Donna J Haraway: Simians, Cyborgs, and Women: The Reinvention of Nature (1991–) [EN, ES]

30 November 2009, dusan

“The idea that nature is constructed, not discovered – that truth is made, not found – is the keynote of recent scholarship in the history of science. Tracing the gendered roots of science in culture, Donna Haraway’s writings about scientific research on monkeys and apes is arguably the finest scholarship in this tradition. She has carefully studied the publications, the papers, the correspondence, and the history of the expeditions and institions of primate studies, uncovering the historical construction of the pedigrees for existing social relations – the naturalization of race, sex, and class. Throughout this book she is analysing accounts, narratives, and stories of the creation of nature, living organisms, and cyborgs (cybernetic organisms: systems which embrace organic and technological components). She also looks critically at the immune system as an information system, and shows how deeply our cultural assumptions penetrate into allegedly value-neutral medical research. In several of these essays she explores and develops the contested terms of reference of existing feminist scholarship; and by mapping the fate of two potent and ambiguous worlds – ‘nature’ and ‘experience’ – she uncovers new visions and provides the possibility of a new politics of hope.

Her previous book, Primate Visions, has been called ‘outstanding’, ‘original’, ‘brilliant’, ‘important’ by leading scholars in the field. Simians, Cyborgs, and Women contains ten essays written between 1978 and 1989. They establish her as one of the most thoughtful and challenging feminist writers today.”

Publisher Routledge, New York, 1991
ISBN 1853431397, 9781853431395
287 pages

Publisher

Simians, Cyborgs, and Women: The Reinvention of Nature (English, 1991, updated on 2012-7-31)
Ciencia, cyborgs y mujeres. La reinvención de la naturaleza (Spanish, trans. Manuel Talens, 1995, added on 2014-3-18)

Michael Hardt, Antonio Negri: Commonwealth (2009) [English/German]

30 November 2009, dusan

When Empire appeared in 2000, it defined the political and economic challenges of the era of globalization and, thrillingly, found in them possibilities for new and more democratic forms of social organization. Now, with Commonwealth, Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri conclude the trilogy begun with Empire and continued in Multitude, proposing an ethics of freedom for living in our common world and articulating a possible constitution for our common wealth.

Drawing on scenarios from around the globe and elucidating the themes that unite them, Hardt and Negri focus on the logic of institutions and the models of governance adequate to our understanding of a global commonwealth. They argue for the idea of the “common” to replace the opposition of private and public and the politics predicated on that opposition. Ultimately, they articulate the theoretical bases for what they call “governing the revolution.”

Though this book functions as an extension and a completion of a sustained line of Hardt and Negri’s thought, it also stands alone and is entirely accessible to readers who are not familiar with the previous works. It is certain to appeal to, challenge, and enrich the thinking of anyone interested in questions of politics and globalization.

Publisher Harvard University Press, 2009
ISBN 0674035119, 9780674035119
330 pages

publisher
google books

PDF [English] (updated on 2012-7-27)
PDF [German] (added on 2012-7-27)

Patrick Barwise, A. S. C. Ehrenberg: Television and Its Audience (1988)

30 November 2009, dusan

This book by two leading experts takes a look at the nature of television, starting from an audience perspective. It draws on over twenty years of research about the audience in the United States and Britain and about the many ways in which television is funded and organized around the world.

The overall picture which emerges is of: a medium which is watched for several hours a day but usually at only a low level of involvement; an audience which views mainly for relaxation but which actively chooses favourite programmes; a flowering of new channels but with no fundamental change in what or how people watch; programmes costing millions to produce but only a few pennies to view; a wide range of programme types apparently similar to the range of print media but with nothing like the same degree of audience ‘segmentation’; a global communication medium of dazzling scale, speed, and impact but which is slow at conveying complex information and perhaps less powerful than generally assumed.

The book is packed with information and insights yet is highly readable. It is unique in relating so many of the issues raised by television to how we watch it. There is also a highly regarded appendix on advertising, as well as technical notes, a glossary, and references for further reading.

Publisher Sage Publications, 1988
ISBN 0803981546, 9780803981546
206 pages

publisher
google books

PDF (updated on 2013-3-28)