Words are interesting. Their meanings are often not as settled as they might seem as they move in and across communities.
I thought it might be interesting to have a topic here about words and what they refer to even if, as social objects, their fluidity is part of their condition.
The idea was provoked by a conversation I was participating in where people were referring to ‘cultural-’ and ‘cooperative-’ technologies. These could include techniques and practices: patterns of human behavior - not just ‘machines’ and ‘things’.
It reminded me of a word that I encountered a year or two ago through @shibco of The New Design Congress: ‘sociotechnical’.
I link to the wikipedia entry for this word: Sociotechnical system - Wikipedia
I’m still learning about the history of this word. It seems central to my concerns here.
Related: Fred Emery - Wikipedia