标签：tech ethics

Will AI Restructure the History of Science?

AI & Scholarship2026.03.24
Will AI Restructure the History of Science?
Published in Xinrui Weekly, issue 162; the original draft is posted here. 1 AI accelerates iteration: from assistant to master I received this commissioned piece in September, but I procrastinated until December to write it. Yet that delay also meant I waited for the November 18 release of Gemini 3.0, a milestone that marks the restructuring of academic research by AI as having entered the present continuous tense. It is not that Gemini 3.0 overturned my previous views; rather, many of the “AI will…” statements I had discussed before now have to be rewritten as “AI can already…”. The previous major milestone was probably at the beginning of 2025, when…
philosophy history of science scholarship history
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2026年3月24日
Will AI’s “Xiaowuxianggong” Go Berserk? — “Review of AI 3.0”

AI & Scholarship2022.01.28
Will AI’s “Xiaowuxianggong” Go Berserk? — “Review of AI 3.0”
I was invited to write two annual recommended books for the China Science Daily. I had originally meant to recommend The Technology Trap, but since it came out too late to count as a 2021 title, I ended up choosing these two instead: AI 3.0, by Melanie Mitchell; translated by Wang Feiyue, Li Yuke, Wang Xiao, and Zhang Hui; Sichuan Science and Technology Press, February 2021 Breaking the Code: The Amazing Power of Gene Editing, by Jennifer Doudna and Samuel Sternberg; translated by Fu He; Hunan Science and Technology Press, December 2020 The following is a repost of my recommendation written for China Science Daily (2022-01-28, page 3, Books). First…
book reading book review AI science communication
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2022年1月28日
“Passing the Buck” Is the Greatest Danger Exposed by the He Jiankui Incident

Culture & Public Commentary2018.12.04
“Passing the Buck” Is the Greatest Danger Exposed by the He Jiankui Incident
The Chinese Science News commissioned this piece, which was published on December 4, 2018, on page 1, “Top News”. At the time of publication, the title was changed to “Who Should Bear Responsibility for the He Jiankui Incident,” and the content was also somewhat polished. I am posting the original draft here. Recently, the birth of two gene-edited babies has shocked the world and brought the issue of science-and-technology ethics into the public eye. In recent years, China’s scientific and technological development has been rapid, and in many fields it has already caught up with the international standard, even reaching world-class levels. But as the He Jiankui incident has exposed,…
China technology commentary tech ethics
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2018年12月4日
Pitching Philosophy of Science and Technology (II)

History of Science & Scholarship2007.09.22
Pitching Philosophy of Science and Technology (II)
Last time, my sales pitch was mainly that any branch discipline of philosophy can come to do philosophy of science and technology. This time, why not go one step further, because what philosophy of science and technology covers is not just the sum of the other seven branches~ Saying that the territory of philosophy of science and technology is bigger than the combined territory of the other seven second-level disciplines is a bit too much, but it is not entirely empty boasting either. That is because the division into the eight second-level disciplines of philosophy is itself unreasonable. Philosophy is not a science—not a “discipline of divisions.” The differentiation and…
science history of science philosophy of science sociology
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2007年9月22日
How Can We Promote Technological Innovation?

History of Science & Scholarship2006.06.10
How Can We Promote Technological Innovation?
Just as a lightning strike is an extremely accidental event, hard to predict and grasp, people can nonetheless figure out what conditions make lightning more likely to occur. They can then install lightning rods and other facilities to channel possible strikes. Technological innovation is also unpredictable, but people can strive to create environmental conditions conducive to innovation, promote the emergence of innovation, and more effectively bring its effects into play. So how can we create a technological environment favorable to innovation? I think this first requires adhering to a certain “tolerant” attitude. A tolerant attitude applies to many issues; here I will begin with a preliminary discussion from the following…
science history of science scientific spirit scientific method
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2006年6月10日
If you can’t live without it, can’t you rebel against it?

Culture & Public Commentary2006.04.10
If you can’t live without it, can’t you rebel against it?
Many people are very disdainful of the so-called “anti-science cultural figures.” There is a very simple piece of logic: those who are always shouting about opposing science are themselves enjoying technology, using computers to write articles, and in no way can they do without technology—so isn’t opposing technology horribly hypocritical? This logic seems pretty reasonable? In fact, it is ridiculously childish. To use an analogy: we depend on tap water every day, but if there is a problem with water quality, should we not point it out and criticize it? Could a water company use this logic—“You criticize tap water, but can you do without tap water? You’re enjoying our…
culture technology scientism tech ethics
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2006年4月10日
Revering Science

History of Science & Scholarship2006.03.14
Revering Science
Besides “reverence for life” and “reverence for nature,” I wonder whether one can also propose a “reverence for technology.” For scientistic thinkers, in their attitude toward technology, “reverence” is in excess while “awe” is lacking. They regard technology as a power belonging to human beings themselves; their “worship of technology” is in fact self-worship, blind confidence in their own power. Their “reverence” does not really include true respect either, because they do not understand genuine humility. And yet they are immersed in worship of the mighty force displayed by technology, ignoring the fact that the stronger something is, the more dangerous it is. For extreme anti-scientific thinkers, by contrast,…
technology science scientism tech ethics
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2006年3月14日
Is Science and Technology the Primary Productive Force?

History of Science & Scholarship2005.12.08
Is Science and Technology the Primary Productive Force?
Science and technology have unquestionably greatly promoted production, but have they really improved production efficiency? If “efficiency” is defined as “the amount of work completed per unit of time,” then this is obviously unproblematic; however, if we understand “efficiency” as “the ratio of output to consumption,” then it is not so simple. For “consumption” includes not only the time, labor, capital, and so forth that are invested, but should also count energy and environmental consumption as well—just like when you calculate the inputs for cooking a dish, in addition to the costs of the ingredients and seasonings directly put in at the time, and the cook’s labor, and so on,…
science ecology tech ethics
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2005年12月8日