Call for Papers: Special Issue on Hackerspaces and the Production of Scientific Knowledge
Michael Scroggins
Call for Papers: Special Issue on Hackerspaces and the Production of Scientific Knowledge
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s hackers contributed to mandates to open technology and, today still, continue engagements that challenge closed hardware and software systems. Today hackers are poised to make similar contributions to scientific research. Science is, however, a community-driven enterprise, and the emergence of open, community-driven spaces for hacking coincides with the emergence of hacker scientists. This movement also mirrors the growth of citizen science around the world, some of which rely on community labs and other open spaces to organize and conduct their research. “Hackerspaces” specifically have been established around the globe to provide open, accessible spaces for technology enthusiasts to meet and share resources and knowledge. Or, as hackerspaces.org puts it, “Hackerspaces are community-operated physical places, where people share their interest in tinkering with technology, meet and work on their projects, and learn from each other.” Though hackerspaces date back to the early days of hacking, with spaces established by hacker collectives such as L0pht, the current imagining of hackerspaces are community-oriented and are driven by mandates for public engagement and knowledge rather than the historic exclusive membership model. As hackerspaces open up to new members they include new initiatives spurred by different interests. Among the increasingly popular interests and initiatives among hackerspaces are scientific projects.
We are seeking original manuscripts that consider and chart scientific knowledge-production as undertaken within and in relation to hackerspaces. Proposals from researchers working in science studies broadly conceived are welcome, as are theoretically or empirically-driven pieces from independent researchers, citizen scientists, and those affiliated with hackerspaces. While we welcome proposals on a broad range of themes we are especially interested in the following topics:
Hackerspaces intersection with citizen science
Hackerspaces, DIY bio labs, and biohackers
Hackerspaces and sensing projects
Free/libre science hardware
Open data, databases, and the liberation of scientific data
Expertise and authority, hackers, and hackerspaces
Democratizing science and scientific knowledge production
Environmental and social justice and DIY science
Please send a full manuscript of 8,000 to 9,000 words in Chicago style to ark...@uwaterloo.ca and michaelj...@gmail.com before August 15th, 2015. Shorter articles ranging from 4,000 to 5,000 words from practitioners are also encouraged. Submissions should be prepared for blind review, include an abstract of 250 words, full contact information for all authors and short bios on a title page. We will review submissions and forward those accepted as a package to Engaging Science, Technology, and Society, the open access journal for the The Society for Social Studies of Science (4s).