P. K. Engelmeyer

Engineer, philosopher of technology and creativity, encyclopedist, musician and painter. Born 1855. He spent most of his life in Moscow. In 1881 he graduated from the Imperial Moscow Technical School, and lectured at technical schools.

In his time, Engelmeyer belonged to the influential engineers, consultants, contractors and representatives in national and international technical organizations. He published in Russian, German and French (especially engineering) journals.

Inspired by the writings of a number of philosophers (Ernst Mach, Ernst Kapp, Alfred Espinas, Fred Bon), Engelmeyer set out to contribute to the emerging field of philosophy of technology. In 1898, he published the book Technical Summary of the 19th Century, in which he outlined main tasks and the program of the philosophy of technology. His most productive years were before and after the Revolution, during the 1910s and 1920s. In 1911, he presented a paper at the Fourth International Philosophical Congress in Bologna. Between 1912 and 1913 he published four volumes of his Philosophy of Technology in four volumes.

Since May 1927, Engelmeyer led an informal public association Circle of Common Technology Issues within the Polytechnic Society of the All-Union Association of Engineers (AAE). The focus of the group were study of general, sectoral and regional history of technology; analysis of relationships and interaction of technology with science, art, economy, law, ethics and "common way of life"; development of scientific and biographical heritage outstanding engineers and the formation of the theory of technical creativity; and improving the system of technical education. Members included N. Golovanov, VV Dobrovolsky, L. Dreyer, AK Kaufman-Klementyeva, or JH Yurovsky.[1] In 1929, after campaign against the philosophy of technology he dropped his philosophical career; the AAE was liquidated.

He died in 1942.

Literature

Books by Engelmeyer

• Tekhnicheskij itog XIX veka [Technical Summary of the 19th Century], Moscow: Tipografija K.A.Kaznachejeva, 1898. (in Russian)
• Teorija tvorchestva. S predislovijami D.N.Ovsianiko-Kulikovskogo i Ernsta Makha [Theory of Creativity], St. Petersburg: Obrazovanije, 1910. (in Russian)
• Der Dreiakt als Lehre von der Technik und der Erfindung, Berlin, 1910. (in German)
• Tvorcheskaya lichnost’ i sreda v oblasti tekhnicheskikh izobretenij [Creative Individual and Context in the Sphere of Technical Innovation], St. Petersburg: Obrazovanije, 1911. (in Russian)
• Filosofija tekhniki. Vypusk 1 [Philosophy of Technology, Vol. 1], Moscow, 1912. (in Russian)
• Filosofija tekhniki. Vypusk 2. Sovremennaja filosofija [Philosophy of Technology, Vol. 2: Contemporary philosophy], Moscow, 1912. (in Russian)
• Filosofija tekhniki. Vypusk 3 [Philosophy of Technology, Vol. 3], Moscow: Nasha zhizn’, 1912. (in Russian)
• Filosofija tekhniki. Vypusk 4. Technizism, [Philosophy of Technology, Vol. 4: Technicism], Moscow, 1913. (in Russian)
• Kak nado i kak ne nado izeobretat’. Konspect lekzij s diapositivami [How We Should and Should Not Invent. Lecture Notes with Slides], Moscow: Izdatel’stvo VZSPS, 1925. (in Russian)

Articles by Engelmeyer

• in Grundriss der Philosophie der Technik: Kölnische Zeitung, No. 605, 608 (1894).
• in Das Erfinden: Kölnische Zeitung, 15, 16, 18 February, No. 138, 141, 147 (1895).
• "Was ist eine Erfindung?", Civielingenieur, , Vol. 61, No. 4 (1895).
• in Allgemeine Fragen der Technik: Dinglers Polytechnisches Journal, Vol. 312, No. 7 (1899); Vol. 315, No. 2, 5, 7, 9, 10, 33 (1900).
• "Philosophie der Technik, eine neue Forschungsrichtung", Prometheus, 1900, No 565.
• "Tehnika kak faktor sowremennoj kultury", Mir Boshij, No. 7 (1907). (in Russian)
• "Essai d’une 'heurologie' ou théorie générale de la création humane", in Ann. IV Congresso Internationale de Philosofia, Bologna, 1911, Vol. 3. Nendeln/Lichtenstein (in French). Reprinted in 1968, Klaus Reprint, pp 582-586.
• "Philosophie der Technik", Ann. IV Congresso Internationale de Philosofia, Bologna, 1911, Vol. 3. Nendeln/Liechtenstein (in German). Reprinted in 1968, Klaus Reprint.
• "Heurologische Wert der technischen Erfindung", Sciencia (Revista die scienza), Bologna 1911, Vol. X, Anno V.
• "Evrologija ili obschaja teorija tvorchestva", in Voprossy teorii i psihologii twortchestwa, Part 5, Kharkov, 1914, pp 131-160; Part 7, Kharkov, 1916, pp 76-108. (in Russian)
• "V zasshitu obssikh idej v tekhnike" [Defending the general ideas of technology], in Vestnik inzhenerov, T.1, No. 3, 1 Fevralia, Moscow, 1915. (in Russian)
• "Vorarbeit zur Philosophie der Technik", Technik und Kultur, No. 9 (1928), pp 86-88. (in German)
• in Erfindungslehre (Heurologie): Technik und Kultur, No. 9 (1928).
• "Nuzhna li nam filosofija tekhniki?" [Do we need philosophy of technology?], in Inzhenernyj trud, No. 2, 15 Janvarja, Moscow, 1929. (in Russian)

On Engelmeyer

• Inshenernyj trud, No. 9, 1927, p 409. (in Russian)
• Vitaly G. Gorokhov, Peter Klimentjevich Engelmeyer: Mechanical Engineer and Philosopher of Technology, 1855-1941, Moscow: Nauka, 1997, 223 pp. (in Russian)
• Vitaly G. Gorokhov, "Technischer Optimismus – Philosophie der Technik von P. K. Engelmeyer", in Technikphilosophie und Technikfolgenforschung in Russland, Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler: Europäische Akademie, 2001, pp 10-18. (in German)
• Vitaly G. Gorokhov, "Description of the Design Process in the Theory of Creativity by Russian Philosopher of Technology and Engineer P.K. Engelmeyer", in Proceedings of the 29th Symposium of the International Committee for the History of Technology (ICOHTEC), 24-29.06.2002, Granada, Spain, 2002, p 24.
• Vitaly G. Gorokhov, "Ernst Kapp, P.K. Engelmeyer and P. Florenski – princip of the 'Organprojektion' and 'Antropologisches Kriterium' as basic ideas of the philosophy of technology", in Global problems of the sustainable development and modern civilisation. Materials of the international conference, edited by V.G. Gorokhov, Moscow: Polytechnic Society, 2008, pp 235-243. (in Russian)
• Olga Goriunova, "Vitalist Technocultural Thinking in Revolutionary Russia (on Piotr Engelmeier)", in Place Studies in Art, Media, Science and Technology. Historical Investigations on the Sites and the Migration of Knowledge, edited by Andreas Broeckmann and Gunalan Nadarajan, Weimar: Verlag und Datenbank für Geisteswissenschaften, 2009, pp 183-197.