Journal of Iranian Cultural Research
Year:2014 | Volume:6 | Issue:4 (24)|Papers Count:14

The main characteristic (feature) of the sociology of knowledge and science is its emphasis on the culture and cultural analysis within the scientific and technological research. This study concerns with the study of two research fields in which new sociologists of science and technology have presented their cultural analysis. These two fields include: sociology of scientific knowledge and cultural studies of science. Sociology of scientific knowledge is the first school of thought which makes the content of scientific knowledge inclined to and compliant with the cultural and sociological analysis. In SSK, the main presupposition is that “the scientific knowledge is totally arbitrary.” Accordingly, the design and evaluation of scientific theories and claims are the consequence of social interests and cultural inclinations (trends), in a way that the scientific theories become a tool for the justification, legitimating, encouragement and contentment. At the early 1990s, with the rise of crisis (chaos) within the explanations of sociology of scientific knowledge and a flood of criticism against it, the whole subjectivity of the field came to a standstill (reached an impasse) and the initiatives in scientific research were replaced by different theoretical orientations like cultural studies. In contrast to the sociology of scientific knowledge, the cultural studies of science concerns with the rejection of “explanation” and, instead, focuses on the “meaning” and “understanding”. In other words, it has come back to an old dispute between explanatory and hermeneutic approaches and those which pursue the regulative (legalistic) comprehensiveness along the more positivistic lines. This emerging field emphasizes the issue that the uncertainty, instability, ambiguity (vagueness) and difference must be given a more important role in sciences. Cultural studies of science gave rise to a change from the sociology of scientific knowledge to a new culturalism.

This paper studies the cultural change in science from academic science to post-academic science by the use of documentary studying and analytical reasoning. The aim of this study is determining the direction of cultural change in science and comparing it with cultural change in society. The knowledge production which surrounds academy has little relationship with the values of society and epistemological norms regulate scientists’ behavior from within the scientific system. But in post-academic science the relationship between science and society operates in the same line with market and government and science produce within the social context and scientists’ behavior controlled by the norms out of the scientific system. So the culture of science has changed because science applied to meet the requirements of market and industry. The result is that contrary to cultural change in society that goes from materialism to post-materialism, cultural change in science moves from post-materialism to materialism.

Interpretive signs explain the purpose of the present paper is the study of the spatial domain is performed. One of the signs used in Ardabil urban context the term “sabalan” is. Wide range of shops, goods, or a combination of Graffiti and institutions such as the use of their names or decorate. This study is based on descriptive phenomenology and structures of the symbols were drawn through analysis of data obtained from interviews with a dozen people from Ardabil citizens have been studied. Phenomenological analysis based on an analytical model of the Ardabil Moustakas codes used in different types of signs to interpret. They are symbolic space that is created by their own statements, codes of expression, based on similar forms with the forms of expression, emotion, and sacred being described, they are harvested. These codes can be produced in a limited framework, with which they are faced by the people, in spite of their freedom to withdraw preferential, in this context is read.

Information technology and its consequent virtual space are opening up a new sphere in psychological, sociological and cultural studies associated with the mutual effect of technology, culture and human beings in general, and the interaction of cyberspace and culture, identity and human relationships. Recent studies in this field should be examined at least to realize whether the psychological and social outcomes and the pathology of virtual spaces are the result of the overflow of problems and issues of society and the real space into virtual space, and to decide if the challenges and the social problems in question are due to the development and growth of electronic media and virtual space? While describing and explaining the effect of culture, society and their consequent traditions on virtual spaces, relationships and their content, and examining the effect of virtual space on culture, social actions, identity, attitudes and individual and collective behavior, the present article stresses that considering the short history and the little experience of the interaction between human and information technology and virtual space, it seems too soon to speak decisively about the outcomes of information technology and virtual spaces. Therefore, two principles are suggested to be established in cultural and social research on cyberspace. First, in the study of virtual space, priorities should be identified correctly and one should not merely focus on the problems resulting from information and communication technology instead of dealing with fundamental issues. Second, both in the theoretical and the methodological aspects of studies on virtual space, in different social and cultural spheres, one cannot rely merely on traditional theories and method, and new methods, in terms of theory, methodology and tools, should be applied.

The aim of this article is to describe the role of foreign media as the agitators of popular culture. For that with reception analysis it’s pay to describe decoding of youth audiences about this series. Globalization theory and Reception in Communication theory are formed the theoretical system of current article. The methodology in this research is qualitative one, and two techniques as in-depth interview and observation are used for data collection. The results show different people based on individual features, social and cultural backgrounds have inclination toward special characters and identify with them. This inclination so far the audience fallow the series because of his/her favorite character. Also there is a great compatibility between audience backgrounds and their receptions. A number of audience have criticized the series and point out the negative consequences on its society. However, seeing the series continue; really they prefer watching series enjoying to risks of it.

Since today’s consumer culture is regarded as the main characteristic of modern culture, and the Iranian society’s culture, as a result of influential cultural exchanges, is considered a culture in transition to the modern state, providing an image of the consumer culture of the Iranian society can contribute to a careful analysis of its transition from the traditional society to a modern society. In the present article, the data from the national survey on cultural inclinations and social attitudes, which dealt with leisure time activities in Iran, has been analyzed using secondary analysis method. Since the patterns of leisure time activities are among the main components of consumer culture, attempt has been made to present a critical portrait of the consumer culture of Iranian society, through typologies and secondary classifications of the data from the aforesaid survey. The statistical universe of the research, whose data has been used in the present article, includes all the cities and villages in Iran. The sample was collected using multi-stage cluster method. Finally, the result of the analysis of the collected data indicated that the pattern of leisure time activities can be divided into six groups, each of which denotes a certain form of consumer culture in the Iranian society.

To live in a non-excellent city, is a problematic situation for excellent men. But, which style of life would be the best style for excellent men who live in non-excellent cities? The Moslem Philosophers have different approaches to this question. Among them, al-Farabi, as the founder of Islamic philosophy, advised three choices: going out of the non-excellent cities to an excellent city, living as a stranger in a non-excellent city, or, preferring death instead of life. Avicenna, recommends virtues men to build their cities in the periphery of the non-excellent city, far away from the center. Against him, Avempace’s theory focuses on the idea that virtues men’s happiness should be realized in non-excellent cities. Ibn Tufayl (Abu Baser) in his tale, Hayy Ibn Yaqdhan (Alive, Son of Awake) man is a lost being that tries to find him “self” by a particular kind of knowledge which leads him to excellent situation in society. Comparing these theories reveals that relation between “individual” and “society” is problematic and complicated. In fact, compliance with conventions, rules, or laws of non-excellent cities is in the center of these theories.