Lewis Mumford Intro - Adolfo Moreno

When reading the article and thinking about discussion tomorrow, I had in my mind such ideas as: Quality of life, Process vs. Product, Culture, Progress, and silly as it may sound...What is the value of a tree?

Lewis Mumford

Lewis Mumford (October 19, 1895 – January 26, 1990) was an American historian and philosopher of technology and science. Particularly noted for his study of cities and urban architecture, he had a tremendously broad career as a writer that also included a period as an influential literary critic.

Mumford was born, raised, and educated in New York. He studied at the City College of New York and the New School for Social Research, but was unable to finish a degree due to illness. He later worked for The New Yorker where he wrote architectural criticism and commentary on urban issues. It wasn’t until his book, The Brown Decades, that he began to establish himself as an authority in US architecture and urban life, which he interpreted in a social context.

Mumford's choice of the word "technics" (i.e., Paleotechnic) throughout his work was deliberate. For Mumford, technology is one part of technics. Using the broader definition of the Greek tekne, which means not only technology but also art, skill and dexterity, technics refers to the interplay of a social milieu and technological innovation - the "wishes, habits, ideas, goals" as well as "industrial processes" of a society.

In his book The City in History, Mumford explores the development of urban civilizations. Harshly critical of urban sprawl, Mumford argues that the structure of modern cities is partially responsible for many social problems seen in western society. While pessimistic in tone, Mumford argues that urban planning should emphasize an organic relationship between people and their living spaces. Further Mumford recognized the crises facing urban culture, distrusting of the growing finance industry, political structures, fearful that a local community culture was not being fostered by these institutions.

"The physical design of cities and their economic functions are secondary to their relationship to the national environment and to the spiritual values of human community."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Mumford