History and Biology

This is a brief history of my intellectual life from age 13 to 29 years—and beyond. It encompasses mathematics, US history, and evolutionary biology, especially social theory based on natural selection.

Banjar Language Shifting in Ecolinguistics Perspective

The research attempts to examine language shifts that occur in the Banjar community using an ecolinguistics approach. The language shifts studied were limited to the vocabulary shift commonly used in the social interactions of everyday Banjar people. The data gathering was using interviewing and documentation techniques. Interviews are semi-structured interviews. The interview was on respondents spread across various cities in South Kalimantan, where the Banjar language is the language of community communication. Due to the pandemic, researchers enlisted the help of students in their respective hometowns to collect data with protocols that the research team had established. The data was the subject of reduction, organized by category of word classes and reasons for shifts, analysed based on the three-dimensional social theory of language praxis. The three practical social dimensions of language are the ideological, social, and biological dimensions. The research expects to be a reference for Banjar language participation efforts.

Imaginary and Rational: From Social Theory to Social Order

The article is devoted to the analysis of imagination as a philosophical and sociological concept that played a significant role in the development of social theory in the middle of the 20th century. Exploring the premises of the contradictory relationship between science and society, it is easy to find a connection between the development of science and social change. Currently, it is generally accepted that scientific, including social theories, through the transfer of ideas, transform the social order and, on the contrary, social practices transform knowledge about the world. The article proves that imagination plays a key role in this process. An excursion into the theory of ideas reveals the connection between imagination and irrational and experiential knowledge. The author of the article refers to the works of P. Berger and T. Luckmann, C. Castoriadis and C. Taylor, who showed a direct connection between theoretical ideas and the world of "social imaginary", collective imaginary and social changes. For the first time in the history of mankind, thanks to imagination, society does not see the social order as something immutable. Methodological cases are presented that illustrate the specific role of the concept of imagination as a source of the formation of new research strategies that allow for a new look at the problem of nationalism (social constructivism) and the study of public expectations from the implementation of technological innovations (STS). For decades, Benedict Anderson's work “Imagined Communities” predetermined the interest of researchers of nationalism in social imagination and the collective ideas based on it about the national identity of modern societies, their history and geography. The research of Sheila Jasanoff and Sang-Hyun Kim has formed a new track for the study of science as a collective product of public expectations of an imaginary social order, embodied in technological projects. The conclusion is made about the contradictory nature of social expectations based on collective imagination: on the one hand, they strengthen the authority of science in society, on the other hand, they provoke the growth of negative expectations from the introduction of scientific discoveries. The article substantiates the opinion that imagination is an effective tool for assessing the risks of introducing innovations.

Komodifikasi Al-Quran

Religion commodifications, including the issue of the Quran, are not a real breakthrough in socio-religious studies. Various studies have been carried out. However, the current studies are still limited to descriptions of the variety of commodification and problems that occur and have not reached yet the aspect of dismantling the social intrigues in them. For this reason, this study intends to read the commodification of the Quran as a social phenomenon and at the same time expose the hidden aspects in it. This study uses the social theory of The Consumer Society, initiated by Jean Baudrillard which includes aspects of commodification, media shaping, and social shifting paradigm: needs towards desires and lifestyles, by adopting relevant disciplines of the Quran such as riwayat, qira ah and tajwid. The object to be studied is Mushaf Al-Quran Grand Maqamat or known as Al-Quran Digital Talking Pen Grand Maqamat. After conducting the study, it was found that the commodification of the Quran that occurred was part of the industrialization effort of the Qur’an by using religious actors as an excuse and as a marketing medium. Commodification that occurs is also not in line with the spirit of necessity which refers to the concepts of riwayat, qira ah and tajwid in the Quran.

Vulnerability and existence theory in catastrophic times

‘Existence theory’ is a bold and imaginative contribution to social theory. Baert, Morgan and Ushiyama (hereafter ‘the authors’) draw on a broad range of existing approaches from Heidegger to Schutz to build a social theory that draws attention to time, the stages of life and the unavoidably precarious nature of human existence. At the same time, they pay careful attention to the social context in which time and existential precariousness combine to form what they call ‘the existential ladder’. Our lives are to some degree measured by the ‘existential milestones’ that we confront over time. These are not invariable stages, but they traditionally included entry into the work force, courtship and marriage, parenthood and maturity, and old age and death. There are in addition norms that attend these transitions. For example, procreation and parenthood are not for the elderly. Old fathers with young children are regarded as foolish if not reprehensible. Failure to pass through the milestones at the appropriate time may result in disappointments, stress and unhappiness.

Àsùwàda Principle and Inter-Ethnic Conflict in Nigeria

This paper examines the àsùwàdà principle as an indigenous social theory, which is based on alásùwàdà, a body of doctrines according to which the creator of human beings and everything in nature, dá (created) individual human beings as à-sù-wà (beings who can only live successfully as part of a human group with a purpose). By establishing a teleological or purposeful unity and interconnectedness among all human beings, the àsùwàdà principle suggests that all human beings are created to be gregarious in nature and enjoy the best ìwà (existence or character) when they sù-wà (live in group). This paper interrogates the àsùwàdà principle in relation to the problem of ethnic conflicts in Nigeria. The paper concludes that if as human beings, we are dá (created) to be àsùwà, then, with the complementary ideas of alájọbí, alájọgbé, and ìfọgbọ́ntáyéṣe, ethnic pluralism should not necessarily lead to ethnic antagonism or conflict.

Krausism in Spain Beyond Philosophy: Religious Tolerance, Social Harmony, Political Reformism and Modern Pedagogy

Krause's philosophy had a deep and long influence in Spain, where krausism went beyond academia to turn their ideas into reality by means of different associations and institutions. The reception of krausean thought took place in a really hostile context, especially due to the rejection by intransigent Catholicism that vilified Spanish krausism in terms of Religion, morals, politics and education. Despite that fact, krausism proved to be very influential in social theory, politics and education from the second half of the 19th century to the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936. This work is a summary presentation, a revisitation and an updated account of the history of krausism in Spain (with some references to Latin America) focusing on íts practical dimension.

A Review of Social Theory for Teacher Education Research: Beyond the Technical- Rational by Kathleen Nolan & Jennifer Tupper, J. (Eds.)

A Review of the book Social Theory for Teacher Education Research: Beyond the Technical-Rational by Kathleen Nolan & Jennifer Tupper, J. (Eds.) Bloomsbury (2019) ISBN 9781350086395