In her article, Christina Haas explores the complex relationship between old and new technologies, hence the title of her discourse, “On the Relationship Between Old and New Technologies.” This intriguing examination applies the theories of Lev Vygotsky (who was “profoundly influenced” by Engel’s work Dialectics of Nature, which postulates “that through labor, humans interact with nature via material tools”) to describe the complex situation of literacy technologies found together in everyday work environments (212). Haas then uses the work of a “Dutch philosopher of technology” named Bijker to interpret her “case studies [to suggest] some other, more complex and more empirically valid ways of viewing the relationship between old and new technologies” (221).

The two presuppositions/views about technological literacies that seemed to most compel Haas to write this article were:
- The replacement model. “…assumes that the old and the new technologies are clearly differential from one another, both theoretically, and in practice” (210). And that new technologies make “obsolete’ the old.
- The straightforward model. “…a new is better view in which new technologies are more advanced and therefore more efficient, more powerful, or both” (210).

The two Vygotskyian tools that she uses to create her framework for examining the use of old and new technologies are the “mediational means” and the historical genetic method. The term “genetic” basically entails a look at the history, the origins of technology, and of the cultural embrace/use of the technology. “Mediational means” refers to looking at literacy “as a distinct phenomenon, but as always imbedded in larger human practices” (211). In other words, it is looking at literacy as a sub-practice inherent and integral to larger goals of humanity.

In addition to these concepts, the Vygoskian approach suggests that a) “multiple technologies for literacy exist, b) their history-of-use is complex and overlapping and c) that technology’s uses are tied intrinsically to other human activities” (213).

Making the abstract concrete, Haas visits three work sites to evaluate how the different modes literacy technologies are being put into practice. The first site observed is the workplace of a city engineer who works for a small town in Ohio. He contract with a particular agency to map and maintain the water plans of the city. This case study basically notes that graphics programs, as well as phone, faxes, and scribbled notes are used in this work. Haas highlights the fact that new and old technologies work effectively together towards a goal. Each technology is important in supporting the other. (Thus the mediational means is at work, the replacement model is disproved, and a) and c) of the Vygoskian hypotheses are demonstrated.

There are two more truly interesting case studies, but honestly, I’m looking at the clock and I need to start wrapping this up. I’ll do an overview. One case study is in another city office of the same town mentioned above, and this office, overall is reluctant to implement e-mail – here the historic-genetic concept is highlighted, as this reluctance is based on the notion that the old methods are just as useful as the new, and the “old villagers” might be unhappy about the whole email thing.

The third is a look at an abortion clinic’s literacy technologies, and how the old paper-and-pen method is imperative to their processes and record-keeping there. Meanwhile an up to date, computer-designed pamphlet about the development of the baby in the womb, and processes that need to happen if an abortion is not carried out, is found to be secondary to the rest of the paper work that needs to be done. I think the “mediational means” is again brought up.

After setting up this framework, Haas uses Bijker’s theories to dig a little deeper, and bring to surface the other complexities of intermingling old and new technologies. These concepts, amalgamated with Haas’s observations are as follows: Non-linearity in Technological Development and Change, The Role of Contingency and Constraint in the Use of Literacy Technologies, and Interpretive Flexibility of Technologies – as well as Power as a Rhetorical Concept in Technological Development and Use.

To conclude, I think Haas’s rational for combining the Vygoskian and Bijkerian approaches is interesting, and important to touch on. Haas states that Bijker’s work Of Bicycles, Bakelite, and Bulbs, “can be seen as an extended application of Vygotsky’s historical genetic method,” so, she thought it logical to combine the two in this study as they tend to go hand in hand, and as they successfully eradicate the simplistic notions that she described at the beginning of her article (226).

Phew. This was a great article. I’m not sure if I’m supposed to say that in an abstract. Probably not, as it’s not a review, but, really, dig deep into this one, it is fascinating.