论作为“技术人工物”的城市霾及其资本化

On the Urban Haze as a “Technical Artefact” and Its Capitalization

关于“技术人工物”本质规定性的探讨,历经了“二重性”“三重性”“意向性”和“系统性”等多个阶段。日益深入的研究,揭示出广义的“功能”“意向”或“合目的性”也是技术人工物的本质规定性。霾具有历史性、社会性和地域性。城市霾是一种技术人工物,具体表现为:技术产物作为其主要来源;技术工具和方法作为其监测和检测手段以及分析方法;技术语言作为其表达方式,以及技术进步作为治理城市霾的主要力量。作为技术人工物的城市霾的资本化,是通过与之伴生的空气净化器这类技术人工物来间接实现的。人们对城市霾的“间接消费”反映出其消费的片面性和局限性。这值得我们进一步思考掩藏于这种片面性和局限性背后的生态危机和生活方式转变问题。

Discussions on the nature of “technical artefacts” have gone through several stages,such as “dual nature”,“tripartite nature”,“intentionality” and “systematicness”.More and more in-depth studies have revealed that the broad sense of “function”,“intention” or “purposiveness” is also the essential stipulation of technical artefacts.Haze has historical,social and regional characteristics.Urban haze is a kind of technical artefacts,manifested as:technological products as the main source of it;technical tools as the monitoring,detection,and analysis methods of it;technological language as the expression of it,and technological progress as the main force to control urban haze.As a technological artefact,the capitalization of urban haze is indirectly realized through the accompanying technological artefacts such as air purifiers.People’s “indirect consumption” of urban haze reflects the one-sidedness and limitation of their consumption.It is worth our further thinking about the ecological crisis and the transformation of life style hidden behind this one-sidedness and limitation.