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Emergent technologies, like quantum technology, gives an incentive to involve society in an early stage of the technology’s development. However, the current popular communication about quantum science and technology might hinder societal actors to become involved. In this study, we aim to study three aspects present in popular communication about quantum science and technology that might affect engagement: 1.) the enigmatic frame, 2.) explaining underlying quantum concepts, and 3.) the benefit and risk frame.

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In this contribution a logical analysis is given of the in design research regularly held expert position to prescribe expert design practices as favourable de-sign practices to other designers. First I argue that despite its conservative starting point to consider only types of already existing expert design practices as favourable, the position allows for some room to also prescribe new types of design practices. Second, I analyse the very claim that expert design practices define types of favourable practices. It is shown that the expert position may be formulated in a way in which this claim is tautological, and in a way in which it involves empirical prediction. This latter formulation allows testing the expert position by determining whether designers when mimicking experts indeed engage in favourable design practices.

The evolution of technical artifacts is often seen as radically different from the evolution of biological species. Technical artifacts are normally understood to result from the purposive intelligence of designers whereas biological species and organisms are held to have resulted from evolution by natural selection. But could it be that technology, too, is really the outcome of evolutionary processes rather than intelligent design? Recent decades have seen the emergence of evolutionary theories of technology, which use concepts and principles drawn from evolutionary biology to describe and explain processes of technological innovation and technological change. In this chapter, I will focus on three prominent theories, by George Basalla, Joel Mokyr and Robert Aunger, and I will investigate to what extent these theories present a truly evolutionary account of technological innovation and change. In the end, I aim to analyze how these theories construe technological design: as a blind evolutionary process, a purposive activity of designers, or a mixture of both.

A core issue in the philosophy of technology has been the non-neutrality of technology. Most scholars in the field agree that technologies actively help to shape culture and society, rather than being neutral means for realizing human ends. How to take seriously this non-neutrality of technology in ethics? Engineering ethics mainly focuses on the moral decisions and responsibilities of designers, and remains too external to the moral significance of technologies themselves. Yet, analyses of the non-neutrality of technology make it plausible to ascribe some morality to artifacts. First of all, technologies substantially contribute to the coming about of actions and of decisions about how to act. Second, their role cannot be entirely reduced to the intentions behind their design and use. This paper investigates what these observations imply for ethical theory, and for the ethics of design.

This report provides a critical review of horizon scan studies on future technological developments performed by research institutions, businesses, and policy organisations at transnational (EU) and international levels. This served different purposes: 1) Find common practices and learn from the pros and the cons that horizon scanning can bring 2) Develop a model to carry out a horizon scan informed by potential social and ethical impacts (the TechEthos approach) 3) Distil a reasoned list of high socio-economic impact technology families, ordering and clustering hundreds of future technologies spotted by these studies.

This deliverable presents the results of the assessment and final selection of technologies as part of the TechEthos horizon scan. Within this process the 16 technologies resulting from the horizon scan’s first part and described in detail in D1.1 “Description of selected high socio-economic impact technologies” were evaluated and the final TechEthos technology portfolio was decided. As a result, the TechEthos technology portfolio includes “Climate Engineering”, “Digital Extended Reality” and “Neurotechnologies”.

Framing and understanding our connected and evolving world requires a systems perspective. Intervening and acting towards more sustainable futures and a humane society requires (re-)designing. To achieve that, the Handbook of Engineering Systems Design focuses on socio-technical engineering systems shaping our modern lives. Such systems are fulfilling core functions in society and are characterised by a high degree of technical and organisational complexity, multifacetedness of human behaviour, elaborated processes, and long lifecycles. Examples include generating and distributing energy, enabling global communication networks, creating affordable healthcare, managing global digital manufacturing and supply chains, or building and maintaining critical infrastructure. The Handbook is an authoritative compendium and reference source written by leading experts in the field from across the globe. It is written for scholars as well as practitioners transforming society through research- and education-, industry- and policy and as such, an essential resource for decision makers to understand their role as change makers. In this introduction, the core terms of the engineering systems approach are defined and the current context in which engineers work is described, characterised by the developments of globalisation and interconnectedness and by the challenges of sustainability and digitalisation. The introduction then focuses on interventions in engineering systems by design, looks at advantages and some concerns of adopting the engineering systems approach, poses open questions for the future, including a call to action for training the ability to connect – connectability – and provides a summary of the contents of the contributions to the five parts of the Handbook.

This report describes the process and the result of a horizon scan exercise on new and emerging technologies and their socio-economic impacts carried out as part of the TechEthos project. The horizon scanning aids to: • Identifying, selecting, and describing a set of 16 technology families with significant socio-economic impact and ethical dimensions that are expected to be developed and deployed in Europe and worldwide in the next five to ten years. The analysis will be used to ensure that the ethics framework and guidelines developed by TechEthos will be relevant and applicable for a wide range of new and emerging technologies. • Informing the choice of a subset of 3 technology families that will form a TechEthos technology portfolio on which the project will undertake in-depth ethical, social, policy and legal analyses. This subset will be used as case studies to develop operational ethics guidelines for these specific technologies. This report describes the overall set of technology families, while the impact assessment leading to the choice of these technologies and the final selection of the technology portfolio will be the focus of two upcoming TechEthos reports.

The pervasiveness of technology has undeniably changed the way the urban everyday is structured and experienced. Understanding the deep impact of this development on the everyday experience and its foundational aesthetic components is needed in order to determine how the skills and capacities to cope with the change, as well as to steer it, can be improved. Urban technology solutions – how they are defined, applied and used – are changing the sphere of everyday experience for urban dwellers. Philosophical and applied approaches to urban aesthetics offer perspectives to understand technologically mediated sensory experiences within the urban realm. This chapter shows how new urban technologies act as an agent of change within the familiar urban environment. We outline how the perspective of philosophical aesthetics can be used to understand urban technologies and their role in the constitution of everyday urban lifeworlds. The pervasiveness of technology has changed the way urban everyday is structured and experienced. An understanding of the deep impact of this development on everyday experience and its foundational aesthetic components is necessary in order to determine how skills and capacities can be improved in coping with such change, as well as managing it. Urban technology solutions – how they are defined, applied and used – are changing the sphere of everyday experience for urban dwellers. Philosophical and applied approaches to urban aesthetics offer perspectives on understanding technologically mediated sensory experiences within the urban realm. This chapter shows how new urban technologies act as an agent of change within the familiar urban environment. We outline how the perspective of philosophical aesthetics can be used to understand urban technologies and their role in the constitution of everyday urban lifeworlds.

The pragmatist philosopher Peirce insisted that besides deduction and induction there is a third main form of inference, abduction, which is the only type of inference capable of producing new ideas. Also he defined abduction as a stage of the methodological process in science, where hypotheses are formed to explain anomalies. Basing on these seminal ideas, scholars have proposed modified, widened or alternative definitions of abduction and devised taxonomies of abductive inferences. Influenced by Peirce’s seminal writings and subsequent treatments on abduction in philosophy of science, design scholars have in the last 40 years endeavoured to shed light on design by means of the concept of abduction. The first treatment was provided by March in 1976. He viewed that abduction, which he called “productive reasoning”, is the key mode of reasoning in design. He also presented a three-step cyclic design process, similar to Peirce’s methodological process in science. Among the many other later treatments of design abduction, Roozenburg’s definition of explanatory and innovative abduction is noteworthy. However, an evaluation of the related literature suggests that research into abduction in design is still in an undeveloped stage. This research shows gaps in coverage, lack of depth and diverging outcomes. By focusing on the differences between science and design as well as on empirical knowledge of different phenomena comprising design, new conceptions of abduction in design are derived. Given the differences of context, abduction in design shows characteristics not yet found or identified in science. For example, abduction can occur in connection to practically all inference types in design; it is a property of an inference besides an inference itself. A number of the most important abductive inference types as they occur in design are identified and discussed in more detail.

The aim of this chapter is to introduce and discuss aesthetics as an approach to understand how design frames experience. In doing so, the chapter combines two philosophical interests in design, design phenomenology and design aesthetics, in order to promote a framework for discussing the impact of aesthetic meaning construction on experience. First, the chapter raises the phenomenological question of the relationship between design and experience, specifically, how design conditions experience. Second, in looking at aesthetics in terms of a) the sensual appeal of design, b) design objects as aesthetic media that frame modes of understanding, and c) contextual factors, such as media, influencing what is regarded as aesthetic, it is the thesis of the chapter that a reflective concept of design aesthetics can be employed to differentiate between three different ways in which design frame our experience: We can look at sensual, conceptual, and contextual aesthetic dimensions of design and examine their contribution to the framing of experience, that is, how different dimensions of meaning articulation in design offer different framings of the experiences promoted by design objects and solutions. Further, the concept of aestheticization is introduced and discussed as the way in which objects are construed as ‘aesthetic’. A central insight is that the contextual aspect of aestheticization can promote a cultural construction of new conditions and new categories for the way we experience relevant meaning properties of design objects. The aim of this chapter is to introduce and discuss aesthetics as an approach to understand how design frames experience. In doing so, the chapter combines two philosophical interests in design, design phenomenology and design aesthetics, in order to promote a framework for discussing the impact of aesthetic meaning construction on experience. First, the chapter raises the phenomenological question of the relationship between design and experience, specifically, how design conditions experience. Second, in looking at aesthetics in terms of a) the sensual appeal of design, b) design objects as aesthetic media that frame modes of understanding, and c) contextual factors, such as media, influencing what is regarded as aesthetic, it is the thesis of the chapter that a reflective concept of design aesthetics can be employed to differentiate between three different ways in which design frame our experience: We can look at sensual, conceptual, and contextual aesthetic dimensions of design and examine their contribution to the framing of experience, that is, how different dimensions of meaning articulation in design offer different framings of the experiences promoted by design objects and solutions. Further, the concept of aestheticization is introduced and discussed as the way in which objects are construed as ‘aesthetic’. A central insight is that the contextual aspect of aestheticization can promote a cultural construction of new conditions and new categories for the way we experience relevant meaning properties of design objects.

Gunther Anders was speaking for the age of nuclear weapons when he noted that technological capabilities exceed human comprehension. Genetically modified organisms, pervasive computing in smart environments, and envisioned nanotechnological applications pose a similar challenge; powerful technological interventions elude comprehension if only by being too small, or too big, to register in human perception and experience. The most advanced technological research programs are thus bringing about a curiously regressive inversion of the relation between humans, technology, and nature. No longer a means of controlling nature in order to protect, shield, or empower humans, technology dissolves into nature and becomes uncanny, incomprehensible, beyond perceptual and conceptual control. Technology might thus end up being as enchanted and perhaps frightening as nature used to be when humanity started the technological process of disenchantment and rationalization. Good design might counteract this inversion, for example, by creating human interfaces even with technologies that are meant to be too small to be experienced.