Technology in Society - Society in Technology

This book contains a selection of talks given at the conference "Technology in Society - Society in Technology", held 18th-19th March 2004. Pall Skulason, then rector of the University of Iceland, called for this multidisciplinary conference in order to discuss technology's role in the development of societies and the interaction of the two. Throughout, this interaction has been studied through varying approaches. Sometimes technology is studied as the political driving force of history, sometimes as an objective tool in the hands of man, or a way to achieve set goals. The views that emerge in this volume are not only bound to issues of technology's effectiveness, but also the nature of this effect. The questions that emerge do not solely revolve around what is technologically possible, but also what is suitable, ethical or simply if we are on the right track. This volume is meant to shed light on the characteristics and indications of technology's influence on various aspects of society and conversely, society's influence on the development of and ideas about technology.