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manners. The first manner relates to the notion of responsibility. The author
believes that the responsibility for car-related dangers can be completely divided
into smaller responsibilities. Each responsibility can then be adopted by an indi-
vidual or a company. For example, the responsibility for cars can be divided into the
following areas of responsibility: design, manufacturing, maintenance, driving, and
so on. Further, each responsibility can be divided into smaller, more-detailed
responsibilities. It is important to note that the term, “responsibility,” came into
use in society after the Industrial Revolution began. The second manner relates to
the notion of risk. When we apply the notion of “risk,” we can observe feelings of
“danger” in an objective manner. When we observe feelings objectively, rather than
subjectively, we can address the negative aspects of cars rationally (e.g., car
insurance). In cases in which products are designed through conventional engineer-
ing design, science and technology might be rather more acceptable to society
because of the organization of the social system that involves the concepts of
responsibility and risk. However, in cases in which products are designed through
highly advanced science and technology, the social system that corresponds to
responsibility and risk in conventional science and technology has not yet been
organized. For example, with respect to nuclear power stations, the current social
system that corresponds to responsibility and risk has not yet discovered ways to
cope with related problems. In many cases, problems caused by highly advanced
science and technology cannot be captured within the current framework of society.
In some cases, these problems should be captured in a framework that extends
beyond the current age. A characteristic of highly advanced science and technology
is that it can cause problems that will continue over a long period. Who will assume
responsibility for future problems? The people who should assume responsibility
will no longer exist when these problems arise. Furthermore, how responsibility and
risk is actualized? Normally, responsibility and risk are methods used to transfer
abstract or subjective feelings related to the negative aspects of engagement so
those feelings can be accepted in objective ways. These transformations become
actualized through feedback obtained from experiences of actual accidents or
failures. However, in highly advanced science and technology, accidents or failures
are unacceptable because they may cause significant damage that extends beyond
society's ability to recover. We must establish new notions and methods that will
extend current conceptions of responsibility and risk to a degree sufficient to accept
dangers related to highly advanced science and technology without relying on
feedback obtained from experiences of actual accidents or failures.
Third, it should be noted that mechanisms to recognize science and technology
and its products play an important role for society to accept them. Conventional
science and technology is often perceived visually. For example, we can perceive
the movement of a steam locomotive. Although we cannot see inside the
steam boiler, we sense the reality of the principle of steam locomotion by viewing
the movement of the wheels and the smoke. However, some types of highly
advanced science and technology are unimaginable and invisible. For example,
radioactive rays are both dangerous and invisible. Furthermore, we must imagine
the 10,000- or 100,000-year period during which nuclear reactor waste should
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