Socially distributed knowledge: five spaces for science to meet the public

Abstract

By definition, science meets the public in a space which is public. This paper rests upon the assumption that this space has been considerably extended, and continues to differentiate. Imparting scientific knowledge is highly dynamic, and has led to a process of socially distributed knowledge through which an increasing number of heterogeneous sites in society are being created where knowledge is produced. Five public spaces are presented, ranging from the space of individual scientific creativity drawing upon cultural representations available in society, to a space in which ethno-scientific knowledge and practices encounter scientific ones, followed by the space in which the process of professionalization of expert knowledge and standards interlinks with protoprofessional knowledge and standards. The last two public spaces of encounter, the market and the hybrid space of public forums, are perhaps the most familiar. While the concrete patterns of interaction take very different forms, ranging from cooperative or reinforcing to confrontational, it is claimed that the boundaries separating the public from science are becoming more fluid. As a result, not only the public's knowledge of science, but also scientific and technological knowledge, are transformed through these structures.