About

About the Seminar

The spectre of technology raises afresh the question: what is a human being, and what does it take to stay one? In this immersive weeklong seminar, we will grapple with the essence of technology and life in a technological society. We will explore how technology is reshaping our souls and our society and what a humanistic approach to technology might look like. We will engage with the best that has been said and thought about technology, while also hearing from both technology creators and practitioners of endangered human traditions.

Format

The Machine Has No Tradition seminar balances a focus on the increasing technological mediation of human consciousness on the one hand, and the shifting material foundations of social life on the other. Readings include Martin Heidegger, René Girard, Ivan Illich, Karl Marx, Marshall McLuhan, Carl Schmitt, and more.

This seminar is sponsored by the Abigail Adams Institute and the Zephyr Institute. Sessions take place at Harvard University. MHNT V will take place in Summer 2027.

Who Should Apply

We welcome applications from advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and young professionals eager to make sense of their work. Previous participants have included graduate students in philosophy, seminary students, software engineers, policy researchers, writers, Capitol Hill staffers, entrepreneurs, and more.