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Accepted Paper:

From non-humans to humans and back: Redistribution of morality by Marshrutka Door (The case of Volgograd, Russia)  
Andrey Kuznetsov (Volgograd State University) Denis Sivkov (RANEPA, Volgograd branch)

Paper long abstract:

"Where the missing masses of our societies are located?" Bruno Latour asked once. If the answer is "in non-humans" then we are confronted with one of the biggest misunderstanding of ANT. Such an answer incite us to conceive ANT as a "sociology of material objects" and to think in "either/or" logic: either it is the humans (or produced by them meanings) that are the most stable and reliable link in chain or it is tamed non-humans that are bulletproof part of sociotechnical assemblage. We suggest that the crucial point of ANT is that missing masses are not in non-humans (or material objects) themselves but in the whole chain of translations from humans to non-humans through signs/symbols and back. So delegation could be made in both directions.

We will show this through the case of opening/closing of marshrutka doors. By marshrutka we mean a type of urban mobility (fixed-route taxi) performed by a certain type of mini-vans (Gazelle). Unlike doors of traditional urban public transport marshrutka doors are opened/closed by passengers themselves. Some work necessary for conveyance was delegated back from non-humans to humans but we can't say unambiguously that this sociotechnical assemblage become less stable. Rather morality, and human and non-human competencies were redistributed. This redistribution partly lead to a bunch of consequences. 1) Marshrutka become an area of multiple moral contradictions and conflicts with a door as an epicenter. 2) Marshrutka door became more closer to text than to machine because it allow simultaneous presence of enunciator and enunciatee.

Panel A4
What are the pillars of stability and endurance of sociotechnical networks? Studying research and innovation in post-communist transitions
  Session 1 Wednesday 17 September, 2014, -