Sonja Schmid

Sonja Schmid is an assistant professor in the Department of Science and Technology in Society (2008-). In 2007-08, she was a postdoctoral fellow at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies in the Monterey Institute of International Studies. Before that, she spent two years at Stanford University, where she was a fellow at the Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC), and a lecturer in the Program in Science, Technology and Society. She received her PhD in Science & Technology Studies from Cornell University in 2005.
Her research has focused on understanding complex decision-making processes at the interface between science, technology, and the state in the Cold War Soviet context, and she is currently working on a book about reactor design choices and the development of the civilian nuclear industry in the Soviet Union. The book is based on extensive archival research and narrative interviews with nuclear energy specialists in Russia. Her research interests also include technology transfer, risk communication, especially in the context of energy policy, and the popularization of science and technology.
In her free time, Sonja enjoys music, especially West-African drumming, and the company of her little son