Science in the digital age: what can Instagram teach us?

Abstract:

This study looks at Instagram accounts dedicated to scientific communication. Contributions from Ludwik Fleck’s epistemology are used as theoretical foundations. The research methodology was the virtual ethnography, and the accounts followed for 12 months. The findings revealed an increase in the circulation of Science on Instagram due to the creation of accounts and followers. The administrators’ profiles are diverse, demonstrating a link between the esoteric circle of knowledge production in science. The accounts disseminate general information about science, research findings, educational support, and scholar daily life. The circulation of science can be viewed as a network frame in which knowledge is distributed through different nodes formed by specialists and non-specialists, indicating an inter-collective, multidirectional, and transitory circulation of thought styles.

Keywords
Science communication; Social media; Science and media.