Kranzberg's laws of technology
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Melvin Kranzberg's six laws of technology state:
- 1st - Technology is neither good nor bad; nor is it neutral.
- 2nd - Invention is the mother of necessity.
- 3rd - Technology comes in packages, big and small.
- 4th - Although technology might be a prime element in many public issues, nontechnical factors take precedence in technology-policy decisions.
- 5th - All history is relevant, but the history of technology is the most relevant.
- 6th - Technology is a very human activity - and so is the history of technology.
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References
- Kranzberg, Melvin. "Technology and History: 'Kranzberg's Laws.'" Technology and Culture 27 (1986): 544-560.
- It has been reprinted in this anthology:
- Kranzberg, Melvin. "Overview: Technology and History: Kranzberg's Laws", in Technology and the West: A Historical Anthology from Technology & Culture, edited by Terry S. Reynolds and Stephen H. Cutcliffe. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1997.