Olena Gruba is a a visiting Ph.D. student from Ukraine at ITAS. Her dissertation project is about “German Philosophy of Technology”. As part of it, she interviewed Prof. Hans Lenk on the same topic. Moreover, during the month of November, Prof. Carl Mitcham is visiting ITAS (again).

Olena Gruba together with ITAS colleagues Giovanni Frigo, Carl Mitcham, and the PhilETAS group, would like to kindly invite you to an informal and yet special event and discussion entitled

“Hans Lenk & Carl Mitcham on German Philosophy of Technology: Questions from Olena Gruba”
to be held on Tuesday 07.11 at 10:00 - 11:30 in room 418 (Karlstraße 11, 76133 Karlsruhe)
and via Zoom. Please contact meike hebich ∂does-not-exist.kit edu for the Zoom details.

Carl Mitcham will lead a conversation with Hans Lenk based on Olena Gruba’s questions.
The informal dialog among Lenk, Mitcham, and Gruba will be followed by a more open Q&A discussion.

Carl Mitcham is an American philosopher of engineering and technology, Professor Emeritus of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences at the Colorado School of Mines, and Visiting International Professor of Philosophy of Technology at Renmin University of China. In his works Mitcham looks at technology as it is experienced in everyday life—as material objects, as knowledge, as activity, and as volition. Through all publications, he asks and tries to find an answer to one general question: what does it mean to think about technology
philosophically? And why should we try?

A short list of publications:

• Research in Philosophy and Technology, 1998
• Thinking through Technology: The Path between Engineering and Philosophy, 1994

Hans Lenk is a Professor Emeritus at the Institute of Philosophy at the University of Karlsruhe (KIT) and an Olympic rowing champion. Lenk studied mathematics, philosophy, sociology, sports science, and psychology in Freiburg, Breisgau, and Kiel. In 2005, Hans Lenk was the first German elected president of the Institute International de Philosophy („World Academy of Philosophy“). In 2012, Hans Lenk was inducted into the
German Sports Hall of Fame. Lenk‘s research focuses on technology‘s impact on the world and methodological, socio-philosophical, socio-political and sociological, ideological, and moral-philosophical problems related to this. He takes into account the problems faced by the „creators“ of the technology, as well as the problems of ordinary users and those affected. He analyses „technology“ as a social and cultural phenomenon.

A short list of publications:

• Konkrete Humanität: Vorlesungen über Verantwortung und Menschlichkeit (suhrkamp taschenbuch wissenschaft), 1998
• Das flexible Vielfachwesen: Einführung in die moderne philosophische Anthropologie zwischen Bio-, Techno und Kulturwissenschaften, 2009