Hydraulic engineering reflected in the humanities

Workshop on Philosophy and Engineering – October 2008, London

Hydraulic engineering reflected in
the humanities
Dr. phil. Dipl.-Ing.
Oliver Parodi
Institute for Technology Assessment
and Systems Analysis (ITAS)
Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe
Germany
parodi@itas.fzk.de

KIT – die Kooperation von
Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe GmbH
1 | Dr. Oliver Parodi | ITAS | 12.11.2008
und Universität Karlsruhe (TH)

Overview

Technology – A Cultural Approach

Two Styles of Hydraulic Engineering and their Cultural Roots

Suggestions for a Future Practice of Hydraulic Engineering


I. Technology – A Cultural Approach

General Ideas
Technology as a cultural undertaking / a cultural approach

Technology in a wider sense can be seen as a material, institutional
and mental/spiritual product under the conditions of culture

Technological practice and hydraulic engineering can be seen as an
action (doing, forming, producing) under the conditions of culture



Culture
can be identified in the presence of collectivity, communication
and convention (concept of culture by Hansen 2002)
an interplay of collective and individual
institution, materiality and mind/spirit as items of culture
basic, collectively shared interpretive patterns of the world
(“world views”) are laid down in every culture

Technology (in the broader sense)
here: not only artefacts (machines, buildings/constructions) but
also eco‐socio‐technological systems and processes
the quintessence of “technology” as reproducible intended action



Technology as cultural undertaking allows insights in the following directions:

on technological action and technological behaviour

on the relation between collective and technology

on the link between technology (as artefacts, institutions) and world views



Intended technological action and technological behaviour
Development of technology is not only driven by intended goals and rational
consideration, or by societal framework conditions but also – and above all – by
certainties and values in the cultural background and the collective unconscious

Technology design combines rational and arational elements

So the development of technology (and also the use of technology) can be
understood as layers of action and behaviour

An engineer acts in respect of: scientific‐technological details (sometimes also in
respect of economic and legal aspects) of artefacts and systems

An engineer – as a professional – behaves (more or less) according to value of and
meaning behind technology
1. grade: he responds to the societal framework conditions (laws, economic
regulations, ethical restrictions)
2. grade: he acts against the background of internalised cultural certainties
(e.g. materialism, prosperity, autonomy of human beings, nature as object of
human use etc.)



Intended technological action and behaviour (II)
1) Ethics of technology and/or engineering:
Together with culture, the programme of internalisation always and
fundamentally takes place:  Culture as implication of proven, as ‘mechanism of
neglect’.

Ethics: here as an enlightening programme of rationality, against the (cultural)
neglect, tries to explain the implicit and put it up for discussion.

2) The question whether technological development in general is determined
or can be shaped:
Determinism or the possibility to (completely) shape technology can be identified
from the cultural perspective as overemphasis intended technological action or
behaviour.

The evolvement of technology (which can indeed be observed) does not happen,
as often assumed, genuinely but is determined by culture, subject to cultural
attitudes and cultural ‘regulartities’.
‐>  The ‚evolution of technology’ opens up to a certain degree of formation,
does not remain mere fate, something that irrevocably happens to the
human being.



Technology as thesis of society
Technology – even large‐scale technology like hydraulic engineering – is
reflecting to a high degree the certainties of a society, and namely not only
in the form of obtained knowledge but also in the form of collectively
shared imaginations, worldviews and unscrutinised convictions

Large‐scale technology is only a thesis of society – not its truth,
the thesis can of course be put up for discussion (cf. nuclear energy)


II. Two Styles and their Cultural Roots

II. Two Styles of Hydraulic Engineering and their Cultural Roots
The two styles – differences on the level of artefacts:

Massivwasserbau (‘massive hydraulic engineering’): compactness of the
building material and massive technological interference with nature
and/or ecology

Naturnaher Wasserbau (‘ecological’ or ‘near‐natural hydraulic
engineering’): biogenic materials that are typical for the waters, much
‘smoother’ interferences with nature (examples: ‘renaturalised waters’)

Their world views?

And their relations to our culture and history of ideas?



Massivwasserbau

Naturnaher Wasserbau

Photos: Bernhart



Massivwasserbau

Naturnaher Wasserbau

Photos: Grober



Research approach (in the framework of my PhD thesis 2003‐2006)
Goal: Reconstruction of world views
supported by an (ad hoc) concept of world views based on epistemology and action
theory

Interpretation of sources from the cultural undertakings ‘Massivwasserbau’
(~1950s) and ‘Naturnaher Wasserbau’ (~2000s):
Central laws and regulations (Federal Water Act)
Buildings, constructions and river landscapes (or photos of them)
Handbooks and technical textbooks
Curricula, examination regulations and university calendars of the hydraulic
engineering course of studies
Leitbilder (role models: programmatic writings of public authorities on the design
of waters)
Interviews with hydraulic engineers
Secondary literature on hydraulic engineering

Comparison of more than 200 sources (1950 | 2000)
compared with motives of occidental culture and our history of ideas



Results – in general
A lot of significant differences can be identified in the world views of
Massivwasserbau and Naturnaher Wasserbau

There is a considerable relation between the characteristics of our
technology and our cultural history of ideas



Results – differences in world views (I)

Massivwasserbau Naturnaher Wasserbau
Motives of ‘nature’ and ‘human being’ (1)
Possessive concept of nature Sympathetic concept with possessive aspects
Perfect nature
Imperfect nature
Is imitated by the human being
Is being improved by the human being
The human being interferes with natural development
The human being as master of nature The human being as guardian and partner

The human being is afraid of nature The human being feels guilty and obliged to nature

natura naturans
natura naturata (most of the time)
Nature is moving, alive and teleological
Human being is creative, moves nature Nature is creative

Nature as subject/instrument Nature as end in itself
Exploitation of nature Restricted use of nature
No moral obligation towards nature Moral (and legally defined) obligation towards nature
Emphasis on explanation of nature Emphasis on understanding of nature

The human being as creation’s crowning glory The human being as ecological Mängelwesen*
* imperfect being, lacking ecological conduct



Results – differences in world views (II)
Motives of technology
Eutop concept of technology Differentiated dystop concept of technology
Technology as chance Technology also as threat
Mechanistic understanding of technology Complex understanding of technology
Technology is unambiguous, static and determined Stochastic, dynamic, multifaceted
Machine as role model Organism as role model
machina mundi systema mundi
Predominant physical-chemical perspective Predominant ecological perspective
Exact description, strictly mathematical Fuzzy description, also by words and pictures
Expertocratic concept of technology (predominant) Democratic concept of technology (predominant)
Control of technological development
Autonomy of technological development
Wish for intended – normative, limiting – public
Do what is possible
regulation
Other Motives
Extended anthropocentrism to ecocentrism
Anthropocentrism
Attribute values to non-human entities and inherent
Attribute values to human existence
value of nature
Linear patterns of thinking Cyclical patterns of thinking
Linear patterns of movement predominant in time and Cyclical patterns of movement predominant in time and
space space
Generalisation Individualisation
Analyses (predominantly) Synthesis (increasingly, predominantly), holisitc view



Considered ‘dimensions of technology’

in Massivwasserbau

in Naturnaher Wasserbau

(Figure according to Ropohl)



Results – differences in world views (III)

Motives of ‘nature’ and ‘human being’ (2)
Me-it-relation to nature Rising me-we-relation to nature
Strive for nature, protection of nature
Overcoming of nature, control of nature
The human being threatens also nature and has to be
Nature threatens the human being
restrained
To work against the river
To work with and for the river
The fight of the human being against nature
Leave free space to nature
The human being in search of the distance to nature The human being in search of nearness to nature
Dichotomous separation of nature and culture Econature as all-embracing
Nature as part of the world Culture as part of econature
The perspective on nature from an external observer The perspective on econature from a participant

Natural growing and fading has to be prevented Natural growing and fading is appreciated

Mathematical or mathematically describable nature, Mathematical description of nature is limited
Variety and strictness of geometry as a symbol for the rule Variety of nature can never be completely reached and
of the human mind over nature understood by human beings
The human being as scheduler and designer Human b. as initiator and participant in creation


III. Suggestions for a Future Practice

III. Suggestions for a Future Practice of Hydraulic Engineering [HE]
Cultural HE

Reasonable HE

Hermeneutical HE

Perceptible Technology



Cultural HE

no more focused on the dealing with nature

has sensitivity and sensorium for cultural aspects of hydraulic
engineering and the world changed by it

the importance of a culture‐sensitive hydraulic engineering increases,
the more ‘culture’ and technification are getting ahead

Reasonable HE

Hermeneutical HE




‘Dimensions of technology’ to be covered

(Figure according to Ropohl)



Cultural HE

Reasonable HE

understanding of the (hydraulic engineerings’) world by head, hand
and heart

a moderate and reasonable dealing with nature and self‐image

now and then the achievement of hydraulic engineering is lying in the
renunciation of technology

to preserve man from the restricting consequences of his own careless
doings

Hermeneutical HE




Cultural HE

Reasonable HE

Hermeneutical HE

dialogue (with the given situation) and

distance (to the planners’ action)

back stepping of the results performing subject

appropriate and reflected technological solutions would be enabled




Cultural HE

Reasonable HE

Hermeneutical HE


technology as artefact should be perceptible and ‘transparent’

Technology as artefact is witnessing our dealing with our “Umwelt”,
“Nachwelt” and “Mitwelt”

Possibility to ask: is this dealing still appropriate?


The End

Thank you.


Hydraulic engineering reflected in the humanities

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