ABSTRACT
This chapter presents some reflections on the rise of technology and technical knowledge in the scientific system and its position in the value system of modern society. The European Enlightenment serves as an important and 'useful' starting point for our reflections, even if most of the recent literature on the history of engineering and applied science opts for the latter part of the 19th century as its point of departure. The term 'useful arts' slowly disappeared from the scene in the 19th century, while terms such as 'applied science', 'engineering science' and 'technology' came into use. Applied scientists, mostly engineers, could increasingly present or position themselves as the 'rulers' over the useful arts. Because of this distinction, couplings between education and the applied sciences often first took place not in universities, but in newly invented organizations. Only gradually, the education of the applied sciences could be incorporated into the organizational mainstream.
