Suchergebnisse

"This brief history connects the past and present of utopian thought, from the first utopias in ancient Greece, right up to present day visions of cyberspace communities and paradise. Explores the purpose of utopias, what they reveal about the societies who conceive them, and how utopias have changed over the centuries Unique in including both non-Western and Western visions of utopia Explores the many forms utopias have taken - prophecies and oratory, writings, political movements, world's fairs, physical communities - and also discusses high-tech and cyberspace visions for the first time The first book to analyze the implicitly utopian dimensions of reform crusades like Technocracy of the 1930s and Modernization Theory of the 1950s, and the laptop classroom initiatives of recent years "--

Introduction: Henry Ford, centralization, and decentralization -- Henry Ford's village industries: origins, contexts, rationales -- Decentralized technology in the village industries: scale, scope, system, vision -- Farm and factory united -- Buildings and workforce -- Administration and relationship to local communities -- Workers' experiences -- Unionization -- The decentralists and other visionaries -- American industry also preaches decentralization -- Decline of the village industries during World War II and after -- Contemporary renewal of the village industries in high-tech America -- Conclusion: Henry Ford evolves from mechanical to social engineer -- Appendix: basic facts about and present status of the nineteen village industries

ABSTRACT
Techno-fixes are short-term, avowedly practical proposed solutions to hitherto unsolvable social, economic, and social problems. They bypass traditional obstacles such as poverty, overpopulation, and religious beliefs to transform communities, countries, and regions. They reflect an almost blind faith in the power of technology as panacea. This article puts America's commitment to techno-fixes even today in historical and contemporary perspective. Techno-fixes are not uniquely American, but America has since its colonial origins exemplified techno-fixes more than any other nation. However, the term itself dates only to the 1960s. The article cites examples of techno-fixes and examines the continuing belief in techno-fixes amid the at best partial success of some of those examples and the utter failure of others. Yet, like all serious utopias, all of those techno-fixes are invaluable in illuminating the times and contexts in which they were formulated and promoted.