Twenty-third Symposium of the International Committee for the History of Technology, Budapest, Hungary, August 7–11, 1996

Abstract

Conference Report TWENTY-THIRD SYMPOSIUM OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE FOR THE HISTORY OF TECHNOLOGY, BUDAPEST, HUNGARY, AUGUST 7-11, 1996 SUSAN SCHMIDT HORNING The Hungarian capital of Budapest was the site of ICOHTEC ’96, the Twenty-third Symposium ofthe International Committee for the History of Technology, held August 7-11, 1996. Celebrating the eleven-hundredth anniversary of the conquest ofits present territory by Magyar tribes, Hungary provided a vivid cultural setting for the symposium. Gyorgy Schmidt of the Hungarian Mining and Metallur­ gical Society (OMBKE) and Eva Vamos of the Hungarian Museum for Science and Technology organized the conference, which was held under the auspices of the former president of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Domokos Kosary. From an initial focus on two topics, the history ofmining and metallurgy and the development of forms of communication, the symposium quickly grew to encompass seventeen thematic programs that featured over one hundred ninety papers addressing an eclectic range oftopics. With nearly three hun­ dred scholars and guests representing twenty-eight countries from North America, Europe, Asia, the Pacific, and the former Soviet Union, this was by far the largest ICOHTEC symposium to date. Par­ ticipation and attendance tripled that of the last conference, held two years ago in Bath, England, attesting to the healthy growth of ICOHTEC. The first day of the conference, guests were treated to a coach tour of Budapest, taking in such sights as Heroes’ Square and a breathtaking view of the city from the Citadel. In the late afternoon, coaches took participants to the Museum of Ethnography for the opening ceremonies, which included a splendid demonstration of Hungarian folk music played on traditional musical instruments, Ms. Horning is a Ph.D. candidate at Case Western Reserve University. Her disserta­ tion focuses on the intersection of technological innovation and musical style in the post-World War II recording studio.© 1997 by the Society for the History of Technology. All rights reserved. 0040-165X/97/3802-0010$01.00 488 ICOHTEC Symposium, Budapest, 1996 489 with the museum’s main hall providing an ideal acoustical setting. ICOHTEC President Angus Buchanan and Vice President Carroll Pursell, SHOT President Robert Post, and the president of the Hun­ garian Committee of the International Union of History and Philos­ ophy of Science, Ferenc Szabadvâry, spoke at a commemorative ses­ sion honoring Melvin Kranzberg, a founder of both SHOT and ICOHTEC. We were privileged to have the Kranzberg family in at­ tendance, and some wondered if Mel was with us in spirit as a sign crashed to the floor during Carroll Pursell’s tribute. After the cere­ monies, participants enjoyed a lavish buffet of traditional Hungarian cuisine in the ornate second floor gallery. Sessions ran concurrently on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday in the conference rooms ofthe Hotel Platânus. Eleven one-day sessions addressed topics including patent history, Hungarian émigré scien­ tists and the technologies ofwar and peace, early modern machines and machine drawings, district heating, changing perspectives in his­ tory and technology, research and development, maser and laser technology, past and present informatics, the social reception of electrification, and the historiography of technology/technocracy. A session devoted to special topics included a stimulating discussion of technology and pornography byjonathan Coopersmith, andjulie Wosk examined the psychologically distancing effects of aerial pho­ tography and computer-generated ground target images in the per­ ception and conduct of war. Six two-day sessions brought an even broader range of interna­ tional perspectives to the session themes. Papers on the history of mining and metallurgy emphasized the emergence of large-scale in­ dustry throughout Central Europe up to World War II. Another ses­ sion addressed two related themes: the development of forms of communication and the impact of technology on infrastructure. In his comparative analysis of English and American railway signaling systems of the 19th and 20th centuries, Jeff Larrabee argued that cultural values as much as technical or socioeconomic consider­ ations dictated design parameters, resulting in an English system predicated on the mechanization of safety and an American system that stressed individuality and human agency. The music and technology session provided an unprecedented forum for discussing technology’s impact on popular culture and featured many papers by...