Presentation of this translation will happen during next specialized workshop of ALTEC 2013 congress. This is the first event of a new series of meetings about "Great thinkers and thoughts: science, technology and development". It will happen next 28 October, in the building of Alfandega of Porto, from 11:00 to 13:00. For more information about the program of this meeting and the new cycle, see here. Although this specialized workshop is part of ALTEC Congress, attendance fo this session is free (but free registration in the entrance will be needed).
To translate this great work of philosophy was for me a great intellectual adventure and personal discovery, that fully absorbed me for one year. As I said in the introductory note I have written for this edition
- Just as Polanyi theorized about the process of intimation for discovery, I discovered the intimation of Polanyi's thought: the discovery is a leap, struggling and risky, sometimes even conflicting, which creates a new meaning. Nobody stays the same after knowing something, after a process of discovery. Of course this work of translation and discovery also transformed me.
- Understanding innovation involves understanding the mechanisms of social and personal discovery in science and technology - innovation is not a technological issue, but a social issue with major economic implications. This was the key message in this course, so no wonder the contributions of Michael Polanyi to understand the processes of discovery and innovation were relevant and they have attracted my interest. The same motivation led us to organize an anthology of essays by M. Polanyi about science and technology (whose translation is now being published). This also helped to convince us to get down to this work: to translate the most important work of Polanyi.
This printing is an academic edition. A commercial edition will be available very soon. Meanwhile, chapters of the book are available here, for academic purposes.
