Interdisciplinary Research Laboratory in Didactics, Education, and Training

Robin Birgé

Postdoctoral Researcher

As a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Montpellier (Lirdef) and an independent researcher at the Hyperthèses laboratory, my work is characterized by an interest in the ethics of discussion. After studying ecology, I trained in the humanities through the critical analysis of discussions (also known as controversies) concerning the biologization of the social or the Sokal affair. In my dissertation, I explore a story with an unhappy ending: “The Tragedy of the Expert, or ‘Langagement in Science-Friction’ as a Response to the Deconstruction of Authoritarianism and Relativism in Scientific Expertise through Dramaturgical Sociology.” By staging expert opinions and defining dramaturgical sociology (described by some as political epistemology)—whose principles of distancing and alteration aim to transform habits and, thereby, the world—I propose a radically constructivist and engaged research practice.

Research Topics

  • Dramaturgical Sociology and Eristic
  • Social Responsibility, Commitment, and the Researcher’s Role
  • Expertise in democracy
  • The Biologization of Society
  • Epistemological Controversies (The Sokal Affair and Other Hoaxes)

Courses

  • Lecture at the Université de Tiers Temps in Montpellier: Can “science” survive the loss of its “neutrality”?
  • Co-supervised with Manuel Bachtold (Lirdef, UM), titled “A Study of the Roles of Actors and Arguments in the Controversy Surrounding Diesel Vehicles.” (2015–2016, M2 HPDS, UM)
  • Introductory Course on Constructivism (2014, Doctoral Module, UM)
  • Article Review Committee (M2 HPDS, UM)
  • Methodology Course: Bibliographic References and Theoretical Framework for Understanding Citations Based on Their Purpose Within the Text (M2 HPDS, UM)
  • Course on the Aesthetics of Communication: The Relationship Between Content and Form (2015, ACCES track of the M2 B2E program, with Guillaume Bagnolini, Epsylon UM3)
  • Project Evaluation Panel: Structure of a science outreach project, epistemic stance, communication model (2015, ACCES track of the M2 B2E program, with Grégoire Molinatti and Nicolas Chevassus-Au-Louis)
  • Introductory Course in Epistemology (2014, ACCES Track of the M1 B2E program, with Nicolas Chevassus-Au-Louis)

Responsibilities

  • Researcher at the Hyperthèses Laboratory (https://hypertheses.org)
  • Currently working as a playwright on the opera and object theater project(Victor) Frankenstein, the upcoming production by thecompany Les Karyatides(scheduled for 2019)