Shaping Technology: Society, Users, and Media Narratives
1. Understanding the Social Shaping of Technology
The social shaping perspective argues that technology and society mutually influence each other, rather than technology shaping society on its own. This challenges technological determinism, which assumes that new technologies automatically cause social change. MacKenzie and Wajcman argue that technology is shaped by economic, political, and cultural forces, not just by innovation. Similarly, Oudshoorn and Pinch highlight interpretive flexibility,
Read MoreIndian Government Administration: Key Ministries & Roles
Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA)
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is one of the most significant ministries under the Government of India. It plays a key role in maintaining internal peace, unity, and stability of the nation. In a diverse and vast country like India, where challenges such as terrorism, communal tensions, natural disasters, insurgency in border areas, and migration issues often arise, the Home Ministry acts as the central authority to address such matters. It ensures that the internal
Read MoreAmerican Revolution: Rights, Representation, and Identity
American Revolutionary Ideals: A New Foundation
The American experience diverged significantly from the European concept of the ‘individual’ in relation to pre-state rights. The Revolution established a dimension rooted in natural history, justified by both predominantly European theoretical formulations of natural rights and the British historicist tradition of limited government for security purposes.
American Historicism and Individualism
In short, the American revolutionary culture of rights and
Read MorePolitics and Constitutionalism in the Liberal State: Direct vs. Representative Democracy
Politics and Constitutionalism in the Liberal State
The Constitutional State emerged in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, founded on the principle of representative democracy. In this system, citizens express their will through elected representatives. Works on the history of political thought often focus on the discussion between direct and indirect democracy.
Rousseau’s Perspective on Sovereignty
Rousseau argued that when sovereignty is vested in the people, it cannot be divisible (i.e., split
Read MoreComparative Politics Methodologies: Systems, Culture, Economy
The Political Culture Approach
The Political Culture Approach is a significant method in comparative politics. It helps us understand how political systems function, not just through their structures and institutions, but through the attitudes, beliefs, and values of the people who live under them. First introduced by Gabriel Almond in 1956, it gained popularity during the behavioral revolution of the 1950s and 1960s.
Political culture refers to the psychological orientation of individuals towards
Read MoreKey Concepts of Transformative Eras: Science, Enlightenment, Industry
The Scientific Revolution
Geocentric Theory
An Earth-centered view of the universe.
Heliocentric Theory
The theory that the Sun is at the center of the universe.
Galileo Galilei
A scientist who was forced by the Catholic Church to retract scientific ideas that conflicted with the Church’s doctrine.
Scientific Method
A logical procedure for gathering and testing ideas.
Isaac Newton
A scientist renowned for discovering the laws of motion and universal gravitation.
Nicolaus Copernicus
Devised a model of the universe
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