Science and Technology

The Perfect Solution: How Trans Fats Became the Healthy Replacement for Saturated Fats

by David Schleifer

David Schleifer. 2012 “The Perfect Solution: How Trans Fats Became the Healthy Replacement for Saturated Fats.” Technology and Culture 53(1): 94-119.

Trans fats became part of the American food system due to a complex interplay among activism, industrial technology,... more Trans fats became part of the American food system due to a complex interplay among activism, industrial technology, and nutritional science. Some manufacturers began using partially hydrogenated oils, which contain trans fats, in the early twentieth century. Medical authorities began framing saturated fats as unhealthy in the 1950s. In the 1980s, activist organizations, including the Center for Science in the Public Interest, condemned food corporations’ use of saturated fats and endorsed trans fats as an acceptable alternative. Nearly all targeted corporations responded by replacing saturated fats with trans fats, which fit easily into their existing products. Trans fats thus became the perfect solution to the political problem of saturated fats and to the technical problem of what to use in their place. Activists helped precipitate technological change, but by 1994, trans fats were no longer regarded as a solution. Instead, they became regarded as a new nutritional problem.

Does the history of engineering require the philosophy of engineering

by Alireza Seghatoleslami

La dialéctica entre la integración regional y las estrategias de inserción internacional en el marco de proyectos de desarrollo nacional: algunas pistas para la comprensión del MERCOSUR actual

by Daniela Perrotta

Presented at FLACSO RRII

Las diferentes experiencias de integración regional que se han desarrollado en Sudamérica se no pueden ser analizadas... more Las diferentes experiencias de integración regional que se han desarrollado en Sudamérica se no pueden ser analizadas de manera separada de los modelos nacionales de desarrollo y, en consecuencia, de las estrategias de inserción internacional en ellos comprendidas. Ambos procesos –integración regional e inserción internacional en el marco de un proyecto de desarrollo nacional– se relacionan de manera dialéctica. En este trabajo se presenta un recorrido pormenorizado de las diversas propuestas de integración regional encaminadas en Sudamérica en clave de las ideas y los proyectos políticos que les brindaron sustento, para dar paso al análisis, sobre esta base, de las particularidades del MERCOSUR actual. Se prestará especial atención a la relación entre modelo de desarrollo nacional y modelo de desarrollo regional, es decir, a la orientación que adquiere la plétora de políticas públicas para reflexionar en torno a la fase presente del MERCOSUR, las rupturas y continuidades a lo largo del tiempo y los desafíos a corto y mediano plazo. Una hipótesis subyacente afirma que la coincidencia político – ideológica entre los países de la región en torno a modelos nacional-populares ha motorizado un tipo de integración regional caracterizada como “profunda”.

13 Science and Production in Venezuela: Two'Emergencies'

by Rigas Arvanitis

CONTRIBUTED PAPER FOR THE 2007 CONFERENCE ON CORPORATE R&D (CONCORD)< R&D in the economy>

by Rigas Arvanitis

We spent a million bucks and then we had to do something: The unexpected implications of industry involvement in trans fat research

by David Schleifer

Bulletin of Science, Technology and Society, 2011, published online ahead of print.

Many scholars assume that industry meddles in scientific research in order to defend their products. But this article... more Many scholars assume that industry meddles in scientific research in order to defend their products. But this article shows that industry meddling in science can have a variety of consequences. American food manufacturers long denied that trans fats were associated with disease. Academic scientists, government scientists, and activists in fact endorsed trans fats as a healthier alternative to saturated fats. But in 1990, a high-profile study showed that trans fats increased risk factors for heart disease more than saturated fats did. Industry funded a U.S. Department of Agriculture study that they hoped would exonerate trans fats. But the industry-funded U.S. Department of Agriculture study also indicated that trans fats increased risk factors for heart disease more than saturated fats. Industry quickly began developing trans fat alternatives. This confirms that corporations get involved in science in order to defend their products. But involvement in science can be the very means by which corporations persuade themselves to change their products.

The Internet, Projectization, and Science and Technology: Strategic Tools to Develop Caribbean Cultural and Creative Industries

by Ian Walcott

The Internet presents the single greatest opportunity for developing nations to increase their insertion into the... more The Internet presents the single greatest opportunity for developing nations to increase their insertion into the global economy by way of trade. However, this must be done by
developing strategic programmes in E-government, e-commerce and e-business which must be underpinned by national strategies that speak to developing Science and Technology as it relates to favorable insertion into the Digital Global Economy. With
these systemic features in place, then ‘projectization’ becomes the effective tool for planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation.
This paper is set within the conceptual framework of International Political Economy and examines, in particular, the Caribbean knowledge structure (as it relates to science and
technology) and cultural policy. A more narrow focus will be on the Caribbean island states and their strategies for developing the cultural and creative industries. A closer look at the region’s e-readiness will show that there is little evidence to support the
Caribbean’s willingness to seize the opportunities on the Internet as a global trading place for its cultural goods and services. Such limitations will therefore hinder the region’s attempts at global insertion.

Technology in Cross-Cultural Mythology: Western and Non-Western

by Kevin LaGrandeur

paper presented at the Conference of the Society for Literature, Science, and the Arts, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, September 24, 2011. An expanded, improved version is forthcoming in September, 2012 in the book:" Humanity and Technology: Critical Insights," Ed. Carol Colatrella. The link above leads to the book's webpage.

What is really significant when we look at technology in the ancient world is that technology is not limited to... more What is really significant when we look at technology in the ancient world is that technology is not limited to Classical mythology. Rather, its presence in those stories coincides in important ways with its appearance in other types of fictional and non-fictional accounts, and not just in Western literature, but in the literature of other cultures as well. These other accounts include quasi-mythological tales like The Iliad, tales from ancient cultures in India and China, and non-fictional accounts of real instances of technological innovation by ancient inventors. The devices made by ancient Greek engineers—such as the Antikythera mechanism, or the devices of Ctsebius and Hero of Alexandria, and Philon of Byzantium—are especially notable because they reflect, and are reflected by, the various fictional accounts. Chief in importance among technological innovations that appear in all three realms (stories, myths, and reality) are automata, especially humanoid automata. Their main significance is their ability to enhance and project the power and status of their makers or owners, who were sometimes the same individuals.

Epistemology of Nanoscience

by Byron Kaldis

SAGE Encyclopedia of Nanoscience and Society

TECHNOLOGY USAGE STATE OF HIGH SCHOOL BIOLOGY TEACHERS

by melih timucin

Neue Technik und ad-hoc-Hypothesen vom wissenschaftstheoretischen Standpunkt

by Christian J. Feldbacher

Bibliographical data:
Christian J. Feldbacher. "Neue Technik und ad-hoc-Hypothesen vom wissenschaftstheoretischen Standpunkt". In: Tagungsband der Nachwuchstagungen für Junge Philosophie in Darmstadt. Ed. by Suzana Alpsancar and Kai Denker. Marburg: Tectum, 2011, pp.197-219.

BibTeX data:
@Collection{ cit:alpsancar2011TagNac,
title = {Tagungsband der Nachwuchstagungen f{\"u}r Junge Philosophie in Darmstadt},
booktitle = {Tagungsband der Nachwuchstagungen f{\"u}r Junge Philosophie in Darmstadt},
editor = {Suzana Alpsancar and Kai Denker},
publisher = {Tectum},
address = {Marburg},
year = {2011},
File = {cit.alpsancar2011TagNac.pdf}
}
@InCollection{ cit:feldbacher2011NeuTec,
title = {Neue Technik und ad-hoc-Hypothesen vom wissenschaftstheoretischen Standpunkt},
author = {Christian J. Feldbacher},
pages = {pp.\,197--219},
year = {2011},
crossref = {cit:alpsancar2011TagNac}
}

In diesem Beitrag werden einige wissenschaftstheoretische Thesen u.a. von Paul K. Feyerabend hinsichtlich... more In diesem Beitrag werden einige wissenschaftstheoretische Thesen u.a. von Paul K. Feyerabend hinsichtlich ad-hoc-Hypothesen untersucht. Es wird dabei gezeigt, dass Feyerabends Empfehlungen dafür, ad-hoc-Hypothesen zu akzeptieren oder abzulehnen, vom Einfluss dieser Hypothesen auf die Entwicklung von Technik abhängen. In einem weiteren Schritt wird angedeutet, dass eine derartige Relativierung auch in gängigen Bestätigungstheorien nahegelegt wird, dass man also gängigen Bestätigungstheorien und Feyerabend zufolge ad-hoc-Hypothesen nur hinsichtlich ihres Einflusses auf die Technikentwicklung akzeptieren oder ablehnen sollte.

Motion-Contact-Technology: The Evolution of Technology at the Biological System Boundary

by Dylan Foley

Draft Only: under construction

What is Technology? This paper provides a definition of technology as human adaptive layer, a description intended to... more What is Technology? This paper provides a definition of technology as human adaptive layer, a description intended to allow integration of archaeology with approaches within the Philosophy of Science.

The Evolution of Technology is seen as an area of special concern to archaeology.

Technology Policy and the National Information Infrastructure

by Lee McKnight

Tracking the current rise of Chinese pharmaceutical bionanotechnology

by Patrick Herron

The Production of Scientific Output by Early-Career Researchers

by Martin Ryan

Manuscript. This is one of the chapters in my Ph.D. thesis.

This study investigates the production of scientific output by early-career researchers in the university setting. The... more This study investigates the production of scientific output by early-career researchers in the university setting. The expectations of these individuals - in relation to the commercialisation of their research - are also examined. To date, few studies have examined the individual-level determinants of publication and patent production. Most of the studies on academic scientists’ careers are based upon U.S. data; and not much is known about the individual-level determinants of academic scientists’ output in Europe. In addition, this is the first study to examine expectations related to research-commercialisation: that the author is aware of. The key results (based on a sample from the seven universities in Ireland) show that institutional affiliation, gender, interest in area of research and years of experience all play a role in the postdoctoral production function. In particular, institutional affiliation and gender are the most economically significant drivers of scientific output. Notably, males are twenty-one percent more likely to expect that they will commercialise their research.

Kissinger's Computer: National Security Council Computerization, 1969–1972

by John Laprise

Index Terms:
History of computing, computer adoption, information automation, National Security Council, White House, Nixon Administration, Henry Kissinger, RAND
Citation:
John Laprise, "Kissinger's Computer: National Security Council Computerization, 1969–1972," IEEE Annals of the History of Computing, vol. 33, no. 1, pp. 38-51, Feb. 2011, doi:10.1109/MAHC.2011.10

After National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger ordered the National Security Council to adopt computers to improve... more After National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger ordered the National Security Council to adopt computers to improve its information-management capabilities in 1969, it employed the RAND Corporation, which championed its view of White House needs, and project manager Charles Joyce from the Department of Defense, who championed users' needs. The ensuing process illustrates how institutional constraints and resources have a powerful effect on technology adoption.

White House Computer Adoption and Information Policy 1969-1979

by John Laprise

Dissertation

The history of computers is a growing field of academic inquiry. Scholars have focused on government and military... more The history of computers is a growing field of academic inquiry. Scholars have focused on government and military computer development during the mainframe era up until the mid 1970’s and on the private and commercial sectors thereafter. The duality of this research agenda is grounded in the technological changes that reduced the cost and increased the accessibility of computer technology to the public. The White House straddled these two worlds, interfacing with the military and the private sector in the midst of the Cold War. It faced a variety of security and policy challenges in a dynamic and uncertain time. This dissertation is the first history and complementary analysis of how the White Houses of Presidents Nixon, Ford, and Carter initially adopted computers and developed information policy during the 1970’s. This project consists of four historical cases drawn from archival documents and oral histories: computer adoption by Nixon’s National Security Council; telecommunications security policy during the Ford administration; computer adoption by Carter’s Domestic Council and the reorganization of the Office of Telecommunications Policy and development of information policy during the Carter administration. Using a multidisciplinary framework, the research invokes previous work in the history of computing, science and technology studies, diffusion of innovation, White House Administration Studies, and surveillance studies to show how an array of complex factors shaped how the White House adopted computers and developed information policy. It also shows how the adoption of computers and users’ everyday experiences with them influenced the shape of information policy. Finally, this research asserts that Cold War security concerns were the pervasive factor influencing computer adoption and information policy. Moreover, these concerns were effectively built into the technological systems and policies of the White House and exist to the present day, influencing post-Cold War technology decisions.