Science, Technology and Society Studies (ST&S) emerged in North America and Western Europe in the late 1960s and has witnessed an astonishing growth of scholarship since then. ST&S theories, and later a more focused Science and Technology Studies (S&TS), 1 not only offer new perspectives to understanding scientific and technological changes, but also raise new issues to the mainstream humanities and social sciences. Institutionally, university-based STS programs have been formed at many leading universities, and international scholarly associations, such as the Society for Social Studies of Science (4S) and the European Association for the Study of Science and Technology (EASST), have been established. Several STS journals have been set up as well. In addition to academic concerns, STS scholars have engaged public policies and emphasized the importance of politics as one of the top priorities on the STS agenda. STS keeps growing.
