SOC400 Science, technology and politics

Faculty of Social Studies
Autumn 2012
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 10 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
doc. PaedDr. Zdeněk Konopásek, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
doc. PhDr. Ing. Radim Marada, Ph.D.
Division of Sociology – Department of Sociology – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Ing. Soňa Enenkelová
Supplier department: Division of Sociology – Department of Sociology – Faculty of Social Studies
Timetable
Tue 12:00–13:30 M117
Prerequisites (in Czech)
Předmět je určen především pro studentky a studenty magisterského studia sociologie na FSS. Je nicméně otevřený i pro studující ostatních oborů na Masarykově univerzitě. Velkou výhodou je zázemí v sociologické teorii (zejména konstruktivismus). Předpokládá se slušná znalost angličtiny – studenti čtou nelehké odborné texty v angličtině. Zapsání předmětu prosím dobře zvažte s ohledem na své síly a možnosti; pokud práci v kursu vzdáte během semestru po řádném zápisovém období, budete na konci automaticky hodnoceni známkou F (tento postup byl doporučen na poradě katedry sociologie na jaře 2008).
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 20 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/20, only registered: 0/20, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/20
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The main objectives are:
1) to provide an introduction to contemporary science and technology studies,
2) to map more general sociological consequences and key topics of this research field, and
3) to explain basic principles of actor-network theory.
Syllabus
  • 1. Construktivism and deconstruction
  • 2. The linguistic turn
  • 3. The problem of reflexivity
  • 4. The Mertonian school
  • 5. The critique of Merton, the strong programme and its followers
  • 6. Actor-network theory and contemporary STS
  • 7. The power and weakness of "pure facts": On devitalization from sociological point of view
  • 8. On pure science and pure politics in the controversy over the highway bypass of Plzen
  • 9. The economy of civic participation: On the controversy over the household waste incinerator in Praha
  • 10. Points of reversal and networks of irreversibility: On the Plan of waste management and (again) on the highway bypass
  • 11. Pure facts revisited: The non-political politics of Natura 2000
  • 12. Sociology of science and contemporary sociology
Literature
  • LATOUR, Bruno. Science in action :how to follow scientists and engineers through society. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1987, 274 s. ISBN 0-674-79291-2. info
  • LATOUR, Bruno. We have never been modern. Translated by Catherine Porter. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1991, ix, 257 s. ISBN 0-674-94839-4. info
  • + 13 článků či kapitol/13 articles or chapters
Teaching methods
The following methods are used:
1) lectures,
2) class discussions of readings,
3) individual study of literature.
After having discussed (1) constructivism and deconstruction, (2) the problem of reflexivity, and (3) linguistic turn in the social sciences, a contextualised history of sociology of science (and technology) will be debated (Merton, the strong programme of David Bloor, ethnographies of laboratory life and studies of scientific controversies etc.). Special attention will be paid to actor-network theory, an approach gaining importance within contemporary social sciences in general (Bruno Latour, Michel Callon, John Law and others). The final set of lectures will discuss a number of empirical examples focusing on the relationship between democratic decision making and scientific expertise.
Assessment methods
Final classification is based on a total score for:
1) written summaries of assigned readings (throughout the semester),
2) active participation in seminar discussions,
3) seminar thesis.
See syllabus for more details.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further Comments
Study Materials
The course is taught annually.
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2005, Autumn 2006, Autumn 2007, Autumn 2008, Autumn 2009, Autumn 2010, Autumn 2011, Autumn 2013.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2012, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/autumn2012/SOC400