ABSTRACT
The idea that scientific thought and its change is strongly influenced, if not determined, by the society within which it exists is something that Kuhn developed into the concept of paradigms. Although a paradigm is not a well-defined concept (there are at least 54 definitions according to Masterman, 1970), it has acted as a useful beacon for studies that emphasise the importance of social context for science and, probably more contentiously, for the idea that changes in scientific ideas are illogical and totally socially constructed. Even if you do not subscribe to the very strong social or even socially-determined view of change in scientific ideas, the development of science within a social vacuum cannot be sustained any longer. Science, and by implication physical geography, develops within a range of social networks. Even if social networks do not impact upon the logic of selecting theories or paradigms, they certainly contribute to what and how reality is studied.
