No description available.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Kassel, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [121]-144).

During the last decades “Climate Change” has become a vital topic on national and international political agendas. There it is presented as an irrevocable fact of global impact and thus of universal relevance. What has often been neglected are local discourses of marginalized groups and their specific contextualization of “Climate Change” phenomena. The aim of this project, to develop another perspective along these dominant narratives, has resulted in the research question How is social reality reconstructed on the phenomenon of “Climate Change” among the “Emerging Black Farmers” in the Swartland region in Western Cape, South Africa? Taken as an example, “Climate Change Knowledge” is reconstructed through a case study on the information exchange between the NGO Goedgedacht Trust and local small-scale farmers in the post-Apartheid context of on-going political, social, economic and educational transition in South Africa. Applying a constructivist approach, “Climate Change Knowledge” is not understood as an objectively given, but a socially constructed “reality” that is based on the interdependency of socio-economic conditions and individual assets, including language skills and language practice, sets of social norms and values, as well as strategies of knowledge transfer. The data set consists of qualitative data sources, such as application forms and interview material, which are triangulated. The rationale of a multi-layered data analysis includes a discursive perspective as well as linguistic and ethical “side perspectives”. Epistemologically, the thesis is guided by assumptions of complexity theory, framing knowledge around “Climate Change” as a fluid, constantly changing system that is shaped by constant intra- and inter-systemic exchange processes, and characterized by non-linearity, self-organization and representation of its constituents. From this point of departure, a theoretical terminology has been developed, which differentiates between symbols, interrelations, contents and content clusters. These elements are located in a system of spatio-temporal orientation and embedded into a broader (socio-economic) context of “historicity”. Content clusters are remodelled with the help of concept maps. Starting from that, a local perspective on “Climate Change” is developed, adding an experiential notion to the global narratives. The thesis concludes that there is no single reality about “Climate Change” and that the farmers’ “Climate Change Knowledge” highly depends on experiential relativity and spatio-temporal immediacy. Furthermore, analysis has shown that the system’s historicity and social manifestations can be traced in the scope and emphasis of the content clusters discussed. Finally the thesis demonstrates that characteristics of symbols, interconnections and contents range between dichotomies of direct and indirect, predictable versus unpredictable, awareness and negligence or threat and danger, all coexisting and creating a continuum of knowledge production.

Für die Konzeption sozio-technischer Systeme zur wissenschaftlichen Erkenntnisgenerierung ist das Wissen über die spezifischen Inhalte und Bedingungen der Arbeit einer Fachgemeinschaft essenziell. Im Kontext der Automatisierung von Wissensproduktion ist unklar, welche fachspezifischen Faktoren die Möglichkeiten einer Arbeitsteilung zwischen Mensch und Maschine beeinflussen. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wird eine grundlegende Voraussetzung für die Automatisierung von Forschungsprozessen, nämlich die Formalisierbarkeit typischer Handlungen und Wissensbestände, hinsichtlich ihrer fachspezifischen Bedingungen untersucht. Dafür wurde ein qualitativer Vergleich der Evidenzkonstruktion zweier Fachgebiete, der Editionsphilologie und der Klimaforschung, durchgeführt. Um deren Forschungsprozesse systematisch vergleichen und Zusammenhänge zwischen den Eigenschaften eines Forschungsprozesses und den Möglichkeiten seiner Formalisierbarkeit empirisch untersuchen zu können, wurde ein Vergleichsrahmen entwickelt, der auf dem wissenschaftssoziologischen Konzept der epistemischen Bedingungen beruht. Die fachspezifischen Bedingungen des Forschungshandelns stellen einen Erklärungsansatz für Varianten der Wissensproduktion und damit auch für unterschiedlich formalisierbare Forschungsprozesse dar. Es konnte gezeigt werden, dass insbesondere der Grad an Kodifizierung des Wissens einen wesentlichen Einfluss auf das Auftreten bzw. die Abfolge unterschiedlich formalisierbarer Handlungstypen und Wissensbestände hat. Der Anteil persönlicher Perspektive in der Evidenzkonstruktion und der Grad der Zerlegbarkeit eines Forschungsprozesses sind ebenfalls wichtige Faktoren für die Möglichkeiten der Delegation von Handlungen an Maschinen. Desweiteren konnte gezeigt werden, dass selbst bei einem hohen Formalisierungsgrad das informelle menschliche Handeln das wesentliche Komplement automatisierter Abläufe darstellt und dass die Formalisierbarkeit einer zeitlichen Dynamik unterliegt. / Knowing about the field-specific content and conditions of work in a scientific discipline is essential for the design of socio-technical systems used for the production of scientific knowledge. In the context of automated knowledge production, it remains unclear which field-specific factors influence the possibilities to distribute labour between humans and machines. This study analyses a fundamental prerequisite for the automation of research processes, namely the possibility to formalise typical actions and knowledge, with regard to its field-specific conditions. A qualitative approach is used to compare the construction of evidence in two scientific fields, textual studies and climate research. In order to systematically compare research processes and to empirically investigate correlations between the properties of a research process and the possibilities of its formalisation, a comparative framework based on the sociological concept of epistemic conditions was developed. Field-specific conditions of doing research represent an explanatory approach for variants of knowledge production and thus for variant degrees of formalised processes. Results show that the degree of codification of knowledge has a significant influence on the occurrence and on the sequence of types of action and of knowledge resources with variant degrees of formalisation. In addition, the role of personal interpretation in problem formulation and construction of empirical evidence and the degree of decomposability of a research process are decisive factors for being able to delegate actions to machines. Furthermore, the study shows that a high degree of formalisation requires informal human action to complement automated processes and that formalisability is subject to temporal dynamics during research processes.

Diese Dissertation befasst sich mit räumlichen Wahrnehmungen und Diskursen, mit denen man den Raum und seine Bestandteile behandelte. Die Eroberung Sibiriens im 17. Jahrhundert bewirkte einen tiefgreifenden Wandel in den russischen Vorstellungen über die weit entfernte Peripherie sowie deren Ressourcen. Die neuen Denkweisen kristallisierten sich in einer diskursiven Formation heraus, die Macht über Raum und Rohstoffe Sibiriens symbolisierte und organisierte. Dieser „Berg-Diskurs“ trug moderne Züge, denn er bedurfte sich neuer Formen der Kontrolle über die Raumsproduktion. Diese Einstellung wurde allmählich zu einer erstaunlich überlebensfähigen räumlichen Ideologie und zum festen Bestandteil des russischen Bodenschätzediskurses der Zukunft. Die Rolle der Wissensproduzenten wechselte zwischen den zentralen und regionalen Institutionen und Netzwerken. Der „Altai“, der den kaiserlichen Bergbau-Bezirk und die Gebirgslandschaft umfasste, wurde auf Grund seines Rohstoffreichtums von Repräsentanten des russischen Staates als Region erfunden. Die Dissertation stellt die imaginären und realen Geographien des Altai in drei unterschiedlichen Dimensionen dar. Dabei geht es um den Wandel der Repräsentationen von geographischen Räumen und der Berglandschaften in Russland insgesamt (Makroebene), die Mehrschichtigkeit des russischen Diskurses über Bergregionen und Gebirgslandschaften (Mesoebene) und den Altai als facettenreiches Konzept einer komplexen imperialen geographischen Imagination (Mikroebene). Die Beschreibung des Altai faßte in sich zahlreiche inkohärente Bilder verschiedener sozialer Gruppen. Der Ort wurde durch mentale Geographien erfolgreich instrumentalisiert, z.B. „die Goldenen Gebirge“ und „die sibirische Schweiz“. Diese Bilder machten die Region sichtbar, sowohl für nationalistisch gesinnte Gruppen als auch die breiteren Bervölkerungsschichten. / This dissertation focuses on the production of imperial space with a particular emphasis on the role of power discourses concerning mineral resources. By relying on published materials, it aims to establish a new conceptual framework for the examining of cultural patterns and practices of imagining of space and mineral wealth. For that purpose, it introduces a concept of the ”Berg-Discourse” that expands our understanding of the Russian engagement with geographical space. It begins by exploring Russian exposure to the mountains and mineral resources of Siberia in terms of the spatial knowledge production. It then examines how Russian imperial strategies and aspirations were embedded in the making of the Altai, a vast mining territory in West Siberia that once formed a private domain of the Russian rulers. The dissertation argues that the making of the Altai was in many ways part of the same imperial impulse towards mineral exploitation. It explores the ways in which the Altai was imagined through its enormous mineral endowment; how the imagined place became real; and how this real place became imagined from various vantage points. As the study shows, the region acquired multiple mental representations, enjoying a near mythological presence across imperial culture. Finally, the dissertation concludes by showing how this landscape was incorporated into imperial and national myths in the course of production and consumption of spatial knowledge about the remote location.

Um Kernfragen zur Mehrautorenschaft in einer bestimmten Zielgruppe zu klären, konzentriert sich diese Arbeit auf Aspekte von technologischer Kompetenz, menschlicher Interaktion und institutioneller Leitlinien. Zuerst werden interdisziplinäre Argumente in Bezug zu Mehrautorenschaft aus den Sozialwissenschaften, Naturwissenschaften, Informatik und Geisteswissenschaften präsentiert. Die Literaturübersicht enthält Statistiken zu Informationsnutzung, Beschreibung von Strategien des Wissensmanagements, Erforschung von Verhaltensmustern und Trends in der Kommunikationstechnologie, sowie Diskussionen einiger historischer, politischer und inhaltlicher Aspekte, welche die Anwendung des Internet als kollaboratives Werkzeug im akademischen Kontext beeinflussen können. Die Arbeit beschäftigt sich auch mit einigen Kontroversen zur Konzeption von Wissenschaft und wissenschaftlicher Praktiken, welche indirekt mit der Problematik von wissenschaftlicher Kommunikation und Zusammenarbeit, sowie Wissensproduktion in Zusammenhang stehen, insofern sie die Produktion Texten mit mehreren Autoren betreffen. Ein besonderer Schwerpunkt der Arbeit befasst sich mir dem zur Zeit vorherrschenden System zur Evaluation akademischer Publikationen (Bibliometrie oder Scientometrie; QUALIS und SCIELO Systeme). Das vorhandene System für die Evaluation von Autoren ist in der Regel unfair /voreingenommen. Das liegt daran, das Statistiken leicht manipuliert werden können um einer bürokratischen und unternehmerischen Agenda zu folgen oder individuelle Interessen darzustellen, anstatt die wirklichen Verdienste eines Autors widerzuspiegeln. Die Untersuchung wurde anhand von semi-strukturierten Interviews durchgeführt, in Kombination mit einer quantitativen Erhebung, welche drei miteinander verbundene Aspekte (technologische, institutionelle und kulturelle), die bei der in Mehrautorenschaft eine Rolle spielen, innerhalb des Graduiertenprogramms in 'Forest Engineering' an der Universidade Federal do Paraná (Brasilien) hervorheben sollte. / In order to verify core issues for co-authorship in a specific audience, the current work focus on technological literacy, human interaction, and institutional policy. It first presents an interdisciplinary collection of arguments from social sciences, natural sciences, computer sciences, and humanities about scientific collaboration, especially regarding co-authorship activities. This literature review includes statistics on information usage, description of knowledge management strategies, exploration of behavioral patterns, communication technology trends, and discussions of some historical, political and contextual elements that may be influencing the application of the Internet as a collaborative tool within academic contexts. It also draws back few controversies about the concept of science and its practices, which are indirectly related to the problematic of scholarly communication, scientific collaboration, and knowledge production. The investigation targets these activities in what they concern the production of co-authored texts. A special focus of this work targets the current mainstream system of academic publishing ranking and evaluation (Bibliometrics or Scientometrics; QUALIS and SCIELO systems). The existing measurement system for the ranking of authors is generally an unfair/biased system, as statistics can easily be manipulated by a bureaucratic and corporate agenda, or by individual interests, rather than representing the real merit of an author. The inquiry applies a semi-structured in-depth interview combined with a quantitative survey intending to reveal three interrelated aspects (Technological, Institutional, and Cultural) involved in co-authorship activities within the Graduate Program in Forest Engineering at the Federal University of Paraná/Brazil.

During the last decades “Climate Change” has become a vital topic on national and international political agendas. There it is presented as an irrevocable fact of global impact and thus of universal relevance. What has often been neglected are local discourses of marginalized groups and their specific contextualization of “Climate Change” phenomena. The aim of this project, to develop another perspective along these dominant narratives, has resulted in the research question How is social reality reconstructed on the phenomenon of “Climate Change” among the “Emerging Black Farmers” in the Swartland region in Western Cape, South Africa? Taken as an example, “Climate Change Knowledge” is reconstructed through a case study on the information exchange between the NGO Goedgedacht Trust and local small-scale farmers in the post-Apartheid context of on-going political, social, economic and educational transition in South Africa. Applying a constructivist approach, “Climate Change Knowledge” is not understood as an objectively given, but a socially constructed “reality” that is based on the interdependency of socio-economic conditions and individual assets, including language skills and language practice, sets of social norms and values, as well as strategies of knowledge transfer. The data set consists of qualitative data sources, such as application forms and interview material, which are triangulated. The rationale of a multi-layered data analysis includes a discursive perspective as well as linguistic and ethical “side perspectives”. Epistemologically, the thesis is guided by assumptions of complexity theory, framing knowledge around “Climate Change” as a fluid, constantly changing system that is shaped by constant intra- and inter-systemic exchange processes, and characterized by non-linearity, self-organization and representation of its constituents. From this point of departure, a theoretical terminology has been developed, which differentiates between symbols, interrelations, contents and content clusters. These elements are located in a system of spatio-temporal orientation and embedded into a broader (socio-economic) context of “historicity”. Content clusters are remodelled with the help of concept maps. Starting from that, a local perspective on “Climate Change” is developed, adding an experiential notion to the global narratives. The thesis concludes that there is no single reality about “Climate Change” and that the farmers’ “Climate Change Knowledge” highly depends on experiential relativity and spatio-temporal immediacy. Furthermore, analysis has shown that the system’s historicity and social manifestations can be traced in the scope and emphasis of the content clusters discussed. Finally the thesis demonstrates that characteristics of symbols, interconnections and contents range between dichotomies of direct and indirect, predictable versus unpredictable, awareness and negligence or threat and danger, all coexisting and creating a continuum of knowledge production.