Historiography Of Science Research Articles

A história da assistência médica no Rio de Janeiro: a implantação e desenvolvimento da Policlínica de Botafogo (1889-1939)

This research sought to investigate the trajectory of the Polyclinic of Botafogo (PB), a care institution founded in 1900 by the physician Luiz Pedro Barbosa, showing its organizational model inspired by European and North American dispensaries, role in providing health care to the urban poor and functioning as a space for the development of medical education. The objective of the work was to reconstruct the trajectory of BP, between 1900 and 1939, highlighting the importance of its medical and social role, investigating the implementation, organization, maintenance and evolution of health care, analyzing the statistical data related to donations, the number consultations and the medical staff, and bringing to the debate the social and urban transformations that made the institution's development possible. The study of the origin of this institution not only brought to light issues related to health care in the midst of social, political, economic and cultural transformations between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century in Brazil and contribution to knowledge for the historiography of science and health in the country.

Navigating historiographical boundaries in the early Turkish Republican period: astrology, nationalism and Aydın Sayılı’s scholarship

This article explores two aspects of Aydın Sayılı’s scholarship: his focus on astrology and the impact of nationalist sentiments on his research. Sayılı, perhaps the first globally recognized PhD-holder in history of science, completed his degree at Harvard in the early 1940s and established Turkey’s first academic chair in the field at the University of Ankara. His works addressed both international and local audiences, advancing the history of mathematics and astronomy in Islamic societies; his scholarship on Islamic observatories is still highly esteemed today. This study highlights Sayılı’s integration of astrology into discussions in the history of science, especially with respect to Islamic observatories, a significant choice in an era when astrology and related disciplines received minimal attention in Turkish historiography. While his approach to this discipline diverges from that of prevalent twentieth-century Turkish scholarship, Sayılı’s motivations were deeply intertwined with the nationalist sentiments of the early Turkish Republic, emphasizing ‘Turkish contributions to science’. His scholarship invites further examination of the intricate relationship between the historiography of science and nationalism, as well as of twentieth-century historicizations of astrological studies.

The history of science through the prism of race

Abstract One methodological approach to grasping a ‘big-picture’ history of modern science involves tracing the complex entanglements between scientific knowledge and the development of racism and racialized economic systems. Indeed, no historical account of any scientific field can be complete without acknowledging the role of race as an intellectual, social or economic factor. We substantiate this argument through a synthetic review of three overlapping threads in the historiography of science. First, historical research on ‘race science’ has analysed the formation of disciplines directly involved in constructing scientific concepts of race, including medicine, anthropology, linguistics, phrenology, psychology, archaeology and genetics. Second, historians have demonstrated that connections between race and science are not limited to the domain of race science. Rather, European imperial expansion, colonialism and capitalism created the foundational infrastructures undergirding the emergence of modern professional science. Finally, new research shows how race remains covertly embedded in theoretical frameworks, statistical formulae and technological devices still used by scientists today. Through these examples, we perceive a big-picture history of science in which its co-constitution with race links localized case studies and imperial narratives across space and time.

Humboldtian Science and Humboldt's science.

This article investigates why Humboldtian Science, as a heuristic concept, has gained prominence in the historiography of science and requires clarification. It offers an ideal-type model of comparative research and exact measurements across vast spaces, which Susan F. Cannon and others tied to Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859). Yet, he himself was less "Humboldtian" than this concept suggests. The article proposes to disentangle Humboldtian Science from Humboldt's science, which constituted a set of individual research practices that defied the ideal of precision. Humboldt's science was often impromptu, marked by epistemological and personal insecurities, and embedded in the protagonist's peripatetic way of living and frequently erratic writing style. Historicizing Humboldt's science undermines the exceptionalism that elevates the Prussian savant above his contemporaries and casts him as a singular figure. This critical reflection encourages biographical approaches to the history of science, balancing heuristic generalizations and attention to individual research styles.

Foreshadowing Du Bois

Abstract W. E. B. Du Bois is widely regarded as the foundational Black social scientist in the United States. He lived during a historical period when social science was predominantly considered the creation and domain of White scholars. In primary sociology texts, Du Bois is typically mentioned in passing, often as the sole Black social scientist acknowledged in social science historiography. At the other end of the spectrum, many Black social scientists today begin their exploration with Du Bois, recognizing his brilliant and groundbreaking contributions. However, both of these approaches seemingly imply that there were no notable Black social scientists before Du Bois. This paper aims to challenge that assumption by examining early nineteenth-century Black social science through the lens of James McCune Smith. Despite being a close friend to prominent figures like Frederick Douglass, Gerrit Smith, John Brown, and Alexander Crummell, McCune Smith has been relegated to a historical footnote in most accounts, except in a few recent notable works.

Some Thoughts on Outlines of Science Historiography in Natural History

Some Thoughts on Outlines of Science Historiography in Natural History

The Relationships between Scientific and Theological Discourses at the Crossroads between Medieval and Early Modern Times and the Historiography of Science

The history of the science of the stars (astronomy and astrology) in fourteenth-century Byzantium is significantly intertwined with the implications of theological and philosophical controversies. A less-explored astronomical text authored by the fourteenth-century Byzantine scholar Theorodos Meliteniotes (ca. 1320–1393 CE) provides new historical factors toward a historiography of the differences between scientific and theological discourses, their development in the transition to early modern times, and the different historical developments of science in the worlds of the Eastern and Western Churches.

Freedom of Conscience in Russian Empire at Beginning of 20th Century and Constitutional Reform of 1906

For the first time in scientific historiography, with the involvement of previously unknown archival documents, the problem of ensuring freedom of conscience is considered when creating the Fundamental Laws on April 23, 1906, which became the first national constitution in force. It is shown that P. A. Kharitonov, A. P. Salomon and Count A. F. Heyden paid attention to this problem, that is, the authors of bureaucratic drafts of new Fundamental Laws, which by December 1905 were prepared for Emperor Nicholas II. The main one turned out to be Kharitonov’s project, considered at a Meeting of the highest ranks of the State Chancellery. In the future, the consolidation of freedom of conscience in the Fundamental Laws was facilitated by the discussion of the draft State Chancellery in the Council of Ministers under the chairmanship of Count S.Y. Witte in March 1906 and the drafting of another draft of Fundamental Laws by Professor O. O. Eichelman at the same time. It is emphasized that the controversy that arose as a result of the April Special Meeting chaired by Nicholas II among his key figures about the limits of freedom of conscience influenced the final version of the corresponding article of the Fundamental Laws established personally by the tsar. It is concluded that this version reflected the conservative-liberal nature of the views shared by the direct participants of the constitutional reform of 1906.

Происхождение «молитвы Иисусовой». Критика традиционного мнения в контексте феномена спонтанных молитв

Introduction. The history of Byzantine spirituality is inextricably linked with the mystical tradition of Hesychasm, in which the practice of the “Jesus Prayer” occupied the central place. Both in the patristic literature and scientific historiography, particular attention has been paid to the question of the appearance of the formula of the “Jesus Prayer”. The generally accepted opinion was and remains that the formula of the “Jesus Prayer” was compiled on the basis of the texts of the New Testament. We find this opinion in the late Byzantine literature analyzing the formula of the “Jesus Prayer”. Modern scholarly literature also contains its own line of argumentation in favor of this opinion. Methods and analysis. Our scholarly interest in this topic was largely motivated by disagreement with this generally accepted view. This disagreement was initially intuitive, and it took us some time to be able to express our intuition logically and factually. The main line of our argumentation is based on the attraction of the phenomenon of spontaneous prayers to the analysis of the history of the “Jesus Prayer”. Results. This article summarizes the work that we have done. The fallacy of the traditional scientific approach to the “Jesus Prayer” as a fixed formula compiled on the basis of the texts of the New Testament is pointed out.

Department of Institutions of Empress Maria and Preparation of Fundamental State Laws on April 23, 1906

The article examines the reform of the state system of the Russian Empire in 1905—1906, which culminated in the publication of the Fundamental State Laws on April 23, 1906, which summed up the previous reforms and became the first domestic constitution. It is noted that at the final stage of the preparation of the Fundamental Laws, there was a problem of integrating the Guardianship Council of the Empress Maria’s Institutions into the new political reality. It is emphasized that legislative measures related to this institution were passed through the Guardianship Council, while according to the new Fundamental Laws, all legislative measures were supposed to go through the State Duma and the State Council. For the first time in scientific historiography, based on previously unknown archival materials, the article examines how representatives of the highest imperial bureaucracy, directly involved in preparing the draft Fundamental Laws, solved this problem. Bureaucratic practices and strategies are analyzed. The author concludes that these representatives acted as defenders of the principles of separation of powers and unity of the legislative path, opposing the inclusion of the Guardianship Council’s legislative nature in the Fundamental Laws. It is shown that a similar position was taken by Nicholas II, which predetermined the exclusion of an article about the Guardianship Council from the final version of the Fundamental Laws.

The Archaeology of Alchemy and Chemistry: Past, Present, and Ideas for the Future

The materials and practices of chymical procedures have become key sources of information among science historians, opening up channels for cross-disciplinary dialogue. This is especially true with regard to material culture-based disciplines such as archaeology whose bottom-up approach offers significant contributions to the new historiography of science. Parallel to this trend, some archaeological scientists who specialise in reconstructing past technologies have begun to address questions concerning the production and circulation of scientific knowledge, and have focused as well on the contributions of artists/artisans to the development of natural philosophical theories. This essay charts the history of this archaeology of alchemy and chemistry and its development as a sub-discipline of archaeological science. By mapping this history, from an initial period with a focus on metallurgy to current trends, it demonstrates how the archaeology of alchemy and chemistry both mirrors and, at the same time, feeds the broadening scope of the historiography of science. After surveying the most relevant works and highlighting the key contributions that archaeologists have brought to a discourse related to the creation of scientific knowledge, the essay also offers a series of ideas related to materials awaiting comprehensive study that will further strengthen methodological synergies across disciplines.

Erasing borders: a new look at the historiography of science

Erasing borders: a new look at the historiography of science

To Dam or Not to Dam: The Social Construction of an Ottoman Hydraulic Project, 1701-02.

In 1701, the Ottoman court of Sultan Mustafa II ordered the construction of a major dam to revert the Euphrates River to its old course. This article uses a little-known eyewitness account by military expert Esiri Hasan Ağa to reveal hitherto unknown disputes over the dam project, both within government and in public. The ambitious dam, this article argues, was more controversial than Ottoman historiography has supposed, leading to one of the bloodiest atrocities in world history associated with dam evictions. The article recounts the views of premodern actors who considered a river channel shift as an opportunity, balancing out environmental histories that evaluate such an environmental change primarily through the prism of hazard. More broadly, Esiri's career suggests that the evolution of early modern expertise into more theoretical understanding was more global than acknowledged in the historiography of science and technology.

СОБЫТИЕ: ИСТОРИЯ ВНЕ СЮЖЕТА

The author is looking for an opportunity to analyze the nature of a historical event, free from deterministic and constructivist premises of scientifical thinking, and not reducible to the logic and pragmatics of the structuralist and narrativist approaches. It starts from Heidegger’s understanding of it as “un-overpassed” (das Unumgängliche) scientific historiography and the so-called “unhidden” truth (aletheia). Since within the Heideggerian “being-historical thinking” the event reveals its derivative from the narrative structure of the “history of being”, an attempt is made to clarify the properties of the historical event with the help of its neopragmatist interpretation proposed in the works of R. Rorty. The latter sees the merit of Heidegger in the discovery of the contingency of any human project. However, Heidegger, according to Rorty, was not up to the mark of his discovery. He lacked the self-irony to refrain from presenting his own, finite and contingent, history of Western thought in terms of the “history of being” and the “event” of his truth. At the same time, Rorty does not hide his skepticism about the ability of philosophers to do without the “fateful” historical meaning. Rorty does not provide for any specificity of the historical event, reducing it without a trace in favor of private “selfcreation” carried out by means of fictional narrative. Therefore, the author finds the work “The Effect of Reality in Historical Writing” by F. Ankersmit more suitable for clarifying the contingent nature of a historical event, according to which the “non-functionality” of the details of ekphrasis can radically change the meaning of the historical narrative and even abolish the distance separating the past from the present. The text ends with a brief overview of the conceptions of historical event, which are developed in modern historical theory independently of Ankersmit, but reveal a similar view of the contingency of this event.

An intellectual history of P.C. Ray’s papers on the nitrites of mercury

Prafulla Chandra Ray’s contribution to the birth and development of an ‘Indian school of chemistry’ is well documented. But much of this recognition is situated in the realm of the social history of science. My aim in this essay is to view Ray through the lens of intellectual history and, above all, to shed fresh light on his actual contribution to the chemistry of the nitrites of mercury. Toward this end the focus here will be on five of Ray’s earliest papers on this family of compounds. We will see that the received narrative that Ray discovered mercurous nitrite is problematic. Examining the texts of his early papers it will be seen that Ray’s main contributions to the nitrites of mercury were (i) his apparently serendipitous discovery of a method of synthesizing mercurous nitrite; and (ii) the identification of and solutions to a series of interrelated Kuhnian normal science problems pertaining to this family of compounds. Furthermore (iii) the tools of intellectual history will help discern an underlying ‘plot structure’ informing the tenure of his work; and finally (iv) we will see that the centre-periphery model that attends the social historiography of science in colonial and post-colonial India plays no role in illuminating Ray’s early creative work on the nitrites of mercury.

Hybrid Practices: Art in Collaboration with Science and Technology in the Long 1960s ed. by David Cateforis, Steven Duval, and Shepherd Steiner

Reviewed by: Hybrid Practices: Art in Collaboration with Science and Technology in the Long 1960s ed. by David Cateforis, Steven Duval, and Shepherd Steiner Elsa De Smet (bio) Hybrid Practices: Art in Collaboration with Science and Technology in the Long 1960s Edited by David Cateforis, Steven Duval, and Shepherd Steiner. Oakland: University of California Press, 2018. Pp. 329. Hybrid Practices, which presents findings from a 2015 international colloquium, calls on scholars and artists to demonstrate the role of hybrid practices between art, science, and technology. It challenges arts and sciences issues by opening up new perspectives on a very symptomatic historical period. This work examines hybrid practices at the time of great 1960s and 1970s technological and scientific advances, namely the early Cold War, when the Western world advocated a certain idea of democracy and promises for the future were based on a positivist vision of scientific and technological progress. It is also the time when avant-garde visual artists in [End Page 264] the United States and Western Europe were challenging pictorial formalism, claiming that art should function as a counterpower or provide an alternative interpretation of the contemporary world. The editors have divided Hybrid Practices into three sections, with eleven essays by art, science, and design historians who thoughtfully explore projects at both the forefront and at the neglected margins of this unprecedented collaboration between the arts and newly emerging scientific and technological fields. The strengths of this collective work are that it is based on concrete case studies yet also suggests compelling conceptual notions. It begins with contributions explaining the historical and contextual relevance of collaborations between artists, engineers, and scientific institutions orchestrated by initiatives such as Experiments in Art and Technology, the Artist Placement Group, and the Arts and Technology program at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The book also showcases specific examples: Claes Oldenburg's collaboration with Disney, visual artist Carolee Schneemann's shows, Hans Haacke's photoelectric viewers, Stanley Milgram's psycho-cognitive laboratory using simulated shock generators, John Latham's land-art monuments, and John Cage's experiments. This book attempts to overcome the dichotomy between art and science/technology, using Michel Serres's idea that "all learning consists of a crossbreeding." The authors show that even though artists remained artists and scientists remained scientists, their collaborations produced real moments of cognitive grace. Some of the most interesting sections are about collaborations, for example between artist Robert Irwin and scientist Ed Wortz or engineer Billy Klüver with artist Fujiko Nakaya, who turned to meteorologist Thomas R. Mee to design Expo '70 in Osaka, where millions of people could "appreciate the natural beauty of fog" through artificial and artistic staging. Another good example is physicist Elsa M. Garmine, who invested a great deal in the Experiments in Art and Technology initiative, attempting to use technology "in a non logical, artistic way." These cases show how interdisciplinarity allowed each community to reflect and find its place in a changing world. It might have been relevant to point out the frustrations from less fruitful collaborations, even though these are understandably more difficult to source. While most of the contributions opt for an art history or art sociology perspective, historian W. Patrick McCray highlights the case of Frank Malina, an engineer and artist (the only one wearing both hats) who filed technical patents for aerospace and then for his artworks. This essay relies on the historiography of science and technology, demonstrating that when art, science, and technology intersect, the result should be examined in terms of fallout or spin-off. The book is well edited and allows a relevant understanding of all the case studies. The promise to connect these historical cases with contemporary [End Page 265] hybrid practices does not seem to have been entirely fulfilled, however. Negotiations between the arts, sciences, and technology's objectives therefore need further exploration. Elsa De Smet Elsa De Smet (Ph.D. in art history at La Sorbonne) is an associate researcher at Centre Alexandre Koyré, History of Sciences, Technology, and Knowledge (CNRS, France). She is the author of Voir l'Espace: Astronomie et science Populaire (1840–1969) (Presses Universitaires de Strasbourg, 2018) and the forthcoming Esth...

Neraskidive spone - srpski arhitekti i vojska (XIX-XXI vek)

From the 19th century uprising period to the present day, Serbia has witnessed a controlled militarization of urban areas as part of its defense policy, with the army showcasing its fighting spirit and emphasizing its crucial role in the public security system. During peacetime, this process unfolds gradually and inconspicuously as 'peacetime protective' measures, but escalates during political crises and wars. The devastating war conflicts, resulting from geopolitical and regional crises that often spilled into Serbia's territory over the last two centuries, have had adverse effects on both military and civil infrastructure. Beyond architecture, which holds significant communicative importance, this militarization has also impacted other aspects of visual culture. Military facilities, as a means of controlling public spaces, have assumed a prominent position in Serbian cities' symbolic topographies, often occupying main squares. Their construction is coordinated with the strategies of the Ministry of the Army's (or Defense) strategies, general urban plans and Serbia's spatial development. However, conflicts between architects and military institution managers often arose during implementation, with architects striving for adherence to planned solutions and artistic visions, while clients sought adaptation to current security needs. Despite developing in a more modest form compared to major world powers, Serbia's militarization of public spaces continues to merit critical examination. Beyond the architecturally-urban perspective dominant in scientific historiography, military complexes warrant a more comprehensive analysis from a security standpoint and as a legacy of a distinct military visual culture, influenced by military hierarchy dynamics and the country's changing geopolitical position. Thus, increased openness of military institutions to research their architectural past and improved collaboration between architectural and military historians could effectively address existing knowledge gaps.

EPISTOLARY AND ITS ROLE IN SCIENTIFIC BIOGRAPHIES OF MONOLINGUAL AND BILINGUAL SCHOLARS

This article touches upon the issues of the current state of epistolary in Kazakhstan, the degree of its study based on the material of letters of Kazakh scientists, whose biographies reflect the peculiarities of the monolingual environment (in the family, school, etc.), and their scientific biography was formed in the conditions of Kazakh-Russian bilingualism. The paper touches on the controversial issues of the Russian and Kazakh languages as the languages of science in the period of socio-cultural and geopolitical transformations. The study of epistolary is most productive within the framework of changing scientific paradigms and the real language environment. Observing the setting of the communicative connection between the addressee and the addressee provides a full opportunity to study the author's style. The authors believe that the study of the epistolary heritage of Kazakh scholars is significant not only from the standpoint of biographical documentation, but also from the point of historiography of science – the epistolary allows you to look into the "laboratory of thought" of the scientist, reveals his ability to establish scientific contacts, as well as the degree of involvement of the person in general scientific processes.

Relocating education in the history of science and technology

ABSTRACT This paper reviews the current position of the history of education within the existing historiography of science and technology, and argues for the relocation of education from the periphery of the history of science and technology to its centre. It claims that it is essential to study science education in its entirety and complexity if we want to understand the generation, reproduction, circulation and transformation of scientific and technological knowledge, practices, practitioners and objects inside and outside of scientific institutions and communities. Four relocations are proposed: first, placing the history of education at the centre of our understanding of history of science and technology; second, acknowledging the diversity and heterogeneity of science and technology education; third, placing material culture at the centre of our histories of science and technology education; and, finally, provincialising Europe and North America in the history of science and technology education.

Interview: Paul Hoyningen-Huene

Paul Hoyningen-Huene was born in Pfronten/Allgäu, West Germany, in 1946. He studied Physics and Philosophy in Munich (1966-1971), Mathematical Physics in London (1971-72) and Theoretical Physics in Zurich (1975). The theoretical physicist and philosopher taught in Switzerland (1976-1998) and was a visiting scholar at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with Thomas S. Kuhn (1984-85). Afterward, he published Reconstructing Scientific Revolutions: Thomas S. Kuhn’s Philosophy of Science (1993), an original neo-Kantian interpretation of Thomas Kuhn’s ideas. His numerous articles focus on Logic, the Philosophy of Biology, the Philosophy of Physical Sciences and the General Philosophy of Science. Throughout his career, Hoyningen-Huene also wrote about Paul Feyerabend’s thesis concerning the rationality of scientific development and theory comparison, Scientific Realism, Reductionism, Ethics of Science and Historiography of Science. The German thinker founded the Center for Philosophy and Ethics of Science at the Leibniz Universität Hannover (Germany) and intended to summarize his main ideas on the nature of scientific knowledge in the book Systematicity: The Nature of Science (2013).