In this volume, fifteen scholars from the United States, Spain, Puerto Rico, and Colombia discuss the social implications of new technologies. Their essays address the cultural worlds that crystallize around technologies, the challenges to democracy that they pose, and the responsibility of modern technology for forcing a public response to new social and moral issues. Three themes define the three sections into which the volume is divided: "New Worlds," "New Technologies," and "New Issues." The essays in the section "New Worlds" range from optimism that new technologies will produce a better world than that of 1992, through a nonjudgmental discussion of the transformation of our "lifeworld" that new technologies are effecting, to deep concern for the viability of the world that modern technology has already created. In "New Technologies," the focus is on political responses to modern technologies. The authors in this section see the challenge to understanding and controlling our technological world in reshaping existing relations of social power and authority, and in creating new institutions more adequate to the sociopolitical realities of the process of technological innovation. While the contributors in the first two sections of the volume argue that broad changes in values and institutions are preconditions of a more beneficent relationship among people, nature, and technology, those in the section "New Issues" adopt narrower, more specific, viewpoints. Their essays address the political values underlying the Deep Ecology movement, the ethics of military technologies, the capacity of democratic institutions for a public role in setting technology policies, and science and technology literacy mechanisms. Collectively, these essays reflect the growing international concern with the role played by technological innovation in a rapidly changing world, and they point toward the formulation of concrete political platforms for informed social responses to the innovation process.

In today’s high-pressured world, digital transformation is everywhere on the agendas of corporate boards and has risen to the top of CEOs’ strategic plans. Artificial intelligence, blockchain, 3D printing, the Internet of Things, and drones are some of the emerging technologies that are already transforming our world. In this fast changing domain— predicted by few and now reality for all how can companies transform today’s challenges into tomorrow’s opportunities? This book is targeted to help a broad audience such as students, professionals, business, and technology managers to transform an old-world brick and mortar organization to a new-world digital leader. The author addresses various questions including: what essential components does digital transformation include, and how does it impact the enterprise? How does convergence of emerging technologies benefit your organization? How can you start transformation and technology planning projects?

World-renowned economist Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, explains that we have an opportunity to shape the fourth industrial revolu­tion, which will fundamentally alter how we live and work. Schwab argues that this revolution is different in scale, scope and complexity from any that have come before. Characterized by a range of new technologies that are fusing the physical, digital and biological worlds, the developments are affecting all disciplines, economies, industries and governments, and even challenging ideas about what it means to be human. Artificial intelligence is already all around us, from supercomputers, drones and virtual assistants to 3D printing, DNA sequencing, smart thermostats, wear­able sensors and microchips smaller than a grain of sand. But this is just the beginning: nanomaterials 200 times stronger than steel and a million times thinner than a strand of hair and the first transplant of a 3D printed liver are already in development. Imagine “smart factories” in which global systems of manu­facturing are coordinated virtually, or implantable mobile phones made of biosynthetic materials. The fourth industrial revolution, says Schwab, is more significant, and its ramifications more profound, than in any prior period of human history. He outlines the key technologies driving this revolution and discusses the major impacts expected on government, business, civil society and individu­als. Schwab also offers bold ideas on how to harness these changes and shape a better future—one in which technology empowers people rather than replaces them; progress serves society rather than disrupts it; and in which innovators respect moral and ethical boundaries rather than cross them. We all have the opportunity to contribute to developing new frame­works that advance progress.

New developments in bio- and nanotechnologies and also in information and communication technologies have shaped the research environment in the last decade. Increasingly, highly educated experts in R&D departments are collaborating with scientists and researchers at universities and research institutes to develop new technologies. Transnational companies that have acquired various firms in different countries need to manage diverse R&D strategies and cultures. The new knowledge-based economy permeates across companies, universities, research institutes and countries, creating a cross-disciplinary, global environment. Clearly, managing technology in this new climate presents significant challenges.This book comprises selected papers from the 14th International Conference on Management of Technology, which was convened under the auspices of IAMOT and UNIDO on 22-26 May 2005 in Vienna, Austria. It deals with some important aspects of these challenges, and discusses in detail the changing dynamics of innovation and technology management. It will certainly appeal to academics, scientists, managers, and policy makers alike.

What does it mean to think about technology philosophically? Why try? These are the issues that Carl Mitcham addresses in this work, a comprehensive, critical introduction to the philosophy of technology and a discussion of its sources and uses. Tracing the changing meaning of "technology" from ancient times to our own, Mitcham identifies the most important traditions of critical analysis of technology: the engineering approach, which assumes the centrality of technology in human life; and the humanities approach, which is concerned with its moral and cultural boundaries. Mitcham bridges these two traditions through an analysis of discussions of engineering design, of the distinction between tools and machines, and of engineering science itself. He looks at technology as it is experienced in everyday life—as material objects (from kitchenware to computers), as knowledge ( including recipes, rules, theories, and intuitive "know-how"), as activity (design, construction, and use), and as volition (knowing how to use technology and understanding its consequences). By elucidating these multiple aspects, Mitcham establishes criteria for a more comprehensive analysis of ethical issues in applications of science and technology. This book will guide anyone wanting to reflect on technology and its moral implications.

This book focuses on a key issue today: the role of values in technology, with special emphasis on ethical values. This topic involves the analysis of internal values in technology (as they affect objectives, processes, and outcomes) and the study of external values in technology (social, cultural, economic, ecological, etc.). These values — internal and external — are crucial to the decision making of engineers. In addition, they have increasing relevance for citizens concerned with the present and future state of technology, which gives society a leading position in technological issues. The book follows three main lines of research: 1) new perspectives on technology, values, and ethics; 2) rationality and responsibility in technology; and 3) technology and risks. This volume analyzes the two main sides involved here: the theoretical basis for the role of values in technology and a practical discussion on how to implement them in our society. Thus, the book is of interest for philosophers, engineers, academics of different fields and policy-makers. The style used lends itself to broad audience.​

For most professions, a code of ethics exists to promote positive behavior among practitioners in order to enrich others within the field as well as the communities they serve. Similar to the medical, law, and business fields, the engineering discipline also instills a code of ethical conduct. Contemporary Ethical Issues in Engineering highlights a modern approach to the topic of engineering ethics and the current moral dilemmas facing practitioners in the field. Focusing on key issues, theoretical foundations, and the best methods for promoting engineering ethics from the pre-practitioner to the managerial level, this timely publication is ideally designed for use by engineering students, active professionals, and academics, as well as researchers in all disciplines of engineering.