(2007-03-13) Caruso Sarewitz Know How

Denise Caruso on on Daniel Sarewitz's (and Richard Nelson's) research on the effectiveness of Human Action. KnowHow is more than knowledge. It puts knowledge to work in the real world... In a yet-unpublished essay, they contrast the know-how behind vaccinating children for measles and the know-how behind teaching first graders to read... In that case, today's know-how on vaccination is far more robust than that on teaching a child to read. When know-how is robust, it has a quality that the two men have called the "go" - or a core of reliable action. In their theory, any technology, object or practice that can be reliably standardized and improved over time, like vaccines or software or automobile emissions, has a "go".... But the "go" enables more than just the right tool for the job. It can provide a vital Convergence point for Stakeholder-s with very diverse agendas. Once they find common cause in a reliable technological solution, they have something to rally around so that all their interests can be advanced.... Can the "go" teach us something about those problems where there is "no go?" After all, the fact remains that "it's really hard to make progress where you don't have a "go" or a technology" to solve the problem at hand, Professor Sarewitz said... The professors stress that their work is still in progress. But they hope that their work may reframe how we think about our "no go" problems and help us find new ways to deploy human know-how and effectiveness beyond the comparatively low-hanging fruit that technological solutions provide (Technological Determinism). This ability would signal an important change in how societies approach and address their most pressing issues.