Abstract

Many recent developments in technological design are aimed towards the ‘humanisation’ of technology, that is, making technology behave in a way that is more ‘intuitive’, ‘friendly’ or ‘usable’. This assumes, however, that technology is not in itself human but rather some external antagonistic force or object. Contrary to this, I will defend the suggestion that technology is part of what constitutes humanity as a whole, to the extent of embodying some degree of cognition and consciousness. Looking briefly at some proposed mechanical models of self-consciousness, I consider the question: What functions might self-conscious systems perform?