology. The

d i f f e r e n c e he re i s t h a t t h e blame cannot be a t t ached t o 'them.'

2) EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES

A foo tno te i n Chapter I11 r a i s e s t h e ques t ion of how new

technologies come under t h e s c r u t i n y of t h e TA process. No

OECD country now has l e g i s l a t i o n i n p l a c e t h a t w i l l cap tu re a l l

new technologies a s they s u r f a c e and submit them t o ana lys i s .

Ins tead , t h e judgments of s e n i o r bureaucra t s and, i n t h e case of

t h e U.S. Off ice of Technology Assessment (OTA) (119), designated

l e g i s l a t o r s a r e r e l i e d upon t o i d e n t i f y those t h a t s e e m t o be most

p ress ing , p o t e n t i a l l y d i s r u p t i v e and/or b e n e f i c i a l .

A s a r e s u l t , many emerging technologies e i t h e r escape detec-

t i o n o r a r e assumed -- without examination -- t o be i n s i g n i f i c a n t .

Often, a f t e r t h e technology is i n p lace ( f o r example, VDTs), i t s

p o t e n t i a l problems become c l e a r . It was argued i n Chapter I V t h a t 8

videotex has escaped assessment i n Canada (though no t i n t h e U.S.)

p a r t l y because i t i s an o rgan iza t iona l technique made up of severa l

in-place technologies and p a r t l y because t h e bureaucra t s were i t s

parents .

The only conce ivable method of c a p t u r i n g most new t echno log ie s

would b e t o r e q u i r e a l l p a t e n t s and c o p y r i g h t s t o be submit ted t o

a t l e a s t a p re l imina ry impact assessment b e f o r e they are r e g i s t e r e d .

Others may b e c o n t r o l l e d through e x i s t i n g o r new r e g u l a t o r y bodies .

A l t e r n a t i v e l y , a mechanism could b e p u t i n p l a c e which a l lows

any c i t i z e n t o cha l l enge a new technology, t h u s r e q u i r i n g i t t o

undergo a p u b l i c assessment h e a r i n g .

The f i n a n c i a l and o r g a n i z a t i o n a l i m p l i c a t i o n s of such p o s s i b l e

p o l i c i e s a r e a t least p rob lema t i ca l , i f n o t downright awesome. By

way of i l l u s t r a t i o n , t h e U.S. OTA budget f o r 1982-83 was $12 m i l l i o n

and r e s u l t e d i n on ly a handfu l of s t u d i e s .

It must be s a i d , however, t h a t s c i e n t i s t s might be i n f l a t i n g

t h e scope of such s t u d i e s more i n t h e i r own c a r e e r i n t e r e s t s than

i n t h e i n t e r e s t s of p u b l i c p r o t e c t i o n . It should a l s o be poin ted

out t h a t t h e e x i s t i n g c o u r t system c a r r i e s a s u b s t a n t i a l p r i c e t a g ,

one l a r g e l y a c c e p t a b l e t o t h e p u b l i c because it ensures some degree

of c i v i l r i g h t s and s o c i e t a l p r o t e c t i o n .

Whether t h e p r e s e n t ad hoe TA system a c t u a l l y p r o t e c t s s o c i e t y ,

and whether a wider ATA n e t might a c t u a l l y e f f e c t system-wide econo-

mies, should be amenable t o a p p r o p r i a t e l y designed researches .

3) ESTABLISHED TECHNOLOGIES

A l l p roposa l s t o t a k e h o l d of technology seem t o founder on

t h e rock of r e a l i t y of an immensely complex, i n t e r - lock ing , i n t e r -

dependent web of machines, o r g a n i z a t i o n s and a t t i t u d e s . I f we can-

not escape t h e l o g i c of I l l i c h ' s c a s e f o r a b i c y c l e l e v e l t ranspor-

t a t i o n technology, s h a l l we then do away w i t h j e t p lanes and auto-

mobiles?

The image of t h e a t t endan t chaos renders t h e suggestion ludi -

crous t o ordinary people. Y e t t h e d i r e c t i o n t h e e n t i r e foregoing

argument t akes us i n is prec i se ly t o t h a t l o g i c a l end.

It may be, of course, t h a t some e s s e n t i a l n a t u r a l resource w i l l

simply become exhausted, fo rc ing s o c i e t y t o l i v e wi th in i ts means.

Al te rna t ive ly , the masses may f i n a l l y r e b e l aga ins t oppressive waste

and regimentat ion, throw off t h e e n t i r e apparatus and s t a r t again

wi th a convivia l outlook.

Both these p o s s i b i l i t i e s seem t o r e q u i r e a pass ive acceptance

of rampant technology u n t i l i t d i e s a n a t u r a l and i n e v i t a b l e death.

It leaves no option f o r ac t ion.

There is a h i n t of a s t r a t e g y suggested by Winner; an a c t i v i t y

he terms epistemologicat Luddism. (120) H e contends t h a t t h e Lud-

d i t e s were not simply des t roying machines t h a t threatened t h e i r jobs,

but i n f a c t they were assess ing machinery by a s e t of conscious and

i n t e l l i g e n t c r i t e r i a . Whether t h a t was so o r no t , t h e idea of an

experimental educational dismantl ing of technology holds meri t .

The suggest ion i s not t o smash machinery. I n f a c t , Winner and

E l l u l have both shown t h a t t h e machine, while highly v i s i b l e , i s

not a s pervasive a s t h e o rgan iza t iona l and human techniques which

employ them. Rather, h e proposes t o experimental ly disassemble

p a r t s of t h e s o c i a l technology i n an e f f o r t t o l e a r n ,

1) the kinds of human dependency and regularized behaviours centering upon specific varieties of apparatus,

2 ) the patterns of social act iv i ty that rationaZized techniques imprint upon hwnan relationships, and

3) the shapes given everyday Zife by the large scale organized networks of techno logy . ( 12 1)

The o b j e c t i s t o l e a r n -- p u b l i c l y -- what t h e s e r e l a t i o n s h i p s

a r e so t h a t new conf igura t ions of technology may be der ived, ones

t h a t more humanly serve soc ie ty .

Attempts t o i n s t i t u t e an experimental Luddism have and a r e be-

ing made i n i s o l a t e d circumstances, b u t without t h e b e n e f i t of a

coherent t h e o r e t i c a l r a t i o n a l e f o r doing so. The k ibbutz , Ashram

and Ujamaa communities were a t l e a s t at incep t ion experimental.

Chinese food and energy technologies have had g r e a t p o t e n t i a l a s

l ea rn ing t o o l s , al though l i t t l e r e sea rch has been done on them

f o r a v a r i e t y of p o l i t i c a l reasons. A t l e a s t one Third World

country, Papua-New Guinea, has w r i t t e n AT i n t o i t s c o n s t i t u t i o n ,

but t h e r e is no s ign t h a t anyone is s tudying t h e outcomes.

Two s t r i k i n g examples emerged b r i e f l y i n t h i s province i n

t h e e a r l y 1970s.

Between 1972 and 1974, a government MLA made a low keyed pro-

posal t o experimental ly remove Vancouver I s l a n d hydro e l e c t r i c

energy supply and d i s t r i b u t i o n from t h e mandate of B.C. Hydro and

Power Authori ty. The i n t e n t was t o a l low I s l a n d r e s i d e n t s t o recon-

c i l e f o r themselves t h e tens ions between resource conservation and

development. The proposal col lapsed w i t h t h e government l a t e i n

1974.

During t h a t same period, a s e n i o r B.C. educator proposed t o

c l o s e down t h e e n t i r e publ ic school system f o r two yea r s i n an

e f f o r t t o achieve consensus about t h e purposes and p r a c t i c e s of

education. Her o b j e c t i v e was n o t , however, t o s tudy t h e impact

of educat ional technology on s o c i e t y , b u t t o work f o r community

consensus. A s t r a t e g y more appropr ia t e t o Winner's idea would

be t o remove some por t ion of t h e system from t h e c o n t r o l of t h e

Publ ic Schools Act, t h e bureaucracy and t h e c r e d e n t i a l s network.

One of t h e most a t t r a c t i v e a s p e c t s of Winner's idea of an experi-

mental Luddism i s t h a t i t does not simply c a l l f o r a s t o p t o enquiry

and innovation. S t i l l , t h e idea would have b e t t e r d e f i n i t i o n i f some

s o r t of gu ide l ines could be imposed on t h e experiments, guidel ines

t h a t address voluntary f r u g a l i t y .

A sense of f i n i t e n e s s of resources does not n e c e s s a r i l y imply a

l a c k of freedom t o explore a l t e r n a t i v e s . It only says t h a t t h e a l t e r -

na t ives a r e cons t ra ined wi th in boundaries which a l r eady e x i s t but

which our p r o f l i g a t e a t t i t u d e s towards technology have denied: a

change i n out look, not substance.

A d i f f e r e n t kind of t echn ic ian is c a l l e d f o r by t h e job of ex-

perimental Luddism. In another context , Levi-Strauss suggested

such a d i f f e r e n c e might be found i n t h e "bricoleur" who is ,

. . . adept a t perfomning a large number of diverse tasks; but, unlike the engineer, he does not subordinate each of them t o the avai labi l i ty o f raw materials and tools conceived and p r o w e d for the purpose of the project. His universe of instruments i s closed and the rules of h is game are always t o make do with ... a s e t of tools and materials which i s always f i n i t e ... (122)

The b r i c o l e u r is something of a c r o s s between a ' j ack of a l l

t r ades1 and a magician who s e e s new r e l a t i o n s h i p s i n o ld ma te r i a l s

and means. Bricolage employs t h e kind of t o o l k i t t h a t I l l i c h

sought f o r conv iv ia l technology.

The limits i t opera tes wi th in need no t p r o h i b i t innovation o r

even growth. Indeed, it is arguable t h a t t h e t a s k of experimental

Luddism -- t o design f o r t h e s p e c i a l elegance of s i m p l i c i t y -- i s

more c r e a t i v e l y chal lenging than t h e employment of ine legant b r u t e

s t r eng th t o power a se l f -de fea t ing progress.

Conclusion:

I n t h e l imi ted sense used he re , technology i s e i t h e r autonomous

. o r on t h e verge of becoming so. It i s s o only because s o c i e t y f a i l s

t o f u l l y comprehend t h e p o s s i b i l i t y t h a t i t s technologies may be

dangerous and the re fo re makes no coherent e f f o r t t o c o n t r o l them.

Only when t h a t comprehension changes can t h e t a s k of c o n t r o l l i n g

technology b e undertaken.

Unfortunately, t h e h a b i t s of technology a r e nur tured by tech-

nology. Thus, the sugges t ion t h e r e is more than a minor problem

of pe r iod ic adjustment must appear t o t h e technologica l ly i l l i t e r a t e

a s ludicrous a s Chicken L i t t l e ' s c r i e s of imminent d i s a s t e r . Yet

t h e r e a r e t h e beginnings of doubt i n ordinary people about techno-

logy r a i s e d by t h e evidence of l o s t r i v e r s , dying spec ies , nuclear

t e r r o r and t h e myriad r e s u l t s of inc reas ing s o c i a l dysfunction.

A means of democratizing technology assessment c a n ' t he lp

but spread awareness of i ts pervasiveness f o r d a i l y l i f e .

More importantly, such means promise t o render ordinary people

technologica l ly l i t e r a t e . When t h a t happens, t o o l s f o r understanding

technology w i l l be eager ly taken up.

LIST OF REFERENCES

Jacques E l l u l , The Technologica l Soc ie ty (New York: A l f r ed Knopf, 1967), p. 80.

E l l u l , Preface , p. xxx.

E l l u l , p. 20.

E l l u l , p. 12.

E l l u l , p. 47.

James Burke, Connections (Boston: L i t t l e Brown, 1978).

E l l u l , p. 43.

Lewis Mumford, The Myth of t h e Machine: Technics and Human Development, Vol. 1 (New York: Harcourt Brace, 1967).

E l l u l , p. 52.

B l l u l , p. 325.

E l l u l , p. 334.

E l l u l , pp. 426-427.

Herbert Marcuse, One Dimensional Man (Boston: Beacon P r e s s , 1964), p . 251.

Marcuse, p. 257.

Theodore Roszak, The Making of a Counter Cu l tu re (New York: Doubleday, 1968), p. x i i i .

Herman Kahn, World Economic Development: 1979 and Beyond (Boulder: Westview P r e s s , 1979).

Kahn, p . 11.

Kahn, p. 2.

Kahn, p. 2.

Kahn, p. 14.

Kahn, p. 24.

Arthur C. Clarke, P r o f i l e s of t h e Future: An Inqu i ry i n t o t h e Limi ts of t h e P o s s i b l e (New York: Harper & Row,-1973), p. ii.

Clarke, pp. 234-235, c h a r t .

B.F. Skinner , Beyond Freedom and Digni ty (New York: Al f red Knopf, 1971), p. 4.

Skinner , p. 200.

Skinner , p. 5.

Skinner , p. 181.

Skinner, p. 101.

Skinner, p. 180.

Skinner, p. 202.

Skinner, p. 205.

Arthur Koestler, The Act of Creation (New York: Dell, 1967), p. 264.

~ a n ~ d o n Winner, Autonomous Technology : Technics-out-of -control as a Theme in Political Thought (Cambridge: MIT Press, 1977), pp. 295-296.

Ivan Illich, Tools for Conviviality (New York: Harper Colophon, 1973).

Illich-Tools, p. xiii.

Illich-Tools, p. 2, emphasis added.

Illich-Tools, p. 25.

Illich-Tools, p. 4.



Illich-Tools, p. 1.


Illich-Tools , p. 97. Illich-Tools, p. 99.

Illich-Tools , p. 118. Ivan Illich, Energy and Equity (New York: Harper 6 Row, 1974), p. 12, footnote.

Illich-Energy, p. 12.

Illich-Energy, pp. 18-19.

Illich-Energy, p. 46.

Illich-Energy, pp. 46-47.

Ivan Illich, Medical Nemises: The Appropriation of Health (New York: Pantheon, 1976), p. 243.

Illich-Medical Nem., p. 255.





Richard M e r r i l l e t a l , Rad ica l A g r i c u l t u r e (New York: New York Unive r s i ty P res s , 1976), p. 65, Table 1.

M e r r i l l , p. 173.

U.S. Department of A g r i c u l t u r e , B u l l e t i n No. 233 (Washington, D.C.: Government P r i n t i n g O f f i c e , 1970). . A l t e r n a t i v e s Journa l 10: l (1981), pp. 4-5 and p. 32.

M e r r i l l , p. 10.

I l l ich-Energy, p. 4.

I l l ich-Energy, p. 8.

J i m Bohlen, The New P ionee r s Handbook (New York: Schocken Books, 1975), pp. 22-23.

Amory Lovins, S o f t Energy Pa ths : Toward a Durable Peace (Cam- br idge: Ba l l inge r Books, l977) , p. 153.

Bohlen, p. 15.

K. Valaskakis et a l , The S e l e c t i v e Conserver Socie ty (Gamma, McGill Univers i ty P r e s s , 1977), 4 volumes.

Ivan I l l i c h , Deschooling S o c i e t y (New York: Harper 6 Row, 1970) . I l l ich-Deschooling, p. 2.

I l l ich-Deschooling, p . 16.

"Human Set t lements: The Environmental Challenge," Papers of t h e Stockholm Conference on t h e Human Environment, 1972 (United Nations Documents, 1974), p. 16, F igure 2.

Barbara Ward, "The Inne r and t h e Outer Limits ," Jou rna l of t h e I n s t i t u t e of Pub l i c Admin i s t r a t ion o f Canada 19:3 ( F a l l 1976), p. 403.

C.A. Doxiadis, Action f o r Human Se t t l emen t s (New York: W.W. Norton, l976), p. 186.

Barbara Ward, Human Se t t l emen t s , C r i s i s and Opportunity (Ottawa: Queen's P r i n t e r , 1975), p. 33.

Ivan I l l i c h , P o l i t i c a l I n v e r s i o n (London: Writers and Readers Publ i sh ing Co-operative, l 976) , p. 26.

Ivan I l l i c h , Disabl ing P r o f e s s i o n s (London: Marion Boyars, 1977), p. 17.

I l l i ch -Disab l ing P ro f . , p. 36.

Robert Hei lbroner , A n I n q u i r y i n t o t h e Human Prospect (New York: W.W. Norton, 1974), p. 26.

I l l i c h - P o l i t i c a l Inve r s ion , p. 28.

J o e Armstrong and W i l l i s Barman, S t r a t e g i e s f o r Conducting Technological Assessments (Boulder: Westview P r e s s , 1980), p. 13.

Methodological Guide l ines f o r S o c i a l Assessment of Technology ( P a r i s : OECD, 1975); S o c i a l Assessment of Technology (Pa r i s : OECD, 1978); A Technology Assessment System (Ottawa: Science Counci l o f Canada, Report No. 30, 1974).

Sc i ence Council Report No. 30, p. 31.

I b i d .

A.R. Demirdache, "Technology Assessment -- t h e Process -- A

Winner, pp. 295-296.

Sc ience Council Report No. 30, p. 29.

OECD, 1978, p. 8.

Jurgen Habermas, Toward a R a t i o n a l S o c i e t y (Boston: Beacon P r e s s , 1970).

Jurgen Habermas, Theory and P r a c t i c e (Boston: Beacon P res s , 1973), p. 255.

S t an ley R. Carpenter , "Technology Assessment and Appropriate Technology," Proceedings of The Human Context f o r Science and Technology, p. 174.

David Dickson, A l t e r n a t i v e Technology and t h e P o l i t i c s of Technica l Change (Glasgow: Fontana, 1974), p. 11.

Carpenter , p. 180.

Canadian Renewable Energy News (CREN),published monthly by CREN Pub l i sh ing Ltd . , Ottawa.

Sub jec t c a t e g o r i e s were de f ined as fo l lows:

Apparatus ( a f t e r Winner): hardware, machines, t o o l s and processes such as logging , mining, farming.

Government Pol icy : programs, l e g i s l a t i o n , o t h e r government i n i t i a t i v e s .

Organiza t ion ( a f t e r Habermas): r a t i ona l -pu rpos ive s o c i a l s t r u c t u r e s o t h e r than governmental.

P o l i t i c a l ( a f t e r Habermas): meta-technology concerns, u s u a l l y expressed a s e d i t o r i a l c o n t e n t and/or s igned columns.

The r e l a t i v e weights of t h e numbers are no t s i g n i f i c a n t l y a l t e r e d i f Columns B and D a r e c o l l a p s e d t o conform wi th ~ l l u l ' s c a t e g o r i z a t i o n . There w e r e no a r t i c l e s d e a l i n g w i t h human technique .

K a r l Marx, C a p i t a l , Vol. 1 (New York: Random House, 1906), p. 482.

Bernard Gendron, Technology and t h e Human Condit ion (New York: S t . M a r t i n ' s P r e s s , 1977).

Gendron, p. 251.

P r i n c e Kropotkin, Modern Sc ience and Anarchism (Ph i l ade lph ia : S o c i a l Sc ience Club, 1903), p. 53.

Murray Bookchin, Pos t -Sca rc i ty Anarchism (Pa lo Alto:Ramparts P r e s s , 1971) . Hazel Henderson, Crea t ing A l t e r n a t i v e Fu tu re s (New York: Berkeley Pub l i sh ing , 1978), p. 337.

F igu res 3:2 and 3:3 are de r ived by au tho r .

Gunnar Myrdal, Asian D r a m a : An I n q u i r y i n t o t h e Pover ty of Nations(New York: Pantheon, 1968), pp. 1,844-1,847.

Meinolf Dierkes et a l , Technologica l Risk: Its Pe rcep t ion and Handling i n t h e European Community (Cambridge: Oelge- s c h l a g e r , Gunn and Hain, 1980).

Winner, p. 75.

David Godfrey and Douglas P a r k h i l l , eds . , Gutenberg Two (Toronto: P r e s s Porcepic Ltd . , 1980), p. 78

Michael T y l e r , "Video, P r e s t e l and T e l e t e x t , " Telecommuni- c a t i o n s P o l i c y (March 1979).

Godfrey, p. 56.

Robin Ruggles e t a l , Learn ing a t a D i s t ance and t h e New Technology (Vancouver: Educa t iona l Research I n s t i t u t e of B.C. , 1982), pp. 52-57.

P e r s o n a l Correspondence.

Demirdache, p. 194.

Unpublished Report: "Information Technology and S o c i a l Change: An I n t r o d u c t i o n t o t h e S o c i a l Impacts Sub-committee of t h e Canadian Videotex C o n s u l t a t i v e Committee" (Ottawa: A p r i l 1982), pp. 3-4.

I b i d . , p. 8 .

Orin Klapp, Opening and C los ing (Cambridge Un ive r s i t y P r e s s , 1978), p. 28.

Gordon Thompson, "Memo from Mercury: Informat ion Technology is D i f f e r e n t , " I n s t i t u t e f o r Research on P u b l i c Po l i cy , occas iona l Paper No. 10 (Montreal: June 1979), p. 51.

115. Daniel Be l l , Basic Books,

The Coming of Post - Industr ia l Society (New York: 1976), pp. 358-359.

116. Habermas, Theory and Prac t ice , p. 27.

117. "Information Technology and Socia l Change , I 1 p . 8.

118. Henderson, pp. 331-338.

119. "Regional ~ e w s , " Impact Assessment Bul le t in 1:2 (Winter 1982), pp. 87-97.

120. Winner, p. 330.

121. Winner, p. 331.

122. Claude Levi-Strauss, The Savage Mind (University of Chicago Press , l966), p. 17.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Al te rna t ives Journal . Volume 10:l (1981).

Armstrong, Joe E. , and Harman, W i l l i s . S t r a t e g i e s f o r Conducting Technology Assessments. Boulder: Westview Press , 1980.

Armytage, W.H.G. The R i s e of t h e Technocrats. Universi ty of Toronto, 1965.

Barnet, Richard. The Lean Years: P o l i t i c s i n t h e Age of Scarc i ty . New York: Simon & Schuster , 1980.

Be l l , Daniel. The Coming of Pos t - Indus t r i a l Society. New York: Basic Books, 1976.

Bohlen, J i m . The New Pioneers Handbook. New York: Schocken Books, 1975.

Bookchin, Murray. Post-Scarci ty Anarchism. Palo Alto: Ramparts Press , 1971.

Burke, James. Connections. Boston: L i t t l e Brown, 1978.

Canadian Renewable Energy News. Ottawa: CREN Publishing.

Carpenter, Stanley R. "Technology Assessment and Appropriate * ~ e c h n o l o ~ ~ . " Proceedings of t h e Conference on The Human

Context f o r Science and Technology. Queen's P r i n t e r , 1980, pp. 171-188.

Clarke, Arthur C. P r o f i l e s of t h e Future: An Inquiry i n t o t h e L i m i t s of t h e Poss ib le . New York: Harper & Row, 1973.

Congden, R . , ed. Lectures on Soc ia l ly Appropriate Technology. Eindhoven: Technische Hogeschool, 1975.

Demirdache, A.R. "Technology Assessment -- The Process -- A Canadian Perspective." Proceedings of t h e Conference on The Human Con- t e x t f o r Science and Technology. Queen's P r i n t e r , 1980, pp. 189-202.

Dickson, David. A l t e r n a t i v e Technology and t h e P o l i t i c s of Techni- c a l Change. Glasgow: Fontana, 1974.

Dierks, Meinolf, e t a l , eds. Technological Risk: Its Perception and Handling i n t h e European Community. Cambridge: Oelgeschlager, Gunn and Hain, 1980.

Doxiadis, C.A. Action f o r Human Set t lements . New York: W.W. Norton, 1976.

Building Entopia. New York: W.W. Norton, 1975.

E l l u l , Jacques. The Technological Socie ty . New York: Alfred Knopf, 1967.

Gardiner, W. Lambert. "Public Acceptance of t h e New Information Technologies: The Role of At t i tudes ." Occasional Paper 1-9. Gamma, Universi ty of Montreal, 1980.

Gendron, Bernard. Technology and t h e Human Condition. New York: S t . Mart in 's Press , 1977.

Gibbons, M., and Voyer, R. A Technology Assessment System, Report No. 30. Ottawa: Science Council of Canada, 1974.

Godfrey, David, and P a r k h i l l , Douglas, eds. a t e n b e r g Two. Toronto: Press Porcepic Ltd. , 1980.

Goodman, Paul . Compulsory Mis-education and t h e Community of Scholars. New York: Vintage Books, 1962.

- , N e w Reformation: Notes of a Neo l i th ic Conservative. New York: Random House, 1970.

Habermas, Jurgen. Theory and P r a c t i c e . Boston: Beacon Press , 1973.

Toward a Rat ional Socie ty . Boston: Beacon Press ,

Harman, W i l l i s . An Incomplete Guide t o t h e Future. San Francisco: San Francisco Book Co., 1976.

Heilbroner, Robert. An Inqu i ry i n t o t h e Human Prospect . New York: W.W. Norton, 1974.

Henderson, Hazel. Creating A l t e r n a t i v e Futures. N e w York: Berke- l e y Publishing, 1978.

I l l i c h , Ivan. Deschooling Socie ty . New York: Harrow Books, 1970- 1971.

- Disabling Profess ions . London: Marion Boyars, 1977.

- Energy and Equity. New York: Harper & Row, 1974.

- Medical N e m i s e s : The Appropriat ion of Health. New York: Pantheon Books, 1976.

- P o l i t i c a l Invers ion. London: Wri ters & Readers Publishing Co-operative, 1976.

- Tools f o r Convivia l i ty . New York: Harper Colcphon, 1973.

Impact Assessment B u l l e t i n . 1:2 (Winter 1982).

J e q u i e r , N. Appropr ia te Technology: Problems and Promises. P a r i s : OECD, 1976.

- Johnson, W. Muddling toward F r u g a l i t y . San Franc isco: S i e r r a Club, 1978.

Kahn, Herman. World Economic Development: 1979 and Beyond. Boulder: Westview P r e s s , 1979.

Kei th, Robert , et al . Northern Development and Technology Assessment Systems, Report No. 34. Ottawa: Sc ience Counci l of Canada, . - - *

Klapp, Or in . Opening and Closing. Cambridge: Cambridge Un ive r s i t y P r e s s , 1978.

Koes t l e r , Ar thur . The Act of Crea t ion . New York: D e l l , 1967.

Le i s s , W. The L imi t s t o S a t i s f a c t i o n . U n i v e r s i t y of Toronto, 1976.

Levi-Strauss , Claude. The Savage Mind. Un ive r s i t y of Chicago P r e s s , 1966.

Lovins, Arnory. S o f t Energy Pa ths : Toward a Durable Peace. Cam- b r idge : B a l l i n g e r Books, 1977.

McRobie, George. Small is P o s s i b l e . New York: Harper & Row, 1981.

Madden, John. Videotex i n Canada. O t t a w a : Supply and Se rv ices Canada, 1979.

Mandelbaum, Seymour. Community and Communication. New York: Harper , 1957.

Mander, J e r r y . Four Arguments f o r t h e E l imina t ion of Te lev i s ion . New York: Morrow Q u i l l , 1977.

Marcuse, Herber t . One Dimensional Man. Boston: Beacon P r e s s , 1964.

Marx, K a r l . C a p i t a l , Vol. 1. New York: Random House, 1906.

M e r r i l l , Richard, ed. Radica l Agr i cu l tu re . New York Un ive r s i t y , 1976.

Mumford, Lewis. The Myth of t h e Machine: Technics and Human Develop- ment, Vol. 1. New York: Harcourt Brace, 1967.

The Myth of t h e Machine: The Pentagon of Power. New York: Harcourt Brace, 1970.

- Technics and C i v i l i z a t i o n . New York: Harcourt Brace, 1934.

- The Condit ion of Man. New York: Harcourt Brace, 1944.

Myrdal, Gunnar. Asian Drama: An I n q u i r y i n t o t h e Pover ty of Nations. New York: Pantheon, 1968.

OECD.

-

Methodological Gu ide l ines f o r S o c i a l Assessment of Technology. P a r i s : 1975.

S o c i a l Assessment o f Technolopy. P a r i s : 1978.

Parker , Edwin. "Socia l I m p l i c a t i o n s of Computer/~elecommunications Systems." Report No. 16, Program i n Information Technology and Telecommunications. Center f o r I n t e r d i s c i p l i n a r y Research, S tanford U n i v e r s i t y , 1975.

Penner, S.S. , and Icerman, L. Energy. 3 vo l s . Reading: Addison- Wesley, 1974.

Polanyi , Michael. The T a c i t Dimension. New York: Doubleday, 1966.

P r i n c e Kropotkin. Modern Sc ience and Anarchism. Ph i l ade lph ia : S o c i a l Sc ience Club, 1903.

R i fk in , Jeremy. Entropy. New York: Viking P r e s s , 1980.

Roszak, Theodore. The Making of a Counter Cul ture . New York: Doubleday Books, 1968.

Ruggles, Robin, e t a l . Learning a t .a Dis tance and t h e New Technology. Vancouver: Educat iona l Research I n s t i t u t e of B r i t i s h Columbia, 1982.

Sas s in , Wolfgang. "Energy." S c i e n t i f i c American. 243:3 (September 1980).

Schumacher, F r i t z . Small i s B e a u t i f u l . New York: Harper & Row, 1976.

Schwartz, Bar ry , ed. Human Connection and t h e New Media. New Je r sey : P ren t i ce -Ha l l , 1973.

Skinner , B.F. Beyond Freedom and Digni ty . New York: Al f red Jhopf , 1971.

Socia l Impacts Sub-committee of t h e Canadian Videotex Consultat ive Committee, "Information Technology and S o c i a l Change: An In t roduct ion." (Apr i l 1982) (unpublished r e p o r t ) .

S te in , Maurice R. The Ec l ipse of Community. New York: Harper Torchbooks, 1960.

Teich, Alber t , ed. Technology and Man's Future. New York: S t . Mart in 's P ress , 1977.

Thompson, Gordon. Communications Canada 2000. Toronto: York Univers i ty Press , 1978.

- "Memo from Mercury: Information Technology is Different ." Occasional Paper No. 10. Montreal: I n s t i t u t e f o r Research on Pub l ic Po l i cy , June 1979.

Tonnies, Ferdinand. Community and Society. New York: Harper Torchbooks, 1957.

Tyler , Michael. "Video, P r e s t e l and Tele text ." Telecommunica- t i o n s Pol icy . March 1969, pp. 79-91.

United Nations Documents. "~uman Sett lements: The Environmental Challenge." Papers of t h e Stockholm Conference on t h e Human Environment 1972. 1974, pp. 31-43.

United S t a t e s Department of Agr icul ture . B u l l e t i n No. 233. Washington, D.C.: Government P r i n t i n g Off ice , 1970.

Valaskakis, K . , e t a l . The S e l e c t i v e Conserver Society. 4 vols . Gamma, Univers i ty of Montreal, 1977.

Veblen, Thorstein. The I n s t i n c t of Workmanship and the S t a t e of t h e I n d u s t r i a l A r t s . New York: A.M. Kelly, 1964.

Ward, Barbara. Human Set t lements : C r i s i s and Opportunity. Ottawa: ~ u e e n ' s P r i n t e r , 1975.

- "The Inner and t h e Outer Limits." The Cl i f fo rd Clark Memorial Lectures , 1976, Journal of t h e I n s t i t u t e of Pub l ic Administrat ion of Canada 19:3. ( F a l l 1976) pp. 101-107.

Watt, Kenneth, ed. The Unsteady S t a t e . Universi ty Press of Hawaii, 1977.

Weizenbaum, Joseph. Computer Power and Human Reason: From Judgment t o Calcu la t ion . San Franc isco: W.H. Freeman, 1976.

Wiener, Norbert . God and Golem, Inc . : A Comment on Cer t a in P o i n t s Where Cybernet ics impinge on Re l ig ion . Cambridge: MIT P r e s s , 1964.

Winner, Langdon. Autonomous Technology: Technics-out-of-control as a Theme i n P o l i t i c a l Thought. Cambridge: MIT P r e s s , 1977.