Science, Power and the Construction of Facts: Introduction to Science and Technology Studies Part 2

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The course ‘Living in Technological Cultures’ has introduced a range of issues related to the impact of scientific and technological innovations on contemporary societies and vice versa, and discussed the basic tenets of the field of Science and Technology Studies. This second course will take a closer look at the production and dissimination of technoscience output. We will study science in action in its immediate environment as well as in its role and position in society. To do so we consider science and its scientists as ‘a tribe’. To take this idea seriously we need different notions of objectivity, expertise, commercialisation, integrity, credibility, etc. This perspective will help us to understand how science operates in today’s complex world. To gain insight in science we zoom in on the organization of knowledge production and its collaborative character. We also study processes in which credible facts are established and published about. Furthermore, this course also pays attention to the integrity of science and its grey area in particular. Beside the immediate context (the lab) in which scientific facts are established, the course also takes into account the wider socio-economic context in which science operates. This involves not only the commercialization of science, but also the way its promises and expectations are related to our hopes and fears. Finally, you will gain insights into the way the cultural-historical context affects the interpretation of facts. It is along these lines that we enter the world of the scientists. Based on discussions and analyses of these topics the course aims to make you reflect critically on ‘common sense’ views of the making and use of scientific claims. Besides tutorial meetings, the course also involves lectures, discussion meetings, video analysis, and a visit to a scientific lab for an interview.