“Narratives of Disruption and Continuity in Science, Technology, and Society” // September 1st to 5th 2025
The Research Training Group GRK 2696 “Transformations of science and technology since 1800: topics, processes, institutions”, in cooperation with the Interdisciplinary Summer School Series in Higher Education Research and Science Studies (https://www.herss-summer.eu) invites applications (see below) for the Summer School “Narratives of Disruption and Continuity in Science and Technology, and Society”, taking place 1-5 Sept. 2025 in Wuppertal (Germany) at the Flemings Express Hotel.
The summer school “Narratives of Disruption and Continuity” explores different contexts and forms in which transformations in the production and use of technology and scientific knowledge have been represented in modern times (1800-present). We will examine why and how actors – ranging from scientists and historians to journalists and politicians – have talked about, described or imagined different types of change. This includes change that had already occurred, that could or should occur but also change that did not or was not to occur.
To be more specific, this summer school will explore the conditions of possibility, including specific socio-cultural constellations, from which narratives of change have emerged and do emerge. What are their specific loci of enunciation? How do narratives of disruption and continuity function – or rather, how are they meant to function? Furthermore, we aim to analyze the content of narratives that present transformations of science, technology, and society as being disruptive, or as developing slowly, in non-linear ways, or as not happening at all. Moreover, we will discuss how they are produced, distributed, and received, and approach the figures, tropes, and cultural techniques employed.
The summer school will examine these themes from the perspectives of history, philosophy, and sociology of science, technology, and society. We will discuss state-of-the-art theories, methods, and research designs that aim at better understanding the complex web of scientific narratives, their costs and benefits, and their impact on scientific careers. The summer school will give early career researchers the opportunity to discuss these issues with leading scholars and probe new ideas for their own projects.
Confirmed Lecturers and Working Group/Keynote titles:
• Cyrus Mody, University of Maastricht – History and Sociology of Science; Title: Science and Technology for Development: Whose Narratives, Whose Disruption?
• Hanne Andersen, University of Copenhagen – Philosophy of Science; Title: From revolutions to transformative research: History, philosophy, funding and policy
• Robert Meunier, Independent Researcher/Institute for Cultural Inquiry, Berlin – Philosophy of Science ; Title: Discovery narratives in molecular biology
• Francesco Pierri, Politecnico di Milano – Computational Social Sciences;Title: Regulating Online Platforms in the Age of Misinformation and Disinformation
• Matthias Revers, University of Leeds/University of Hamburg – Political Communication; Title: Narratives of Disruption in Social Media
Call for applications
We cordially invite PhD candidates, as well as pre-docs and advanced MA-students, and postdoctoral fellows from various disciplines and fields – including history, philosophy, and sociology of science, technology, and society, as well as the fields of science of science and science & innovation studies – to apply. We are interested in both theoretical as well as the empirical contributions addressing various aspects of narratives in science and technology. Fields of inquiry include but are not limited to:
• Historiography of science, technology, and society
• Self-representation of institutions, organizations, and individual actors
• Political discourse on science, technology, and society
• Science communication and journalism
• Literary and artistic representations (including science fiction)
A selection of participants will be given the opportunity to give short presentations of their own work as part of the school, either in form of a talk or a poster. The presentations will be followed by a commentary from a faculty member of the graduate school or one of the invited speakers.
The application process will be competitive and participants will be selected according to qualification and research interests. The summer school is funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG). Attendance is free of charge and includes full board and lodging. Travel costs to Wuppertal need to be covered by the participants themselves.
To apply, please send the following material in a single pdf file by 15 May 2025 to grk2696- summerschool@uni-wuppertal.de:
• Letter of motivation
• Short CV
In case you intend to give a presentation, please add to your application:
• Title of your presentation or topic of the poster
• Long abstract (approx. 750 words) focusing on work in progress from ongoing research projects addressing the above issues.
We offer a small number of stipends to participants with limited funding opportunities to cover their travel. To apply for a stipend, please also prepare and submit a letter, no longer than one page, explaining your financial situation. The research training group is strongly committed to creating equal opportunities. In case of equal qualification, preference will be given to underrepresented groups. Please indicate in your application if you intend to bring your child or children, as we can organize on-site childcare (free of charge).
Organizing team
• Prof. Dr. Thomas Morel
• Jan Nicolay, PhD candidate
• Jun.-Prof. Dr. Anne Sophie Overkamp
• Coordination: Nina Lorbach
