Scientific Actors Research Articles

PENGARUH SUMBER PENGETAHUAN EKTERNAL TERHADAP TYPE INOVASI : SEBUAH TINJAUAN BERBASIS PELAKU PASAR DAN SCIENCE BASED ACTORS (STUDI EMPIRIS PADA UMKM DI YOGYAKARTA)

The research aims to determine the influence of external knowledge sources based on market actors and science actors on the types of innovations including product innovation, process innovation, market innovation and organizational innovation in innovating SMEs food and beverage at D. I Yogyakarta. This research is based on 60 samples obtained from the dissemination of questionnaires directly and through Google form. To analyzed data, this study utilized a logistic regression model with SPSS 23. The findings show that the external knowledge source of market base actors has significant effect on 4 types of innovation. However, the best prediction is shown in Model 1 that is market base actors to product innovation. While analysis of external knowledge sources of Science based actors shows there is no influence on 4 types of innovations, either on models 1 to model 4. Analysis of the control variables also showed no significant influence on innovation. Therefore, the age difference and size of the company in SMEs are not important factors in innovating. The results of this study contribute to the development of innovation in SMEs.

Articulando ambiente, território e lugar: A luta por justiça ambiental e suas lições para a epistemologia e a teoria geográficas

Nas últimas quatro décadas, a distância entre geógrafos “humanos” e “físicos” tem contribuído para o prolongamento e até o agravamento de vários preconceitos: entre eles, podemos citar a desvalo­rização ou insuficiente valorização, por parte dos geógrafos “humanos”, do conceito de ambiente (equi­vocadamente reduzido, quase sempre, à ideia de um “ambiente natural”, quando na verdade se trata de um conceito potencialmente holístico e integrador), e o desinteresse ou ceticismo a propósito da cons­trução de objetos de conhecimento (objetos epistêmicos) “híbridos”, que combinem conhecimentos ori­undos das ciências sociais e naturais. Além disso, a capacidade dos geógrafos de participar de vários de­bates públicos - da mudança climática global e seus impactos sócio-espaciais à produção social de desas­tres ambientais - e de granjear reconhecimento e visibilidade como atores científicos relevantes sobre essas questões tem sido severamente restringida. Tudo isso porque, nas décadas de 1970 e 1980, a esma­gadora maioria dos geógrafos que influenciaram e protagonizaram a “virada crítica” ou “radical” da dis­ciplina (que foi, essencialmente, uma virada marxista, uma vez que as contribuições libertárias foram lar­gamente negligenciadas e marginalizadas) erroneamente acreditou que para alcançar profundidade e densidade em termos de análise crítica da sociedade seria conveniente ou necessário voltar as costas ao conhecimento de processos e fatores geoecológicos, como se estes fossem, em última instância, desim­portantes ou um mero diversionismo. Começando nos Estados Unidos na década de 1980, e depois fazendo-se presentes também na América Latina e em outras partes do mundo, debates, conflitos e ativismos em torno da justiça ambiental têm tacitamente desafiado os geógrafos a repensarem a fragmentação intradisciplinar com a qual a mai­oria parece viver confortavelmente (ou mostrando apenas um desconforto retórico, de tempos em tem­pos e sem consequências práticas). Dentro de um quadro de resistência e práxis emancipatória, os atores comprometidos com a luta contra a injustiça ambiental articulam, em seu cotidiano, as ideias de ambiente (o contexto sócio-natural em que vivem), território (a projeção espacial das relações de poder) e lugar (o tecido das identidades sócio-espaciais); mas é precisamente essa articulação fundamental que, no en­tanto, como está implícito no que foi dito no parágrafo anterior, os geógrafos geralmente não têm con­seguido apreciar adequadamente. Além disso, esses atores têm sido frequentemente forçados pelas cir­cunstâncias não apenas a combinar conhecimento vernacular (dito “local”) com conhecimento científico, mas também, no que diz respeito a este último, a perceber a necessidade de coletar informações sobre questões relacionadas a processos e problemas de ordem geoquímica, ecotoxicológica, geotécnica etc., a fim de ser melhor informados (e, portanto, politicamente mais eficazes) sobre coisas como os riscos à saúde causados por contaminantes ambientais, riscos de deslizamentos, desmoronamentos e outros de­sastres, e assim sucessivamente. O que a luta pela justiça ambiental fortemente exemplifica, em poucas palavras, é a necessidade de os geógrafos entenderem a importância de construir e valorizar objetos de conhecimento “híbridos” para lidar com problemas complexos. A menos que compreendam esse ponto, é provável que não apenas sua relevância científica, mas sobretudo sua relevância social, permaneçam desnecessariamente limita­das (ou até mesmo sofram atrofia), especialmente dada a enorme magnitude, o amplo alcance e a ele­vada visibilidade política dos desafios ambientais contemporâneos.

Narrating Society: Enacting ‘Immigrant’ Characters through Negotiating, Naturalization, and Forgetting

This article scrutinizes how ‘immigrant’ characters of perpetual arrival are enacted in the social scientific work of immigrant integration monitoring. Immigrant integration research produces narratives in which characters—classified in highly specific, contingent ways as ‘immigrants’—are portrayed as arriving and never as having arrived. On the basis of ethnographic fieldwork at social scientific institutions and networks in four Western European countries, this article analyzes three practices that enact the characters of arrival narratives: negotiating, naturalizing, and forgetting. First, it shows how negotiating constitutes objects of research while at the same time a process of hybridization is observed among negotiating scientific and governmental actors. Second, a naturalization process is analyzed in which slippery categories become fixed and self-evident. Third, the practice of forgetting involves the fading away of contingent and historical circumstances of the research and specifically a dispensation of ‘native’ or ‘autochthonous’ populations. Consequently, the article states how some people are considered rightful occupants of ‘society’ and others are enacted to travel an infinite road toward an occupied societal space. Moreover, it shows how enactments of arriving ‘immigrant’ characters have performative effects in racially differentiating national populations and hence in narrating society. This article is part of the Global Perspectives, Media and Communication special issue on “Media, Migration, and Nationalism,” guest-edited by Koen Leurs and Tomohisa Hirata.

The Science–Policy Interface as a Discourse Network: Finland’s Climate Change Policy 2002–2015

In this article, we argue that the science–policy interface can be understood as a discourse network constituted by discursive interaction between scientific organizations and other actors that both use scientific arguments in conjunction with other policy arguments. We use discourse network analysis to investigate the climate change policy process in Finland between 2002 and 2015, focusing on the role of and relationships between scientific actors and arguments in the discourse networks. Our data consist of policy actors’ written testimonies on two law proposals, the ratification of the Kyoto Protocol (2002) and the enactment of the Finnish Climate Law (2015). Our results show that two competing discourse coalitions have influenced the development of climate change policy in the 2000s. In 2002, the dominant coalition was economic, prioritizing economic growth over climate change mitigation. In 2015, the climate coalition that argued for ambitious mitigation measures became dominant. The majority of scientific actors were part of the dominant economy coalition in 2002 and part of the dominant ecology coalition in 2015. The centrality of scientific arguments increased over time, and both discourse coalitions used them progressively more. These developments reflect the increasingly central position of science in Finnish climate policymaking. We contribute to the literature on the science–policy interface by operationalizing the interface as a set of connections in a discourse network and by showing how the analysis of discourse networks and their properties can help us understand the shifts in the role of science in policymaking over time.

A Chemical History of Polycyclic Musks.

Musk odorants are ubiquitous in fine perfumery as well as household products, and are divided into four main families, the nitromusks, the macrocyclic musks, the polycyclic aromatic musks, and the alicyclic musks, following their order of appearance on the perfumery market. This article presents the scientific and industrial adventures during the discovery of the seven commercial polycyclic musks, which invigorated the aroma chemistry corporations during the second half of the 20th century, resulting in relentless competition. Research and development strategies are exposed, and reactivity, analytical, mechanistic, and structure-activity relationships aspects are discussed as well as some biographical elements of the main scientific actors, and some fine perfumery examples are given as illustrations of their use.

Politicization and Polarization in Climate Change News Content, 1985-2017

Despite concerns about politicization and polarization in climate change news, previous work has not been able to offer evidence concerning long-term trends. Using computer-assisted content analyses of all climate change articles from major newspapers in the United States between 1985 and 2017, we find that media representations of climate change have become (a) increasingly politicized, whereby political actors are increasingly featured and scientific actors less so and (b) increasingly polarized, in that Democratic and Republican discourses are markedly different. These findings parallel trends in U.S. public opinion, pointing to these features of news coverage as polarizing influences on climate attitudes.

Navigating between Complexity and Control in Transdisciplinary Problem Framing: Meaning Making as an Approach to Reflexive Integration

ABSTRACT Referring to a problem-oriented research mode, transdisciplinarity faces the challenge of dealing with the complexity of real-world problems in a methodologically controlled manner. As the first step in transdisciplinary research, problem framing aims at identifying the problem that will serve as a common orientation point for the subsequent research process. Existing approaches to integrative problem framing seek collaboration of practical and scientific actors in order to develop a common definition of the problem. Such a strategy seems to rely on a unifying mode of integration that levels the diversity of perspectives of the involved actors. This paper presents an alternative approach to integrative problem framing in transdisciplinary research, which is based on a mode of reflexive integration. The corresponding approach of ‘meaning making’ intends to systematically grasp the plurality of perspectives involved and to relate them to an overarching theme. Substantiating and reflecting meaning making based on a research project on sustainability governance in Swiss cantons, the paper argues that meaning making enables a reflexive pathway between complexity and control in transdisciplinary problem framing.

The Methodologists: a Unique Category of Scientific Actors

This essay introduces a new analytical category of scientific actors: the methodologists. These actors are distinguished by their tendency to continue to probing scientific objects that their peers consider to be settled. The methodologists are a useful category of actors for science and technology studies (STS) scholars to follow because they reveal contingencies and uncertainties in taken-for-granted science. Identifying methodologists is useful for STS analysts seeking a way into science in moments when it is no longer “in the making” or there is little active controversy. Studying methodologists is also useful for scholars seeking to understand the genesis of scientific controversies, particularly controversies about long-established methods, facts, or premises.

Mapping weather, water, ice and climate (WWIC) information providers in Polar Regions: who are they and who do they serve?

ABSTRACT Environmental conditions in Polar Regions are becoming more dynamic due to climate change. As sea ice melts, the range of human activities in Polar Regions are projected to increase, while weather conditions are becoming more extreme and unpredictable. Provision and use of weather, water, ice and climate (WWIC) information plays a key role in ensuring that polar activities are conducted as safely as possible and can contribute to a reduction of the environmental footprint of human activities. In this article, we explore the WWIC information provider landscape in a polar context, drawing on a database we compiled to characterize the diversity of providers. The database is built on available literature and on an extensive desk-based research of WWIC information provider websites. We analyse the 374 providers categorized by (a) institutional background (public vs private), (b) the position of the provider relative to activities in the WWIC information space, and (c) the users they serve. While governmental institutions have a strong presence in information provision, new types of providers are now entering the scene. Scientific actors seem to play a substantial role as users as well as major providers of WWIC information services.

ВИБІР ПРІОРИТЕТІВ НАУКОВИХ ДОСЛІДЖЕНЬ В КОНТЕКСТІ ФОРМУВАННЯ ДЕРЖАВНОЇ НАУКОВОЇ ПОЛІТИКИ

This article provides the results of a study of the problem of choosing scientific priorities in Ukraine, which today is becoming a complex political interaction of various social actors: the state, the scientific community, business structures and different social institutions. The increasing number of active players influences the expansion of goals and strategies for the development of science, which the state should synchronize through the formation of state policy based on innovation. The article aims to analyze the methodology and applied aspects of the choice of scientific priorities and to substantiate the principles and criteria of their formation in Ukraine. For the purposes of the article, the following research methods were applied: abstract-logical; system analysis; analysis and synthesis; graphical method. The article highlights the problems of predicting the development of science, applying methods of assessing scientific priorities in view of the needs of modern society and ensuring socio-economic development. In this regard, the principles, criteria and methods for the formation and selection of scientific priorities in terms of individual areas of scientific activity are substantiated. It is determined that the content of the scientific priorities should: meet the challenges that Ukraine may face in the medium and long term; take into account the emergence of new technologies that can significantly change the economy, living conditions and social relationships; focus on critical public needs and international development specificities, relevant risks and opportunities; cover sufficiently large areas, which should be limited in number. The results of the research concluded that the objectives of the scientific priorities are: concentration of financial resources to support research on critical scientific issues; improving coordination among the various scientific actors and facilitating the flow of extra-budgetary funds; stimulating demand channels for the results of basic and applied research; involvement of foreign scientists in research. The need to formulate a common systemic approach to the selection of scientific and scientific-technological priorities is substantiated.

The right to information activity of citizens as the source of the establishment of a new integrated communication science

The whole set of political, legal, scientific, educational and economic relations in society and the state absorbs its information and communication space. This is where all the concepts of the various sciences that study the material and virtual world are interpreted today. Political science as a social science cannot stand aside in this process. In turbulent conditions, it simultaneously differentiates and integrates the problems that make up its structural content. Activities of the authorities and their relations with civil society; political institutions, processes and systems; technologies of political activity and motivation of political behavior; political aspects of international relations and the problem of supranational power, everything is interested in political science, where today is the conceptualization of ideas of organization of global information and communication space – the spheres of generation, interpretation and consumption of information, the question of interaction of information actors in science, education, economic or political activities use a single information and communication environment. There is no doubt that the digital world we are entering is not only a new logical stage in the development of the technological sphere of humanity, but a transition of the existing political-legal and socio-political systems to a new dimension of reality. Digital technologies are already rapidly grasping the footholds for advancement in all spheres of society, and digitalization is becoming a trend in modern development, however, it will require ever more in-depth work to develop ever more effective ways of legal regulation of various information and communication relations, as well as effective organizational and legal support for informatization of the state. The complexity of this area is due to the fact that virtually all social and industrial relations have an information component, and therefore the information and legal nature are all norms of interaction in different sectors and spheres of citizens. For example, relationships that arise: in the production and dissemination of information by the media; when applying the organizational and legal mechanisms of its security; at creation and functioning of the state automated information and communication systems. Legal regulation of information relations and social production activities in the information and communication sphere (infosphere), one way or another, affect the organization of all political institutes and processes engaged in the process of creating all targeted programs to improve national, state and personal security of citizens of any country, normatively – legal acts, including laws on relations, which represent the subject of a new field of law integrated with the technical sciences – information law, which practically emerged 20–25 years . Both political science and jurisprudence are still amorphous enough and are not actively defining the scope of their tasks, but they exist and require their decision. Analysis of global trends in the development of mankind in the XXI century suggests that the further development of states will occur in the face of enormous technological and psycho-emotional challenges and risks associated with digital inequality of citizens, however, and under such conditions, the formation of societies and their policies is already happening today, military affairs and, of course, science and education. Risks are the foundation of a fundamentally new economy (knowledge-based economy), the basis of competitiveness in countries where new high-tech breakthrough technologies are being created based on digitized information. The digital economy is defined as an economy based on the digital use of digital information and communication technologies (ICTs), however, they do not take into account that digital technologies of information and knowledge processing are becoming, today, the energy that conceptually changes the organization of information and communication. Areas – Areas of processing (production, interpretation, communication) and consumption of information. The information space is changing – as a sphere of interaction of information actors who use a single information environment. Traditionally, the information environment refers to the totality of information infrastructure, ICTs and tools, as well as organizational and legal structures that represent the organizational, material and legal conditions for the existence and functioning of information actors. The basis (central part) of the information environment is not only the information and communication infrastructure – a set of interconnected communications, information systems and information resources, but also the ability of countries to adequately fulfill the political and legal conditions for its development. Key words: information, informatization, information and communication technologies, information and communication security, information and communication activity, information space, information war, humanities, scientific and educational policy, information legislation.

Beyond projects: benefits of research accompanying research: Reflections from the research programme Sustainable Land Management

In manifold ways science and practice are working together to find solutions for sustainable land management. New research programmes on this topic generate a large variety of single project results. Accompanying research projects will realize additional value by merging and synthesising the results from these projects and by supporting the generation of new knowledge for science and society.For many actors in science and policy, the additional value of research accompanying research projects remains open. Referring to a recent publication in GAIA that introduces a typology for accompanying research (AR), this article discusses the central issues, content, processes and ongoing challenges in an AR project accompanying the German research programme Sustainable Land Management. The important value of AR can be seen in communication, networking, the reflexive generation of new knowledge and knowledge management based on trust building and competence. AR also exhibits great potential for research on cross-cutting issues in research programmes and has special significance for meta-studies on different research projects taking place under similar funding conditions. However, additional analyses are necessary for a better understanding of the outcomes and impacts of AR and to create wider appreciation and acceptance.

The Political Economy of Policy Vacuums: The European Commission on Demographic Change

ABSTRACT Supranational organisations can only confront politico-economic issues that are recognised as important. Typically, issues gain recognition either when they provide an external shock to the system, shaking political actors into action, or when they are framed as important in policy networks concerned with developing the appropriate scientific approach. Ideally political and scientific actors align in creating pressures to recognise the issue as salient and to mobilise organisational responses. Issues differ in their capacity to be driven by both political and scientific pressures, creating crisis management, technocratic, and reform agenda outcomes. Here we explore a further variation, where pressures around an issue are insufficient, creating a policy vacuum. We examine one such policy vacuum in Europe: demographic change. This issue belongs to no particular Directorate-General in the European Commission, but is subject to policy frames from DG EMPL and DG ECFIN. Without sufficient political and scientific pressures, no particular policy position is occupied and advocated despite recognition of the issue’s importance. We discuss the role of policy vacuums and the need for their identification in political economy research.

Resolving and Understanding Differences Between Agent-Based Accounts of Scientific Representation

Agent-based accounts of scientific representation all agree that the representational relationship is constituted by the actions of scientists. Despite this agreement, there are several differences in how agent-based accounts describe scientific representation. In this essay, I argue that these differences do not undercut the compatibility between the accounts. I make my argument by examining the nature of human agency and demonstrating that scientific, representational actions are multiply describable. I then argue that the differences between the accounts are valuable because they help to bring different parts of the representational practices of science into greater focus.

Emissaries: A Trilogy of Simulations

In the belly of a supercomputer, scientists' predictive modelling software simulates the life of a landscape. Weather systems ebb and flow, economies boom and bust, and ecologies thrive and die as a billion algorithmic operations prototype a digital proxy of the world. The data generated by these programs inform the policies of governments, the actions of scientists and the gambles of brokers. These computational environments are oracles for an uncertain tomorrow.Against this context, New York‐based artist Ian Cheng develops his own alternative system of digital simulations as models of imaginary worlds, populated by non‐playable characters and fields of narrative agents that rerun past histories and rehearse strange futures. Landscapes are no longer interconnected fields of growing biomatter, the exchange of energies and the cycles of seasons. They are ecologies formed from a multitude of machines, a community of intelligent programs, living out their complex lives in a world without us. These simulated territories are the new nature of the Post‐ Anthropocene, a landscape of artificial life playing out endlessly in stacks of silica and rows of rare‐earth hard drives.

Pathways to urban sustainability: How science can contribute to sustainable development in cities

Pressing sustainability challenges reinvigorate calls for scientific actors to strengthen their profile as change agents. Focusing on the urban context, we point to four forms of science-policy-society interactions as key pathways to advance the sustainability transformation in cities.Recent years have seen a considerable broadening of the ambitions in urban sustainability policy-making. With its Sustainable Development Goal (SDG)11 Making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable, the 2030 Agenda stresses the critical role of cities in achieving sustainable development. In the context of SDG17 on partnerships, emphasis is also placed on the role of researchers and other scientific actors as change agents in the sustainability transformation. Against this backdrop, this article sheds light on different pathways through which science can contribute to urban sustainability. In particular, we discern four forms of science-policy-society interactions as key vectors: 1. sharing knowledge and providing scientific input to urban sustainability policy-making; 2. implementing transformative research projects; 3. contributing to local capacity building; and 4. self-governing towards sustainability. The pathways of influence are illustrated with empirical examples, and their interlinkages and limitations are discussed. We contend that there are numerous opportunities for actors from the field of sustainability science to engage with political and societal actors to enhance sustainable development at the local level.

Group decision making and soft consensus: Analyzing citation classics by means of H-Classics

Citation classics provide a view on the documents that could be considered the basis of a scientific area and that have therefore attracted historical and great interest by the researchers. Because of the potential relation that can be established between quality research and citation counts, the identification of citation classics also is a main way used to carry out a methodical assessment of research performance. In recent times, the H-Classics, a methodology that is founded on the popular h-index, has been introduced to determine the highly cited papers. This research aims to provide an insight into the development of soft consensus in group decision making via H-Classics. Particularly, we identify both the scientific actors (researchers, institutions, countries, and journals) making the biggest research contribution to the development of this scientific area and the topics covered.

Developing a New Process of Ensuring the Quality of Data Captured in Digital Images

It is a typical action for scientists in materials science, the consistent utilization of examined pictures produced by electron magnifying lens. While basically all hardware that produce these pictures (micrographs) can utilize a record type generally appropriate for catching picture information created (as TIFF or RAW documents if there should be an occurrence of metallography), numerous analysts decide to utilize a record design more normal as JPEG, for instance, maybe the explanation of the space accessible on compact stockpiling gadgets (USB, CD or DVD) that claims, or by the absence of information about the sorts of picture documents and their fitting use. The issue with the utilization of specific kinds of picture designs is predominantly the loss of the first information caught by an electron magnifying lens. As though that were insufficient, the use of channels and cycles in the first picture should likewise be deliberately created so as not to lose or change information caught or information pertinent to the examination. This article looks to feature the treatment of pictures in examination and distributions done by analysts with no information on this issue, since the utilization of filtered pictures is just an asset to proceed with the advancement of their own exploration. Moreover, this article means to advance a conversation on the most proficient method to treat the issue of computerized pictures distributed in logical papers so investigates can truly be duplicated in full.

Scientific Policy Advice in Switzerland: A Case Study on Climate Change and General Insights

The Swiss Academies have the experience of three decades of facilitating a dialogue between science and society. This includes the provision of scientific knowledge to policy decision-makers. Climate change is a topic that has been important in this context from the beginning. A recent example of science policy work in this domain has been the analysis of the findings of the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC),1 and the formulation of recommendations for policy-making at a national level in order to tackle the challenges posed by climate change on the population and the environment of Switzerland. Taking this specific example, the current paper showcases how academies can provide scientific knowledge at the science–policy interface to help tackle real-world challenges. With reference to this case study, and based on their longer-term science-policy engagement, this contribution concludes by describing the elements considered as essential for a successful dialogue between the actors in science and policy-making.

Order and Conflict Theories of Science as Competing Ideologies

Science is sometimes depicted, both in scholarly and lay accounts, as a consensual and orderly progression in the direction of truth; at other times, it is portrayed as an arena in which lone geniuses struggle against rivals and authorities to impose unconventional interpretations of reality. The paper introduces the concept of ‘order-conflict dichotomy’ to stabilize the content of these definitions. It then shows, through an in-depth analysis of the Irving trial, an English libel suit involving historical knowledge about World War II and the Holocaust, how these definitions can be used as rhetorical devices to promote professional and situational goals. Six couples of opposing sub-definitions of science are identified by analyzing court records. As a tentative hypothesis derived from the case, it is argued that the conception of science actors deploy in this kind of controversies reflect the overall structure of the market for knowledge about nature and society rather than disciplinary culture.