Resistance Against Analysis and Planning in Research and Development

Many current reflections on science and technological development seem to be concentrated upon the notion that these processes are not subject to man's conscious control. But, instead of demanding an analysis of research itself, from which conscious control might ultimately be expected, they focus their attention on the consequences of scientific activity. They recommend the scientific comprehension of the results of science, on the ground that only thus can we save ourselves from calamitous consequences. A feeling of helplessness and resignation in the face of the apparent autonomy of technological development is quite common. Its origins may reach far back. With Heraclitus, we feel that war is "the father of all things," and reach the height of our pessimism in Spengler's Kulturkritik. "The master of the world becomes the slave of the machine." This attitude of resignation prevails among large numbers of educated Germans, who persist in closing their eyes to the connections between scientific development and social factors.