Los objetos técnicos y los organismos tecnificados. Reflexiones filosóficas, estéticas y políticas sobre la técnica. Technical objects and technified organisms. Philosophical, aesthetical and political approaches on technique

El presente proyecto se propone como parte inicial de una investigación sobre la relación entre naturaleza/cultura/técnica. Tradicionalmente la naturaleza y la cultura se han considerado como ámbitos diferenciados y opuestos. Y es en esta distinción donde la técnica adquiere un lugar central. El pensamiento occidental sobre la técnica ha recibido diversas interpretaciones: desde una subordinación con respecto al conocimiento verdadero (episteme) en la filosofía clásica, un optimismo sobre la técnica como posibilidad de dominación de la naturaleza en el Renacimiento y la Ilustración, y la ambigüedad y desasosiego romántico (Mitcham, 1979). Durante el siglo XX se distinguen dos posiciones antagónicas sobre la técnica. Por un lado, una actitud “crítica” donde pueden identificarse los trabajos de filósofs de diferentes tradiciones como Ortega y Gasset (1939), Heidegger (1954), Mumford (1971) Ellul (1960) y la Escuela de Frankfurt. Por otro lado, una filosofía de la técnica “ingenieril” que consiste en el análisis de la tecnología como un paradigma de pensamiento y acción humana. Esta dicotomía ha sido interpretada por Eco como “apocalípticos e integrados”. Más allá de las mencionadas diferencias, lo que tienen en común ambas posiciones es que parten de una dicotomía entre cultura y naturaleza. Nuestra perspectiva rechaza esta dicotomía, por el contrario, evidenciamos una creciente imbricación entre ambas donde las fronteras entre una y otra se hacen difusas. La noción de “objeto técnico” propuesta por Simondon (2007) hace referencia a la inserción del objeto técnico en la cultura, donde debe reconocerse la “realidad humana” presente en el mismo. Ahora bien, esto no significa “humanizar el objeto técnico”, sino más bien indagar sobre el lugar que este ocupa en la cultura como también establecer su relación con la naturaleza. En el siglo XVII el hombre mismo es reinterpretado como máquina (La Mettrie, 2000). En la actualidad pueden identificarse dos tendencias en la concepción de la técnica: los «humanos-máquinas» y las «máquinas-humanas», en otras palabras, la disposición del humano hacia la máquina y la tendencia de la máquina hacia lo humano. No obstante, ambas posiciones siguen manteniendo una distinción taxonómica entre el cuerpo –o lo orgánico- y lo maquínico, lo que implica una consideración de esta relación de manera extrínseca. Frente a esta tensión Haraway propone el concepto de cyborg: «un organismo cibernético» (1995). Los desarrollos tecnológicos han producido una modificación tal en la vida de los seres orgánicos en los cuales ya no puede concebirse su cuerpo independientemente de la tecnología. Esto conduce a replantear la distinción entre “animales/hombres/máquinas”, entendiendo a los mismos como expresiones de naturaleza, cultura y tecnología respectivamente. Nuestra investigación parte de la hipótesis que la técnica diluye diferencias de orden natural y cultural a través de los objetos técnicos que son productos culturales. La estética se ocupa de la percepción sensible del mundo no puede eludir su dimensión técnica. Al margen de la crítica a la “Industria cultural” consideramos relevante la aproximación de Benjamin al problema de la técnica porque aborda la imbricación antes mencionada en el campo de la percepción. Según Benjamin la irrupción de la técnica al mismo tiempo que posibilita una estetización de la política que confluye en el fascismo como punto extremo también abre la posibilidad de desmontar la ideología del progreso infinito (1967). Una integración entre aproximaciones estéticas y políticas a la técnica Flusser (1983) propone la “caja negra” como metáfora de la técnica contemporánea. Su propuesta es la “apertura de la caja negra” que consiste en tomar conocimiento del funcionamiento del dispositivo. Nuestra propuesta de investigación aborda la técnica desde una consideración filosófica/estética/política, donde redefiniremos la técnica partiendo de la imbricación entre cultura y naturaleza. This project will set the basis for a sustained research on the relation nature/culture/technique. They have been traditionally considered as separate and even opposite fields. And it is on the brink of this distinction where technique plays a central role. In Western thought technique has received many interpretations since the beginnings of philosophy: from a subordination to true knowledge (episteme) in classic philosophy, or the optimism which sees in technique the possibility of dominating nature in the Renaissance and in the Enlightenment, to the Romantic ambiguity and uneasiness towards technological change (Mitcham, 1979). During the twentieth century two opposed approach on technique prevail. On one hand, a “critical” attitude such defines the work of philosophers of different traditions such as Ortega y Gasset (1939), Heidegger (1954), Mumford (1971) Ellul (1960) and the Frankfurt School. On the other hand there is an “engineering” philosophy of technique that consists in the analisis of technology as a paradigm to understand human action and thought. Besides their differences, both positions have in common a dichotomy between nature and culture. We reject such dichotomy. On the contrary we consider there is a growing intertwinement between both which blurs the borders of the concepts. Simondon’s notion of “technical object” refers to the insertion of the technique in culture where the “human reality” in it must be recognised. This does not imply “humanising the technical object”, but investigate on the role it plays on culture and establishing its relation to nature. To articulate this relation we will work with unorthodox approaches on technique such as Benjamin (1967), Flusser (1983) and others. The hypothesis of our project is that the traditional distinction of “animal/man/machine” must be re-thought, therefore raising the question on the blurring line between nature, culture and technique and its effects in philosophy, politics and aesthetics.

Functional Capacity of Patients with Pacemaker Due to Isolated Congenital Atrioventricular Block

Background:Isolated congenital atrioventricular block (CAVB) is a rare condition with multiple clinical outcomes. Ventricular remodeling can occur in approximately 10% of the patients after pacemaker (PM) implantation.Objectives:To assess the functional capacity of children and young adults with isolated CAVB and chronic pacing of the right ventricle (RV) and evaluate its correlation with predictors of ventricular remodeling.Methods:This cross-sectional study used a cohort of patients with isolated CAVB and RV pacing for over a year. The subjects underwent clinical and echocardiographic evaluation. Functional capacity was assessed using the six-minute walk test. Chi-square test, Fisher's exact test, and Pearson correlation coefficient were used, considering a significance level of 5%.Results:A total of 61 individuals were evaluated between March 2010 and December 2013, of which 67.2% were women, aged between 7 and 41 years, who were using PMs for 13.5 ± 6.3 years. The percentage of ventricular pacing was 97.9 ± 4.1%, and the duration of the paced QRS complex was 153.7 ± 19.1 ms. Majority of the subjects (95.1%) were asymptomatic and did not use any medication. The mean distance walked was 546.9 ± 76.2 meters and was strongly correlated with the predicted distance (r = 0.907, p = 0.001) but not with risk factors for ventricular remodeling. (Arq Bras Cardiol. 2014; [online].ahead print, PP.0-0)Conclusions:The functional capacity of isolated CAVB patients with chronic RV pacing was satisfactory but did not correlate with risk factors for ventricular remodeling.

Dipyridamole stress myocardial perfusion by computed tomography in patients with left bundle branch block

Abstract Background: Functional tests have limited accuracy for identifying myocardial ischemia in patients with left bundle branch block (LBBB). Objective: To assess the diagnostic accuracy of dipyridamole-stress myocardial computed tomography perfusion (CTP) by 320-detector CT in patients with LBBB using invasive quantitative coronary angiography (QCA) (stenosis ≥ 70%) as reference; to investigate the advantage of adding CTP to coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA) and compare the results with those of single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) myocardial perfusion scintigraphy. Methods: Thirty patients with LBBB who had undergone SPECT for the investigation of coronary artery disease were referred for stress tomography. Independent examiners performed per-patient and per-coronary territory assessments. All patients gave written informed consent to participate in the study that was approved by the institution’s ethics committee. Results: The patients’ mean age was 62 ± 10 years. The mean dose of radiation for the tomography protocol was 9.3 ± 4.6 mSv. With regard to CTP, the per-patient values for sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and accuracy were 86%, 81%, 80%, 87%, and 83%, respectively (p = 0.001). The per-territory values were 63%, 86%, 65%, 84%, and 79%, respectively (p < 0.001). In both analyses, the addition of CTP to CTA achieved higher diagnostic accuracy for detecting myocardial ischemia than SPECT (p < 0.001). Conclusion: The use of the stress tomography protocol is feasible and has good diagnostic accuracy for assessing myocardial ischemia in patients with LBBB.

Technique and clinical applications of double balloon enteroscopy for the evaluation of small bowel diseases

Magdeburg, Univ., Med. Fak., Diss., 2012

Optimal design in the presence of random or fixed block effects

Magdeburg, Univ., Fak. für Mathematik, Diss., 2014

Identification technique of mechanism-based constitutive model for cast iron under thermo-mechanical loads

Magdeburg, Univ., Fak. für Maschinenbau, Diss., 2015

Studies on survival, biological activities and behavior of Biomphalaria glabrata, the host snail of Schistosomiasis, submitted to increased hydrostatic pressure: a technique

To study changes in survival, in biological activities and behavior of planorbids submitted to increased hydrostatic pressure, we developed a technique using two transparent chambers and a hydraulic piston. The apparatus permitted renewal of the liquid medium without substantial variations in pressure, thus eliminating excretion products and maintaining the desired O2 level and thereby permitting us to evaluate the effects of pressure independently of the occurrence of anoxia. Pressure was maintained without any contact of the liquid medium with compressed air, a situation which reproduced with relative fidelity what occurs in nature and assured the presence of the same amounts of gases in the two observation chambers (Control and Experimental). Biomphalaria glabrata was found to be able to survive at least 48 hours when submitted to 49.02 x 10**4 Pa (equivalent to a water depth of 48.8 m), continuing to day egg masses and showing few behavioral changes when compared with the control group.

Modified 'dumbbell' technique: a simple and intuitive method to position balloon-expandable stent valves.

Intraoperative cardiac imaging plays a key role during transcatheter aortic valve replacement. In recent years, new techniques and new tools for improved image quality and virtual navigation have been proposed, in order to simplify and standardize stent valve positioning and implantation. But routine performance of the new techniques may require major economic investments or specific knowledge and skills and, for this reason, they may not be accessible to the majority of cardiac centres involved in transcatheter valve replacement projects. Additionally, they still require injections of contrast medium to obtain computed images. Therefore, we have developed and describe here a very simple and intuitive method of positioning balloon-expandable stent valves, which represents the evolution of the 'dumbbell' technique for echocardiography-guided transcatheter valve replacement without angiography. This method, based on the partial inflation of the balloon catheter during positioning, traps the crimped valve in the aortic valve orifice and, consequently, very near to the ideal landing zone. It does not require specific echocardiographic knowledge; it does not require angiographies that increase the risk of postoperative kidney failure in elderly patients, and it can be also performed in centres not equipped with a hybrid operating room.