ABSTRACT This paper explores how cattle breeds are constructed through social practice—which we conceptually develop as “designing” cattle. We show how breed varieties are designed, informed by the social, material and moral embeddedness of cattle breeding associations’ visions of the future and how they draw on science and technology in their breeding strategies. Based on an analysis of the trade magazines of three different breeding associations, we illustrate how breeding associations are working to establish four different varieties of Swedish Mountain Cattle (SMC). We conclude that the concept of designing cattle enables us to unpack how breeds are socially constructed and institutionally stabilized through sociotechnical imaginaries.

中文翻译：

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设计牛：构建品种的社会实践

摘要 本文探讨了牛品种是如何通过社会实践构建的——我们在概念上将其发展为“设计”牛。我们展示了品种是如何设计的，受养牛协会对未来愿景的社会、物质和道德的影响，以及他们如何在育种策略中利用科学和技术。基于对三个不同育种协会的贸易杂志的分析，我们说明了育种协会如何努力建立四种不同品种的瑞典山牛 (SMC)。我们得出的结论是，设计牛的概念使我们能够通过社会技术想象来解开品种是如何在社会上构建和制度上稳定的。