The SPT special interest group Maintenance & Philosophy of Technology is now entering its second year. The chairs are Mark Thomas Young (University of Vienna) and Sanna Lehtinen (Aalto Univ.) The goals of the group include not only stimulating discussion about maintenance among philosophers but also facilitating dialogue between philosophers of technology and scholars of maintenance and repair from other disciplines. All are therefore encouraged to take part, regardless of disciplinary background. The organizers look forward to welcoming a diverse range of perspectives on this important and exciting topic.
Below you’ll find the schedule for 2023. As usual, all talks will be held online. If you’d like to attend any of the sessions, send an email to mark@markthomasyoung.net to be added to the mailing list through which you’ll receive an abstract and link to the talks a week in advance).
Schedule:
February 1st 2023 (18-1915 UTC+1): David Pontille & Jerome Denis (Paris School of Mines) “The Times of Maintenance”
March 9th 2023 (18-1915 UTC+1): Zachary Pirtle (George Washington U) “What do Maintainers Know and How do they Know it? Revised Perspectives on Engineering
April 13th 2023 (18-1915 UTC+1): Steven Vogel (Denison U) “Maintenance and the Humanness of Infrastructure”
May 11th 2023 (18-1915 UTC+1): Madeleine Ley (TU Delft) “Maintaining a Careless Culture: Sedimentation, Values and Retail”
August 10th 2023 (18-1915 UTC+1): Chris Henke (Colgate U) “Infrastructures, Repair and Power: The Persistence of Sociotechnical Systems and the Challenge of a Sustainable Future”
September 14th 2023 (18-1915 UTC+1): Amy Meissner (independent) “Repair as Accompaniment: Applying an Ethic of Care to the Craft of Repair.”
October 12th 2023 (18-1915 UTC+1): Guru Madhaven (NASEM) “The Greatest Show on Earth: Revaluing Maintenance”
November 9th 2023 (18-1915 UTC+1): Andy Russel (SUNY) & Lee Vinsel (Virginia Tech) “After Eight Years of the Maintainers”
December 14th 2023 (18-1915 UTC+1): Philip Scranton (Rutgers U) “Spare Parts: Conceptualizing a Modern Problem”