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Book
ReviewInterconnections
of Science, Technology and Social InteractionStates of knowledge: the co-production
of science and social order. S. Jasanoff, editor, 2004. London: Routledge; ISBN 041533361X, 317 pp., £70.00 cloth
SAGE Publications, Inc.2005DOI: 10.1177/09675507050130020506
HelenBovill
University of the West of England
States
of knowledge seeks to explore the relationship between scientific knowledge,
culture and political power through a series of essays that utilize knowledge
as a resource. The book's main organizing principle is that of co-production – that the natural and social orders work together to produce one another; and
that the way we understand the world and choose to live in it are interconnected.
The book examines the potential of the integration of science, power and culture
and how this can extend the language of the social sciences, whilst highlighting
the importance of science and technology studies to `modern' life. Science
and technology constantly impact upon human interaction and Jasanoff uses
the Y2K millennium bug and the collapse of the World Trade Center towers in
New York on 11 September 2001 to illustrate this. She then goes on to further
demonstrate that though science and techno- logy impact upon human relations,
humankind has yet to master nature and the AIDs epidemic, global climate change,
ageing and infertility are amongst her examples of the social order's powerlessness
against nature. What are the responses to this? How do we analyse these responses?
The book claims that the social sciences do not – at present – have the tools to explain these interactions and: `Conversations between S&TS
and
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neighbouring
fields about the links between knowledge, culture and power are therefore
urgently needed and could be enormously fruitful' (p. 2). The book is divided
into 14 chapters; the first two, and the last (in the form of an afterword)
are by the editor Jasanoff, the other eleven chapters are by various authors
on a diversity of subjects, which are roughly grouped into the following categories:
chapters 3, 4, 5 and 6 investigate co-production and the environment, exploring
how environmental changes and global connections use and produce new knowledge; chap- ters 7, 8, 9 and 10 investigate co-production and the development and
interplay of human interaction with the life sciences, paying particular attention
to research communities; chapters 11, 12 and 13 are more diverse in their
focus but centre upon conflicts within and between states and institutions
and the particular role of science and technology through periods of social
and political change. The book is an interesting and important contribution
to the analysis of how science and technology can interact with the social
sciences and succeeds in demonstrating ways in which the different disciplines
can combine and utilize their knowledge. However, the book implies that social
science has been less than rigorous in its examination of the links between
scientific knowledge, power and culture, and has sought to keep itself separate
from other disciplines. Though many social scientists hold the view that progress,
science, technological development and the acqui- sition of knowledge do not
necessarily equate to a rational and enlight- ened social order, this should
not be confused with a lack of understanding of or analysis of the implications
of scientific endeavour and technologi- cal progress. Indeed social science
in its postmodern form acknowledges the many disasters that progress, science
and technology have made pos- sible in the `modern' world and concedes that
no one answer exists to any problem, thus the discipline is open to working
with others and the book overstates any reticence for opening and keeping
open the lines of communication. States of knowledge does bring this interconnectedness
of science, tech- nology and social interaction up to date with a collection
of essays that are – on the whole – approachable, interesting
and accessible. The book would possibly be of use to undergraduate students,
though it is more likely that postgraduate students, analysts and researchers
would find this book useful. The book's strength lies in its diverse range
of essays. For example, Miller illustrates the uncertainties that exist between
levels of authority within and between national and international organizations.
Miller analy- ses global climate change to demonstrate a need for co-operation
between states through case-study research of the Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change (IPCC).
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Thompson
examines the shift in status of the African elephant from `endangered' to
`manageable' through co-ordinated global effort and a sharing of knowledge
to make a similar point. Continuous dialogue over a sustained period of time
between global organizations, non-government organizations (NGOs) and the
different African states, which took into account culture, rights (human and
animal) and sustainability, forged a `liveable' consensus surrounding the
trade in African elephants. Dear's analysis of `authority, knowledge and expertise
in the seven- teenth century' demonstrates how skill, expertise and authority
are not static but constantly in flux throughout history and are influenced
by cul- ture. Dear examines the relationship that exists between experience,
expertise, knowledge and skill and how these links come to lend legit- imacy
to the authority of the time. Such diversity makes the book an interesting
and challenging read. For anyone interested in the areas of science, technology,
the production of knowledge, social organization and how they can impact
on lives, States of knowledge will prove to be an interesting and thought-provoking
resource.