Includes bibliographical references and index.

This volume provides a roadmap to the complex interdisciplinary terrain of science and technology studies. The book presents the historical background for this burgeoning field, focusing on the central debates and key theoretical advances. Topics include realism and social construction, discourse and rhetoric, objectivity, the role of experiment and theory, controversies, and the critique of science and technology. Distinctive in its attention to the underlying philosophical and sociological aspects of science and technology, and written specifically with students in mind, An Introduction to Science and Technology Studies is ideal for those new to this exciting and controversial area of study.--Jacket. Distinctive in its attention to both the underlying philosophical and sociological aspects of science and technology, the second edition of this popular textbook provides students with an up-to-date road map of the complex interdisciplinary terrain of science and technology studies.