Techne and the Human Sciences in the 21st Century: Winter Institute Colloquium

The Australian Studies Institute (AuSI) is pleased to invite ANU staff to a special colloquium at which this year’s attendees at the Winter Institute (U-Tokyo, 6-10 January 2025) will summarise their presentation topic from January and discuss how their ideas have developed as a result of participation and feedback.

The Winter Institute is an annual collaboration between ANU, the University of Tokyo, New York University, and the University of Bonn. The Institute involves a 4-day seminar program on an interdisciplinary theme replete with keynote lectures, faculty papers and graduate student presentations including cross-disciplinary questioning. 

The integrated program also includes cultural visits and networking events for delegates.

This year’s Winter Institute was titled 'Techne and the Human Sciences in the 21st Century’.

The Oxford English Dictionary tells us that in Greek philosophy techne was a word to describe an ‘art, skill, or craft; a technique, principle, or method by which something is achieved’. The word was not used in English until the 1890s but by that time the sense of positivity in it had been encapsulated in a noun first used in 17th century: technology. In the 1950s Melvin Kranzberg articulated his famous first law: technology is neither good nor bad it is neutral. How do we see it now? What will be the impact of techne/technology on the human sciences in the 21st century?

Unsurprisingly, many papers in Tokyo explored perspectives on the digital age and the transformative influence of artificial intelligence across diverse areas such as the arts, politics, economics, research and education.

Speakers: 

• Prof Mark Kenny (moderator): “Techne-tension: digitisation as an accelerant in democratic decline”
• Prof Paul Pickering AM: “Do Androids dream of electric sheep? “Please, sorry, thank you”
• Pedro Riquelme Gonzalez: “New Tools, New Realities: The use of AI for big qualitative data”
• Mutiara Indriani (Zoom): “The Political economy of Access to Covid-19 Vaccines in Southeast Asia”
• Dr Zena Assaad: “Technology’s Neutrality Revisited: The social and political implications of technology”

If you require accessibility accommodations or a visitor Personal Emergency Evacuation plan, please contact the event organiser.