Bolun Zhang

Bolun Zhang is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology at Zhejiang University (ZJU). Before joining ZJU, he received his Bachelor’s degrees in Arabic and Sociology and his Master’s degree in Sociology from Peking University, and his Ph.D. in Sociology from UC San Diego. He is also a founding member of the Center for Critical Computational Social Science at ZJU.

He is a researcher of infrastructure specializing in economic sociology and political sociology. His work explores the material political economy of China and Global China through ethnographic and historical approaches. He is particularly interested in how organizational forms mediate the relationship between material infrastructures and political–economic regimes, and how this perspective expands our understanding of politics. He is currently developing a series of research projects on the politics of interfaces.

Building on this infrastructural line of inquiry, he also examines how modern infrastructures—such as algorithmic techniques—reshape the practices of social science. Drawing on Science and Technology Studies, he critically analyzes and seeks to improve methodological practices in quantitative sociology.

Personal Website: http://sociology.zju.edu.cn/index.php/Teacher/e_details.html?id=104&tid=19&sid=2; www.bolunzhang.com