The Sociology of the Web

A sociologist's description of the Web as a socially constructed/discovered/encountered piece of technology.

INFO2009 2012-13 Resource Group 27 & 31: The public awareness of science

Resources for coursework 2 of INFO 2009. A video made to promote the public awareness of science as a topic. It goes through interesting facts and explains what you can do to make a difference. A flyer made to advertise the video, explaining what it is and how it can be used.

COMP6037 Seminar 23 10 13: Science, knowledge and technology

Set readings 1. Sismondo S. (2009). The Kuhnian revolution. In An introduction to science and technology studies. p12-22 2. Ben-David J, Sullivan T. (1975) Sociology of science. Annual Review of Sociology p203-21 3. Clarke A, Star SL. (2008) The social worlds framework: a theory/methods package. In Hackett EJ et al. The handbook of science and technology studies. Cambridge MA: MIT Press p113-137 Bonus paper (read if you have time) 4. Mitroff I. (1974). Norms and Counternorms in a Select Group of Apollo Moon Scientists. American Sociological Review 39:79-95 • Aim to ensure that you understand the core arguments of each paper • Look up/note any new terminology (and questions you want to ask) • Think about your critical appraisal of the paper (what are the merits/demerits of the argument, evidence etc) In the seminar we will spend about 5 minutes talking about each paper, and then - building on the two lectures - discuss how these ideas might be used to think about the Web and Web Science. At the end there will be some time for questions and a chance to note your key learning points.