This dossier examines the social studies of science and technology (SSST), or studies in science, technology and society (STS), through their different approaches in search for unity, in an effort to comprehend objects of study that are more and more distinctive in the contemporary societies. Stimulated by the emerging context of these discussions within the Brazilian academic environment, the organizers present seven articles, by national and international authors, intent on contributing to a reduction in the deficit of studies in this area in Brazil. These texts examine the trends of the research agenda in this area of studies, the remaining theoretical debates, and the diversity of potential research subjects in the incipient Brazilian academic tradition. This dossier offers a collection of approaches and topics of study whose aim is to present a panorama, which is still small, of the possibilities of social research in this area. The discussions and reflections presented in the articles in this dossier, apart from questions of purely academic interest, deal with the perceptions of the major contemporary social controversies, with a strong science and technology component, many of them highlighted in the Brazilian and international media, such as energy issues, climate changes, pollution and industrial waste, human health, genetically modified foods, stem cells and gene therapies, food security and the safe use of natural resources, among other issues.
Science; Technology; Knowledge; Sociology of Science and Technology; Politics