iNGLES

what is science and technology
Social studies on science and technology encompass a transdisciplinary field of
studies on the cultural, ethical and political effects of scientific knowledge and
technological innovation.1 They place emphasis on the interpretation of the
utilities, appropriations and impacts in the daily life of the people, with the aim of
breaking the old barriers of scientific-technical research.
Traditionally, until the 19th century, science and technology were judged as a
black box and, therefore, studied independently of social, political and cultural
factors, which would act as distorters of scientific-technical knowledge. The
studies on science, technology and society reconcile the formal knowledge of
science and technology with their human dimension, considering them as a
seamless fabric.
In the Spanish-speaking regions, this type of concerns and reflections have
come with the common name of studies of / on Science, Technology, and
Society (abbreviated CTS), which in the English-speaking regions is known as
Science and Technology Studies (Science and Technology Studies) or Science,
Technology and Society (Science and Technology), both with the acronym STS.
In the Spanish-speaking regions, the multidisciplinarity in CTS includes from the
beginning the fields of sociology, philosophy, history and anthropology, as well
as incorporating from its origins the movements in defense of human rights, the
feminist movement, the environmentalist and pacifist currents and the first
groups of LGTBQ emerged especially after the war in Vietnam