Ubiquitous Material and Informational Tools Require Tool Literacy as a Condition for Understanding Contemporaneity

Čatić, Igor; Rujnić Havstad, Maja

doi:10.21464/fi46110

Filozofska istraživanja, Vol. 46 No. 1, 2026.

Conference paper

Ubiquitous Material and Informational Tools Require Tool Literacy as a Condition for Understanding Contemporaneity

Igor Čatić ; Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Fakultet strojarstva i brodogradnje, Ivana Lučića 5, HR–10000 Zagreb *
Maja Rujnić Havstad

* Corresponding author.

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APA 6th Edition

Čatić, I. & Rujnić Havstad, M. (2026). Ubiquitous Material and Informational Tools Require Tool Literacy as a Condition for Understanding Contemporaneity. Filozofska istraživanja, 46 (1), 180-180. https://doi.org/10.21464/fi46110

MLA 8th Edition

Čatić, Igor and Maja Rujnić Havstad. "Ubiquitous Material and Informational Tools Require Tool Literacy as a Condition for Understanding Contemporaneity." Filozofska istraživanja, vol. 46, no. 1, 2026, pp. 180-180. https://doi.org/10.21464/fi46110. Accessed 29 Sep. 2026.

Chicago 17th Edition

Čatić, Igor and Maja Rujnić Havstad. "Ubiquitous Material and Informational Tools Require Tool Literacy as a Condition for Understanding Contemporaneity." Filozofska istraživanja 46, no. 1 (2026): 180-180. https://doi.org/10.21464/fi46110

Harvard

Čatić, I., and Rujnić Havstad, M. (2026). 'Ubiquitous Material and Informational Tools Require Tool Literacy as a Condition for Understanding Contemporaneity', Filozofska istraživanja, 46(1), pp. 180-180. https://doi.org/10.21464/fi46110

Vancouver

Čatić I, Rujnić Havstad M. Ubiquitous Material and Informational Tools Require Tool Literacy as a Condition for Understanding Contemporaneity. Filozofska istraživanja [Internet]. 2026 [cited 2026 September 29];46(1):180-180. https://doi.org/10.21464/fi46110

IEEE

I. Čatić and M. Rujnić Havstad, "Ubiquitous Material and Informational Tools Require Tool Literacy as a Condition for Understanding Contemporaneity", Filozofska istraživanja, vol.46, no. 1, pp. 180-180, 2026. [Online]. https://doi.org/10.21464/fi46110

Abstract

The article traces the development from the philosophy of tools to the concept of tool literacy as a civilizational requirement in the information age. It begins with the historical role of tools as extensions of the human hand and mind and distinguishes between material and informational tools. In the digital era this boundary becomes blurred, as informational tools function simultaneously as machines and media. Artificial intelligence occupies a main place as a meta-tool – the first tool in history capable of acting upon all other tools, creating new tools, interpreting the user, and learning from human behaviour. AI is a powerful informational tool but not an absolute one: it depends on data quality, human expertise, and critical judgment. In the age of AI, the essential human role becomes the ability to ask original questions and correct the data provided by AI. The authors introduce the idea of Methodological Work, a new category of human activity in an age of data explosion, where human originality lies in questions and conceptual frameworks, while AI performs data processing. Tool literacy is defined as the ability to understand, use, and critically evaluate tools, including their societal consequences. In the information age it gains a new dimension: understanding how AI interprets humans. Meta-tool literacy thus becomes the synthesis of traditional tool literacy and the capacity to comprehend AI as a new civilizational factor. In conclusion, the article argues that all young people should acquire basic tool literacy by the end of secondary education, as it is essential for responsible participation in a world where AI increases – rather than diminishes – the importance of understanding tools.