Just like other academic fields, STS respects language. This is especially so in East Asia, where English has long been the predominant first foreign language for students and academics. But it is not just that. Along with their professional training, STS researchers in East Asia acquire, like their Western colleagues, other European languages, and an increasing number of scholars are learning additional Asian languages to comprehend classical texts or do fieldwork. Against the conventional notion pertaining in the West, STS in East Asia projects a culturally bound network upon which its scholarship evolves. This network has been well represented in the organization of EASTS's editorial board since its inception in 2007, consisting as it does of representative academic communities in this region.
