The essay aims to elucidate the potential impact of ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence on academic research across various aspects: information retrieval and review of scholarly literature, data analysis and presentation, as well as writing and translation. We explore potential consequences, risks, and paradoxes in utilizing AI for research, encompassing issues such as authorship dilemmas, erosion of research integrity, limitations in methodological approaches, expected shifts in the dynamics of knowledge production, and changes in the relations between academic center and peripheries. We conclude by calling for comprehensive dialogue on regulation and the development of technologies that align with our evolving needs.

O ensaio procura elucidar as transformações que o Chat GPT e outras inteligências artificiais tendem a causar na pesquisa acadêmica, como: busca, seleção e leitura de literatura acadêmica, análise e apresentação de dados; escrita e tradução. Discutimos algumas possíveis consequências, riscos e paradoxos no uso de IAs para a pesquisa, tais como dilemas de autoria, potencial deterioração da integridade da pesquisa, limitação das abordagens metodológicas, possíveis modificações nas dinâmicas de produção de conhecimento e nas relações centro-periferia no ambiente acadêmico. Concluímos demandando por um diálogo aprofundado sobre regulação e criação de tecnologias adaptadas às nossas necessidades.

Resumo: Este artigo investiga a produção acadêmica em periódicos sobre a democracia digital no Brasil. Foi realizada uma busca automatizada no Google Scholar e DOAJ por palavras-chave e, após a filtragem manual, o corpus empírico resultou em 502 artigos. Estes artigos foram avaliados com base em análise de conteúdo, buscando identificar as principais características dos autores, assim como as abordagens teóricas e empíricas. Depois, as referências foram avaliadas através da análise de redes. Os resultados evidenciam a hegemonia dos campos da comunicação e da ciência política, um predomínio de análises sobre a esfera civil não organizada e o uso dos conceitos de participação e deliberação. A maioria dos artigos é empírica, faz uso da técnica de análise de conteúdo e privilegia a avaliação de websites e mídias sociais. Concluímos argumentando pela existência de um campo da democracia digital.

Abstract: This article investigates academic production on e-democracy in Brazilian journals. An automated search was performed on Google Scholar and DOAJ for keywords and, after manual filtering, resulted in an empirical corpus of 502 articles. Content analysis of these articles identified the main characteristics of the authors and the theoretical and empirical approaches to the subject. Network analysis analyzed relationships among references. The results show that these studies are largely conducted within the fields of communication and political science, that they tend to focus on the non-organized civil sphere, and that they often mobilize the concepts of participation and deliberation. Most of the articles are empirical using content analysis to examine websites and social media. We conclude by defending the construction of e-democracy as an academic field in Brazil.

The celebrated author on the mind of Samuel Rutherford, John Coffey, chose the Calvinist tradition as the appropriate context for interpreting Rutherford's covenantal perspectives. The authors question this assumption and produce evidence to the effect that the Bullinger-Vermigli approach to theologico-political federalism in Rutherford's views proves to be a more cogent paradigm for understanding Rutherford's thoughts. It is concluded that Rutherford utilised the insights of both Bullinger and Vermigli in structuring the ideal form of government in the Christian state as well as the relationships between ecclesiastical and political offices in the state, a theory that gained in importance in later political theories.

O portal e-Democracia, lançado em 2009 por iniciativa da Câmara dos Deputados do Congresso Nacional brasileiro, foi desenvolvido com o objetivo de oferecer aos cidadãos brasileiros um instrumento para a construção compartilhada de projetos de lei. O artigo discute resultados de pesquisa que analisam mecanismos sociotécnicos e políticos responsáveis pela interação e pelo desenvolvimento das ações e propostas políticas em uma comunidade legislativa virtual específica do e-Democracia para discussões e alterações ao projeto de lei sobre o Marco Civil da Internet. A partir dos resultados obtidos foi verificado o alcance dos objetivos da iniciativa de democratização do acesso à informação e ampliação da participação política cidadã nessa comunidade específica. Foram realizadas análises de dados quantitativos e qualitativos sobre as características do ambiente virtual desenvolvido e de seus usuários. Os resultados discutem os avanços já alcançados e as limitações ao uso da iniciativa como um mecanismo de estímulo a práticas democráticas participativas digitais.

Digital participatory democracy has been significantly stimulated in Brazil for the last decade and plays a key role in the outcomes of electronic government strategies. Created in 2009, the initiative called e-Democracy was developed by the Chamber of Deputies of the National Congress of Brazil. It is intended to engage citizens in the process of elaborating legislative projects. This engagement happens in the virtual legislative communities which constitute virtual spaces created to approximate citizens and government through the discussion of legislative projects. The main goal of this article is to present the results of a research regarding a specific virtual legislative community of e-Democracy developed to discuss topics to be included in the Brazilian Proposition on Civil Rights Framework for Internet in Brazil. Quantitative and qualitative methods were applied and a questionnaire was send to the citizens who joined the community and made a significant contribution. Based on the characteristics of the tool and its users, the results discuss into what extent the Project is fulfilling its purposes. The initiative is analyzed as a possible mechanism to stimulate digital participatory democratic practices.

ABSTRACT This paper presents a study on the social and organizational impacts of the Electronic Processing System (EPS) implemented in 2008 by the Brazilian Superior Court of Justice (SCJ). This system is part of a wider transformation process involving the implementation of a new management model at the SCJ. The theoretical framework of the research conducted is based on the Technology Enactment Theory and other studies on the role of technological innovations in public organizations (Fountain, 2005; Freitas, 2012). Its main goal was to identify the most significant factors facilitating or inhibiting the innovation adoption. Results show different impacts of the EPS on professional groups and organizations. Political, cultural and economic aspects influence stakeholders’ perceptions of the innovation, including its sustainability, time and cost saving that impact the rate of adoption and the realization of benefits both to users and the organization investing in its development.