scholarly journals “That machine from hell”; Word Processing in Sociology

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maarten van Wesel
Keyword(s):  
Science And Technology Studies ◽  
Word Processing ◽  
Resistance To Change ◽  
Science And Technology ◽  
Time Processing ◽  
Telephone Interviews ◽  
Sociology Departments ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
English Speaking World ◽  
Word Processors

Scholars spend much of their time processing words with the help of a computer. Yet not too long ago, scholars would have typed or even written their lectures and articles by hand, and often a secretary would have (re)typed the final version.This paper examines the transition from one set of socio-technical relationships to another, focusing on resistance to change and the closure that has led to the current ubiquity of word processors. The article draws on insights from Science and Technology Studies (STS), and on material from email and telephone interviews conducted with older and retired members of university sociology departments in the English-speaking world.

scholarly journals Changing with the Times: The Evolution of Plain Language in the Legal Sphere

2015 ◽  
pp. 183
Author(s):  
Christopher Williams
Keyword(s):  
International Organizations ◽  
Resistance To Change ◽  
Plain Language ◽  
Reference Guide ◽  
Legal Documents ◽  
Official Languages ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
The Times ◽  
English Speaking World ◽  
The Way

As is well known, the Plain language movement has been influential in a number of areas of public life over the last few decades. Within the legal sphere it has raised general awareness concerning the need to make legal matters and legal documents more comprehensible and accessible to non-experts, particularly in today’s digitalized world where information is freely available to the general public. In this paper my aim is to provide an overview of the way the Plain language movement has evolved in the legal sphere since the 1970s. In particular, I will highlight the following points: (1) the reasons why the Plain language movement came into being; (2) the major successes of plain language in the legal sphere over the last 40 years; (3) the areas where legalese still predominates, and the reasons for the resistance to change; and (4) the way the Plain language movement has adapted to the digitalized world and the implications for future development. My observations will be mainly restricted to the English-speaking world, including international organizations where English is one of the official languages, but I will occasionally make reference to other plain language organizations outside the English-speaking world where this seems relevant. I also provide a list of the major organizations involved in promoting plain language in English in the legal sphere today as a reference guide.

Adam Ferguson and the Idea of Civil Society

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Craig Smith
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Moral Philosophy ◽  
David Hume ◽  
Adam Smith ◽  
Scottish Enlightenment ◽  
Commercial Society ◽  
University Of Edinburgh ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
English Speaking World ◽  
The University

Adam Ferguson was a Professor of Moral Philosophy at the University of Edinburgh and a leading member of the Scottish Enlightenment. A friend of David Hume and Adam Smith, Ferguson was among the leading exponents of the Scottish Enlightenment’s attempts to develop a science of man and was among the first in the English speaking world to make use of the terms civilization, civil society, and political science. This book challenges many of the prevailing assumptions about Ferguson’s thinking. It explores how Ferguson sought to create a methodology for moral science that combined empirically based social theory with normative moralising with a view to supporting the virtuous education of the British elite. The Ferguson that emerges is far from the stereotyped image of a nostalgic republican sceptical about modernity, and instead is one much closer to the mainstream Scottish Enlightenment’s defence of eighteenth century British commercial society.

Perceptions of Palestine: The View from Large Linguistic Datasets

2016 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 41-54
Author(s):  
Terry Regier
Keyword(s):  
Language Use ◽  
Cultural Norms ◽  
Cultural Perceptions ◽  
Cultural Changes ◽  
Cultural Shift ◽  
General Theme ◽  
English Usage ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
English Speaking World

Cultural norms and trends are often reflected in patterns of language use. This article explores cultural perceptions of Palestine and Palestinians in the English-speaking world, through two analyses of large linguistic datasets. The first analysis seeks to uncover current conceptions of participants in the Israel-Palestine conflict, by identifying words that are distinctively associated with those participants in modern English usage. The second analysis asks what historical-cultural changes led to these current conceptions. A general theme that emerges from these analyses is that a cultural shift appears to have occurred recently in the English-speaking world, marked by greater awareness of Palestinian perspectives on the conflict. Possible causes for such a cultural shift are also explored.

Dialogues

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 55-60
Author(s):  
Barbara E. Mundy
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
The Political ◽  
Section Deal ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
English Speaking World ◽  
Central Claim

This collection of essays reconsiders a seminal 1961 article by George Kubler, the most important art historian of Latin America of the English-speaking world at the time of its writing. Often greeted with indifference or hostility, Kubler’s central claim of extinction is still a highly contested one. The essays in this section deal with Kubler’s reception in Mexico, the political stakes of his claim in relation to indigeneity, as well as the utility of Kubler’s categories and objects of “extinction” beyond their original framing paradigm.

The Oxford Handbook of Critical Concepts in Music Theory

2015 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Music Theory ◽  
Contemporary Music ◽  
Panoramic View ◽  
Teaching And Research ◽  
New Concepts ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
English Speaking World ◽  
Technical Terms ◽  
Guiding Questions

Music Theory operates with a host of technical terms for concepts that appear straightforward but that conceal layers of complexity. This collection uncovers some of the richness and intricacy of these terms. Using a range of methods, from philosophical and historical contextualizations to cognitive and systematic approaches, and across a range of repertories, these essays aim to convey a fuller understanding of the terms music theorists employ every day in teaching and research. In so doing, the collection provides a panoramic view of the contemporary music-theoretical landscape, offering new perspectives on established concepts, seeking to expanding their purview to new repertories, and adding new concepts to the theorist’s toolkit. Taken as a whole, the concepts collected in this volume spotlight some of the guiding questions of music theory as it is currently practiced in the English-speaking world; they seek to broaden its foundational conversations to underline the ways in which music theory itself is evolving.

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