Post-Normal Times Laboratory

Nowadays, for science as a type of activity and a socio-cultural institution, the question of the boundaries of its own agency is extremely relevant. Various global challenges (energy, climate, pandemics, security, etc.) are in tune with the challenges for the very concept of science, for its norms and values. In a discussion article, V.N. Porus and V.A. Bazhanov discuss aspects of the political agency of post-normal science (J. Ravetz, S. Funtowicz) — a type of science that claims to go beyond normal science (T. Kuhn) as a process simple and definite solution of problems within the framework of the prevailing paradigms. This article discusses aspects of the political subjectivity of science in the language of locations, the most important of which is the laboratory, understood in broad socio-cultural and socio-epistemic aspects. With the involvement of historical and scientific (atomic-nuclear problem) and modern situational cases (COVID-19), the problems of the relationship between “scientific” and “political” in the location of the expanded laboratory are considered. In the extended laboratory, the situational realization of the political agency of science is carried out. It is emphasized that science has not yet acquired the status of an independent and full-fledged political agency, and the corresponding institutionalization. The political agency of science is specific and episodic. Loaded with complexity and uncertainty modernity is considered by a number of authors at the present time as a post-normal times. It is noted that in the light of the post-normal nature of modernity while striving for political subjectivity, science (at the level of a multitude of participating actors) should not change its “personal ontology” (responsibility for the truth), which is difficult to achieve without an appeal to the virtue of wisdom.

Demystifying Low-Carbon Materials

Low-carbon materials (the ‘carbon’ is related to carbon dioxide emission potential and not elemental carbon) need to be developed and embraced ubiquitously for the sustainable development of human society and mitigate climate change. In the absence of clear consensus in the literature coupled with the presence of certain miss-information, this ‘discussion’ article seeks to define low-carbon materials as the materials that foster a healthy living environment and a circular economy via the elimination or reduction of associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and resource depletion and wastage. Furthermore, the multidimensional facets of low-carbon products and services are described to promote widespread utilisation of low-carbon materials so as to transition to desired low-carbon or decarbonised economies. Several specific strategies for realising the aforementioned are illustrated, which include radical green chemistry and materials approach, efficient materials extraction and processing, utilising renewable feedstocks and energies, efficient product manufacturing, enhanced recycling rates, designing out wastes, circular flow of materials, and innovative business models. The information provided in this ‘discussion’ article strives to outline a variety of aspects and tools available and necessary to accelerate the growth of low-carbon materials and progress towards a sustainable future. Graphical abstract The integration of low-carbon materials, products and services with natural resource preservation, prosperity and a healthy living environment

The Axioms in My Understanding from Many Years of Experience

This is a discussion article that should raise more questions than answers. We write our own point of view about the concept of axioms. We list several examples, mostly known to readers, and focus on examples where the axioms produce separate areas of studies and applications. The classic definitions are schematically presented since these are well known. We briefly notice how they generated various other fields of development. Set theory is, in our opinion, the fundamental for new areas of development. Our focus is on some recent axioms such as uncertainty, probability, and new concepts and results related to these fields. The emphasis is on the meaning of an undefined concept and on its measuring.

Beyond the ‘thingification’ of worlds: Archaeology and the New Materialisms

This article considers the application of the New Materialisms within archaeology, primarily in response to Witmore’s influential discussion article: Archaeology and the New Materialisms (2014), specifically his emphasis on things. This, the authors demonstrate, is peripheral to the main thrust of the New Materialisms discourse. They unravel complexities in the terminology and consider the etymological and epistemological framework of concepts such as matter and thing. This leads them to consider some important issues that arise applying Deleuzian assemblages to the archaeological record and the potential of employing Barad’s agential realist theory instead. Barad’s concept of phenomena moves beyond the notion of things as separate, bounded entities, emphasizing entanglements of matter and illustrates how matter (including humans) co-create the material world. The authors’ aim is to demonstrate how engaging with matter rather than things enables us to better make sense of the material world and our place within it.

ADDRESSING SERVICE ACCESS BARRIERS FOR HOMELESS YOUTH: A CALL FOR COLLABORATION

Homeless youth are among the most vulnerable individuals in North American society. The day-to-day stressors they face while living on the streets pose a great threat to their mental and physical health. A number of barriers that youth face in accessing care have been identified in the literature. This discussion article highlights work that has been done to apply geographic theory to issues of service access among homeless youth. To date, most such work has been theoretical in nature, with collaborations between geographers and homeless youth researchers to make applied recommendations for the location of services. Urban geographers and homeless youth researchers are implored to collaborate in order to make recommendations that will increase the access to service, particularly for rural homeless youth.

The moral obligation for interlibrary lending

A philosophical dilemma has arisen for librarians in this interconnected age: whether a library has a moral obligation to lend resources to another library. This discussion article examines a range of literature about interlibrary lending (interlending) and gives an account of librarians’ perceptions of this quandary. The literature covers the guidelines on interlending set out by library professional bodies and a historical view of interlending, as well as more recent perceptions from librarians quoted in reports. In order to explore the concept in more detail, taking a qualitative approach, a small questionnaire was circulated online to a cross section of libraries in the Midlands region of the UK. The opinions of 11 self-selected participants were forthcoming, working in a range of academic, public and community-led libraries. The data gathered was thematically categorised to identify the range of perceptions. The views expressed in the questionnaire echoed those identified in the literature, forming three groups of moral attitude: no moral obligation; an obligation if it does not outweigh the costs; and a strong moral imperative to share resources. The participants identified the benefits of interlibrary lending and generally acknowledged that resource-sharing was important. The importance of good customer service was highlighted, as well as the imperative of supporting the ongoing operation of their library service. Taking these perceptions into consideration, it was concluded that the question ‘Is there a moral obligation for one library to lend to another?’ is not the right one to ask. The moral duty of a librarian is that access to information is maintained and resources are shared for the good of society as a whole.

Voetnootpraktijken

On footnotesFootnotes are a crucial part of the historian’s craft. Yet, they are often construed as no more than tools, used by historians, and scientists, to refer to sources and relevant literature. By looking at several student handbooks on history writing and recent studies on annotation practices, we argue in this discussion article that footnotes are more than simple references to other people’s work and that historians would do well to reflect on this. Footnotes can help historians construct historiographical and scientific discussions, and are therefore inextricably linked to politics of representation, inclusion and exclusion. Footnotes, we argue, fulfill a social and political function as knowledge brokers. With the rise of citation indexes problems of self-citation and gender misattribution have recently received more attention. Research into the uses and misuses of footnotes can shine a light on citation practices that reflect inequalities within academia. Therefore, it is worth considering more closely what happens in the literal margins of history writing.