Other News

July 8th - The Shard, London​

This innovative conference brings together leading figures from a variety of fields which address issues of digital technology and digital data. We’ve invited speakers with a range of intellectual perspectives and disciplinary backgrounds who engage with questions relating to digital data and digital technology in their work. Our suggestion is that social ontology, however this might be construed, represents a potential common ground that could cut across this still rather siloed domain of inquiry into the social dimensions of digital technology.

The conference aims to explore this possibility by assembling a diverse range of perspectives and drawing them into a dialogue about a common question, without assuming a shared understanding of the topic at hand. Our aim is to extend this digitally via twitter, podcast and blog beyond the event itself, in order to facilitate an extended conversation that will draw more people into its remit as it circulates after the conference itself.

To this end, we invite each speaker to address this theme (the social ontology of digital data & digital technology) in whatever way they choose. Each speaker will have 30 mins to talk and 15 mins for questions. We’ll have an accomplished audio editor on hand to record each talk as a podcast. These will be released on www.socialontology.org and will be circulated on social media in order to try and stimulate a continuing debate around the issues raised at the conference. The hashtag for the day will be #socialontology.

The conference is aimed at people actively working in this field.

Confirmed Speakers:

• Chair: Celia Lury (Warwick)
• Noortje Marres (Goldsmiths) – Does Digital Sociology have a Problem?
• Jochen Runde (Cambridge) – Non-materiality and the Ontology of Digital Objects
• Alistair Mutch (NTU) – title TBC
• Susan Halford (Southampton) – title TBC
• Nick Couldry (LSE) – title TBC
• Emma Uprichard (Warwick) – Big Data, Complexity and Time.

Ahead of the General Election next month, Dr David Webber has written a piece in leading football magazine, When Saturday Comes, on the growing significance of the sport as a political issue to both politicians and fans alike.

Whilst welcoming the pledges made by each of the three main parties to give fans a greater say in the boardrooms of their clubs, Dr Webber warns of broken promises made in the past, and a continued reticence to tackle the financial inequality that exists in the British game.

Concluding his article, Dr Webber urges whoever is elected in May to work closely with fans, and implement appropriate legislative measures so as to deliver real power into the hands of supporters.

The full article can be read in the May edition of WSC (issue 339). It is available in all good newsagents.

Academic Tutor needed

The Realising Opportunities (RO) Programme is seeking motivated PhD
students with the following subjects interest: Life Sciences, Physics,
History, Politics, Psychology and TV & Film.

The Academic Tutors will support Year 12 students who are on the RO programme to complete their research project between June and November 2015.

The RO programme is a unique award–winning collaboration between 14 leading universities and support students from non-traditional background to access Higher Education.

To learn more about the programme you can visit our website: www.warwick.ac.uk/outreach/programmes/realisingopportunities/

PAIS PhD student Eva Nagyfejeo has contributed a chapter to the newly published book Terrorism Online: Politics, Law and Technology, edited by Lee Jarvis, Stuart Macdonald and Thomas M. Chen

Eva’s chapter is titled Transatlantic collaboration in countering cyber terrorism

Please see the Routledge website for more details: http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415732888/

Is Coventry a Sustainable City? Come along and explore this theme at Fargo Village, for a special public event on Saturday 9 May. Topics will be relevant to the people of Coventry and Warwickshire; ranging from Coventry City Football Club to town planning, there is something for everyone.

The event is being hosted by the Faculty of Social Sciences at The University of Warwick and is part of the Festival of Social Sciences.

Speakers from the Faculty of Social Sciences will present their research and raise questions such as: Is modern football too commercialised? How can we get young people in Coventry to vote? Should our cities have more power?

You will also get the chance to speak to organisations from across the city tackling issues including: homelessness, domestic and sexual violence, well-being, youth provision, education and much more. Food will be provided by Scoff Street Food and the Bar Bus will be in attendance, selling limited edition Festival of Social Sciences Ale.

Lead organiser and Student Experience Officer, Charlotte Lewis, said: “Social science influences our day to day lives in many ways. This event will showcase research within the Faculty of Social Sciences and how it impacts on people’s daily lives. We will be connecting local people, community groups and organisations throughout the city. We want to host a day of discussion and positivity which everyone can enjoy.”

So, join the fun at Fargo Village, from 10am-6pm on 9 May. The event is open to all and entrance is free. Donations to any of the charities attending on the day are welcome.

For full event details, please see: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/festival2015/eventprogramme/saturday9thmay/

The Festival of Social Sciences is a nine day event providing insight into social sciences throughout the years. The festival is also part of the University of Warwick’s fiftieth anniversary celebrations.

For more information about the Festival of Social Sciences, visit the website: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/festival2015/ or join the conversation on Twitter at: #warwickfss