Seeing is believing : 3D Modeling and Objectivity in Scientific Practice
Olofsson, Tobias LU
and Gerber, Alison
LU
(2026)
European Sociological Association Conference 2026
- Abstract (Swedish)
- This paper examines the emergence of a new culture of objectivity. Building on and extending Daston and Galison's framework of epistemic virtues, we show how contemporary archaeological practice is developing a form of objectivity that incorporates manipulability, navigability, and relationality without abandoning scientific representation. Drawing on multi-year fieldwork with archaeologists developing and using 3D digital tools, we analyze the ways that scientists use new imaging technologies to learn about the past, and to show others what they have learned. By following the archaeologists as they bring computers into the field so that they can later reproduce the field on their computers, we argue that 3D modelling as a methodological... (More)
- This paper examines the emergence of a new culture of objectivity. Building on and extending Daston and Galison's framework of epistemic virtues, we show how contemporary archaeological practice is developing a form of objectivity that incorporates manipulability, navigability, and relationality without abandoning scientific representation. Drawing on multi-year fieldwork with archaeologists developing and using 3D digital tools, we analyze the ways that scientists use new imaging technologies to learn about the past, and to show others what they have learned. By following the archaeologists as they bring computers into the field so that they can later reproduce the field on their computers, we argue that 3D modelling as a methodological response to cultural shifts in the discipline has allowed archaeologists to enroll technological innovations in attempts to address persistent anxieties about subjectivity. Contrary to Daston and Galison's suggestion that manipulability might signal a move away from representation, we find that new technologies enable researchers to foreground both manipulability and representational fidelity simultaneously. By tracing this emergent culture of objectivity, we show how enduring epistemological problems generate novel solutions and illuminate the role of digital reconstructions in both scientific and public contexts. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/7ab5c49e-98b6-4d99-8940-448e6f7785f2
- author
- Olofsson, Tobias
LU
and Gerber, Alison
LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2026-08
- type
- Contribution to conference
- publication status
- unpublished
- subject
- conference name
- European Sociological Association Conference 2026
- conference location
- Warszawa, Poland
- conference dates
- 2026-08-25 - 2026-08-28
- project
- Show & Tell: Scientific representation, algorithmically generated visualizations, and evidence across epistemic cultures
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 7ab5c49e-98b6-4d99-8940-448e6f7785f2
- date added to LUP
- 2026-08-31 08:36:27
- date last changed
- 2026-09-02 09:51:07
@misc{7ab5c49e-98b6-4d99-8940-448e6f7785f2,
abstract = {{This paper examines the emergence of a new culture of objectivity. Building on and extending Daston and Galison's framework of epistemic virtues, we show how contemporary archaeological practice is developing a form of objectivity that incorporates manipulability, navigability, and relationality without abandoning scientific representation. Drawing on multi-year fieldwork with archaeologists developing and using 3D digital tools, we analyze the ways that scientists use new imaging technologies to learn about the past, and to show others what they have learned. By following the archaeologists as they bring computers into the field so that they can later reproduce the field on their computers, we argue that 3D modelling as a methodological response to cultural shifts in the discipline has allowed archaeologists to enroll technological innovations in attempts to address persistent anxieties about subjectivity. Contrary to Daston and Galison's suggestion that manipulability might signal a move away from representation, we find that new technologies enable researchers to foreground both manipulability and representational fidelity simultaneously. By tracing this emergent culture of objectivity, we show how enduring epistemological problems generate novel solutions and illuminate the role of digital reconstructions in both scientific and public contexts.}},
author = {{Olofsson, Tobias and Gerber, Alison}},
language = {{eng}},
title = {{Seeing is believing : 3D Modeling and Objectivity in Scientific Practice}},
year = {{2026}},
}