Latour Ch. 1

In Latour's first chapter there is a strong focus on the debate over knowledge claims. It's masterful how he uses the very method of convincing he is arguing is used to make his point. By utilizing what he is describing simultaneously his claims manifest powerfully and it's difficult to not agree with him by the end of the chapter.Leaving it open for discussion like the example he gives grant his model a great deal of validity and simply by discussing it here and in class we are validating it even further; clearly Latour is very confident in his model for this very reason. In the first example of the MX missile each sentence is given varying degrees of verisimilitude to draw the lines of his model of going upstream and downstream. These knowledge claims are in the fate of their context and how others handle them, whether they are pressed upstream or downstream. The worst case scenario for these claims is that no particular party is interested enough to push it up or down at all, whether it be a black box or completely out there claim, if they are not discussed they perish. "Facts don't speak for themselves," as Latour puts it means that the very acceptability of any claim is dependent on whether or not people are willing to take it up and discuss it; taking black boxes and moving them back upstream or taking the exceptional claims and attempting to move them downstream.
If I may use my own example in a field I have more experience, let us discuss fuel efficiency. Conventional wisdom in the United States is that one needs to reduce engine size and hybridize to achieve the most beneficial results both economically and environmentally. If we more this claim upstream we see that there are many alternatives, some of which are much more sound, to this "black box" formula. Diesel for example is a very viable alternative to greatly improve miles per gallon but has an unfortunate stigma in the US due to much older technology, most conceptions of which are no longer even remotely accurate. Biodiesel is highly touted but increases the cost of other domestic goods and could be a net increase in costs. Analyzing hybridization directly one can see the many downsides to batteries and their environmental impact. Just by looking at the issues in this fashion I am illustrating Latour's model and putting it into motion, both validating unpopular claims and pushing "facts" back upstream.