The Rise of the Technocratic Society

A discussion on the history of contemporary Western culture

with Dr. Michael HANBY, Professor of Religion and Philosophy of Science, John Paul II Institute at The Catholic University of America and Dr. Carlo LANCELLOTTI, Professor of Mathematics, CUNY, Editor and translator of The Crisis of Modernity by Augusto Del Noce

Presented by Crossroads Cultural Center

An obvious aspect of our culture is that we hold "data" in great esteem. As was pointed out recently by Leon Wieseltier "Where wisdom once was, quantification will now be. Quantification is the most overwhelming influence upon the contemporary American understanding of, well, everything. [...] The notion that the non-material dimensions of life must be explained in terms of the material dimensions, and that nonscientific understandings must be translated into scientific understandings if they are to qualify as knowledge, is increasingly popular [...] The contrary insistence that the glories of art and thought are not evolutionary adaptations, or that the mind is not the brain, or that love is not just biology’s bait for sex, now amounts to a kind of heresy." The great flaw of data-obsessed scientism, of course, is that it is itself not science, but just an un-reflected philosophy. Accordingly, today even our debates about the limitations of the "quantitative approach to everything" are usually conducted in sociological, utilitarian terms. In this way, we never escape from what Pope Benedict XVI called the "bunker" of positivism. As a first step towards the open air of reality, it is very important that we diagnose clearly the philosophical and historical roots of the data-driven mindset. For this purpose, Crossroads is holding a public discussion with Prof. Michael Hanby, a distinguished philosopher of science, and with Prof. Carlo Lancellotti, who recently translated into English a volume of essays by one of the most original European critics of the "technological society," the late Italian scholar Augusto Del Noce.

The event is open to the public and free of charge.

About this Event

Date: Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Time: 7pm
Location: Crossroads Auditorium
125 Maiden Lane, 15th Floor, NY, NY
(ID required to enter the building)
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About the Speakers

Dr. Michael Hanby
Professor of Religion and Philosophy of Science, John Paul II Institute at The Catholic University of America

Dr. Carlo Lancellotti
Professor of Mathematics, CUNY, Editor and translator of The Crisis of Modernity by Augusto Del Noce

Invitation

Download the invitation here.

Transcript

Not available

Video

Part I
Part II

Photos - click on image below