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Brittleness and bureaucracy : software as a material for science
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Spencer, Matthew (2015) Brittleness and bureaucracy : software as a material for science. Perspectives on Science, 23 (4). pp. 466-484. doi:10.1162/POSC_a_00184
An open access version can be found in:
Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1162/POSC_a_00184
Abstract
Through examining a case study of a major fluids modelling code, this paper charts two key properties of software as a material for building models. Scientific software development is characterized by piecemeal growth, and as a code expands, it begins to manifest frustrating properties that provide an important axis of motivation in the laboratory. The first such feature is a tendency towards brittleness. The second is an accumulation of supporting technologies that sometimes cause scientists to express a frustration with the bureaucracy of highly regulated working practices. Both these features are important conditions for the pursuit of research through simulation.
| Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Divisions: | Faculty of Social Sciences > Centre for Interdisciplinary Methodologies | ||||
| Journal or Publication Title: | Perspectives on Science | ||||
| Publisher: | MIT Press | ||||
| ISSN: | 1063-6145 | ||||
| Official Date: | 6 November 2015 | ||||
| Dates: |
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| Volume: | 23 | ||||
| Number: | 4 | ||||
| Page Range: | pp. 466-484 | ||||
| DOI: | 10.1162/POSC_a_00184 | ||||
| Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||
| Publication Status: | Published | ||||
| Access rights to Published version: | Restricted or Subscription Access | ||||
| Open Access Version: |
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