INTERNATIONAL
SOCIOLOGICAL
ASSOCIATION
NEWSLETTER
of the Research Committee 23:
SOCIOLOGY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Editor: Jaime Jiménez IIMAS - UNAM, MÉXICO
ISSUE 2: FEBRUARY 2001
ISSUE 3: DECEMBER 2001
Board 1998 - 2002 of the Research Committee 23:
President:
Vice-President:
Secretary:
Members:
Marja HÄYRINEN-ALESTALO, Finland.
Hebe VESSURI, Venezuela.
Jaime JIMÉNEZ, México.
Maarten A. MENTZEL, Netherlands.
Fumihiko. SATOFUKA, Japan.
Karel MUELLER, Czech Republic.
Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology
Rogers HOLLINGSWORTH, USA.
Aant ELZINGA, Sweden.
Samuel A. KUGEL, Russia.
Beatriz RUIVO, Portugal.
This issue was printed with funds provided by a PAPIIT grant No. IN313198, UNAM.
Design: Carlos Rodríguez Contreras, IIMAS - UNAM, México
Research Committee of Science and Technology
(RC23)
NEWSLETTER
FROM THE EDITOR
What makes a NEWSLETTER successful?
Dear friends,
I think the answer to the above question is its usefulness. And that can only be accomplished through
the participation of people interested in the development of the study of science and technology in its
many angles.
Therefore I invite you again to contribute to this publication with announcements, work-in-process,
book reviews, and whatever material you find worth to share with the rest of the community. Language
should not be a problem.
We accept and publish works in English, French and Spanish in total correspondence with ISA official
languages.
My postal and e-mail addresses appear below.
The Brisbane World Congress is at the turn of the corner!! We urge you to take the necessary steps to
join us in Brisbane. The number of sessions and joint sessions in the Congress is a function of the
number of RC23 members in good standing. Those who are not, are invited to pay their fees. Also if
you know of people who wish to join let him/her know how to register in ISA and RC23. A link is
available in this page to register.
It will be interesting to have a view of colleagues’ regional interests concerning S&T studies. We will
include these contributions in succeeding numbers, starting, perhaps, with Latin America. We invite
people from other regions to contribute with their views in this respect.
Sincerely,
Jaime Jiménez
Tel. (52) 5622 3597
Fax: (52) 5616 2670
Apdo. Postal 20-726
01000 México D.F.
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Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology
México
e-mail: jjimen@servidor.unam.mx
From the chair:
XV WORLD CONGRESS OF SOCIOLOGY IN BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA
Marja Hayrinen-Alestalo
President of RC23
The preparations for the XV World Congress of Sociology, that will be arranged by the ISA in Brisbane,
Australia, July 7-13, 2002, have been started already last year. The main theme of the Congress is
"The Social World in the 21st Century: Ambivalent Legacies and Rising Challenges".
According to the time schedule the session topics and the names of session organizers of the
Research Committees should be received at the ISA Secretariat by May 31, 2001.
The Board members of our Research Committee have discussed the session topics that may reflect
the main interests of the Congress, which at the same time, are specific enough to strengthen current
theoretical and empirical development in the sociology of science and technology. The main theme of
the Congress is as usual very general, thereby providing many opportunities for overlapping interests.
Some examples are: "Knowledge and Inequality", "Knowledge and Social Change in Contemporary
Societies", "The Social Processes of Creativity" and "New Information Technologies, Communication
and Networks: Towards New Forms of Communities".
As there is a rising interest in issues of new technologies in our field, RC23 should also participate in
this discussion. Being sociologists of science and technology we can also introduce analyses that
overcome the dominance of economic factors and concentrate on the tension between the market and
the social values of these technologies. There is also a need to scrutinize arguments in favor of new
democratisation processes vis a vis the growth of new technologies, i.e. the role of the public in the
assessment of new technologies. All these issues belong to the broader arena of the commodification
and commercialisation of scientific activities.
At the moment we are preparing the list for the session topics and the names of session organizers for
the ISA Secretariat. As our list is not yet finalized, we ask you as members of RC23, to propose more
topics for the sessions and to inform us whether you are willing to be the coordinators of the proposed
sessions. You can send your proposals either to me (marja.alestalo@helsinki.fi) or to the Secretary
Jaime Jiménez (jjimen@servidor.unam.mx).
At present the list of the sessions to be organized by the RC23 at Brisbane World Congress 2002 is as
follows:




Knowledge and Social Change in Contemporary Societies
Coordinator Karel Mueller (muellerk@fhs.cuni.cz)
Public Concern in the Assessment of Technoscience
Coordinator Egil Kallerud (Egil.Kallerud@nifu.no)
New Technologies Confronting Tensions between Commodification and Social Responsibility,
Coordinator Marja Hayrinen-Alestalo (marja.alestalo@helsinki.fi)
New Invisible Colleges in S&T: the Rise of Virtual Communities
3
Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology



Coordinator Jaime Jiménez (jjimen@servidor.unam.mx)
Technology in Action
Coordinator Ilkka Arminen (ilkka.arminen@helsinki.fi).
Environmental Movement, Communication and Networking: Theoretical and Empirical Studies,
Including National Case Studies, a joint session of RC23 and RC24 (Environment)
Coordinators Maartem A. Mentzel (m.a.mentzel@planet.nl) and Jean-Guy Vailancourt.
Historical Aspects of Knowledge Societies, a joint session of RC23 and RC08 (History),
Coordinator Maartem A. Mentzel (m.a.mentzel@planet.nl).
The number of sessions and joint sessions of each Research Committee is based on the number of
members in good standing. According to this rule, RC23 can arrange ten single sessions and two joint
sessions in Brisbane.
Waiting for good proposals!
News:
International Sociological Association
Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean
Margarita Island, Venezuela
7-12 May 2001
Theme: Equity and Globalization
In cooperation with the national and regional associations International Sociological Association
launches a series of regional conference to be held every four years. As stated by ISA President,
Alberto Martinelli, the ISA should become a truly global association while enhancing the different
cultural heritage. The objectives of the ISA set 50 years ago by Unesco's Social Science Council - such
as knitting together social science scholars of the world in order to increase international
understanding, bettering social science knowledge for benefiting mankind, promoting research in fields
crucial to the establishment of a peaceful world order - are still well alive and important, but they must
be put into the context of the contemporary global world, which is characterized by the growing tension
between the increasingly global integration and interdependence in technology, finance,
information, and the continuing fragmentation of societies, cultures, and political systems.
The theme of the conference is Equity and Globalization. The conference will consists of plenary
symposia sessions with invited speakers and working groups sessions to which papers contributions,
in English or Spanish, are welcome.
Proposed topics:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Mobility of competence.
The sociology of knowledge and democracy.
Gender, family, and youth.
Multiculturalism and identities.
Anti-globalization social movements.
Social exclusion.
Insecurity as a result of new technologies.
The Nation, the State, Sovereignty, and globalization.
The globalization of justice.
NGOs as an emerging force, and new forms of political action.
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Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
Globalization of the mass media.
The risks and challenges of the new university.
Amazonia.
Cities and housing.
Free time and recreation.
Abstracts of max 250 words shall be submitted by February 15, 2001 to:
Prof. Roberto Briceno-Leon
Laboratorio de Ciencias Sociales
Universidad Central de Venezuela
Apartado Postal 47.795
Caracas 1041-A, Venezuela
tel: 58-2-6619752, fax: 58-2-6931765
e-mail: rbriceno@reacciun.ve
ISA Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean is organized jointly with the Sociological
Association of Venezuela, the Social Science Laboratory of Central University of Venezuela, and Latin
American Social Science Council. Members of the Organizing Committee are: Roberto Briceno-Leon
(Chair), Alexis Romero, Orlando Albornoz, Rigoberto Lanz, Clemy de Machado, Morleba Jimenez,
Hebe Vessuri, Veronica Zubillaga.
Registration fees:
ISA members: $100
No-ISA members: $150
ISA membership form Students: $80
For registration contact:
isa_margarita2001@yahoo.com
isa_margarita2001@hotmail.com
and for hotel reservation contact:
Maria Consuelo Maduro
isa_hotelreservacion@yahoo.com
isa_hotelreservacion@hotmail.com
BRISBANE 2002!!!
Dear friend and colleague,
Set apart in your agenda the dates July 8 - 13, 2002, and make provisions to be
present at the 15th ISA World Congress of Sociology to be held in Brisbane,
Australia. The date seems far away, however it´s only a few NEWSLETTERS away
from this one! The general theme is:
THE SOCIAL WORLD IN THE TWENTY FIRST CENTURY: AMBIVALENT
LEGACIES AND RISING CHALLENGES.
The RC23 Board will soon set up the particular topics of our committee, so you can
5
Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology
work on those of your interest.
5th ESA Conference ”Visions and Divisions: Challenges to European Sociology”
August 28th – September 1st, 2001, University of Helsinki, Finland
Research Network Sociology of Science and Technology (SSTNET)
Commodification of Knowledge
Modern complex societies are characterized as knowledge societies. Professional expertise and
knowledge-based technology are needed to further develop these societies. Knowledge is also a
central productive force in the ”new economy.” New modes of knowledge production have evolved and
the products are different from traditional scientific knowledge.
Academic knowledge producers have an increasing interest in the commercial viability of knowledge
and in the development of strategies that include among others setting up knowledge transfer
agencies. For this purpose knowledge must assume the properties of a private commodity.
Commodification may require a transformation from tacit into explicit, unstandardized into
standardized, uncodified into codified knowledge and an emphasis on its exchange value rather than
on its utility value.
Changes in knowledge production and the incentives (or the pressure) to commercialize knowledge
correspond with significant changes in the ethical presumptions of science and the normative
orientations of researchers.
As knowledge can be easily distributed via global communication networks, it can become an
important source of revenue. At the same time knowledge needs special protection such as patents
and other intellectual property rights to prevent unauthorized use.
Access to knowledge is unequally distributed in society. With the commodification of knowledge,
access problems are likely to become relevant. This tends to undermine the basis of the knowledge
society. As a consequence, political measures are taken to improve access to information (e.g.
information infrastructure initiatives). There are also movements that argue for the development of
knowledge as a public good.
RC23/SSTNET Sessions:
The "Technologization" of Science and Society
Session Organisers: Werle, Raymund; Müller, Karel; Oliveira, Luisa; Mali, Franc

Session 01:
Social (Scientific and Democratic) Control of Technology (Friday, 9:00 - 10:30)
Chair: Mali, Franc

Müller, Karel: Expertocracy and Democracy: Problems of public control of technology in
new democracies

Levidow, Les: Technologizing Democracy? Deliberating Agricultural Biotechnology in
Europe
6
Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology


Menzel, Maarten: The introduction of science based technologies in European societies:
the question of political legitimacy

Oliveira, Luisa: The makers of technologized society

Monk, John: Cyborgs, Language and Technology
Session 02:
Social Theory of Technology: Concepts and Approaches (Friday, 11:00 -12.30)
Chair: Oliveira, Luisa




Disco, Cornelis: Can (neo)-classical social theory accommodate technology and its
development?
(Anthony Gidden‘s Structuration Theory will be used as an exemplary foil.)

Birrer, Frans A. J.: Technology as subliminal Enticement

Bechmann, Gotthard: Technology as a Medium - a constructivist concept of technology

Grundmann, Reiner: Is technology a legitimate object for social theory?

Boudourides, Moses: A. Science & Technology Studies in the Information Society: A
Social Study of the Internet
Session 03:
The Role of Technology in the Scientific Process (Friday, 2:30 - 4:00)
Chair: Werle, Raymund

Ziman, John: Non-instrumental roles for science

Ahrweiler, Petra: Turing-Test and Social Science Hermeneutics - Some Software Aspects
of "Verstehen"

Caswill, Chris:Technologies and Research Agendas within the Virtual Research Council
Economic & Social Research Council (ESRC)

Nalbantoglu, Hasan Unal; Tarhan, Belkis Ayhan: Technology as the Organization of
Scientific Practice: a Turkish Case

Zacher, Lech W.: On Technology, Education and Practical Activities: Some Roots of
Disintegration
Session 04:
Responses of Academia to the Technologization of Science (Friday, 4:30 - 6:00)
Chair: Müller, Karel

Häyrinen-Alestalo, Marja; Peltola, Ulla: Universities Responding to the Pressure to
Commercialize their Knowledge Production

Morris, Norma: Researcher Perspectives on the Technologisation of the Biological
Sciences
7
Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology

Mali, Franc: The new challenges, but the old views - is there possible to come in the
countries in transition to new the evaluation models of science and technology?

Snell, Karoliina: Breaking the Link between Research and Education in an Entrepreneurial
University

Tupasela, Aaro: Intellectual Property Rights and Patenting: Can Centralized Technology
Transfer save Public Research?
The 2001 NICHOLAS MULLINS AWARD
of the Society for Social Studies of Science
[Please note the extended deadline for submissions: August 31, 2001]
The Nicholas Mullins Award is awarded each year by the Society for Social Studies of Science (4S) for
an outstanding piece of scholarship by a graduate student in the general field of Science and
Technology Studies. The prize consists of a cheque for $US 500, a certificate and travel expenses for
this year’s Annual Meeting of 4S.
The competition is for graduate student papers, which must be submitted in English, based on all types
of scholarly products in the field of science and technology studies: unpublished papers, published
articles, dissertation chapters. It is recommended that dissertation chapters be adapted so as to make
them "stand-alone." The work may not be older than two years at the time of submission. The intended
readership for the papers is a general STS audience, rather than a specialized disciplinary readership.
A graduate student can only make one submission a year.
The length of a paper should not exceed 10,000 words -- including notes and references. According to
the rules, longer papers will be "punished" in the evaluation procedure, i.e., they do not have to be read
in their totality. They should be typed double-spaced. Six (6) copies should be sent to the chair of the
Nicholas Mullins Award Jury (see address below), but for students for whom this would be a financial
hardship two (2) copies would be acceptable. Initial submission to the Chair of the jury as an electronic
email attachment, preferably in Word format, is encouraged.
The name and address of the author and the name and address of the author's institution should be on
a separate sheet (or file), so that these can be detached from the distributed copies.
Deadline for submitting contributions is August 31, 2001. Papers received after that date will be
considered for next year's contest.
The evaluation is executed blindly by a jury of STS scholars. The winner will be announced at the
Banquet at the 2001 Annual Meeting of the 4S (Cambridge, Massachusetts, November 1-4). Winners
are expected to attend this meeting.
For further information, please contact the chair of the jury:
Malcolm Ashmore
Department of Social Sciences
Loughborough University
Loughborough LE11 3TU
UK
M.T.Ashmore@lboro.ac.uk
http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/ss/depstaff/staff/ashmore.htm
8
Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology
EAIR is a unique association for professionals in the area of higher education management, and for
academics researching that area.
These professionals and academics are working in universities, polytechnics and other higher
education institutions, primarily but not exclusively in Europe - either in university administration, or in
academic departments with particular research interests in management issues. EAIR will also be of
relevance to policy makers in government ministries and policy units.
379 participants attended the EAIR Forum Porto 2001
Due to the terrible disaster in the USA, not all presenters could deliver their paper go to:
http://www.org.uva.nl/eair/porto/index.asp
Congreso Internacional: UNIVERSIDADES Y DESARROLLO
TERRITORIAL EN LA SOCIEDAD DEL CONOCIMIENTO
Barcelona, 12-14 de noviembre de 2001
Ahora tiene la opción de inscribirse vía Internet, solamente rellenando un
sencillo formulario visite sitio:
http://www.upc.es/unescogestio/castella/inscripcion.htm
Reports:
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Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology
ABOUT THE IV LATIN AMERICAN MEETING ON SOCIAL
STUDIES OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Last October (23-26), the State University of Campinas, located in the state of Sao Paolo, Brazil,
received numerous Latin American scholars from different countries in the region, that participated in
the IV Jornadas Latinoamericanas dos Estudos Sociais da Ciencia e da Tecnologia. This meeting was
organized by the Departmento of Scientific and technological Policy located in the Institute of
Geosciences in this University.
These sort of meetings were first organized in 1994 by scholars in the Universidad de Quilmes,
Argentina, aiming to increase communication and develop networks among scholars working in the
social studies of science and technology in the region. The second Latin-American meeting took place
in Venezuela in 1996 and the third one in Mexico in 1998.
This time the general subject was on "Science, Technology and Society and the future of LatinAmerica", and the meeting was devoted to the memory of Amílcar Herrera. It was the occasion to
organize an homage to one of the most important scholars in the field of Geology and also one of the
main thinkers on the subject of science-technology-society in the region, that in the last stage of his life
worked at the University of Campinas. As part of this homage, our colleagues of Campinas organized
different acts, including a photography exposition on his life entitled "Amilcar Herrera: Um Intelectual
Latino-Americano". Then the presentation of a book coordinated by Renato Dagnino who collected
papers written by Herrera in different stages of his life, exposing his interesting and wide spectrum of
thoughts in subjects related to technological innovative capacities and social capacities to innovate;
development and natural resources; his concern on adequately building the future of our region by
means of prospective exercises, and several other papers that show his influence on other scholars. It
is amazing to see how present still is his thinking on science, technology and society. The third
homage was a round table discussion with the participation of important scholars in the field, such as
Enrique Oteiza, Gilberto Gallopín, Geofrey Oldham, Tirso Saénz and Hebe Vessuri.
The Conference included the participation of a large amount of scholars as well as of postgraduate
students in the field of science, technology and innovation studies. It was organized in five round
tables, 12 panels on subjects proposed by researchers and 29 sessions where 129 papers were
presented. I would like to emphasize that these meetings are becoming a very good opportunity for
postgraduate students to present their thesis work in progress, and to benefit from qualified feedback.
The Conference also offered the opportunity to learn a lot about Brazilian academic production in this
field, presenting the local colleagues the state of the art on what Brazilians are doing in the field. It is
worth to mention the variety of centers and universities in Brazil that have research groups on this
subject and are involved in teaching at the postgraduate level. It was also a good opportunity to realize
how vast are the social studies of science and technology in Latin-America, as different disciplinary
approaches as well as conceptual backgrounds were present. Papers cover aspects on the sociology
of science, the sociology of technology and innovation, as well as on the economics of innovation and
the anthropology of science and technology. Some others have a historical approach. But the common
ground observed is the desire of researchers and scholars to find ways to support the development of
our countries, and to ameliorate social problems by means of scientific and technological activities, and
by recombining our capacities in this field. Here the spirit of Herrera's thinking was very present in the
discussions.
Several important polemic issues were dealt with, among others: theories and methods on social
studies of science and technology; the institutional reorganization of scientific and technological
activities; the evaluation of scientific activities, a subject that is of great concern to regional or local
scientific and technological developments within specific Latin-American countries; the role of
universities in the building of scientific and technological capabilities; the development of indicators to
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Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology
measure and evaluate research capacities; the different policy mechanisms that have been created in
order to promote development based on knowledge and technology production; the process of
knowledge appropriation in our countries and the characteristics and problems of interactions among
academia, government and productive sectors, where different approaches were discussed; the role of
social actors and new actors in the building of science and technology, such as union movements; the
building of networks, where several papers were presented, being this an important aspect in the
increase of our capabilities in science and technology; on the training of new resources in science, the
role of education and on the diffusion of scientific results; the experiences of science and technology
policies in our countries; technology innovation, innovation clusters, technological trajectories,
entrepreneur culture and technological strategies, as well as managerial aspects of technology.
New personal interactions and networks were created and was one of the main results of this meeting,
that was developed in a very friendly and affective environment, that greatly helped to concentrate and
reflect on subjects that are of priority importance for the Latin-American region. The next meeting will
very probably take place in Argentina, as Pablo Kreimer, from Universidad de Quilmes, one of the first
organizers of these meetings invited us to meet there in 2002.
Rosalba Casas
rcasas@servidor.unam.mx
Institute for Social Research
National Autonomous University of Mexico
A NOTE ON VIENNA CONFERENCE 2000
"WORLDS IN TRANSITION: TECHNOSCIENCE,
CITIZENSHIP AND CULTURE IN 21ST CENTURY"
Organized by
Society for Social Studies of Science (4S)
and
European Association for the Studies of Science and Technology (EASST)
At the end of September of last year, the regular conference of the European Association for the
Studies of Science and Technology (EASST) was held in Vienna. The conference was co-organized by
the Society for Social Studies of Science (4S) and was attended also by scientists from the American
continent. The joint efforts of both organizations have become current practice in the last decade and
gives this meeting the status of arena where one can gain a global picture of the knowledge produced
by this field of social studies. ISA RC23 has been also involved in the preparation of the conference
program and was entrusted with the organization of one workshop. The aim of this note is to inform
you of the outcome of this involvement. Since I had the opportunity to take part in most of the EASST
meetings which were organized in the 90s (in 1994 in Budapest/Hungary –"Science, Technology and
Change: New Theories, Realities, Institutions"-, in 1996 in Bielefeld, Germany –"Signatures of
Knowledge Societies"- and the conference 2000 in Vienna), I would like to extend this note with the
inclusion of my experience concerning the general cognitive efforts which have been promoted and
shaped by the social studies of science and technology. So, first, I will provide brief information on the
EASST conference 2000. Next, information on RC23 will follow and lastly, a reflection on the general
cognitive framework of EASST will be added.
The preparations of the Vienna Conference, as well as the conference itself, were well organized. The
organizers were able to control the numerous and heterogeneous attendance with success. The
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Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology
Conference 2000 has confirmed that there is a strong and stabilized segment of scientists who are
interested in social studies of science issues. During the four days in which the conference was held,
close to 700 participants witnessed the presentation of approximately 500 papers. The title of the
conference was indicative of the aim of the organizers in orienting the debate toward issues which may
allow a better understanding of the specific changes in science, denominated "techno science" in the
title, and their relationship with the advancing processes of individualization and democratization in
societies. The importance of the issue is backed by the experiences of many countries, regions and
cultural areas, which indicate that the democratization process has been conditioned not only by
changes within scientific institutions, but also by unintended consequences of mass democratization
and globalization at large, like growth of extremism, intolerance and xenophobia. The relationship
between science and democratic political settings, which is the topic of current debates within studies
of S&T (SST), is thus being broadened with new issues. The event coincided with local manifestations
of such issues. Namely, the recent Austrian elections, where an extreme right party emerged
victorious, became the issue of international political debate. Of course, local organizers were correct
in posing the question of whether to change the location of the Conference 2000.
After discussion and interaction with members, it was decided to hold the conference in Vienna and
bring the observed issue to debate at the conference. This was accomplished in particular by means of
sub-plenaries and at lunch meetings. The issues raised and their chairs were as follows:
"Governance: bringing back in the political dimensions of science, technology and society"
(organized by Nowotny, Helga);
"Who´s who? Science, technology, and identity"
(organized by Thompson Cussins, Charis);
"Will eugenics be a 21st Century Problem? The Coming Challenges to STS research and public policy"
(organized by Fuller, Steve);
"Reflecting on the relation of Science and Politics in the Austrian Context"
(chaired by Elzinga, Aant);
"The impact of nazism on Austrian science: a case study into relationships of politics and science"
(chaired by Ash, Mitchell)
The pattern of the workshops was differentiated and broad in scope - as it is normally the case for such
conferences. There were some current topics which were already present in previous meetings, like
S&T and gender, environment, policy and globalisation, or the cognitive and social issues of science
institutions which were present at Bielefeld (the problem of reflexivity) or Budapest (the problem of S&T
institutions). This time several new topics have appeared which seem to be emerging at the borderline
between economic science and SST and the relationship between culture and SST.
One could observe the former impetus (from economic science) to have been well visible in two
following clusters of workshop topics:
Innovation, management practices, technology foresight, communication technology, design practices.
Technologies and identities, technoscience, cyberscience, techno-cultural practices, techno- ethic and
aesthetic mediation, technomasculinities.
I have identified the latter impetus (from cultural studies) in debates (and workshop topics) concerning
the issues of public understanding of science, public participation, role of media, internet. One could
12
Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology
also notice that medical issues have been very present in the debates with workshop topics like violent
biopower, agency of dead, body construction.
As already indicated above, ISA RC23 together with Sociology of Science and Technology Research
Network (SSTNET) of the European Sociological Association, have gained the opportunity to be
involved into the program and the organization of the workshop. Preparation of the workshop was
carried out by the program committee formed by Werle, Raymund; Müller, Karel; Oliviera, Luisa and
Mali, Franc.
With due advance the program committee has distributed the topic and outline of the workshop. It was
designated by the title -The "Technologization" of Science and Society - following the aim of assessing
the mediating role of technology in the relationship between science and society. The workshop
program was well accommodated to the above identified issues of the conference. Judging by the
abstracts received, there was a positive response to the topic from the RC23 membership. The
organizing committee received more than 30 abstracts; consequently, it was able to highlight the key
issues of the suggested topic and support them with relevant scientific communications. Respecting
the available time lot in the conference program the workshop was covered by four sessions with the
following presentations:
Social (scientific and democratic) control of technology:
"Expertocracy and democracy: problems of public control of technology in new democracies"
(Müller, Karel)
"Technologizing democracy? Deliberating agricultural biotechnology in Europe
(Lewidow, Les)
"The introduction of science based technologies in European societies: the question of political
legitimacy"
(Mentzel, Maarten)
"The makers of technologized society"
(Oliviera, Luisa)
"Cyborgs, language and technology"
(Monk, John);
Social theory of technology: concepts and approaches:
"Technology as subliminal enticement"
(Birrer, Frans A.J.)
"Technology as medium - a constructivist concept of technology"
(Bechmann, Gotthard)
" Is technology a legitimate object for social theory?"
(Grundmann, Reiner)
"S&T studies in the information society: social study of Internet"
(Boudourides, Moses A.)
The role of technology in the scientific process:
"Non-instrumental roles for science"
(Ziman, John)
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Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology
"Turing-Test and social science hermeneutics - some software aspects of "Verstehen""
(Ahrweiler, Petra)
"Technologies and research agendas within the virtual research council economic and social research"
(Caswill, Chris)
"Technology as the organization of scientific practice: a Turkish case"
(Nalbantoglu, Hasan Unal, Tarhan, Belkis Ayhan)
"On technology, education and practical activities: some roots of disintegration"
(Zacher, Lech)
Responses of academia to the technologization of science:
"Universities responding to pressure to commercialise their knowledge production"
(Häyrinen-Alestalo, Marja, Peltola, Ulla)
"Researcher perspectives on the technologization of biological sciences"
(Morris Norma)
"The new challenges, but the old views - is there a possibility in the countries of transition to come to
new evaluation models of S&T"
(Mali, Franc)
"Breaking the link between research and education in an entrepreneurial university"
(Snell, Karolina)
"Intellectual property rights and patenting: can centralized technology transfer save public research"
(Tupasella, Aaro).
In my assessment the workshop has been interesting in the presentation of research results from
various projects and case studies, as indicated by the topics of communications. Due to the tensed
time schedule – which is the general problem of such large conferences - less time was available for
general discussion. Still, some arguments have gained more attention and gave evidence about some
general knowledge claims that were shared by the participants. I would indicate two of them. The issue
of technologization of science has been found as the relevant concept; however, the outcome of the
studies on this issue is reporting of a more complex social background for this phenomena, and its
rather negative impact on the institutional setting of science. The debate has indicated a view that the
technologization of science is not counter-balanced by appropriate communicative and cultural efforts
in the academia, which are necessary for the maintenance of its evaluative capacities and academic
ethos. Similar interpretation has prevailed in the comments on the impact of the technologized science
on the process of public understanding and democratic control of science - these democratic
processes are constrained rather than facilitated by this trend in science.
The debates have also left behind some questions and claims. E.g. the existing S&T concepts do not
seem to be productive enough to offer a theoretical framework for understanding discussed
phenomena; closer interaction with economic research would be needed. In fact, some efforts to
search for replies to these questions could be followed in the other workshops of the conference.
In conclusion, I would like to come back to the assessment of the general program and orientation of
the conference.
Local organizers’ fears concerning the Conference’s location did not materialize. The EASST
conference 2 000 has been well attended and full of engaged and interesting debates. The tradition of
these conferences has continued: they have always had very challenging and stimulating impact due
to permanent inflow of new scientists, research problems and research outcomes from different
science disciplines. Taking into account the orientation of the preceding conferences and the key
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Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology
issues which they are presenting, one can understand that the interface of science and society is very
dynamic and "disperse". The key problems of the respective conferences have been always shifting
and re-coupling. At each conference one could find a different "mix" of key issues. It seems as if it is
not possible to identify and enact a more stable pattern. Consequently, a reliable theoretical concept
for understanding the nature of the science/society interface does not seem to emerge. Indeed, one
can often hear this critical observation from representatives of mainstream social sciences, like
economics, sociology, anthropology. They are apparently in need of more clear and persuasive
concepts of S&T without which they cannot advance in their disciplines. The concepts of mode II
science or techno-science seem not to cover all facets of modern, knowledge-based societies.
Müller Karel
Charles University, Faculty of Humanistic Studies,
U køíže 10,
158 00 Prague 5
e-mail: muellerk@fhs.cuni.cz
UNIVERSITY CENTER FOR LIBRARY RESEARCH
INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM
RESEARCH ON SCIENTIFIC COMMUNICATION:
A MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACH
On October 2 – 4, 2000, the first International Symposium on Research into Scientific Communication:
A Multidisciplinary Approach, was held. The symposium was organized by the National Autonomous
University of Mexico’s University Center for Library Research (CUIB) and the School of Psychology.
The main objective was to bring together scholars from different disciplines interested in the field of
scientific communication. Organizers of the event were Jane M. Russell and Margarita Almada de
Ascencio, both researchers at the CUIB, and Sofía Liberman, from the School of Psychology’s
Graduate Division.
Communication is a fundamental part of scientific practice, and is present at all stages of the scientific
research process. Current developments in information technology and telecommunications are
changing the nature of communication among researchers in all areas of scientific knowledge: in the
natural and social sciences as well as in the humanities.
Scientific research is increasingly becoming a collaborative activity with researchers taking advantage
of electronic media for the transmission and exchange of ideas, protocols and data, as well as a way of
communication to facilitate integration into the world community of specialists.
The multi and interdisciplinary nature of studies on scientific communication, involving specialists from
diverse fields, however, makes it difficult to establish a unified research community. The lack of an
interdisciplinary tradition in Latin American countries in this important field, at the crossroads of
scientific, social and information studies, has caused continuous, institutional dispersion of specialists,
and fragmentation of the few groups that work in this area of study. It was, therefore, considered
expedient to bring together specialists from different disciplines such as the Health Sciences, Physics,
Social Psychology, History, Information and Library Studies, interested in the diverse aspects that
make up studies on scientific communication, to promote research in the field and to aid the planning
and evaluation of science policy in Mexico and Latin America.
Fifteen outstanding national and international specialists participated in the event; Dr. Jaime
Martuscelli, Assistant Director for Scientific Research at the CONACYT (National Council for Science
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Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology
and Technology) gave the opening speech entitled "Toward a better national scientific publication". Dr.
Jack Meadows, of Loughborough University, Great Britain, renowned leader in the field of scientific
communication, presented the event’s Keynote Address, "Changing patterns in scientific
communication". Dr. Susana Mueller of the University of Brasilia participated as special guest with a
talk on "What are Third World scholarly journals good for? A case study on Brazilian economic
journals".
Other topics presented and discussed during the Symposium highlighted aspects such as the
development of models and field differences, the role of the Internet, communication patterns in the
formation of research groups, and different applications of bibliometric and scientometric techniques in
scientific communication studies.
The proceedings of the meeting will be published mid 2001. It is hoped that the event constituted a firm
step toward the establishment of a national and regional community in this important field of study.
Anybody interested in obtaining a copy of the proceedings or in the creation of a regional association
for Scientometrics and Informetrics should contact Jane Russell at: jrussell@servidor.unam.mx
Jane Russell
University Center for Library Research
National Autonomous University of Mexico
Announcements:
ISA deadlines for the
XV World Congress of Sociology
July 7-13, 2002 Brisbane, Australia
MAY 31, 2001
Session topics and names of session organizers should be recived from RCs at the ISA Secretariat in
Madrid for publication in the ISA Bulletin and on the ISA web site.
JANUARY 1, 2002
Deadline for submitting abstracts of accepted papers (by RCs). All abstracts to be submitted via the
internet to: www.sociology2002.com
MAY 1, 2002
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Research Committee 23 Sociology of Science and Technology
Deadline for RCs to submit last minute changes of sessions programmes to the Congress Secretariat:
ISA XV World Congress of Sociology
The Meeting Planners Pty Ltd
91-97 Islington Street, Collingwood, Victoria 3066, Australia
Tel: 61-3-94170899
Email: sociology.reg@meetingplanners.com
JUNE 1, 2002
Deadline for submitting accepted papers to the Congress Secretariat. All papers to be submitted via
the Internet to: www.sociology2002.com
Visit the RC23 Newsletter homepage at:
locke.iimas.unam.mx/rc23
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