Postman, Neil. "Invisible Technologies", in "Technopoly: The Surrender of Culture to Technology"
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Postman, Neil. "Invisible Technologies" in "Technopoly: The Surrender of Culture to Technology", (New York: Vintage Books, 1993), pp. 123-143.
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The author, Postman in ???Invisible Technologies???, highlighted
the various hidden tools which may not be classified as
technologies. Postman firmly insisted that some technologies are
viewed in disguise, which he likened to language, statistics,
opinion polls, accounting procedures, IQ tests, and management.
These invisible technologies go on and do their work in the society
for good or bad without criticism or awareness.
He pointed out that language is an invisible technology because itassumes absolute control of our thoughts and ideas, and thattechnology relied so much on statistical calculations in order tomake meanings to its findings, yet statistics is not vastlyrecognized like technology itself. More so, Postman stated thatstatistics create room for new ideas, perceptions, and realities bymaking visible large scale patterns. Even at that, opinion pollswhich is also a statistical framework is so much relied upon bypoliticians for major political and public policy decisionmaking.
Management is yet another concept of invisible technology, which
the author stressed and explained that it is a technology, given
that it uses the technique of organizing, arranging, and
controlling to strengthen organizational growth and development. It
is technically organized in a hierarchical structure to arrange
work flows from bottom top and vice-versa. It is through this
technologically arranged concept of management that quality
control, and inventory accountings are developed, which the author
classified as new ways of doing things. These two factors are
however prominent for increased productivity and cost effectiveness
in organizations, businesses, as well as government sectors.
