Suchergebnisse

Argues that the sociology of law should continue its long-standing focus on law & governmentality, but also should expand its analysis to an examination of the interaction of legal & nonlegal forms of governance. The beginning of such an enterprise is provided by the work of Michel Foucault (1977), raising the question of law's role in modern forms of governmental rationality. It is suggested that Foucault's analysis ought to be revised to attend to the plurality of forms of law & governance, & to focus more explicitly on forms of state power. Using this conception, it is contended that the key link between law & modern power is that law plays the organizational & ideological role of providing temporary moments of unification within dispersed fields of social power. This approach to law & governance is favored over others because it facilitates an account that remains sensitive to variations in modes of governance & local power while remaining attentive to the role of the state in the condensation of power relations. 69 References. D. M. Smith

In this paper, we present our ideas on how to best support researchers in every phase of the research process when dealing with their research data. We propose a Research Data Portal as the central data infrastructure. With the help of this portal, a researcher can easily manage and update his or her research data, share it with collaborators, and reach out to the public. We further propose a Citizen Science Portal, which includes some new and innovative concepts and methods. In this portal, Citizen Science and Auto Science concepts are applied, and support to bring together the best of both worlds is provided. Citizen Science promises to entail the individual (scientists and hobby scientists) to help with research. Auto Science is meant to help analyze research data, e.g., to help publish the data and to help improve its quality, by applying methods from artificial intelligence.

"The globalization of science and technology can be conceptualized on different levels: as the spread of scientific and research institutions (Drori et al 2003), the diffusion of technologies throughout the world - and perhaps especially the developing world, (Inkster 1991), or the increasingly dense interconnections which characterize contemporary research collaborations. At the root of these three levels, however, is a fundamental question as to whether science and technology transcend - and thus shape - social change, irrespective of local contexts. On the side of those who argue against such a transcendence, instances of 'local knowledge' have been invoked, as well as practices of using technologies differently in different parts of the world. These counterexamples are important, but they also overlook wider macro-level changes. This essay will consider globalization on all three levels. First, it will trace the emergence of international science policy and scientific communication. Second, it will examine the diffusion of new technologies at the hand of the examples of information and communication technologies, specifically television and telephony - including mobile telephony (Schroeder 2007; World Bank 2008). Finally, it will illustrate the increasing connectivity of global research in the 21st century with reference to knowledge production that is supported by computer networks, not just for communication, but also in the new electronic infrastructures for research dissemination and collaborative data resources and tools. The essay will conclude with some reflections about how scientific knowledge and technology can meet global challenges, especially in relation to the increasing resource scarcity and instability of the environment, in the 21st century." (author's abstract)

The relationship between archaeology and other sciences has only recently become a research topic for sociologists and historians of science. From the 1950s to the present day, different approaches have been taken and the aims of research studies have changed considerably. Besides methodological textbooks, which aim at advancing archaeological knowledge, historians of archaeology have tackled this question by exploring the development of archaeology as a scientific discipline. More recently, collaborations between archaeologists and other scientists have been examined as a general phenomenon regarding transfers of knowledge and power relationships between specialists, organizations, and scientific tools, where archaeology is considered as a scientific practice. Adopting a sociohistorical perspective, this entry examines the specificity of aims, facts, and procedures shared by archaeologists and other scientists regarding the crucial question of measuring time and computations.

Der Charakter der japanischen Sozialwissenschaften war aus historischer Sicht immer schon international, indem ein Austausch bzw. Import von Wissen und Gelehrten aus westlichen Ländern seit ihrer frühesten Entwicklung im 19. Jahrhundert erfolgte. Heute ist es ihr Ziel, welches von den Regierungsorganisationen vorgegeben wird, das vorhandene Wissen in andere Teile der Welt zu exportieren. In diesem Sinne waren die Aktivitäten der Sozialwissenschaften in Japan seit etwa eineinhalb Jahrhunderten durch den Import / Export von Fachwissen geprägt. Dabei hat immer die Regierungspolitik die Initiative ergriffen, um den internationalen Status der japanischen Sozialwissenschaften zu wahren. In diesem Kontext ist danach zu fragen, was einzelne Gelehrte dazu beigetragen haben, die Internationalisierungsbestrebungen der Regierung zu unterstützen. Im vorliegenden Beitrag werden daher abseits der politischen Aspekte die Faktoren untersucht, welche zur Internationalisierung der Sozialwissenschaften in Japan geführt haben. Hierzu wird erstens der deutsche Einfluss auf die japanischen Sozialwissenschaften im späten 19. Jahrhundert sowie der Einfluss des Marxismus untersucht. Zweitens werden die Entwicklung des Hochschulsystems in Japan zwischen Forschung und Arbeitsmarkt sowie die Formen der interkulturellen Kommunikation in den Blick genommen. (ICI).

In an introduction to this edited volume (see related abstracts in IRPS No. 87), the field of cultural studies & its relation to science & technology are discussed. It is suggested that the traditional belief in the primacy of cause/effect relationships fails to recognize the complexity & interdependence of variables in the modern world. Culture, science, & technology are not distinct entities, but overlapping fields, which transform & are transformed by each other. Although science & technology have permeated modern society, they do not independently determine the outcomes of social situations & evolution. It is argued that traditional deterministic social sciences must be replaced by a theory of complexity that erodes the boundaries between distinct forms of knowledge & perspectives, & seeks to consider cause in terms of multiple & merging influences. Further, region-oriented communities are becoming less important as technology allows easy communication with distant others, & thereby facilitates the bypass of local ties. It is concluded that the field of cultural studies is best equipped to deal with the rapidly changing circumstances of the modern world due to its appropriation of knowledge from diverse perspectives, & its lack of fundamental & fixed principles. T. Sevier

Discusses the historical & current relationship between the social sciences, the scientific method, & postmodern theory. Drawing on the methodology & conclusions of Galileo, modern science has attempted to reduce the distance between science & reality through objective methodology & heightened rationality. It is argued here that the scientific method relies more on the choice of appropriate language & vocabulary than on actual correspondence between methodology & fact. Social scientists have traditionally adopted this skewed approach to life through the scientific method, which blurs rather than reveals reality. The boundaries between explanation & understanding, or nature & humanity, have little meaning in the real world, & it is suggested that the social sciences must be seen as continuous with literature, history, anthropology, politics, etc. Both Thomas Dewey & Michel Foucault advocate rejection of traditional notions of rationality, objectivity, method, & truth. However, it is concluded that Dewey's vocabulary allows more room for hope & solidarity within the social sciences. T. Sevier

The increasing role of social science in environmental policy & knowledge generation has resulted in an environmental discourse that is epistemologically realist, postivistic, disembedded, technological, & cognitivist. Such a discourse tends to mask important cultural, social, & existential dimensions of environmental crises & has become part of the modern environmental problem rather contributing to its solution. A constructivist, hermeneutic, poetic, & situated approach to environmental phenomena is needed. Examples of such accounts in three broad domains are highlighted: (1) environment, knowledge, & indeterminancy; (2) subjectivity & individuation; & (3) problems with current ways of incorporation of environmental considerations within political institutions. Ulrich Beck's contributions to illuminating the modern environmental problematic are discussed. 10 References. D. Generoli