Lecture #1: Defining Sociology and Using our Sociological Tools; Please read Ch. 1
Hello everyone and welcome to the start of what will hopefully be a wonderful semester. This semester we will be examining and analyzing science and technology using a sociological discipline. In the beginning of every lecture I will introduce the vocabulary. These words will be significant for the lecture, so put them to memory because you just might see them later, wink, wink, and wink.
Vocabulary:
Sociology: The systematic study of human societies. It is the scientific study of human social life, behavior, groups, culture and societies.
Culture: A way of life including widespread values (about what is good and bad), beliefs (about what is true), and behavior (what people do every day).
Social Problems: A condition that undermines the well-being of some or all members of a society and that are usually a matter of public controversy.
Sociological Imagination: Is the quality of mind that enables one to see the connection between personal troubles and social structures.
Theory: A statement of how and why specific facts are related.
Structural-Functional: A theoretical framework that sees society as a system of many interrelated parts.
Social-Conflict: A theoretical framework that sees society as divided by inequality and conflict.
Symbolic-Interaction: A theoretical framework that sees society as the product of individuals interacting with one another.
Technology: the practical use of knowledge
Science: Knowledge accumulated as statements of facts and theories or explanations for events and phenomena

Lecture:
Now that we have a basic concept of the vocabulary, we can get started with the lecture. The vocabulary will help us move more efficiently through this topic. The first topic that we need to discuss before we can get started defining science and technology is;