• Journal of Science and Technology Studies
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.85-125
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• 2014

This paper explores what we call 'the problem of undone social science' by examining the lack of interests in the social, ethical, and legal issues of synthetic biology among social scientists in Korea. This new field of science, which has emerged in the twenty-first century with the promise of solving future problems of energy, food, and disease in the world, has also created a considerable degree of anxiety over the issues of bioethics, biosafety, and biosecurity. From its beginning, therefore, researchers of synthetic biology in Europe and the U.S. have sought to engage social scientists in their projects. Yet scientists and social scientists in Korea have shown no sign of working together to deal with both potential benefits and risks of synthetic biology. Why this silence? What strategic moves would be needed to overcome the structural barrier for their collaboration? Surveying the diverse methodologies developed during and after ELSI (ethical, legal, social implications) experiments, this paper aims to provide three suggestions that might make possible mutually profitable and continuously stimulating dialogues between the two worlds of science and social science: first, institutionalize the ELSI studies on any newly emerging science and technology of concern; second, explore diverse post-ELSI methodologies experimented elsewhere and develop ones that might be applicable best to the Korean situation; and third and perhaps most important, create an intellectual space and a lawful protection for social scientists to exercise their research freedom at the reasonable level and receive a fair review by their peers, not solely by funding agencies and scientific organizations.

• Journal of Science and Technology Studies
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.1-31
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• 2009

The need and rationale for public participation in science and technology is widely acknowledged in academic communities and policy circles. In addition to institutionalized forms of participation, some STS researchers have paid attention to spontaneous forms of public participation, particularly with regard to social movement. This paper aims to explore a new form of public participation, which had been relatively neglected in STS studies. For this purpose, in this paper we examine environmental health issues and cumulative trauma disorders (CTDs) debates as examples of doing "undone science" in Korea. Our focus will be specifically on how environmental organizations and trade unions have both succeeded in making those issues as research and policy agenda for both scientific community and policy makers. In a concluding section, a couple of suggestions for further research are proposed.