WorldWideScience

Sample records for science facts history

  1. Teaching Science Fact with Science Fiction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Raham, R. Gary

    2004-01-01

    The literature of science fiction packs up the facts and discoveries of science and runs off to futures filled with both wonders and warnings. Kids love to take the journeys it offers for the thrill of the ride, but they can learn as they travel, too. This book will provide the reader with: (1) an overview of the past 500 years of scientific…

  2. Biomolecular Science (Fact Sheet)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2012-04-01

    A brief fact sheet about NREL Photobiology and Biomolecular Science. The research goal of NREL's Biomolecular Science is to enable cost-competitive advanced lignocellulosic biofuels production by understanding the science critical for overcoming biomass recalcitrance and developing new product and product intermediate pathways. NREL's Photobiology focuses on understanding the capture of solar energy in photosynthetic systems and its use in converting carbon dioxide and water directly into hydrogen and advanced biofuels.

  3. FACT: taking a spiritual history in a clinical setting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Larocca-Pitts, Mark A

    2008-01-01

    Healthcare clinicians need a good tool for taking spiritual histories in a clinical setting. A spiritual history provides important clinical information and any properly trained clinician can take one. Professionally trained chaplains follow-up with more in-depth spiritual assessments if indicated. A spiritual history tool's effectiveness depends on five criteria: brevity, memorability, appropriateness, patient-centeredness, and credibility (Koenig, 2007). The chaplain-developed FACT stands for: F-Faith (and/or Belief); A-Active (and/or Available, Accessible, Applicable); C-Coping (and/or Comfort)/Conflict (and/or Concern); and T-Treatment. FACT compares favorably, if not better in some categories, with three physician-developed spiritual history tools: Koenig's (2007) CSI-MEMO, American College of Physicians' tool (Lo, Quill, & Tulsky, 1999), and Puchalski's and Romer's (2000) FICA.

  4. Galileo's Religion Versus the Church's Science? Rethinking the History of Science and Religion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, D. B.

    Galileo's conflict with the Catholic Church is well recognized as a key episode in the history of physics and in the history of science and religion. This paper applies a new, historiographical approach to that specific episode. It advocates eliminating the science and religion. The Church concluded that the plainest facts of human experience agreed perfectly with an omniscient God's revealed word to proclaim the earth at rest. Supported by the Bible, Galileo, God-like, linked the elegance of mathematics to truths about nature. The Church, in effect, resisted Galileo's claim to be able to think like God, instead listening to God himself - and paying close attention to what man himself observed. We can thus see that the phrase ``Galileo's religion versus the Church's science'' is as meaningful (or meaningless) as the usual designation ``Galileo's science versus the Church's religion.''

  5. The Fact of Evolution: Implications for Science Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hofmann, James R.; Weber, Bruce H.

    Creationists who object to evolution in the science curriculum of public schools often cite Jonathan Well's book Icons of Evolution in their support (Wells2000). In the third chapter of his book Wells claims that neither paleontological nor molecular evidence supports the thesis that the history of life is an evolutionary process of descent from preexisting ancestors. We argue that Wells inappropriately relies upon ambiguities inherent in the term `Darwinian' and the phrase `Darwin'stheory'. Furthermore, he does not accurately distinguish between the overwhelming evidence that supports the thesis of common descent and controversies that pertain to causal mechanisms such as natural selection. We also argue that Wells' attempts to undermine the evidence in support of common descent are flawed and his characterization of the relevant data is misleading. In particular, his assessment of the `Cambrian explosion' does not do justice to the fossil record. Nor do his selective references to debate about molecular and paleontological phylogenies constitute a case against common descent. We conclude that the fossil and molecular evidence is more than sufficient to warrant science educators to present common descent as a well-established scientific fact. We also argue that diagrams depicting the `tree of life' can be pedagogically useful as simplified representations of the history of life.

  6. History of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oversby, John

    2010-01-01

    In this article, the author discusses why the history of science should be included in the science curriculum in schools. He also presents some opportunities that can come out of using historical contexts, and findings from a study assessing the place of history of science in readily available textbooks.

  7. Understanding Materials Science History · Properties · Applications

    CERN Document Server

    Hummel, Rolf E

    2005-01-01

    This introduction to materials science both for students of engineering and physics and for the interested general public examines not only the physical and engineering properties of virtually all kinds of materials, but also their history, uses, development, and some of the implications of resource depletion and recycling. It covers all topics on materials from an entirely novel perspective: the role materials have played throughout history in the development of humankind and technologies. Specifically, it shows the connection between the technical and the cultural, economic, ecological, and societal aspects of materials science. It aims to whet the appetite of its readers and inspire them to further explore the properties and applications of metals, alloys, ceramics, plastics, and electronic materials by presenting easily understandable explanations and entertaining historical facts. It is also intended to raise the reader’s awareness of their obligations to society as practicing engineers and scientists....

  8. The History of Popularization of Science in France

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marina D. Romanova

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The article discusses the process of popularization of science in France in terms of bilateral cooperation between scientists and the media. Mediator in the relationship of the two parties is a science journalist. The long history of interaction between researchers and journalists in France can serve as a theoretical model applicable to the Russian media system. Science journalist, acting primarily as a popularizer of science, is intended to bring to the uninitiated reader scientific facts in an accessible form. In this connection, still the question remains about the specialized education of science journalists: whether he should specialize in a particular field or possess the basics of writing and be able to transpose the complex scientific language. French popular science magazines are not only popular among scientists themselves who are willing to cooperate with publishers and participate in the preparation of the editions, but also among readers. Relations between science journalists and scientists should be considered at the theoretical and practical levels. The paper analyzes in detail the first level, which includes the history of the emergence of scientific journalism in France since the first edition of the scientificjournal in Europe, as well as peculiarities of the educational system in this field. A special role in shaping ideas about the role of science journalists belongs to the Association of Science Journalists of informational press, organization, which is actively involved in the development of trust between scientists and journalists.

  9. Science A history

    CERN Document Server

    Gribbin, John

    2002-01-01

    From award-winning science writer John Gribbin, "Science: A History" is the enthralling story of the men and women who changed the way we see the world, and the turbulent times they lived in. From Galileo, tried by the Inquisition for his ideas, to Newton, who wrote his rivals out of the history books; from Marie Curie, forced to work apart from male students for fear she might excite them, to Louis Agassiz, who marched his colleagues up a mountain to prove that the ice ages had occurred. Filled with pioneers, visionaries, eccentrics and madmen, this is the history of science as it has never been told before.

  10. History of Science and History of Philologies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Daston, Lorraine; Most, Glenn W

    2015-06-01

    While both the sciences and the humanities, as currently defined, may be too heterogeneous to be encompassed within a unified historical framework, there is good reason to believe that the history of science and the history of philologies both have much to gain by joining forces. This collaboration has already yielded striking results in the case of the history of science and humanist learning in early modern Europe. This essay argues that first, philology and at least some of the sciences (e.g., astronomy) remained intertwined in consequential ways well into the modern period in Western cultures; and second, widening the scope of inquiry to include other philological traditions in non-Western cultures offers rich possibilities for a comparative history of learned practices. The focus on practices is key; by shifting the emphasis from what is studied to how it is studied, deep commonalities emerge among disciplines--and intellectual traditions--now classified as disparate.

  11. The role of history in science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Creath, Richard

    2010-01-01

    The case often made by scientists (and philosophers) against history and the history of science in particular is clear. Insofar as a field of study is historical as opposed to law-based, it is trivial. Insofar as a field attends to the past of science as opposed to current scientific issues, its efforts are derivative and, by diverting attention from acquiring new knowledge, deplorable. This case would be devastating if true, but it has almost everything almost exactly wrong. The study of history and the study of laws are not mutually exclusive, but unavoidably linked. Neither can be pursued without the other. Much the same can be said of the history of science. The history of science is neither a distraction from "real" science nor even merely a help to science. Rather, the history of science is an essential part of each science. Seeing that this is so requires a broader understanding of both history and science.

  12. Some little-known facts and events from the history of gravitational wave research in Ukraine

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yatskiv, Ya. S.,; Vavilova, I. B.; Romanets, O. A.; Savchuk, V. S.

    2017-10-01

    The paper deals with the history of gravitational wave research in Ukraine and describes two little-known facts and events. The first one is concerning with a short period of Dr. Nathan Rosen's life in Kyiv and his scientific activity at the Institute of Physics of the Academy of Sciences of the UkrSSR in 1936-1938 years. At that time, he has published several papers, which promoted the first steps in the creation of modern theories in the fields of gravity and quantum physics. These papers, including "Plane-polarized waves in the General Theory of Relativity", have been issued in the "Ukrainian Physical Notes" ("Ukrainski Fizychni Zapysky"), which was not widely accessed. We quote also some parts from correspondence of N. Rosen and A. Einstein in this period. The second comment is related to the history of gravitational wave experimental research in Kyiv, which were initiated in 1970s by Prof. Aleksey Z. Petrov at the Institute of Theoretical Physics of the Academy of Sciences of the UkrSSR. We describe briefly the development of the detector of high-frequency gravitational waves (the Weber type antenna) as well as results obtained by K.A. Piragas's group.

  13. Valeriu Bologa's studies on the history of science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bârsu, Cristian

    2016-01-01

    History of science is a vast and complex domain, comprising many sub-domains, such as: the history of medicine, history of chemistry, history of physics etc. Different specialists in these sub-domains, trying to reach the general and integrative understanding of the history of science, succeeded only after they acquired a rich scientific experience in their fields of activity. One of the scientists who had interesting papers on the history of science was Valeriu Bologa (1892-1971). He was the first Romanian professor of history of medicine. Our paper presents some milestones regarding his preoccupations on the history of science. The aim of our study is to prove that, although he was primarily a historian of medicine, he surpassed this framework, proving to be a skillful historian of science. The topics of his works on the history of science included: the value of the unity of science, the ethical aspects of science during centuries, the interferences between the history of science and the history of medicine etc.

  14. The National Science Foundation and the History of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rothenberg, Marc

    2014-01-01

    The National Science Foundation (NSF) is the major funder of the history of science in the United States. Between 1958 and 2010, the NSF program for the history of science has given 89 awards in the history of astronomy. This paper analyzes the award recipients and subject areas of the awards and notes significant shifts in the concentration of award recipients and the chronological focus of the research being funded.

  15. History of mathematics and history of science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mann, Tony

    2011-09-01

    This essay argues that the diversity of the history of mathematics community in the United Kingdom has influenced the development of the subject and is a significant factor behind the different concerns often evident in work on the history of mathematics when compared with that of historians of science. The heterogeneous nature of the community, which includes many who are not specialist historians, and the limited opportunities for academic careers open to practitioners have had a profound effect on the discipline, leading to a focus on elite mathematics and great mathematicians. More recently, reflecting earlier developments in the history of science, an increased interest in the context and culture of the practice of mathematics has become evident.

  16. Boundaries and audiences of national histories of science: insights from the history of science and technology of the Netherlands.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Homburg, Ernst

    2008-01-01

    The present paper traces the evolution of writing national-oriented histories of science and technology of the Netherlands. Several episodes are distinguished. A first wave of national histories of science and technology was written during the first decades of the 19th century. These histories had a wide scope, which included science, technology, the humanities and the arts. A second wave, which lasted from about 1865 to 1900, was strongly connected to the rise of the scientific professions. Its focus was on the sciences perse, and on the Dutch "Golden Age" of the 17th century. A third wave occurred during and shortly after the Second World War. Its focus was mainly on the "Second Golden Age" of Dutch science (1870-1910), and its major audience were young boys that were to be recruited to the sciences. The second part of the paper discusses the growing influence of "contextualization" in both the history of science and the history of technology from about 1975 onwards. As a result, local factors often received more attention in historical studies of science and technology than national influences. In 1985, Klaas van Berkel undertook a bold attempt to write a new synthesis of the history of Dutch science, but his approach was too strongly influenced by the three previous waves of national histories. From 1989 to 2003 two projects on the national history of technology resulted in 13 volumes on Dutch technology between 1800 and 1970. New research was initiated, and the issue of "national styles" in the development of technology received ample attention. In his conclusions the author points to lessons to be learned from economic history and the history of art, and he concludes with a plea for more historiographical discussion in the history of science and technology.

  17. Focus: global currents in national histories of science: the "global turn" and the history of science in Latin America.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCook, Stuart

    2013-12-01

    The "global turn" in the history of science offers new ways to think about how to do national and regional histories of science, in this case the history of science in Latin America. For example, it questions structuralist and diffusionist models of the spread of science and shows the often active role that people in Latin America (and the rest of the Global South) played in the construction of "universal" scientific knowledge. It suggests that even national or regional histories of science must be situated in a global context; all too often, such histories have treated global processes as a distant backdrop. At the same time, historians need to pay constant attention to the role of power in the construction of scientific knowledge. Finally, this essay highlights a methodological tool for writing globally inflected histories of science: the method of "following".

  18. Does science education need the history of science?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gooday, Graeme; Lynch, John M; Wilson, Kenneth G; Barsky, Constance K

    2008-06-01

    This essay argues that science education can gain from close engagement with the history of science both in the training of prospective vocational scientists and in educating the broader public about the nature of science. First it shows how historicizing science in the classroom can improve the pedagogical experience of science students and might even help them turn into more effective professional practitioners of science. Then it examines how historians of science can support the scientific education of the general public at a time when debates over "intelligent design" are raising major questions over the kind of science that ought to be available to children in their school curricula. It concludes by considering further work that might be undertaken to show how history of science could be of more general educational interest and utility, well beyond the closed academic domains in which historians of science typically operate.

  19. Importance of philosophy of science to the history of medical thinking.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zalewski, Z

    1999-03-01

    Popular approach to the history of medicine rests on naive assumptions that: 1) only the present state of medical knowledge can be counted as scientific and only those elements of the former knowledge and practice which fitted the body of contemporary science should be regarded by the historians of medicine (presentism); 2) medical sciences, like the other natural sciences, portray natural phenomena as they really are (naturalism); 3) progress in sciences consists of cumulative growth of information and explanation. The twentieth century philosophical critique of science revealed that none of these assumptions were true. Empirical facts, which are taken as a basis for any true knowledge, are dependent on the presumed theories; theories are intertwined into a broader socio-cultural context; theory-changing processes are caused by social factors rather than by the theoretical content. Therefore, it is a common task of historians of medicine and philosophers of science to reveal all theoretical and cultural premises on which our comprehension of the contemporary medicine is founded.

  20. Valeriu Bologa’s studies on the history of science

    Science.gov (United States)

    BÂRSU, CRISTIAN

    2016-01-01

    History of science is a vast and complex domain, comprising many sub-domains, such as: the history of medicine, history of chemistry, history of physics etc. Different specialists in these sub-domains, trying to reach the general and integrative understanding of the history of science, succeeded only after they acquired a rich scientific experience in their fields of activity. One of the scientists who had interesting papers on the history of science was Valeriu Bologa (1892–1971). He was the first Romanian professor of history of medicine. Our paper presents some milestones regarding his preoccupations on the history of science. The aim of our study is to prove that, although he was primarily a historian of medicine, he surpassed this framework, proving to be a skillful historian of science. The topics of his works on the history of science included: the value of the unity of science, the ethical aspects of science during centuries, the interferences between the history of science and the history of medicine etc. PMID:27547069

  1. Nanotechnology: The Stuff of Science Fiction or Science Fact?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aston, Diane

    2011-01-01

    This article discusses nanotechnology as a route to the production of new materials and provides a brief history of the evolution of this branch of materials science. Properties on the nanoscale are compared with those on the macroscale. The practical application of nanomaterials in industries such as communications, construction, cosmetics,…

  2. Focus: Global histories of science. Introduction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sivasundaram, Sujit

    2010-03-01

    An interest in global histories of science is not new. Yet the project envisioned by this Focus section is different from that pursued by natural historians and natural philosophers in the early modern age. Instead of tracing universal patterns, there is value in attending to the connections and disconnections of science on the global stage. Instead of assuming the precision of science's boundaries, historians might consider the categories of "science" and "indigenous knowledge" to have emerged from globalization. New global histories of science will be characterized by critical reflection on the limits of generalization, as well as a creative adoption of new sources, methods, and chronologies, in an attempt to decenter the European history of science. Such a project holds the promise of opening up new conversations between historians, anthropologists, philosophers, and sociologists of science. It is of critical importance if the discipline is not to fragment into regional and national subfields or become dominated by structural frameworks such as imperialism.

  3. Social Anthropology and Social Science History

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-01-01

    In the 1970s, when the social science history movement emerged in the United States, leading to the founding of the Social Science History Association, a simultaneous movement arose in which historians looked to cultural anthropology for inspiration. Although both movements involved historians turning to social sciences for theory and method, they reflected very different views of the nature of the historical enterprise. Cultural anthropology, most notably as preached by Clifford Geertz, became a means by which historians could find a theoretical basis in the social sciences for rejecting a scientific paradigm. This article examines this development while also exploring the complex ways cultural anthropology has embraced—and shunned—history in recent years. PMID:26549914

  4. Science fiction/science fact: medical genetics in news stories.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Petersen, Alan; Anderson, Alison; Allan, Stuart

    2005-12-01

    News media coverage of biotechnology issues offers a rich source of fictional portrayals, with stories drawing strongly on popular imagery and metaphors in descriptions of the powers and dangers of biotechnology. This article examines how science fiction metaphors, imagery and motifs surface in British newspaper (broadsheet and tabloid) coverage of medical genetic issues, focusing on press reporting of two recent highly publicised news media events; namely, the Hashmi and Whitaker families' plights to use stem cells from a 'perfectly matched sibling' for the treatment of their diseased children. It is concerned in particular with the extent to which journalists' use of certain literary devices encourages preferred formulations of medical genetics, and thereby potentially shapes public deliberation about scientific developments and their consequences for society. Understanding how science fiction sustains science fact, and vice versa, and how the former is portrayed in news media, it is argued, would thus seem to be crucial in the effort to understand why people respond so strongly to biotechnologies, and what they imagine their consequences to be.

  5. More than "Cool Science": Science Fiction and Fact in the Classroom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Singh, Vandana

    2014-02-01

    The unfortunate negative attitude toward physics among many students, including science majors, warrants creative approaches to teaching required physics courses. One such approach is to integrate science fiction into the curriculum, either in the form of movies or the written word. Historically this has been done since at least the 1970s, and by now many universities and colleges have courses that incorporate science fiction stories or film. The intent appears to be to a) increase student interest in physics, b) increase the imaginative grasp of the student, and c) enable a clearer understanding of physics concepts. Reports on these experiments, from Freedman and Little's classic 1980 paper to more recent work like that of Dubeck et al.,2 Dark,3 and Smith,4 indicate that such innovative approaches do work. I was curious as to whether a combination of science fiction and science fact (in the form of a science news article) might enhance the benefits of including science fiction. Below I describe how I used a science fiction story along with a science article on a related theme to pique the interest of students in a new and exciting area of research that was nevertheless connected to the course material.

  6. How can history of science matter to scientists?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maienschein, Jane; Laubichler, Manfred; Loettgers, Andrea

    2008-06-01

    History of science has developed into a methodologically diverse discipline, adding greatly to our understanding of the interplay between science, society, and culture. Along the way, one original impetus for the then newly emerging discipline--what George Sarton called the perspective "from the point of view of the scientist"--dropped out of fashion. This essay shows, by means of several examples, that reclaiming this interaction between science and history of science yields interesting perspectives and new insights for both science and history of science. The authors consequently suggest that historians of science also adopt this perspective as part of their methodological repertoire.

  7. Representations of Nature of Science in Selected Histories of Science in

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wei, Bing; Li, Yue; Chen, Bo

    2013-01-01

    This study aimed to examine the representations of nature of science (NOS) in the eight histories of science selected from three series of integrated science textbooks used in junior high school in China. Ten aspects of NOS were adopted in the analytical framework. It was found that NOS had not been well treated in the selected histories of…

  8. Adding a Bit More History to Science Courses

    Science.gov (United States)

    DeBuvitz, William

    2011-01-01

    The usual science course is not meant to be a history course and the usual science book is not meant to be a history book. However, most science books do include some historical information. Unfortunately, the history part is usually so brief that it is far from interesting and often so oversimplified that it is totally wrong. Introductory physics…

  9. The discovery of radioactivity: a bend in sciences history

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dautray, R.

    1997-01-01

    One hundred years after the discovery of radioactivity, it is possible to see what are the consequences of this discovery for the science. Four consequences are studied in this article: the acquisition of a new knowledge about matter and universe. Secondly, the observation that the radioactivity has given a clock of world history and open to us the past and how this past forged the present world. Thirdly, the fact that radioactivity gave tracers, markers which allow to sound the internal structure of the human body as well as these one of earth and solar system and to unveil the mechanisms. The fourth consequence, is all the applications, electro-nuclear energy, national defence, nuclear medicine. (N.C.)

  10. HELP (INFORMATION ELECTRONIC RESOURCE "CHRONICLE OF ONU: DATES, FACTS, EVENTS": HISTORY OF UNIVERSITY IN INFORMATION SPACE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    А. М. Гавриленко

    2016-03-01

    Object of research is the help information resource "The chronicle of the Odessa national university of I. I. Mechnikov: dates, facts, events". The main objective of our article – to state the main methodological bases of creation of information resource. One of advantages of information resource is possibility of continuous updating and replenishment by new information. Main objective of creation of this information resource is systematization of material on stories of the Odessa national university of I. I. Mechnikov from the date of his basis to the present, ensuring interactive access to information on the main dates, the most significant events in life of university. The base of research are sources on the history of university, chronology of historical development, formation of infrastructure, cadres and scientific researches. In information resource the main stages of development, functioning and transformation of the Odessa University are analyzed, information on its divisions is collected. For creation of this information resource in Scientific library the method of work was developed, the main selection criteria of data are allocated. This information resource have practical value for all who is interested in history of university, historians, scientists-researchers of history of science and the city of Odessa.

  11. Science Education for Democratic Citizenship through the Use of the History of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kolsto, Stein Dankert

    2008-01-01

    Scholars have argued that the history of science might facilitate an understanding of processes of science. Focusing on science education for citizenship and active involvement in debates on socioscientific issues, one might argue that today's post-academic science differs from academic science in the past, making the history of academic science…

  12. Mendel in Genetics Teaching: Some Contributions from History of Science and Articles for Teachers

    Science.gov (United States)

    El-Hani, Charbel N.

    2015-01-01

    School science descriptions about Mendel and his story are problematic because several statements that are controversial among historians of science are repeated over and over again as if they were established facts. Another problem is the neglect of other scientists working on inheritance in the second half of the nineteenth century, including Darwin, Spencer, Galton, Nägeli, Brooks, Weismann and de Vries, who paved the way for the reinterpretation of Mendel's work in 1900. These problems are often found in textbooks and are likely to be present in school science throughout the world. Here, we discuss the contributions that history of science and papers published in journals that target teachers may bring to improve how school science deals with Mendel and his contributions. Evidently the idea is not that school teachers could solve problems still under discussion in the historical literature. The point is, rather, that it is important to avoid treating Mendel's contributions as uncontroversial, mentioning, for instance, that there are ongoing debates on whether he proposed the laws named after him by appealing to invisible factors underlying phenotypic traits that are seen as the heritable potentials for those traits, and would in due time be known as genes. History of science can contribute to put the mythic Mendel into question in the science classroom, bringing school science closer to the controversies around the interpretation of his work.

  13. History of mathematics and history of science

    OpenAIRE

    Mann, Tony

    2011-01-01

    This essay argues that the diversity of the history of mathematics community in the United Kingdom has influenced the development of the subject and is a significant factor behind the different concerns often evident in work on the history of mathematics when compared with that of historians of science. The heterogeneous nature of the community, which includes many who are not specialist historians, and the limited opportunities for academic\\ud careers open to practitioners have had a profoun...

  14. Who cares about the history of science?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Hasok

    2017-01-01

    The history of science has many functions. Historians should consider how their work contributes to various functions, going beyond a simple desire to understand the past correctly. There are both internal and external functions of the history of science in relation to science itself; I focus here on the internal, as they tend to be neglected these days. The internal functions can be divided into orthodox and complementary. The orthodox function is to assist with the understanding of the content and methods of science as it is now practised. The complementary function is to generate and improve scientific knowledge where current science itself fails to do so. Complementary functions of the history of science include the raising of critical awareness, and the recovery and extension of past scientific knowledge that has become forgotten or neglected. These complementary functions are illustrated with some concrete examples.

  15. History, philosophy, and science teaching: The present rapprochement

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matthews, Michael R.

    1992-03-01

    This paper traces the use of, and arguments for, the history and philosophy of science in school science courses. Specific attention is paid to the British National Curriculum proposals and to the recommendations of the US Project 2061 curriculum guidelines. Some objections to the inclusion of historical material in science courses are outlined and answered. Mention is made of the Piagetian thesis that individual psychological development mirrors the development of concepts in the history of science. This introduces the topic of idealisation in science. Some significant instances are itemised where science education has, at its considerable cost, ignored work in philosophy of science. Arguments for the inclusion of the history and philosophy of science in science teacher education programmes are given. The paper finishes with a list of topical issues in present science education where collaboration between science teachers, historians, philosophers, and sociologists would be of considerable benefit.

  16. New directions in the history of modern science in China: global science and comparative history.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Elman, Benjamin A

    2007-09-01

    These essays collectively present new perspectives on the history of modem science in China since 1900. Fa-ti Fan describes how science under the Republic of China after 1911 exhibited a complex local and international character that straddled both imperialism and colonialism. Danian Hu focuses on the fate of relativity in the physics community in China after 1917. Zuoyue Wang hopes that a less nationalist political atmosphere in China will stimulate more transnational studies of modern science, which will in turn reveal the underlying commonalities in different national contexts. Sigrid Schmalzer compares the socialist and the capitalist contexts for science in China and reopens the sensitive question of the "mass line" during the Cultural Revolution. Grace Shen describes the tensions early Chinese scientists felt when choosing between foreign models for modem geology and their own professional identities in China. Taken together, these accounts present us with a comparative history of modern science in China that is both globally and locally informed.

  17. History and science of knots

    CERN Document Server

    Turner, J C

    1996-01-01

    This book brings together twenty essays on diverse topics in the history and science of knots. It is divided into five parts, which deal respectively with knots in prehistory and antiquity, non-European traditions, working knots, the developing science of knots, and decorative and other aspects of knots.Its authors include archaeologists who write on knots found in digs of ancient sites (one describes the knots used by the recently discovered Ice Man); practical knotters who have studied the history and uses of knots at sea, for fishing and for various life support activities; a historian of l

  18. The Instructional Model for Using History of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seker, Hayati

    2012-01-01

    This paper discusses the levels of The Instructional Model for Using History of Science (UHOS) to explain the relationship between the history of science and science teaching. The UHOS model proposes four levels: Conceptual Level, Epistemological Level, Sociocultural Level, and Interest Level. Each Level has sublevels with regards to types of…

  19. The Dramaturgy of Fact: The Testament of History in Two Anti-War Plays.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shafer, George

    1978-01-01

    The dramaturgical dimensions of the "theater of fact" as found in two anti-war plays, "Discourse on Viet Nam" by Peter Weiss and "Xa: A Vietnam Primer" by the ProVisional Theatre are examined. In these plays the author finds that Vietnamese history becomes rhetorical testament in arguments against United States…

  20. The KinFact intervention - a randomized controlled trial to increase family communication about cancer history.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bodurtha, Joann N; McClish, Donna; Gyure, Maria; Corona, Rosalie; Krist, Alexander H; Rodríguez, Vivian M; Maibauer, Alisa M; Borzelleca, Joseph; Bowen, Deborah J; Quillin, John M

    2014-10-01

    Knowing family history is important for understanding cancer risk, yet communication within families is suboptimal. Providing strategies to enhance communication may be useful. Four hundred ninety women were recruited from urban, safety-net, hospital-based primary care women's health clinics. Participants were randomized to receive the KinFact intervention or the control handout on lowering risks for breast/colon cancer and screening recommendations. Cancer family history was reviewed with all participants. The 20-minute KinFact intervention, based in communication and behavior theory, included reviewing individualized breast/colon cancer risks and an interactive presentation about cancer and communication. Study outcomes included whether participants reported collecting family history, shared cancer risk information with relatives, and the frequency of communication with relatives. Data were collected at baseline, 1, 6, and 14 months. Overall, intervention participants were significantly more likely to gather family cancer information at follow-up (odds ratio [OR]: 2.73; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.01, 3.71) and to share familial cancer information with relatives (OR: 1.85; 95% CI: 1.37, 2.48). Communication frequency (1=not at all; 4=a lot) was significantly increased at follow-up (1.67 vs. 1.54). Differences were not modified by age, race, education, or family history. However, effects were modified by pregnancy status and genetic literacy. Intervention effects for information gathering and frequency were observed for nonpregnant women but not for pregnant women. Additionally, intervention effects were observed for information gathering in women with high genetic literacy, but not in women with low genetic literacy. The KinFact intervention successfully promoted family communication about cancer risk. Educating women to enhance their communication skills surrounding family history may allow them to partner more effectively with their families and ultimately

  1. Facts of Interest | Women in Science | Initiatives | Indian Academy of ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Home; Initiatives; Women in Science; Facts of Interest ... A brief technical report on the role of Indian women scientists in the Indian Antartic ... scientists, at a young age of 52, after a valiant battle with cancer, today on 29th March 2016 in Delhi.

  2. History of Science and Medicine in Turkish History Secondary School Textbooks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karabag, S. Gulin

    2015-01-01

    In this paper, it is aimed to analyze the acquirements and topics in Turkish secondary school history textbooks that are published by the Ministry of National Education (MEB) and by the private sector to determine to what extend the place given to history of science and history of medicine. In the study, the document and content analysis…

  3. Focus: science, history, and modern India. Introduction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Phalkey, Jahnavi

    2013-06-01

    Histories of science in India are revisitations of the colonial question. Science is ideology to be unraveled and exposed--as modernity and progress making or violence and oppression making--depending on where you stand on the interpretive spectrum. It has been seen as ideologically driven practice, as a mode of knowledge production whose history is inseparable from the social and political uses to which it is tethered. In the colonial as well as the postcolonial context, science and technology have been seen as the "ideology of empire," "tools of empire," "tentacles of progress," and "reasons of state." Yet science and technology are practices and bodies of knowledge that inhabitants of the subcontinent have engaged with enthusiasm, that they have used to invent themselves in their global, national, and individual lives. We know remarkably little about the histories of these complex engagements. A departure from current historiographical preoccupations is called for to map and explain the lives, institutions, practices, and stories of science on the subcontinent as they connect with, and where they break away from, the world at large.

  4. [Conception of the history of science in the interpretation of Bogdan Suchodolski].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lietz, Natalia

    2011-01-01

    In the article is presented the conception of the history of science in the interpretation of Bogdan Suchodolski. Having described the conception of the history of science created by George Sarton (1884-1956), whose thought was influenced by positivistic philosophy of August Comte, the idea of the history of science of Johan Nordstr6m (1891-1967), who was inspired by the system of Wilhelm Dilthey, and the materialistic conception of the history of science, which was represented, among others, by John Desmond Bernal (1901-1971), the author is making an attempt at revealing to what extent Bogdan Suchodolski was inspired by the above-mentioned visions of the history of science. Having defined the history of science as the history of scientific activity of people and their consciousness formed by the activity, Bogdan Suchodolski applied in the field of his own conception of the history of science the ideas that were put forward by German thinkers and philosophers, and were connected with a way of understanding culture as the constant development of national awareness, which can be exemplified with different dimensions of culture. Undoubtedly, identifying the history of Polish science with constitutive element of the history of national culture and paying attention to the conceptions tending not only to explaining, but also understanding phenomena, B. Suchodolski was influenced by Alfred Vierkandt's and Wilhelm Dilthey's thought. The present article includes several reflections on the conception of the history of science, which was created by B. Suchodolski. Among others, we can find here detailed information on how B. Suchodolski understood: the history of science, its subject, aim and methodology; its status in modern social consciousness and as the history of truth; relations between history of science and theory of science and scientific policy, history of science and the problem of unity and diversity of scientific thinking, history of science and ideas, history of

  5. International collaboration in the history of science of Central Europe

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Soňa ŠTRBÁŇOVÁ

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available In the last ten years, approximately, we could witness an evolution in informal international collaboration focusing on shared and interconnected history of science in the Habsburg Monarchy and in Central Europe in general. This effort, which includes mainly historians of science from Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland, has already produced a number of important results and contributed to the thematization of some timeless topics of history of sciences such as, for instance, nationalization and internationalization of science. In the context of this cooperation, the seminar of Jan Surman, a historian of science of Polish descent, held at the Institute of Contemporary History of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Prague in May 2015, concentrated on the formation of national scientific terminologies. It also underlined the necessity and usefulness of international collaboration in achieving a deeper understanding of the “national” histories of science, which cannot be separated from the “international” history.

  6. History of mathematics and history of science reunited?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gray, Jeremy

    2011-09-01

    For some years now, the history of modern mathematics and the history of modern science have developed independently. A step toward a reunification that would benefit both disciplines could come about through a revived appreciation of mathematical practice. Detailed studies of what mathematicians actually do, whether local or broadly based, have often led in recent work to examinations of the social, cultural, and national contexts, and more can be done. Another recent approach toward a historical understanding of the abstractness of modern mathematics has been to see it as a species of modernism, and this thesis will be tested by the raft of works on the history of modern applied mathematics currently under way.

  7. The History of Science from a science-technology-society perspective (CTS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Katiuska Pérez Bejerano

    2003-12-01

    Full Text Available One of the many goals of scientific training under CTS is to contribute to improving public understanding of the nature of science. It emphasizes the article in the possibilities of the history of science on this issue clarifying and illustrating through the history of chemistry as you can put scientific knowledge in context unraveled the complex relationship science - society links with the philosophical, ethical, political positions. This will help form a more responsible citizen, with a deeper awareness of their own activity, which takes sides with the problems affecting the world and their community.

  8. THE NATURE OF SCIENCE

    OpenAIRE

    R. Trigg

    2014-01-01

    The study defines social science and its specific in contrast with history, psychology and physical sciences. Also it emphasizes the importance of the idea of a 'value-free' science for the social sciences is clear. Social scientists want to be seen to establish 'facts' about society in the same way that they think that a physicist or a chemist uncovers 'facts'. Using the theories of Hempel, Quine, Feyerabend and Kuhn, it addresses a series of questions concening scientific theories, their ro...

  9. The history of science as oxymoron: from scientific exceptionalism to episcience.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alder, Ken

    2013-03-01

    This essay argues that historians of science who seek to embody our oxymoronic self-description must confront both contradictory terms that define our common enterprise--that is, both "history" and "science." On the history/methods side, it suggests that we embrace the heterogeneity of our institutional arrangements and repudiate the homogeneous disciplinary model sometimes advocated by Thomas Kuhn and followed by art history. This implies that rather than treating the history of science as an end in itself, we consider it a means to a variety of historical ends. think of ourselves as a tool-making community, and jettison moralistic assertions of scientific exceptionalism. To do so, this essay argues--on the science/subject side--that xe rebrand the subject of our historical inquiry as "episcience," a neologism that stands in relation to "science" as the new field of epigenetics does to the old genetics. Episcience encompasses both the material activities of the relevant sciences and their "surround" (environment, milieu, Umgebung) to reframe knowledge making to include the material processes that put science "in play" and make its findings matter beyond science. The essay concludes that "the history of science" is an oxymoron that makes sense to the extent that its practitioners acknowledge that the history of science is important not just because science is important, but because its history is.

  10. A keyword history of Marketing Science

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    C.F. Mela (Carl); J.M.T. Roos (Jason); Y. Deng (Yanhui)

    2013-01-01

    textabstractThis paper considers the history of keywords used in Marketing Science to develop insights on the evolution of marketing science. Several findings emerge. First, "pricing" and "game theory" are the most ubiquitous words. More generally, the three C's and four P's predominate, suggesting

  11. Science in the everyday world: Why perspectives from the history of science matter.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pandora, Katherine; Rader, Karen A

    2008-06-01

    The history of science is more than the history of scientists. This essay argues that various modem "publics" should be counted as belonging within an enlarged vision of who constitutes the "scientific community"--and describes how the history of science could be important for understanding their experiences. It gives three examples of how natural knowledge-making happens in vernacular contexts: Victorian Britain's publishing experiments in "popular science" as effective literary strategies for communicating to lay and specialist readers; twentieth-century American science museums as important and contested sites for conveying both scientific ideas and ideas about scientific practice; and contemporary mass-mediated images of the "ideal" scientist as providing counternarratives to received professional scientific norms. Finally, it suggests how humanistic knowledge might help both scientists and historians grapple more effectively with contemporary challenges presented by science in public spheres. By studying the making and elaboration of scientific knowledge within popular culture, historians of science can provide substantively grounded insights into the relations between the public and professionals.

  12. Science literacy and natural history museums

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    2010-10-15

    Oct 15, 2010 ... Paradoxically, this is probably the period in the history of advanced countries in which increasing public and personal efforts have been directed toward the dissemination of scientific knowledge to increase public understanding of science. This article vindicates the role of natural history museums in ...

  13. The KinFact Intervention – A Randomized Controlled Trial to Increase Family Communication About Cancer History

    Science.gov (United States)

    McClish, Donna; Gyure, Maria; Corona, Rosalie; Krist, Alexander H.; Rodríguez, Vivian M.; Maibauer, Alisa M.; Borzelleca, Joseph; Bowen, Deborah J.; Quillin, John M.

    2014-01-01

    Abstract Background: Knowing family history is important for understanding cancer risk, yet communication within families is suboptimal. Providing strategies to enhance communication may be useful. Methods: Four hundred ninety women were recruited from urban, safety-net, hospital-based primary care women's health clinics. Participants were randomized to receive the KinFact intervention or the control handout on lowering risks for breast/colon cancer and screening recommendations. Cancer family history was reviewed with all participants. The 20-minute KinFact intervention, based in communication and behavior theory, included reviewing individualized breast/colon cancer risks and an interactive presentation about cancer and communication. Study outcomes included whether participants reported collecting family history, shared cancer risk information with relatives, and the frequency of communication with relatives. Data were collected at baseline, 1, 6, and 14 months. Results: Overall, intervention participants were significantly more likely to gather family cancer information at follow-up (odds ratio [OR]: 2.73; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.01, 3.71) and to share familial cancer information with relatives (OR: 1.85; 95% CI: 1.37, 2.48). Communication frequency (1=not at all; 4=a lot) was significantly increased at follow-up (1.67 vs. 1.54). Differences were not modified by age, race, education, or family history. However, effects were modified by pregnancy status and genetic literacy. Intervention effects for information gathering and frequency were observed for nonpregnant women but not for pregnant women. Additionally, intervention effects were observed for information gathering in women with high genetic literacy, but not in women with low genetic literacy. Conclusions: The KinFact intervention successfully promoted family communication about cancer risk. Educating women to enhance their communication skills surrounding family history may allow them to partner

  14. Health and Illness in History, Science and Society

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Miriam Rovesti

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Health is a fundamental human right. The World Health Organization defines it as a "state of complete physical, psychological and social well - being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity". The health of individuals, however, is also linked to the environment in which they live and especially to their ability to adapt and integrate into their life context. The relationship with the environment is extremely important because it is that interaction that outlines the concept of normality compared to pathology. Such normality needs to be contextualised by gender, geographical origin and by the individuals’ living conditions: as a matter of fact, what is normal for a young person may differ from what is normal for a senior one. That is to say, the concept of health is indeed relative and it is the result of an interesting evolution of the concept of illness. From the first approaches - dealing with the mere treatment of the symptoms - to the promise of a free-from-pain society, science and economics have played a significant role in redefining the dualism health/ illness. The article reflects on these two concepts, health and illness, in history and nowadays, and discusses the future of the medical science.

  15. From established science to class room science, or how to take into account didactic activity in the history of science

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bruno Belhoste

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available This paper deals with the relationship between science and education in historiography, questioning the separation between the two activities, and highlighting the role of education to scientific activity. First, it distinguishes the largely accepted needs of historical contextualization from the epistemological problem, related to the place of history education in the history of science. It defends that the history of science education is not foreign to the history of science. It criticizes Chevallard’s notion of didactic transposition for reinforcing the gap between scientific knowledge and teaching knowledge. Finally, it argues that the sciences are in permanent reconstruction and that scientific knowledge is not tied to socio-cultural contexts from which it emerged.

  16. Relocating the history of science essays in honor of Kostas Gavroglu

    CERN Document Server

    Renn, Jurgen; Simoes, Ana

    2015-01-01

    This volume is put together in honor of a distinguished historian of science, Kostas Gavroglu, whose work has won international acclaim, and has been pivotal in establishing the discipline of history of science in Greece, its consolidation in other countries of the European Periphery, and the constructive dialogue of these emerging communities with an extended community of international scholars. The papers in the volume reflect Gavroglu’s broad range of intellectual interests and touch upon significant themes in recent history and philosophy of science. They include topics in the history of modern physical sciences, science and technology in the European periphery, integrated history and philosophy of science, historiographical considerations, and intersections with the history of mathematics, technology and contemporary issues. They are authored by eminent scholars whose academic and personal trajectories crossed with Gavroglu’s. The book will interest historians and philosophers of science and techno...

  17. How In-Service Science Teachers Integrate History and Nature of Science in Elementary Science Courses

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hacieminoglu, Esme

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to investigate how the in-service science teachers' (IST) perceptions and practices about curriculum and integration of the history of science (HOS) and the nature of science (NOS) affect their science courses. For this aim, how ISTs integrated the NOS and HOS in their elementary science courses for understanding of…

  18. History of Science as an Instructional Context: Student Learning in Genetics and Nature of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Sun Young; Irving, Karen E.

    2010-01-01

    This study (1) explores the effectiveness of the contextualized history of science on student learning of nature of science (NOS) and genetics content knowledge (GCK), especially interrelationships among various genetics concepts, in high school biology classrooms; (2) provides an exemplar for teachers on how to utilize history of science in…

  19. THE NATURE OF SCIENCE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R. Trigg

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available The study defines social science and its specific in contrast with history, psychology and physical sciences. Also it emphasizes the importance of the idea of a 'value-free' science for the social sciences is clear. Social scientists want to be seen to establish 'facts' about society in the same way that they think that a physicist or a chemist uncovers 'facts'. Using the theories of Hempel, Quine, Feyerabend and Kuhn, it addresses a series of questions concening scientific theories, their roles for the scientific explanation and the scientific progress.

  20. Challenging hyperprofessionalisation vs. hyperpopularisation in the history of science

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Kristian Hvidtfelt

    , the history of science profession now suffers from a crisis of readership?. In contrast, ever since the publication of Dava Sobel?s surprising bestseller, Longitude, popular history of science has dramatically increased its readership. Some historians of science lament the Sobel Effect, whereas others take up......Recently, Steven Shapin have identified a pathological form of professionalism in the history of science. He calls the disease hyperprofessionalism. Its symptoms include self-referentiality, self-absorption, and a narrowing of intellectual focus. Partly as a result of hyperprofessionalism...... the challenge by writing books for a broader audience. In effect, historians of science seemed to be faced with the choice between hyperprofessionalisation and hyperpopularisation. This paper attempts a first deconstruction of the twin notions of hyperprofessionalisation vs. hyperpopularisation....

  1. The shape of the history of science profession, 2038: a prospective retrospective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nyhart, Lynn K

    2013-03-01

    Presented as a retrospective speech by the president of the History of Science Society in 2038, this essay imagines a future for the profession of the history of science in the United States. Acknowledging that self-described historians of science do not fully control the subject, it considers the place of the history of science in a future university landscape in which interdisciplinary "studies" have supplanted disciplines as the fundamental organizing structure. It then situates this academic scene within a broader professional landscape in which nonuniversity institutions play an expanded role in bringing the history of science directly to the public. Here the essay focuses on an imagined Science Heritage Center that blends commitments to innovative scholarly research, public history techniques of experiential learning, and updated technologies of virtual reality. It further suggests an unexpected direction for developing a collaborative "citizen history of science".

  2. International Collaboration in the History of Science of Central Europe

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Štrbáňová, Soňa

    2015-01-01

    Roč. 14, - (2015), s. 347-353 ISSN 1731-6715 Institutional support: RVO:68378114 Keywords : science in Habsburg Monarchy * cooperation in history of science * scientific terminology formation Subject RIV: AB - History

  3. Sandia National Laboratories: About Sandia: History

    Science.gov (United States)

    Environmental Management System Pollution Prevention History 60 impacts Diversity Locations Facts & Figures Programs Nuclear Weapons About Nuclear Weapons Safety & Security Weapons Science & Technology Robotics R&D 100 Awards Laboratory Directed Research & Development Technology Deployment Centers

  4. Inseparability of science history and discovery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. M. Herndon

    2010-04-01

    Full Text Available Science is very much a logical progression through time. Progressing along a logical path of discovery is rather like following a path through the wilderness. Occasionally the path splits, presenting a choice; the correct logical interpretation leads to further progress, the wrong choice leads to confusion. By considering deeply the relevant science history, one might begin to recognize past faltering in the logical progression of observations and ideas and, perhaps then, to discover new, more precise understanding. The following specific examples of science faltering are described from a historical perspective: (1 Composition of the Earth's inner core; (2 Giant planet internal energy production; (3 Physical impossibility of Earth-core convection and Earth-mantle convection, and; (4 Thermonuclear ignition of stars. For each example, a revised logical progression is described, leading, respectively, to: (1 Understanding the endo-Earth's composition; (2 The concept of nuclear georeactor origin of geo- and planetary magnetic fields; (3 The invalidation and replacement of plate tectonics; and, (4 Understanding the basis for the observed distribution of luminous stars in galaxies. These revised logical progressions clearly show the inseparability of science history and discovery. A different and more fundamental approach to making scientific discoveries than the frequently discussed variants of the scientific method is this: An individual ponders and through tedious efforts arranges seemingly unrelated observations into a logical sequence in the mind so that causal relationships become evident and new understanding emerges, showing the path for new observations, for new experiments, for new theoretical considerations, and for new discoveries. Science history is rich in "seemingly unrelated observations" just waiting to be logically and causally related to reveal new discoveries.

  5. A Discipline-Specific Approach to the History of U.S. Science Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Otero, Valerie K.; Meltzer, David E.

    2017-01-01

    Although much has been said and written about the value of using the history of science in teaching science, relatively little is available to guide educators in the various science disciplines through the educational history of their own discipline. Through a discipline-specific approach to a course on the history of science education in the…

  6. History of Computer Science as an Instrument of Enlightenment

    OpenAIRE

    Fet , Yakov

    2013-01-01

    Part 6: Putting the History of Computing into Different Contexts; International audience; This report focuses on the dangerous problems that are currently facing the society – the negative phenomena in development of education and science. The most important way to solve this problem seems to be education and enlightenment. It is assumed that in the history of Computer Science, the intellectual and moral heritage of this history contains a wealth of material that can be used for the dissemina...

  7. Using History of Science to Teach Nature of Science to Elementary Students

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fouad, Khadija E.; Masters, Heidi; Akerson, Valarie L.

    2015-01-01

    Science lessons using inquiry only or history of science with inquiry were used for explicit reflective nature of science (NOS) instruction for second-, third-, and fourth-grade students randomly assigned to receive one of the treatments. Students in both groups improved in their understanding of creative NOS, tentative NOS, empirical NOS, and…

  8. Alchemy and the history of science. Introduction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moran, Bruce T

    2011-06-01

    Alchemy is part of the cultural experience of early modern Europe and yet has had to overcome problems of demarcation to be considered relevant to the history of science. This essay considers historiographical and methodological issues that have affected the gradual demarginalization of alchemy among attempts to explain, and find things out about, nature. As an area of historical study, alchemy relates to the history of science as part of an ensemble of practices that explored the natural world through natural philosophy and speculative traditions and by functioning as a nexus of social and intellectual life.

  9. Innovating Science Teacher Education: A History and Philosophy of Science Perspective

    Science.gov (United States)

    Niaz, Mansoor

    2010-01-01

    How teachers view the nature of scientific knowledge is crucial to their understanding of science content and how it can be taught. This book presents an overview of the dynamics of scientific progress and its relationship to the history and philosophy of science, and then explores their methodological and educational implications and develops…

  10. Focus: knowing the ocean: a role for the history of science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rozwadowski, Helen M

    2014-06-01

    While most historians have treated the sea as a surface or a void, the history of science is well positioned to draw the ocean itself into history. The contributors to this Focus section build on the modest existing tradition of history of oceanography and extend that tradition to demonstrate both the insights to be gained by studying oceans historically and the critical role that the history of science should play in future environmental history of the ocean.

  11. Medicine, 1450-1620, and the history of science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siraisi, Nancy G

    2012-09-01

    History of science and history of medicine are today largely organized as distinct disciplines, though ones widely recognized as interrelated. Attempts to evaluate the extent and nature of their relation have reached varying conclusions, depending in part on the historical period under consideration. This essay examines some characteristics of European medicine from the fifteenth to the early seventeenth century and considers their relevance for the history of science. Attention is given to the range of interests and activities of individuals trained in or practicing medicine, to the impact of changes in natural philosophy, to the role of observation, description, and accumulation of information, and to the exchange of knowledge among the medical community.

  12. The history of science fiction

    CERN Document Server

    Roberts, Adam

    2016-01-01

    This book is the definitive critical history of science fiction. The 2006 first edition of this work traced the development of the genre from Ancient Greece and the European Reformation through to the end of the 20th century. This new 2nd edition has been revised thoroughly and very significantly expanded. An all-new final chapter discusses 21st-century science fiction, and there is new material in every chapter: a wealth of new readings and original research. The author’s groundbreaking thesis that science fiction is born out of the 17th-century Reformation is here bolstered with a wide range of new supporting material and many hundreds of 17th- and 18th-century science fiction texts, some of which have never been discussed before. The account of 19th-century science fiction has been expanded, and the various chapters tracing the twentieth-century bring in more writing by women, and science fiction in other media including cinema, TV, comics, fan-culture and other modes.

  13. [Outlooks of Bogdan Suchodolski on the issue of popularizing the history of science].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lietz, Natalia

    2011-01-01

    The author of the present article proves the veracity of the postulate, which was formulated by Bogdan Suchodolski and concerned the necessity of popularizing the history of science. The stipulation is still greatly important for many fields of human activity. Bogdan Suchodolski was not the first and the only thinker, who revealed the unquestionable significance of disseminating the history of science as scientific branch: For the first time the problem was noticed in 1900 during International Congress of Comparative History in Paris and in 1903 during International Congress of Historical Sciences in Rome, when the idea of universalizing the history of science was put forward, among others, by: Paul Tannery, Carre de Vaux, Gino Ioria and Karl Sudhoff. All the mentioned participants declared then the necessity of teaching the history of science both in the secondary schools and in the universities. In the article was also included a detailed description of conceptions formulated by Paul Tannery and Michel Lhéritier in the inter-war period that concerned popularizing the history of science, and differed much from each other. Unlike Paul Tannery, Michel Lhéritier advised against separating history of science from the whole of history. On the occasion of describing the inter-war period the author is paying a special attention to the role, which was played by International Conference of Teaching History in Hague in 1932. In that time a representative of International Committee on the History of Sciences and International Academy of the History of Sciences--Aldo Mieli--presented the idea of disseminating the history of science, which resulted in a resolution saying that the discussed branch should be taught in the primary and secondary schools, and in the universities as well. Further, the paper includes the description of the detailed conceptions that were put forward after World War II by the members of Committee on Teaching within International Academy of the

  14. History | About IASc | Indian Academy of Sciences

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    History. The Indian Academy of Sciences was founded and registered as a society in 1934 with the aim of promoting the progress and upholding the cause of science, in both pure and applied branches. It strives to meet its objectives through promotion of original research and dissemination of scientific knowledge to the ...

  15. A reflection on feelings and the history of science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dror, Otniel E

    2009-12-01

    This reflection attends to Paul White's call in his introduction to this Focus section for a history of science that is informed by the history of emotions. It offers a succinct historical exemplification of the possibilities of studying the history of science in terms of the history of emotions. It draws on Raymond Williams's concept of "structure of feeling" in arguing for the emergence of an adrenaline structure of feeling during the early twentieth century. It provides a mosaic of different views of the immanence of the adrenaline structure of feeling in diverse scientific realms by broaching some of the major themes that appear in the individual essays in this Focus section.

  16. Informal and Non-formal Education: An Outline of History of Science in Museums

    Science.gov (United States)

    Filippoupoliti, Anastasia; Koliopoulos, Dimitris

    2014-04-01

    Although a growing number of research articles in recent years have treated the role of informal settings in science learning, the subject of the history of science in museums and its relationship to informal and non-formal education remains less well explored. The aim of this review is to assemble the studies of history of science in science museums and explore the opportunities for the further use of the history of science in science museum education practice.

  17. A keyword history of Marketing Science

    OpenAIRE

    Mela, Carl; Roos, Jason; Deng, Yanhui

    2013-01-01

    textabstractThis paper considers the history of keywords used in Marketing Science to develop insights on the evolution of marketing science. Several findings emerge. First, "pricing" and "game theory" are the most ubiquitous words. More generally, the three C's and four P's predominate, suggesting that keywords and common practical frameworks align. Various trends exist. Some words, like "pricing," remain popular over time. Others, like "game theory" and "hierarchical Bayes," have become mor...

  18. Existing knowledge in science and technology as subject of judicial establishment of facts

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Czajika, D.

    1982-02-01

    The problems facing administrative courts in determining 'existing knowledge in science and technology' (No. 3 of paragraph 2 of sect. 7 of the Atomic Energy Law) cannot be solved by limiting the judicial establishment of facts. According to established law, in procedural or substantive law there is no foundation for doing so. Limits to this establishment of facts do result from the nature of the scientific process of understanding, which very often allows but the establishment of 'margins' pertaining to scientific opinions.

  19. Thirty years history of Daeduk Science Town

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2003-11-01

    This book records the history of Daeduk science town for 30 years, which includes plan of construction and selection of location like background of construction and general idea of construction, transition of basic plan to construct Daeduk science town such as change of promotion organization and plan, and establishment of construction general planning, building base for town like land, infrastructure, and measures to control speculative investment, construction and present situation of moving into the science town, management of Daeduk science town, public welfare for researchers, and fruit and image of the future of the town.

  20. European Society for the History of Science - Letter from the future president

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Štrbáňová, Soňa

    2010-01-01

    Roč. 52, č. 4 (2010), s. 361-362 ISSN 0008-8994 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z80630520; CEZ:AV0Z80770509 Keywords : history of science and technology * European Society for the History of Science Subject RIV: AB - History

  1. More than a Museum: Natural History is Relevant in 21st Century Environmental Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hernandez, R. R.; Murphy-Mariscal, M. L.; Barrows, C. W.

    2015-12-01

    In the Anthropocene, the relevancy of natural history in environmental science is challenged and marginalized today more than ever. We tested the hypothesis that natural history is relevant to the fields of environmental science and ecology by assessing the values, needs, and decisions related to natural history of graduate students and environmental science professionals across 31 universities and various employers, respectively, in California. Graduate students surveyed (93.3%) agreed that natural history was relevant to science, approximately 70% believed it "essential" for conducting field-based research; however, 54.2% felt inadequately trained to teach a natural history course and would benefit from additional training in natural history (> 80%). Of the 185 professionals surveyed, all felt that natural history was relevant to science and "essential" or "desirable" in their vocation (93%). Our results indicate a disconnect between the value and relevancy of natural history in 21st century ecological science and opportunities for gaining those skills and knowledge through education and training.

  2. All about science philosophy, history, sociology & communication

    CERN Document Server

    Lam, Liu

    2014-01-01

    There is a lot of confusion and misconception concerning science. The nature and contents of science is an unsettled problem. For example, Thales of 2,600 years ago is recognized as the father of science but the word science was introduced only in the 14th century; the definition of science is often avoided in books about philosophy of science. This book aims to clear up all these confusions and present new developments in the philosophy, history, sociology and communication of science. It also aims to showcase the achievement of China's top scholars in these areas. The 18 chapters, divided into five parts, are written by prominent scholars including the Nobel laureate Robin Warren, sociologist Harry Collins, and physicist-turned-historian Dietrich Stauffer.

  3. [The function of philosophy of science in the teaching of medical history].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Yaming

    2014-05-01

    The philosophy of science yields 3 important functions in the teaching of medical history. Firstly, by analyzing the development of medicine from the perspective of philosophy, we can integrate medical history into the history of human thought and clearly show the close connection between the development of humanity and the development of medical science. Secondly, philosophical analysis on the general rules of scientific discoveries involved in medical history can help medical students to understand the methodology in the research of sciences in history. Thirdly, philosophy of science offers new dimensions for understanding the relationship between medicine and the society. By making use of the relevant theory in scientific philosophy to explore the relationship between medicine and the society, the nature of medicine and the social nature and function of science can be further understood by medical students so as to exert an active role in the research and clinical work in the future.

  4. An Examination of Understandings of Prospective Teachers about Science and Science History

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yildiz, Cemalettin

    2018-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to reveal beliefs of prospective teachers about "science" and "science history." The qualitative research approach was employed in the study. The study group consisted of 150 prospective teachers. A form developed by the researcher was used for data collection. The form consisted of open-ended…

  5. Atmospheric pollution: history, science and regulation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jacobson, M.Z. [Stanford University, Stanford, CA (USA). Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering

    2002-07-01

    The book provides an introduction to the history and science of major air pollution issues. It begins with an introduction to the history of discovery of chemicals in the atmosphere, and moves on to a discussion of the evolution of the earth's atmosphere. It then discusses five major atmospheric pollution topics: urban outdoor air pollution, indoor air pollution, acid deposition, stratospheric ozone depletion, and global climate change. The book contains numerous student examples and problems and over 200 color illustrations and photographs.

  6. Demonstrating the facticity of facts: university lectures and chemistry as a science in Germany around 1800.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frercks, Jan

    2010-03-01

    In this article, I argue that chemical lectures at universities played a crucial role in the establishment of chemistry as a well-defined science in Germany around 1800. In particular, lecture demonstrations served to secure the facticity of facts. This was important, because the concept of the chemical fact was at the centre of the prevailing epistemology, which itself partly reflected the social order of chemistry as a science in Germany, and partly served to foster it. In the dialectic constellation of research and teaching, professor-chemists took the lead in the social and epistemological definition of chemistry.

  7. History, Philosophy and Science Teaching: Some Answers to ``How?''

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pessoa de Carvalho, Anna Maria; Infantosi Vannucchi, Andréa

    The study of the history and philosophy of science in school science courses is highly recommended. This paper deals with the methodological aspects derived from research in science education and how they have to be taken into account in order to generate effective classroom activities, so that history and philosophy are not relegated to the status of additional rhetoric of conclusions in an extensive curricula. This is illustrated with the analysis of episodes ___ transcribed from videotape records ___ which took place when such activity was introduced into high school physics classes. This analysis has shown that students, when working in cooperative groups over problematic historical episodes, may come to discuss essential features of science. This not only provides a more realistic view of science, but also enhances cognitive and argumentation skills, besides emphasizing the importance of teachers' guidance.

  8. History of twentieth-century physics

    CERN Document Server

    Kapitza, Sergei P

    1995-01-01

    The meaning and message of the history of science will be discussed with relevance to XX century physics. This decisive period began in 1894-95 with the discoveries of the electron,X-rays and radioactivity,with the consequent development of relativity and quantumphysics. Connections of the development of science and society in XX century with culture and the influence on industry will be examined. Finally, the corruption of physics by the military will be considered. The influence of physics on chemistry and biology will be briefly treated and the impact of the approach and method of physics on modern thinking will be assessed. It should be kept in mind that the history of science is not a way of getting a simplified or adulterated presentation of the subject ,in this case of physics and so some understanding of general physics will be assumed. On the other hand, the broader generalisations of the history of ideas and events are illustrated (if not proven) by the facts (and myths) of science. Finally,as an e...

  9. History of Science and Science Museums

    Science.gov (United States)

    Faria, Cláudia; Guilherme, Elsa; Gaspar, Raquel; Boaventura, Diana

    2015-10-01

    The activities presented in this paper, which are addressed to elementary school, are focused on the pioneering work of the Portuguese King Carlos I in oceanography and involve the exploration of the exhibits belonging to two different science museums, the Aquarium Vasco da Gama and the Maritime Museum. Students were asked to study fish adaptations to deep sea, through the exploration of a fictional story, based on historical data and based on the work of the King that served as a guiding script for all the subsequent tasks. In both museums, students had access to: historical collections of organisms, oceanographic biological sampling instruments, fish gears and ships. They could also observe the characteristics and adaptations of diverse fish species characteristic of deep sea. The present study aimed to analyse the impact of these activities on students' scientific knowledge, on their understanding of the nature of science and on the development of transversal skills. All students considered the project very popular. The results obtained suggest that the activity promoted not only the understanding of scientific concepts, but also stimulated the development of knowledge about science itself and the construction of scientific knowledge, stressing the relevance of creating activities informed by the history of science. As a final remark we suggest that the partnership between elementary schools and museums should be seen as an educational project, in which the teacher has to assume a key mediating role between the school and the museums.

  10. European history crossroads as pathways to intercultural and media education (EHISTO)

    OpenAIRE

    Popp, Susanne; Schumann, Jutta; Simmet, Oliver; Szczecińska, Joanna; Hadrysiak, Sylwia; Haydn, Terry; Lane, Kathleen; Belton, Teresa; Yarker, Patrick; García-Peñalvo, Francisco José; Zangrando, Valentina; Seoane Pardo, Antonio M.; Rodríguez-Conde, María José; García-Holgado, Alicia; Vinterek, Monika

    2013-01-01

    [EN] EHISTO (European history crossroads as pathways to intercultural and media education) is concerned with the mediation of history in popular (science) media and the question of social and political responsibility of journalists and other mediators of history, especially teachers, in the field of commercial presentation of history. The project responds to the increasing significance of a commercialised mediation of history within the public historical culture and reflects the fact...

  11. Science in the public sphere a history of lay knowledge and expertise

    CERN Document Server

    Nieto-Galan, Agusti

    2016-01-01

    Science in the Public Sphere presents a broad yet detailed picture of the history of science popularization from the Renaissance to the twenty-first century. Global in focus, it provides an original theoretical framework for analysing the political load of science as an instrument of cultural hegemony and giving a voice to expert and lay protagonists throughout history. Organised into a series of thematic chapters spanning diverse periods and places, this book covers subjects such as the representations of science in print, the media, classrooms and museums, orthodox and heterodox practices, the intersection of the history of science with the history of technology, and the ways in which public opinion and scientific expertise have influenced and shaped one another across the centuries. It concludes by introducing the "participatory turn" of the twenty-first century, a new paradigm of science popularization and a new way of understanding the construction of knowledge. Highly illustrated throughout and coveri...

  12. Well-ordered science and Indian epistemic cultures: toward a polycentered history of science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ganeri, Jonardon

    2013-06-01

    This essay defends the view that "modern science," as with modernity in general, is a polycentered phenomenon, something that appears in different forms at different times and places. It begins with two ideas about the nature of rational scientific inquiry: Karin Knorr Cetina's idea of "epistemic cultures," and Philip Kitcher's idea of science as "a system of public knowledge," such knowledge as would be deemed worthwhile by an ideal conversation among the whole public under conditions of mutual engagement. This account of the nature of scientific practice provides us with a new perspective from which to understand key elements in the philosophical project of Jaina logicians in the seventh, eighth, and ninth centuries C.E. Jaina theory seems exceptionally well targeted onto two of the key constituents in the ideal conversation--the classification of all human points of view and the representation of end states of the deliberative process. The Buddhist theory of the Kathāvatthu contributes to Indian epistemic culture in a different way: by supplying a detailed theory of how human dialogical standpoints can be revised in the ideal conversation, an account of the phenomenon Kitcher labels "tutoring." Thus science in India has its own history, one that should be studied in comparison and contrast with the history of science in Europe. In answer to Joseph Needham, it was not 'modern science' which failed to develop in India or China but rather non-well-ordered science, science as unconstrained by social value and democratic consent. What I argue is that this is not a deficit in the civilisational histories of these countries, but a virtue.

  13. The Art and Science of Storytelling in Presenting Complex Information to the Public, or, Give 'Em More Than Just the Facts

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sohus, Anita M.; Wessen, Alice S.

    2004-01-01

    In communicating science to the public, just the facts can leave the public baffled, bewildered, and bored. In communicating science to the public, we need to learn to tell the story, not just the facts. Science and engineering is serious business, requiring precise language and rigorous reporting of "just the facts." Yet, we believe this very code of integrity has contributed to a public image, at best, of scientists as eccentrics and engineers as geeks, and at worst, as elitist snobs who speak in secret codes. The very heart of the science process - open discussion and disagreement - often leaves the public with the impression that scientists don't know which way is up.

  14. Atmospheric pollution: history, science, and regulation

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Jacobson, Mark Z

    2002-01-01

    ..., stratospheric ozone reduction, and global climate change - is provided. Each chapter discusses the history and science behind these problems, their consequences, and the effort made through government intervention and regulation to mitigate them. The book contains numerous student examples and problems, more than 200 color illustrations,...

  15. Eric Davidson, his philosophy, and the history of science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deichmann, Ute

    2017-10-16

    Eric Davidson, a passionate molecular developmental biologist and intellectual, believed that conceptual advances in the sciences should be based on knowledge of conceptual history. Convinced of the superiority of a causal-analytical approach over other methods, he succeeded in successfully applying this approach to the complex feature of organismal development by introducing the far-reaching concept of developmental Gene Regulatory Networks. This essay reviews Davidson's philosophy, his support for the history of science, and some aspects of his scientific personality.

  16. History, Science And The Dilemma Of Contemporary Sociology: The ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    History and natural sciences are two important fields of study that have informed and influenced sociology as a discipline. Traditionally common to these influences on sociology is the need to generalise. Today, however only the natural sciences can still lay claim to this principle. In generalising, the natural science ...

  17. [Bogdan Suchodolski--initiator and editor-in-chief of the publication History of Polish Science].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kuźnicka, Barbara; Kuźnicki, Leszek

    2011-01-01

    Among numerous and distinguished author's and editorial works of Bogdan Suchodolski a particular value presents a publication in eight volumes entitled 'History of Polish Science' (including two biographical and bibliographic volumes), which was published in the years 1970-1992 on Professor's own initiative and edited by himself. This is the first synthesis of the history of science in Poland, from the beginning of the Middle Ages till the present time (to 1952). In the conception of the initiator and editor the work presents the development of scientific thought and achievements of the scholars in relation to national culture and in connexions with the trends in science in the world. 'History of Polish Science' is the work written by several dozen authors, representing different domains of the knowledge. Scientific, organizational and editorial patronate was possible by dint of History of Science and Technology Establishment of Polish Academy of Sciences (presently the Institute for the History of Science of Polish Academy of Sciences), which was managed by Bogdan Suchodolski.

  18. Science and Women in the History of Education: Expanding the Archive.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Watts, Ruth

    2003-01-01

    Investigates the field of science to examine the neglect of its interrelationship with gender and how this weakness can be resolved. States it is vital to understand the methods and sources used in educational history when examining science and gender as an intellectual part of educational history. (KDR)

  19. Nonlinearity: The History and Philosophy of the Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burke, Kenneth M.

    2009-01-01

    This article provides for a concise history of nonlinearity from the context of the changing assumptions in science throughout the turn of the twentieth century. Concerned with the development of an ethics of technology in higher education, it establishes a background for ongoing research on quantitative methods in the social sciences. The history…

  20. History of Science Content Analysis of Chinese Science Textbooks from the Perspective of Acculturation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Yongjun; Wan, Yanlan

    2017-01-01

    Based on previous international studies, a content analysis scheme has been designed and used from the perspective of culture to study the history of science (HOS) in science textbooks. Nineteen sets of Chinese science textbooks have been analyzed. It has been found that there are noticeable changes in the quantity, content, layout, presentation,…

  1. Counterfactuals and history: Contingency and convergence in histories of science and life.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hesketh, Ian

    2016-08-01

    This article examines a series of recent histories of science that have attempted to consider how science may have developed in slightly altered historical realities. These works have, moreover, been influenced by debates in evolutionary science about the opposing forces of contingency and convergence in regard to Stephen Jay Gould's notion of "replaying life's tape." The article argues that while the historians under analysis seem to embrace contingency in order to present their counterfactual narratives, for the sake of historical plausibility they are forced to accept a fairly weak role for contingency in shaping the development of science. It is therefore argued that Simon Conway Morris's theory of evolutionary convergence comes closer to describing the restrained counterfactual worlds imagined by these historians of science than does contingency. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Social constructivism and positive epistemology: On establishing of scientific facts

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Brdar Milan

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available In this article author is dealing with the problem of genesis and establishing of scientific fact. In the first part is given philosophical treatment of the problem and its futility, for the reason given in Minhausen trilema as a conclusion of this kind of treatment. Second part of the article contains the review of Ludvik Fleck's positive epistemology and of social constructivism. After the short historical review of the roots of social constructivism in the Mannheim's sociology of knowledge, author describes how it goes with erstablishing of scientific fact. Solution is set forth by elaboration of triad physis-nomos-logos within the constitutive elements of society known as authority-institution-reason-discourse. Author's concluding thesis claims that there is no fact without convention, i.e. that nature and scientific fact are connected by institution (scientific or social. It does not mean that there is no sound established facts but that obstacle toward it is provided just with institutional mediation that make condition of possibility of very truth. Therefore, the question: what among known facts are really truthful amounts to eternal problem of science and common sense in every epoch of history. .

  3. Viewpoint: The History Manifesto and the History of Science. Editor's Introduction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cohen, H Floris

    2016-06-01

    This "Viewpoint" section takes up the question of what, if anything, historians of science can learn from The History Manifesto, initially published in the fall of 2014. One summary, two essay reviews, and nine short comments are followed by remarks by the authors of the manifesto, Jo Guldi and David Armitage.

  4. The skeleton in the closet: should historians of science care about the history of mathematics?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alexander, Amir

    2011-09-01

    Up until the 1950s, the history of mathematics was an integral part of the history of science. To George Sarton and his contemporaries, mathematics was the rational skeleton that organized science and held it together, and its history was a fundamental component of the broader history of science. But when historians began focusing on the cultural roots of science rather than its rational structure, the study of mathematics was marginalized and ultimately excluded from the history of science. The alienation between the two fields is detrimental to both, and in recent years there has been a sustained effort to reestablish meaningful communication between the two. This time, however, mathematics is seen not as the static skeleton of science but, instead, as a dynamic and historically evolving field in its own right-just like science itself. The new approach allows for a culturally sensitive study of mathematics, as well as a new and fruitful relationship between the history of science and the history of mathematics. The essays in this Focus section offer a sampling of the new approaches, opening the way to a rapprochement between fields that have gone their separate ways but should by rights be closely interconnected.

  5. The Pedagogical Roots of the History of Science: Revisiting the Vision of James Bryant Conant.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hamlin, Christopher

    2016-06-01

    This essay examines the rise and fall of Harvard president James Bryant Conant's postwar vision for history of science-based general science education. As well as developing the foundations of Conant's vision, it considers the tension between Conant's science pedagogy-centered view of the history of science and the claims of George Sarton and I. B. Cohen that the field was a distinct discipline. It relates these themes to Conant's unease with the like-minded theorists Thomas Kuhn and Michael Polanyi and concludes by examining Conant's anticipation of later science studies approaches and reflecting on his place in the history of the history of science.

  6. History, philosophy and science teaching new perspectives

    CERN Document Server

    2018-01-01

    This anthology opens new perspectives in the domain of history, philosophy, and science teaching research. Its four sections are: first, science, culture and education; second, the teaching and learning of science; third, curriculum development and justification; and fourth, indoctrination. The first group of essays deal with the neglected topic of science education and the Enlightenment tradition. These essays show that many core commitments of modern science education have their roots in this tradition, and consequently all can benefit from a more informed awareness of its strengths and weaknesses. Other essays address research on leaning and teaching from the perspectives of social epistemology and educational psychology. Included here is the first ever English translation of Ernst Mach’s most influential 1890 paper on ‘The Psychological and Logical Moment in Natural Science Teaching’. This paper launched the influential Machian tradition in education. Other essays address concrete cases of the ...

  7. History of optics: a modern teaching tool

    OpenAIRE

    Vázquez Moliní, Daniel; González Cano, Agustín; Díaz Herrera, Natalia; Llombart, N.; Alda, Javier

    2012-01-01

    The history of optics is a very rich field of science and it is possible to find many simple and significant examples of the application and success of the experimental method and therefore is a very good tool to transmit to the student the way science proceeds and to introduce the right spirit of critical analysis, building and testing of models, etc. Optical phenomena are specially well suited for this because in fact optical observations and experiments have made science advance in a cruci...

  8. Computational perspectives in the history of science: to the memory of Peter Damerow.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laubichler, Manfred D; Maienschein, Jane; Renn, Jürgen

    2013-03-01

    Computational methods and perspectives can transform the history of science by enabling the pursuit of novel types of questions, dramatically expanding the scale of analysis (geographically and temporally), and offering novel forms of publication that greatly enhance access and transparency. This essay presents a brief summary of a computational research system for the history of science, discussing its implications for research, education, and publication practices and its connections to the open-access movement and similar transformations in the natural and social sciences that emphasize big data. It also argues that computational approaches help to reconnect the history of science to individual scientific disciplines.

  9. What's Manifest in the History of SciTech: Reflections on The History Manifesto.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kevles, Daniel J

    2016-06-01

    Making nuts-and-bolts public policy is not--and never has been--the long suit of professional historians, but general historical work, whatever its durée, has done a good deal to shape discourse on public issues. Jo Guldi and David Armitage neglect that fact, as well as the opinion-shaping influence of history conveyed via nonprint media. They also ignore the large body of scholarship produced in all media during recent decades in the history of science, technology, and science-related medicine (SciTech), even though SciTech itself looms enormously large in the modern era as an instrument of national and international security, a driver of the economy, and a transformer of medicine, public health, and the environment. Much of this scholarship, even though of short durée, can illuminate salient contemporary issues, including innovation; patronage and practice; government and policy; imperialism and globalization; intellectual property; science and religion; and human rights, environment, energy, and disasters.

  10. Brief history of patient safety culture and science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ilan, Roy; Fowler, Robert

    2005-03-01

    The science of safety is well established in such disciplines as the automotive and aviation industry. In this brief history of safety science as it pertains to patient care, we review remote and recent publications that have guided the maturation of this field that has particular relevance to the complex structure of systems, personnel, and therapies involved in caring for the critically ill.

  11. Revising Teacher Candidates' Views of Science and Self: Can Accounts from the History of Science Help?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lewthwaite, Brian; Murray, John; Hechter, Richard

    2012-01-01

    Our inquiry uses accounts from the history of science to develop teacher-candidate (student teacher) understanding of the nature of science (NOS) in a science teacher education methods course. This understanding of the NOS is then used as a foundation for developing teacher candidate appreciation of the attributes of authentic science lessons.…

  12. Darnton’s Cats, Bacon’s Rifle, and History of Science 101.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Küçük, Harun

    2016-12-01

    Many of us who teach History of Science 101 courses face a situation where we must tell our story without relying on students’ prior knowledge of, say, the significance of ancient Greece and China, premodern and modern colonialism, or Marx. This leaves us needing a clear and punchy basic message, supported by a solid, well-structured, and inclusive story line that also doubles as world history. This response takes a look at the prospects and problems of longue durée histories of science from the perspective of cultural history. It voices sympathy toward Frans van Lunteren’s project and presents a small sample of potential difficulties involved in matching machines with historical periods.

  13. The Relevance of Evidence from the History of Science in the Contemporary Realism/Anti-realism Debate

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wray, K. Brad

    2018-01-01

    I aim to clarify the relevance of evidence from the history of science to the contemporary realism/anti-realism debate as the need for evidence from the history of science is often misunderstood or misrepresented.......I aim to clarify the relevance of evidence from the history of science to the contemporary realism/anti-realism debate as the need for evidence from the history of science is often misunderstood or misrepresented....

  14. Informal and Non-Formal Education: An Outline of History of Science in Museums

    Science.gov (United States)

    Filippoupoliti, Anastasia; Koliopoulos, Dimitris

    2014-01-01

    Although a growing number of research articles in recent years have treated the role of informal settings in science learning, the subject of the history of science in museums and its relationship to informal and non-formal education remains less well explored. The aim of this review is to assemble the studies of history of science in science…

  15. Beyond postcolonialism ... and postpositivism: circulation and the global history of science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Raj, Kapil

    2013-06-01

    This essay traces the parallel, but unrelated, evolution of two sets of reactions to traditional idealist history of science in a world-historical context. While the scholars who fostered the postcolonial approach, in dealing with modern science in the non-West, espoused an idealist vision, they nevertheless stressed its political and ideological underpinnings and engaged with the question of its putative Western roots. The postidealist history of science developed its own vision with respect to the question of the global spread of modern science, paying little heed to postcolonial debates. It then proposes a historiographical approach developed in large part by historians of South Asian politics, economics, and science that, without compromising the preoccupations of each of the two groups, could help construct a mutually comprehensible and connected framework for the understanding of the global workings of the sciences.

  16. Second-career science teachers' classroom conceptions of science and engineering practices examined through the lens of their professional histories

    Science.gov (United States)

    Antink-Meyer, Allison; Brown, Ryan A.

    2017-07-01

    Science standards in the U.S. have shifted to emphasise science and engineering process skills (i.e. specific practices within inquiry) to a greater extent than previous standards' emphases on broad representations of inquiry. This study examined the alignment between second-career science teachers' personal histories with the latter and examined the extent to which they viewed that history as a factor in their teaching. Four, second-career science teachers with professional backgrounds in engineering, environmental, industrial, and research and development careers participated. Through the examination of participants' methodological and contextual histories in science and engineering, little evidence of conflict with teaching was found. They generally exemplified the agency and motivation of a second-career teacher-scientist that has been found elsewhere [Gilbert, A. (2011). There and back again: Exploring teacher attrition and mobility with two transitioning science teachers. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 22(5), 393-415; Grier, J. M., & Johnston, C. C. (2009). An inquiry into the development of teacher identities in STEM career changers. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 20(1), 57-75]. The methodological and pedagogical perspectives of participants are explored and a discussion of the implications of findings for science teacher education are presented.

  17. Reconstructing Iconic Experiments in Electrochemistry: Experiences from a History of Science Course

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eggen, Per-Odd; Kvittingen, Lise; Lykknes, Annette; Wittje, Roland

    2012-01-01

    The decomposition of water by electricity, and the voltaic pile as a means of generating electricity, have both held an iconic status in the history of science as well as in the history of science teaching. These experiments featured in chemistry and physics textbooks, as well as in classroom teaching, throughout the nineteenth and twentieth…

  18. A Comparative Framework for Studying the Histories of the Humanities and Science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bod, Rens

    2015-06-01

    While the humanities and the sciences have a closely connected history, there are no general histories that bring the two fields together on an equal footing. This paper argues that there is a level at which some humanistic and scientific disciplines can be brought under a common denominator and compared. This is at the level of underlying methods, especially at the level of formalisms and rule systems used by different disciplines. The essay formally compares linguistics and computer science by noting that the same grammar formalism was used in the 1950s for describing both human and. programming languages. Additionally, it examines the influence of philology on molecular biology, and vice versa, by recognizing that the tree-formalism and rule system used for text reconstruction was also employed in DNA genetics. It also shows that rule systems for source criticism in history are used in forensic science, evidence-based medicine, and jurisprudence. This paper thus opens up a new comparative approach within which the histories of the humanities and the sciences can be examined on a common level.

  19. What was historical about natural history? Contingency and explanation in the science of living things.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harrison, Peter

    2016-08-01

    There is a long-standing distinction in Western thought between scientific and historical modes of explanation. According to Aristotle's influential account of scientific knowledge there cannot be an explanatory science of what is contingent and accidental, such things being the purview of a descriptive history. This distinction between scientia and historia continued to inform assumptions about scientific explanation into the nineteenth century and is particularly significant when considering the emergence of biology and its displacement of the more traditional discipline of natural history. One of the consequences of this nineteenth-century transition was that while modern evolutionary theory retained significant, if often implicit, historical components, these were often overlooked as evolutionary biology sought to accommodate itself to a model of scientific explanation that involved appeals to laws of nature. These scientific aspirations of evolutionary biology sometimes sit uncomfortably with its historical dimension. This tension lies beneath recent philosophical critiques of evolutionary theory and its modes of explanation. Such critiques, however, overlook the fact that there are legitimate modes of historical explanation that do not require recourse to laws of nature. But responding to these criticisms calls for a more explicit recognition of the affinities between evolutionary biology and history. Crown Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Cooperative Learning about Nature of Science with a Case from the History of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wolfensberger, Balz; Canella, Claudia

    2015-01-01

    This paper reports a predominantly qualitative classroom study on cooperative learning about nature of science (NOS) using a case from the history of science. The purpose of the research was to gain insight into how students worked with the historical case study during cooperative group work, how students and teachers assessed the teaching unit,…

  1. From the History of Science to the History of Knowledge - and Back.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Renn, Jürgen

    2015-02-01

    The history of science can be better understood against the background of a history of knowledge comprising not only theoretical but also intuitive and practical knowledge. This widening of scope necessitates a more concise definition of the concept of knowledge, relating its cognitive to its material and social dimensions. The history of knowledge comprises the history of institutions in which knowledge is produced and transmitted. This is an essential but hitherto neglected aspect of cultural evolution. Taking this aspect into account one is led to the concept of extended evolution, which integrates the perspectives of niche construction and complex regulative networks. The paper illustrates this concept using four examples: the emergence of language, the Neolithic revolution, the invention of writing and the origin of mechanics.

  2. Cosmic Times: Astronomy History and Science for the Classroom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lochner, James C.; Mattson, B.

    2008-05-01

    Cosmic Times is a series of curriculum support materials and classroom activities for upper middle school and high school students which teach the nature of science by exploring the history of our understanding of the universe during the past 100 years. Starting with the confirmation of Einstein's theory of gravity in 1919 to the current conundrum posed by the discovery of dark energy, Cosmic Times examines the discoveries, the theories, and the people involved in this changing [understanding] of the universe. Cosmic Times takes the form of 6 posters, each resembling the front page of a newspaper from a particular time in this history with articles describing the discoveries. Each poster is accompanied by 4-5 classroom lessons which enable students to examine the science concepts behind the discoveries, develop techniques to improve science literacy, and investigate the nature of science using historical examples. Cosmic Times directly connects with the IYA theme of Astronomy in the Classroom, as well as the general theme of the impact of astronomy history. Cosmic Times has been developed with a freelance writer to write the articles for the posters, a group of teachers to develop the lessons, and evaluator to provide testing of the materials with a group of rural teachers in underserved communities. This poster presentation previews the Cosmic Times materials, which are posted on http://cosmictimes.gsfc.nasa.gov/ as they become available. Cosmic Times is funded in part via a NASA IDEAS grant.

  3. Documenting Collections: Cornerstones for More History of Science in Museums

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lourenço, Marta C.; Gessner, Samuel

    2014-01-01

    Historians of science have recently become increasingly involved with collections and scientific instruments. This creates opportunities for a more significant role of history in museums of science, as well as more meaningful and contextualized exhibitions and educational programmes. However, complementing the mainstream focus on universal…

  4. Philosophy, history and sociology of science: interdisciplinary relations and complex social identities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riesch, Hauke

    2014-12-01

    Sociology and philosophy of science have an uneasy relationship, while the marriage of history and philosophy of science has--on the surface at least--been more successful I will take a sociological look at the history of the relationships between philosophy and history as well as philosophy and sociology of science. Interdisciplinary relations between these disciplines will be analysed through social identity complexity theory in oider to draw out some conclusions on how the disciplines interact and how they might develop. I will use the relationships between the disciplines as a pointer for a more general social theory of interdisciplinarity which will then be used to sound a caution on how interdisciplinary relations between the three disciplines might be managed.

  5. Intersections of life histories and science identities: the stories of three preservice elementary teachers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Avraamidou, Lucy

    2016-03-01

    Grounded within Connelly and Clandinin's conceptualization of teachers' professional identity in terms of 'stories to live by' and through a life-history lens, this multiple case study aimed to respond to the following questions: (a) How do three preservice elementary teachers view themselves as future science teachers? (b) How have the participants' life histories shaped their science identity trajectories? In order to characterize the participants' formation of science identities over time, various data regarding their life histories in relation to science were collected: science biographies, self-portraits, interviews, reflective journals, lesson plans, and classroom observations. The analysis of the data illustrated how the three participants' identities have been in formation from the early years of their lives and how various events, experiences, and interactions had shaped their identities through time and across contexts. These findings are discussed alongside implications for theory, specifically, identity and life-history intersections, for teacher preparation, and for research related to explorations of beginning elementary teachers' identity trajectories.

  6. Heuristic Diagrams as a Tool to Teach History of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chamizo, José A.

    2012-05-01

    The graphic organizer called here heuristic diagram as an improvement of Gowin's Vee heuristic is proposed as a tool to teach history of science. Heuristic diagrams have the purpose of helping students (or teachers, or researchers) to understand their own research considering that asks and problem-solving are central to scientific activity. The left side originally related in Gowin's Vee with philosophies, theories, models, laws or regularities now agrees with Toulmin's concepts (language, models as representation techniques and application procedures). Mexican science teachers without experience in science education research used the heuristic diagram to learn about the history of chemistry considering also in the left side two different historical times: past and present. Through a semantic differential scale teachers' attitude to the heuristic diagram was evaluated and its usefulness was demonstrated.

  7. Sandia National Laboratories: Microsystems Science & Technology Center

    Science.gov (United States)

    Environmental Management System Pollution Prevention History 60 impacts Diversity Locations Facts & Figures Programs Nuclear Weapons About Nuclear Weapons Safety & Security Weapons Science & Technology Robotics R&D 100 Awards Laboratory Directed Research & Development Technology Deployment Centers

  8. What's Wrong with Talking about the Scientific Revolution? Applying Lessons from History of Science to Applied Fields of Science Studies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Orthia, Lindy A.

    2016-01-01

    Since the mid-twentieth century, the 'Scientific Revolution' has arguably occupied centre stage in most Westerners', and many non-Westerners', conceptions of science history. Yet among history of science specialists that position has been profoundly contested. Most radically, historians Andrew Cunningham and Perry Williams in 1993 proposed to…

  9. Computation of Probabilities in Causal Models of History of Science

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Osvaldo Pessoa Jr.

    2006-12-01

    Full Text Available : The aim of this paper is to investigate the ascription of probabilities in a causal model of an episode in the history of science. The aim of such a quantitative approach is to allow the implementation of the causal model in a computer, to run simulations. As an example, we look at the beginning of the science of magnetism, “explaining” — in a probabilistic way, in terms of a single causal model — why the field advanced in China but not in Europe (the difference is due to different prior probabilities of certain cultural manifestations. Given the number of years between the occurrences of two causally connected advances X and Y, one proposes a criterion for stipulating the value pY=X of the conditional probability of an advance Y occurring, given X. Next, one must assume a specific form for the cumulative probability function pY=X(t, which we take to be the time integral of an exponential distribution function, as is done in physics of radioactive decay. Rules for calculating the cumulative functions for more than two events are mentioned, involving composition, disjunction and conjunction of causes. We also consider the problems involved in supposing that the appearance of events in time follows an exponential distribution, which are a consequence of the fact that a composition of causes does not follow an exponential distribution, but a “hypoexponential” one. We suggest that a gamma distribution function might more adequately represent the appearance of advances.

  10. History, Philosophy, and Science in a Social Perspective: A Pedagogical Project

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guerra, Andreia; Braga, Marco; Reis, Jose Claudio

    2013-01-01

    Various studies have promoted instruction in the history and philosophy of science (HPS) in science classes, but the best way of putting this perspective into practice remains undetermined. To contribute to this issue, we developed a pedagogical project in some high schools in Brazil that aimed to present science content using an…

  11. Beautiful Science: The Public and Private History of Astronomy at the Huntington Library

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lewis, Daniel

    2009-05-01

    The history of astronomy has a long tradition within research libraries. The rare collections at the Huntington Library (encompassing American and British history from around 1000 CE to the present, in many different subject areas) are among the most heavily-used in the United States, The history of astronomy holdings are a cornerstone within the library's history of science holdings. This talk will present the two faces of the history of astronomy holdings at the Huntington Library. The first of these is the research end of operations: what the collections consist of, how the scholarly public uses the collections, and what the implications are for modern astronomical practice. The second element concerns the public exhibit face of the history of astronomy holdings at The Huntington. Of the 600,000 people who visit the Huntington each year, the majority visit public displays and rare book and manuscript exhibits. "Beautiful Science: Ideas That Changed the World” is a new permanent history of science exhibit. One quarter of the exhibit relates to the history of astronomy. Public exhibits require a particular kind of planning and bring a specific set of values to the history of astronomy. Public exhibits also have their own concerns, and this talk will cover a number of those issues as well as the research issues.

  12. History and Philosophy of Science as a Guide to Understanding Nature of Science

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mansoor Niaz

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Nature of science (NOS is considered to be a controversial topic by historians, philosophers of science and science educators. It is paradoxical that we all teach science and still have difficulties in understanding what science is and how it develops and progresses. A major obstacle in understanding NOS is that science is primarily ‘unnatural’, that is it cannot be learned by a simple observation of phenomena. In most parts of the world history and philosophy of science are ‘inside’ science content and as such can guide our understanding of NOS. However, some science educators consider the ‘historical turn’ as dated and hence neglect the historical approach and instead emphasize the model based naturalist view of science. The objective of this presentation is to show that the historical approach is very much a part of teaching science and actually complements naturalism. Understanding NOS generally requires two aspects of science: Domain general and domain specific. In the classroom this can be illustrated by discussing the atomic models developed in the early 20th century which constitute the domain specific aspect of NOS. This can then lead to an understanding of the tentative nature of science that is a domain general aspect of NOS. A review of the literature in science education reveals three views (among others of understanding NOS: a Consensus view: It attempts to include only those domain-general NOS aspects that are the least controversial (Lederman, Abd-El-Khalick; b Family resemblance view: Based on the ideas of Wittgenstein, this view promotes science as a cognitive system (Irzik, Nola; c Integrated view: this view postulates that both domain general and domain specific aspects of NOS are not dichotomous but rather need to be integrated and are essential if we want students to understand ‘science in the making’ (Niaz. The following framework helps to facilitate integration: i Elaboration of a theoretical framework

  13. Exploring the Intersections of Science and History Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hughes, Catherine; Cosbey, Allison

    2016-01-01

    How can history museums incorporate Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) activities while preserving their missions and identities? How do interdisciplinary experiences lead to learning? A cross-institutional exhibit development and evaluation team wrestled with these ideas as they developed "Create.Connect," an National…

  14. Seven decades of history of science: I. Bernard Cohen (1914-2003), second editor of Isis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dauben, Joseph W; Gleason, Mary Louise; Smith, George E

    2009-03-01

    I. Bernard Cohen (1914-2003), the first American to receive a Ph.D. in history of science, was a Harvard undergraduate ('37) and then a Ph.D. student and protégé of George Sarton, founder of Isis and the History of Science Society. He went on to succeed Sarton as editor of Isis (1952-1958) and, later, president of the Society (1961-1962); he was also a president of the International Union of the History and Philosophy of Science. Cohen was an internationally recognized Newton scholar; his interests were encyclopedic, ranging from science and public policy to the history of computers, with several decades as a special consultant for history of computing with IBM. Among his hundreds of publications were such major books as Franklin and Newton (1956), The Birth of a New Physics (1959; rpt., 1985), The Newtonian Revolution (1980), Revolution in Science (1985), Science and the Founding Fathers (1995), Howard Aiken: Portrait of a Computer Pioneer (1999), and his last book, The Triumph of Numbers (2005), not to mention two jointly authored contributions, the variorum edition and new English translation of Newton's Principia, which will surely still be read a century from now.

  15. Sketching together the modern histories of science, technology, and medicine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pickstone, John V

    2011-03-01

    This essay explores ways to "write together" the awkwardly jointed histories of "science" and "me dicine"--but it also includes other "arts" (in the old sense) and technologies. It draws especially on the historiography of medicine, but I try to use terms that are applicable across all of science, technology, and medicine (STM). I stress the variety of knowledges and practices in play at any time and the ways in which the ensembles change. I focus on the various relations of "science" and "medicine," as they were understood for a succession of periods--from mainly agricultural societies, through industrial societies, to our biomedical present--trying to sketch a history that encompasses daily practices and understandings as well as major conceptual and technical innovations. The model is meant to facilitate inquiry across topics and across times, including those to come.

  16. From the History of Science to the History of Knowledge – and Back

    Science.gov (United States)

    Renn, Jürgen

    2015-01-01

    The history of science can be better understood against the background of a history of knowledge comprising not only theoretical but also intuitive and practical knowledge. This widening of scope necessitates a more concise definition of the concept of knowledge, relating its cognitive to its material and social dimensions. The history of knowledge comprises the history of institutions in which knowledge is produced and transmitted. This is an essential but hitherto neglected aspect of cultural evolution. Taking this aspect into account one is led to the concept of extended evolution, which integrates the perspectives of niche construction and complex regulative networks. The paper illustrates this concept using four examples: the emergence of language, the Neolithic revolution, the invention of writing and the origin of mechanics. PMID:25684777

  17. Fuels planning: science synthesis and integration; environmental consequences fact sheet 05: prescriptions and fire effects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Melanie Miller

    2004-01-01

    Fuels planning: science synthesis and integration; environmental consequences fact sheet 5: prescriptions and fire effects. Miller, Melanie. 2004. Res. Note RMRS-RN-23-5-WWW. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. 2 p. While our understanding of the causes for variation in postfire effects is increasing, burn...

  18. A historian among scientists: reflections on archiving the history of science in postcolonial India.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chowdhury, Indira

    2013-06-01

    How might we overcome the lack of archival resources while doing the history of science in India? Offering reflections on the nature of archival resources that could be collected for scientific institutions and the need for new interpretative tools with which to understand these resources, this essay argues for the use of oral history in order to understand the practices of science in the postcolonial context. The oral history of science can become a tool with which to understand the hidden interactions between the world of scientific institutions and the larger world of the postcolonial nation.

  19. The Natural Science Underlying Big History

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eric J. Chaisson

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Nature’s many varied complex systems—including galaxies, stars, planets, life, and society—are islands of order within the increasingly disordered Universe. All organized systems are subject to physical, biological, or cultural evolution, which together comprise the grander interdisciplinary subject of cosmic evolution. A wealth of observational data supports the hypothesis that increasingly complex systems evolve unceasingly, uncaringly, and unpredictably from big bang to humankind. These are global history greatly extended, big history with a scientific basis, and natural history broadly portrayed across ∼14 billion years of time. Human beings and our cultural inventions are not special, unique, or apart from Nature; rather, we are an integral part of a universal evolutionary process connecting all such complex systems throughout space and time. Such evolution writ large has significant potential to unify the natural sciences into a holistic understanding of who we are and whence we came. No new science (beyond frontier, nonequilibrium thermodynamics is needed to describe cosmic evolution’s major milestones at a deep and empirical level. Quantitative models and experimental tests imply that a remarkable simplicity underlies the emergence and growth of complexity for a wide spectrum of known and diverse systems. Energy is a principal facilitator of the rising complexity of ordered systems within the expanding Universe; energy flows are as central to life and society as they are to stars and galaxies. In particular, energy rate density—contrasting with information content or entropy production—is an objective metric suitable to gauge relative degrees of complexity among a hierarchy of widely assorted systems observed throughout the material Universe. Operationally, those systems capable of utilizing optimum amounts of energy tend to survive, and those that cannot are nonrandomly eliminated.

  20. [The new history of science: an interview with Dominique Pestre].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pestre, Dominique; Romero, Mariza

    2016-01-01

    Originally a physicist, Dominique Pestre is now a leading historian of science, particularly in the realm of the transformations that have marked the history of science and technology in recent decades. In this interview, he offers some of his thoughts on the role of science and knowledge in our contemporary world. He underscores the deep bonds between scientific knowledge and political and economic power and makes clear society's participation in this production. Critical of the notion of progress, Pestre invites us to also take the prejudicial effects of science into account.

  1. Reflections on the History of Science and Technology in Austria

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Broda, E.

    1972-01-01

    This text was written for a talk given by E. Broda in Vienna on the symposium “The future of Science a Technology” held within the framework of the Austrian National Day in Vienna in 1972 and it addresses amongst other Victor Weisskopf. The text is about reflections on the history of science and technology in Austria. (nowak)

  2. The history and science of the Manhatten project

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Reed, Bruce Cameron

    2014-01-01

    This is the only popular-level history of the Project prepared by a writer who is a physicist and who has broad knowledge of the relevant scientific details. Ideal for readers who have no specialized scientific background but who want to learn more about how atomic bombs came to be. Relevant scientific concepts are explained in the text as they are needed. For readers who do possess some scientific background (high-school physics), this book will provide a deeper understanding of some of the technical issues involved in developing atomic bombs. An ideal text for a college-level ''general education'' history or science class. Based on years of research by the author into the physics of nuclear weapons, augmented by familiarity with relevant official archival documentation. The development of atomic bombs under the auspices of the U. S. Army's Manhattan Project during World War II is considered to be the outstanding news story of the twentieth century. In this book, a physicist and expert on the history of the Project presents a comprehensive overview of this momentous achievement. The first three chapters cover the history of nuclear physics from the discovery of radioactivity to the discovery of fission, and would be ideal for instructors of a sophomore-level ''Modern Physics'' course. Student-level exercises at the ends of the chapters are accompanied by answers. Chapter 7 covers the physics of first-generation fission weapons at a similar level, again accompanied by exercises and answers. For the interested layman and for non-science students and instructors, the book includes extensive qualitative material on the history, organization, implementation, and results of the Manhattan Project and the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing missions. The reader also learns about the legacy of the Project as reflected in the current world stockpiles of nuclear weapons.

  3. The history and science of the Manhatten project

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Reed, Bruce Cameron [Alma College, Alma, MI (United States). Dept. of Physics

    2014-03-01

    This is the only popular-level history of the Project prepared by a writer who is a physicist and who has broad knowledge of the relevant scientific details. Ideal for readers who have no specialized scientific background but who want to learn more about how atomic bombs came to be. Relevant scientific concepts are explained in the text as they are needed. For readers who do possess some scientific background (high-school physics), this book will provide a deeper understanding of some of the technical issues involved in developing atomic bombs. An ideal text for a college-level ''general education'' history or science class. Based on years of research by the author into the physics of nuclear weapons, augmented by familiarity with relevant official archival documentation. The development of atomic bombs under the auspices of the U. S. Army's Manhattan Project during World War II is considered to be the outstanding news story of the twentieth century. In this book, a physicist and expert on the history of the Project presents a comprehensive overview of this momentous achievement. The first three chapters cover the history of nuclear physics from the discovery of radioactivity to the discovery of fission, and would be ideal for instructors of a sophomore-level ''Modern Physics'' course. Student-level exercises at the ends of the chapters are accompanied by answers. Chapter 7 covers the physics of first-generation fission weapons at a similar level, again accompanied by exercises and answers. For the interested layman and for non-science students and instructors, the book includes extensive qualitative material on the history, organization, implementation, and results of the Manhattan Project and the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing missions. The reader also learns about the legacy of the Project as reflected in the current world stockpiles of nuclear weapons.

  4. The social construction of facts and artefacts: or How the sociology of science and the sociology of technology might benefit each other

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Pinch, Trevor J.; Bijker, Wiebe E.

    1984-01-01

    The need for an integrated social constructivist approach towards the study of science and technology is outlined. Within such a programme both scientific facts and technological artefacts are to be understood as social constructs. Literature on the sociology of science, the science-technology

  5. Misrepresentations of Indigenous History and Science: Public Broadcasting, the Internet, and Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iseke-Barnes, Judy

    2005-01-01

    This paper examines the role of history in power relations which suppress Indigenous knowledges. History is located as being about power and about how the powerful maintain their power. The paper further examines the Bering Strait theory/myth and ways that discourses in history combine with discourses in science to devalue Indigenous knowledges.…

  6. The Effect of Using the History of Sciences on Conceptual Understanding and Intrinsic Motivation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blizak, Djanette

    2017-01-01

    This study investigates the effect of using the history of science in teaching geometrical optics on the motivation and conceptual understanding of first year university students. For this purpose, 54 students were randomly selected, then divided into two groups: the experimental group was taught by using history of science before traditional…

  7. History of Science in the Physics Curriculum: A Directed Content Analysis of Historical Sources

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seker, Hayati; Guney, Burcu G.

    2012-01-01

    Although history of science is a potential resource for instructional materials, teachers do not have a tendency to use historical materials in their lessons. Studies showed that instructional materials should be adaptable and consistent with curriculum. This study purports to examine the alignment between history of science and the curriculum in…

  8. Anesthesia Fact Sheet

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Education About NIGMS NIGMS Home > Science Education > Anesthesia Anesthesia Tagline (Optional) Middle/Main Content Area En español ... Version (464 KB) Other Fact Sheets What is anesthesia? Anesthesia is a medical treatment that prevents patients ...

  9. Hitting two birds with one stone: An afterword on archeology and the history of science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brusius, Mirjam

    2017-09-01

    This afterword comments on the articles gathered together in this special section of History of Science ("Disassembling Archaeology, Reassembling the Modern World"). Criticizing the consistent lack of institutional infrastructure for histories of archaeology in the history of science, the piece argues that scholars should recognize the commonality of archaeology's practices with those of the nineteenth and twentieth century field sciences that have received more historical attention. The piece also suggests avenues to help take this approach further, such as combining expertise from historians of the biological sciences and of antiquarianism and archaeology to look at the history of the understanding of human variation and race. Finally, the afterword suggests that scholars should reconsider the idea of archaeology's reliance on institutionalised practices, thinking about the use and re-use of material culture in more diverse and pragmatic social contexts.

  10. Ordering the discipline: classification in the history of science. Introduction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weldon, Stephen P

    2013-09-01

    Classification of the history of science has a long history, and the essays in this Focus section explore that history and its consequences from several different angles. Two of the papers deal with how classifying schemes in bibliography have evolved. A third looks at the way archival organization has changed over the years. Finally, the last essay explores the intersection of human and machine classifying systems. All four contributions look closely at the ramifications of the digital revolution for the way we organize the knowledge of the discipline.

  11. Is psychological science a-cultural?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gone, Joseph P

    2011-07-01

    The history of psychological science, as it has intersected with ethnoracial, cultural, and other marginalized domains of group difference, is replete with disinterest, dismissal, or denigration of these diverse forms of psychological experience. This has led some to wonder whether psychological science is a-cultural, or even anti-cultural in orientation. Assessment of this provocative proposition first requires exploration of three composite questions: (1) What is culture?, (2) What is science?, and (3) What is psychological science? Based on brief consideration of these composite questions--which are remarkably complex in their own right--I argue that psychological science is not, has never been, and indeed cannot in principle be a-cultural. Instead, like all forms of knowing, psychological science emerges at particular historical moments to achieve particular goals that are motivated by particular interests. Throughout much of the history of psychological science, these goals and interests were tied to ideologically suspect agendas that contemporary psychologists are right to repudiate. The interesting question becomes whether psychology's knowledge practices can be disentangled from this earlier ideological contamination to furnish the discipline with viable methods. I propose that psychological science can in fact be so disentangled; nevertheless, the resulting methods are never adopted or deployed outside of culturally constituted interests, objectives, and motivations, thereby requiring ongoing critical engagement with the subtexts of disciplinary knowledge production. In fact, there seem to be important ways in which psychology's scientific aspirations hobble disciplinary inquiry into the human condition that has motivated multicultural psychologists to consider alternative paradigms of inquiry.

  12. Physics Teachers' Challenges in Using History and Philosophy of Science in Teaching

    Science.gov (United States)

    Henke, Andreas; Höttecke, Dietmar

    2015-01-01

    The inclusion of the history and philosophy of science (HPS) in science teaching is widely accepted, but the actual state of implementation in schools is still poor. This article investigates possible reasons for this discrepancy. The demands science teachers associate with HPS-based teaching play an important role, since these determine teachers'…

  13. The life of concepts: Georges Canguilhem and the history of science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schmidgen, Henning

    2014-01-01

    Twelve years after his famous Essay on Some Problems Concerning the Normal and the Pathological (1943), the philosopher Georges Canguilhem (1904-1995) published a book-length study on the history of a single biological concept. Within France, his Formation of the Reflex Concept in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries (1955) contributed significantly to defining the "French style" of writing on the history of science. Outside of France, the book passed largely unnoticed. This paper re-reads Canguilhem's study of the reflex concept with respect to its historiographical and epistemological implications. Canguilhem defines concepts as complex and dynamic entities combining terms, definitions, and phenomena. As a consequence, the historiography of science becomes a rather complex task. It has to take into account textual and contextual aspects that develop independently of individual authors. In addition, Canguilhem stresses the connection between conceptual activities and other functions of organic individuals in their respective environments. As a result, biological concepts become tied to a biology of conceptual thinking, analogical reasoning, and technological practice. The paper argues that this seemingly circular structure is a major feature in Canguilhem's philosophical approach to the history of the biological sciences.

  14. Promotion of Cultural Content Knowledge through the Use of the History and Philosophy of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Galili, Igal

    2012-01-01

    Historical excurse was suggested as a beneficial form of using the history and philosophy of science in the modules of learning materials developed within the History and Philosophy in Science Teaching project. The paper briefly describes the theoretical framework of the produced modules, addressing ontological and epistemological aspects of…

  15. Concurrent phenomena of science and history in the 17th century and their essential interdependence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bloch, H.

    1992-01-01

    The explanation for the explosion of science in the 17th century lies in history and medical historiography. Without this approach, it becomes fantasy, accidents, or success stories. Sigerist grasped the essential interdependence of science and history, and had no need for devised reasons or speculation. He realized that once the dark night of the Middle Ages was over, the sciences arose with undreamt of force and accelerated development. The advances in astronomy, mathematics, mechanics, and experimental science benefitted a society developing in seafaring, manufacture, and trade in the 17th century. Sigerist's views make the scientific explosion understandable in human and social terms. He did not overlook the capabilities of some extraordinary individuals, such as Paracelsus (1493-1541), to shape the course of medicine, nor the importance of the mechanistic philosophy in the 17th century. Man makes history and science; hence, we find concurrent phenomena of history and science essentially interdependent. The spirit of experimental science of 17th century England was inspired by the new needs of commercial enterprise for more means of transportation and communication. Likewise, the interest in the mechanics of the pump for waterworks and for the drainage of swamps led Harvey to think of the heart as a pump, and to explain the circulation of the blood in terms of its functioning. PMID:1608066

  16. William Whewell, Galileo, and reconceptualizing the history of science and religion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, David B

    2011-12-20

    This paper advocates a reconceptualization of the history of science and religion. It is an approach to the subject that would aid research by historians of science as well as their message to others, both academic and non-academic. The approach is perfectly illustrated by the life and ideas of William Whewell and Galileo.

  17. Superhero science: from fiction to fact

    Science.gov (United States)

    Follows, Michael

    2017-11-01

    At the 2016 Manchester Science Festival, a team of like-minded scientists came together to try to suss out the real-world science behind everything from Wonder Woman's lasso to the Hulk's gigantic transformation. The result is The Secret Science of Superheroes- an eclectic collection of essays.

  18. Science Fairs and Observational Science: A Case History from Earth Orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lowman, Paul D., Jr.; Smith, David E. (Technical Monitor)

    2002-01-01

    Having judged dozens of science fairs over the years, I am repeatedly disturbed by the ground rules under which students must prepare their entries. They are almost invariably required to follow the "scientific method," involving formulating a hypothesis, a test of the hypothesis, and then a project in which this test is carried out. As a research scientist for over 40 years, I consider this approach to science fairs fundamentally unsound. It is not only too restrictive, but actually avoids the most important (and difficult) part of scientific research: recognizing a scientific problem in the first place. A well-known example is one of the problems that, by his own account, stimulated Einstein's theory of special relativity: the obvious fact that when an electric current is induced in a conductor by a magnetic field , it makes no difference whether the field or the conductor is actually (so to speak) moving. There is in other words no such thing as absolute motion. Physics was transformed by Einstein's recognition of a problem. Most competent scientists can solve problems after they have been recognized and a hypothesis properly formulated, but the ability to find problems in the first Place is much rarer. Getting down to specifics, the "scientific method" under which almost all students must operate is actually the experimental method, involving controlled variables, one of which, ideally, is changed at a time. However, there is another type of science that can be called observational science. As it happens, almost all the space research I have carried out since 1959 has been this type, not experimental science.

  19. Initiating and continuing participation in citizen science for natural history.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Everett, Glyn; Geoghegan, Hilary

    2016-07-22

    Natural history has a long tradition in the UK, dating back to before Charles Darwin. Developing from a principally amateur pursuit, natural history continues to attract both amateur and professional involvement. Within the context of citizen science and public engagement, we examine the motivations behind citizen participation in the national survey activities of the Open Air Laboratories (OPAL) programme, looking at: people's experiences of the surveys as 'project-based leisure'; their motivations for taking part and barriers to continued participation; where they feature on our continuum of engagement; and whether participation in an OPAL survey facilitated their movement between categories along this continuum. The paper focuses on a less-expected but very significant outcome regarding the participation of already-engaged amateur naturalists in citizen science. Our main findings relate to: first, how committed amateur naturalists (already-engaged) have also enjoyed contributing to OPAL and the need to respect and work with their interest to encourage broader and deeper involvement; and second, how new (previously-unengaged) and relatively new participants (casually-engaged) have gained confidence, renewed their interests, refocussed their activities and/or gained validation from participation in OPAL. Overall, we argue that engagement with and enthusiasm for the scientific process is a motivation shared by citizens who, prior to participating in the OPAL surveys, were previously-unengaged, casually-engaged or already-engaged in natural history activities. Citizen science has largely been written about by professional scientists for professional scientists interested in developing a project of their own. This study offers a qualitative example of how citizen science can be meaningful to participants beyond what might appear to be a public engagement data collection exercise.

  20. History and Philosophy of Science through Models: The Case of Chemical Kinetics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Justi, Rosaria; Gilbert, John K.

    1999-01-01

    A greater role for the history and philosophy of science in science education can only be realized if it is based on both a credible analytical approach--such as that of Lakatos--and if the evolution of a sufficient number of major themes in science is known in suitable detail. Considers chemical kinetics as an example topic. Contains 62…

  1. Mendel in Genetics Teaching: Some Contributions from History of Science and Articles for Teachers

    Science.gov (United States)

    El-Hani, Charbel N.

    2015-01-01

    School science descriptions about Mendel and his story are problematic because several statements that are controversial among historians of science are repeated over and over again as if they were established facts. Another problem is the neglect of other scientists working on inheritance in the second half of the nineteenth century, including…

  2. The Use of History of Science Texts in Teaching Science: Two Cases of an Innovative, Constructivist Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koliopoulos, Dimitris; Dossis, Sotiris; Stamoulis, Efthymios

    2007-01-01

    This study proposes an empirical classification of ways to introduce elements of the history of science into science teaching, as well as describing a special way to do so characterized by the introduction of short extracts from historical texts. The aim is to motivate students to participate in problem-solving activities and to transform their…

  3. Exploring global history through the lens of history of Chemistry: Materials, identities and governance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roberts, Lissa

    2016-12-01

    As global history continues to take shape as an important field of research, its interactive relationships with the history of science, technology, and medicine are recognized and being investigated as significant areas of concern. Strangely, despite the fact that it is key to understanding so many of the subjects that are central to global history and would itself benefit from a broader geographical perspective, the history of chemistry has largely been left out of this process - particularly for the modern historical period. This article argues for the value of integrating the history of chemistry with global history, not only for understanding the past, but also for thinking about our shared present and future. Toward this end, it (1) explores the various ways in which 'chemistry' has and can be defined, with special attention to discussions of 'indigenous knowledge systems'; (2) examines the benefits of organizing historical inquiry around the evolving sociomaterial identities of substances; (3) considers ways in which the concepts of 'chemical governance' and 'chemical expertise' can be expanded to match the complexities of global history, especially in relation to environmental issues, climate change, and pollution; and (4) seeks to sketch the various geographies entailed in bringing the history of chemistry together with global histories.

  4. A Teaching-Learning Sequence of Colour Informed by History and Philosophy of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maurício, Paulo; Valente, Bianor; Chagas, Isabel

    2017-01-01

    In this work, we present a teaching-learning sequence on colour intended to a pre-service elementary teacher programme informed by History and Philosophy of Science. Working in a socio-constructivist framework, we made an excursion on the history of colour. Our excursion through history of colour, as well as the reported misconception on colour…

  5. A Comparative Framework for Studying the Histories of the Humanities and Science

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bod, R.

    2015-01-01

    While the humanities and the sciences have a closely connected history, there are no general histories that bring the two fields together on an equal footing. This paper argues that there is a level at which some humanistic and scientific disciplines can be brought under a common denominator and

  6. Report on a Boston University Conference December 7-8, 2012 on How Can the History and Philosophy of Science Contribute to Contemporary US Science Teaching?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garik, Peter; Benétreau-Dupin, Yann

    2014-09-01

    This is an editorial report on the outcomes of an international conference sponsored by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) (REESE-1205273) to the School of Education at Boston University and the Center for Philosophy and History of Science at Boston University for a conference titled: How Can the History and Philosophy of Science Contribute to Contemporary US Science Teaching? The presentations of the conference speakers and the reports of the working groups are reviewed. Multiple themes emerged for K-16 education from the perspective of the history and philosophy of science. Key ones were that: students need to understand that central to science is argumentation, criticism, and analysis; students should be educated to appreciate science as part of our culture; students should be educated to be science literate; what is meant by the nature of science as discussed in much of the science education literature must be broadened to accommodate a science literacy that includes preparation for socioscientific issues; teaching for science literacy requires the development of new assessment tools; and, it is difficult to change what science teachers do in their classrooms. The principal conclusions drawn by the editors are that: to prepare students to be citizens in a participatory democracy, science education must be embedded in a liberal arts education; science teachers alone cannot be expected to prepare students to be scientifically literate; and, to educate students for scientific literacy will require a new curriculum that is coordinated across the humanities, history/social studies, and science classrooms.

  7. Science and society the history of modern physical science in the twentieth century

    CERN Document Server

    Gordin, Michael; Kaiser, David

    2001-01-01

    Modern science has changed every aspect of life in ways that cannot be compared to developments of previous eras. This four volume set presents key developments within modern physical science and the effects of these discoveries on modern global life. The first two volumes explore the history of the concept of relativity, the cultural roots of science, the concept of time and gravity before, during, and after Einstein's theory, and the cultural reception of relativity. Volume three explores the impact of modern science upon global politics and the creation of a new kind of war, and Volume four details the old and new efforts surrounding the elucidation of the quantum world, as well as the cultural impact of particle physics. The collection also presents the historical and cultural context that made these scientific innovations possible. The transformation of everyday concepts of time and space for the individual and for society, the conduct of warfare, and the modern sense of mastering nature are all issues d...

  8. Teaching the History and Philosophy of Science in Secondary Schools.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frazier, Kenneth L.

    1980-01-01

    Lists educational objectives, course syllabus, audiovisual materials, and bibliography for a secondary school course on the history and philosophy of science. The class consists of discussions, lectures, use of film and filmstrips, and student research papers. (KC)

  9. Focus: Bounded Rationality and the History of Science. Introduction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cowles, Henry M; Deringer, William; Dick, Stephanie; Webster, Colin

    2015-09-01

    Historians of science see knowledge and its claimants as constrained by myriad factors. These limitations range from the assumptions and commitments of scientific practitioners to the material and ideational contexts of their practice. The precise nature of such limits and the relations among them remains an open question in the history of science. The essays in this Focus section address this question by examining one influential portrayal of constraints--Herbert Simon's theory of "bounded rationality"--as well as the responses to which it has given rise over the last half century.

  10. The seeds and the worms: Ludwik Fleck and the early history of germ theories

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Brorson, Stig

    2006-01-01

    -scientific "proto-ideas." In 1935, Fleck proposed that the history of germ theories could be approached through his thesis on proto-ideas. His proposal, however, remained little more than a vague suggestion and was never developed in further detail. This paper introduces the concept of proto-ideas and discusses...... the central epistemological and historiographical implications of Fleck's thesis. The Fleckian approach offers an attractive alternative to positivist reconstructions of the early history of germ theories and provides a useful framework for a deeper understanding of the sociocultural background......The Polish microbiologist and philosopher of science, Ludwik Fleck (1896-1961), was a pioneer in constructivist history and philosophy of science. Based on studies in the history of syphilis, Fleck hypothesized that many established scientific facts are linked, in their development, to pre...

  11. Structural Biology Fact Sheet

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... NIGMS NIGMS Home > Science Education > Structural Biology Structural Biology Tagline (Optional) Middle/Main Content Area PDF Version (688 KB) Other Fact Sheets What is structural biology? Structural biology is the study of how biological ...

  12. The history and science of the Manhattan project

    CERN Document Server

    Reed, Bruce Cameron

    2014-01-01

    The development of atomic bombs under the auspices of the U. S. Army’s Manhattan Project during World War II is considered to be the outstanding news story of the twentieth century. In this book, a physicist and expert on the history of the Project presents a comprehensive overview of this momentous achievement. The first three chapters cover the history of nuclear physics from the discovery of radioactivity to the discovery of fission, and would be ideal for instructors of a sophomore-level “Modern Physics” course. Student-level exercises at the ends of the chapters are accompanied by answers. Chapter 7 covers the physics of first-generation fission weapons at a similar level, again accompanied by exercises and answers. For the interested layman and for non-science students and instructors, the book includes extensive qualitative material on the history, organization, implementation, and results of the Manhattan Project and the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing missions. The reader also learns about the l...

  13. History and Nature of Science in High School: Building up Parameters to Guide Educational Materials and Strategies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Forato, Thais Cyrino de Mello; Martins, Roberto de Andrade; Pietrocola, Mauricio

    2012-01-01

    This article presents the main results of a research examining the didactic transposition of history and philosophy of science in high school level. The adaptation of history of science to this particular level, addressing some aspects of the nature of science aiming at the students' critical engagement, was analyzed by examining both the…

  14. Science in Cinema. Teaching Science Fact through Science Fiction Films.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dubeck, Leroy W.; And Others

    Many feel that secondary school graduates are not prepared to compete in a world of rapidly expanding technology. High school and college students in the United States often prefer fantasy to science. This book offers a strategy for overcoming student apathy toward the physical sciences by harnessing the power of the cinema. In it, ten popular…

  15. The Development of Dalton's Atomic Theory as a Case Study in the History of Science: Reflections for Educators in Chemistry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Viana, Helio Elael Bonini; Porto, Paulo Alves

    2010-01-01

    The inclusion of the history of science in science curricula--and specially, in the curricula of science teachers--is a trend that has been followed in several countries. The reasons advanced for the study of the history of science are manifold. This paper presents a case study in the history of chemistry, on the early developments of John…

  16. Second-Career Science Teachers' Classroom Conceptions of Science and Engineering Practices Examined through the Lens of Their Professional Histories

    Science.gov (United States)

    Antink-Meyer, Allison; Brown, Ryan A.

    2017-01-01

    Science standards in the U.S. have shifted to emphasise science and engineering process skills (i.e. specific practices within inquiry) to a greater extent than previous standards' emphases on broad representations of inquiry. This study examined the alignment between second-career science teachers' personal histories with the latter and examined…

  17. Theoretical development of information science: A brief history

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hjørland, Birger

    2017-01-01

    the strongest “paradigms” in the field is a tradition derived from the Cranfield experiments in the 1960s and the bibliometric research following the publication of Science Citation Index from 1963 and forward. Among the competing theoretical frameworks, ‘the cognitive view’ became influential from the 1970s......This paper presents a brief history of information science (IS) as viewed by the author. The term ‘information science’ goes back to 1955 and evolved in the aftermath of Claude Shannon’s ‘information theory’ (1948), which also inspired research into problems in fields of library science...... and documentation. These subjects were a main focus of what became established as ‘information science’, which from 1964 onwards was often termed ‘library and information science’ (LIS). However, the usefulness of Shannon’s information theory as the theoretical foundation of the field was been challenged. Among...

  18. Taking of history

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Langebæk, Rikke

    2007-01-01

    the smartest student. So the more familiar a student can become with these situations the better. Since september 2006, veterinary students at Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen, have received training in the discipline of history taking, using innovative educational methods: Online......, the students won’t be intimidated by the situation, as they are already familiar with the ‘client’. The ‘client’/teacher must be able to perform as different types of clients to make the sessions more interesting, colourful and fun. During these Live Role sessions, the students will get help and good advice......Learning how to take a history is an extremely important discipline in the education of veterinary students. In our opinion the fact that this discipline is often neglected in traditional teaching is a big mistake. The mere thought of facing a real client can be almost paralysing to even...

  19. Influence of Nature and History of Science Courses on Value Perceptions of Elementary Science Teacher Candidates in Conceptual Dimension in Turkey

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aktamis, Hilal; Higde, Emrah

    2018-01-01

    This study aimed to determine the changes in understanding about the nature of science (NOS) and conceptual values of 28 elementary science teacher candidates who engaged in the instruction of the nature and history of science (NHOS). A values scale was used to determine the values of science teacher candidates in six areas of the conceptual…

  20. History of science content analysis of Chinese science textbooks from the perspective of acculturation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Yongjun; Wan, Yanlan

    2017-08-01

    Based on previous international studies, a content analysis scheme has been designed and used from the perspective of culture to study the history of science (HOS) in science textbooks. Nineteen sets of Chinese science textbooks have been analyzed. It has been found that there are noticeable changes in the quantity, content, layout, presentation, and writing intention of the HOS sections in textbooks from different time periods. What's more, the textbooks aim at presenting the scientific culture and aim to help students understand it better. However, the cultural associations of the HOS in textbooks is insufficient and significant differences exist among textbooks of different subjects. In order to explore the reasons why the presentation of HOS in various subjects is different, we made a specific comparison of curriculum standards of two subjects with great differences and interviewed the editors-in-chief of two textbooks. Results show that one of the most important reasons for the different writings of the HOS in textbooks is that different subject curriculum standards attach greater importance to the HOS. In addition, the attention to the HOS by editors-in-chief, the tradition of studying the HOS within the history of the discipline, and the reference textbooks in compiling textbooks are all important influence factors. Some suggestions for future textbooks compilation are given at the end.

  1. Brain Science and Teaching: A Forty-Year Personal History

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kirby, Linda Faye

    2016-01-01

    This paper is the sharing of a record, the personal history of an educator pursuing an interest in knowledge of the brain. Over the years, this fascination sparked the idea to create a course for teachers based on brain science, with a twist. Certain course assignments would require teachers to interpret knowledge of the brain in the context of…

  2. An Overview of the History of Library Science Teaching Materials.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Metzger, Philip A.

    1986-01-01

    This introduction to, and overview of, history of library science instructional materials covers the Williamson Report, teaching materials from early Columbia days onward, American Library Association book publishing activity, media in curricula and library school publication of syllabi, commercial publishing of textbooks, and periodicals in…

  3. Acid rain science and politics in Japan: a history of knowledge and action toward sustainability

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ken Wilkening

    2004-07-01

    This is a pioneering work in environmental and Asian history as well as an in-depth analysis of the influence of science on domestic and international environmental politics. The book is composed of the following chapters. Chapter 2 introduces the general set of concepts used to analyze the science-politics nexus. These concepts are employed in the remainder of the book to track and explain the relationship between science and policy related to the acid deposition problem in Japan. Chapter 3 discusses nature, culture, and the acid deposition problem in Japan. It begins with a brief introduction to the acid deposition problem in general. It continues with an overview of elements of Japan's natural environment and culture that are relevant to its acid deposition problems. This is followed by a quick sketch of the history of science in Japan, which in turn serves as a preamble for describing in the final section the environmental and acid deposition chronologies used to organize analysis of Japan's acid deposition history. The swath of history between 1868 and the present (circa 2000) is divided into five environmental eras and six acid deposition periods. Chapters 4-9 discuss in detail each of the six acid deposition periods. Chapter 10 synthesizes and summarizes what was learned in the process of analyzing Japan's acid deposition history, and draws lessons that might be applied to the challenge of creating sustainable societies in Japan, Asia, and the rest of the world. An appendix describes the present state of acid deposition science in Japan.

  4. Knowledge of childhood: materiality, text, and the history of science - an interdisciplinary round table discussion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rietmann, Felix; Schildmann, Mareike; Arni, Caroline; Cook, Daniel Thomas; Giuriato, Davide; Göhlsdorf, Novina; Muigai, Wangui

    2017-03-01

    This round table discussion takes the diversity of discourse and practice shaping modern knowledge about childhood as an opportunity to engage with recent historiographical approaches in the history of science. It draws attention to symmetries and references among scientific, material, literary and artistic cultures and their respective forms of knowledge. The five participating scholars come from various fields in the humanities and social sciences and allude to historiographical and methodological questions through a range of examples. Topics include the emergence of children's rooms in US consumer magazines, research on the unborn in nineteenth-century sciences of development, the framing of autism in nascent child psychiatry, German literary discourses about the child's initiation into writing, and the sociopolitics of racial identity in the photographic depiction of African American infant corpses in the early twentieth century. Throughout the course of the paper, childhood emerges as a topic particularly amenable to interdisciplinary perspectives that take the history of science as part of a broader history of knowledge.

  5. Citizen science networks in natural history and the collective validation of biodiversity data.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Turnhout, Esther; Lawrence, Anna; Turnhout, Sander

    2016-06-01

    Biodiversity data are in increasing demand to inform policy and management. A substantial portion of these data is generated in citizen science networks. To ensure the quality of biodiversity data, standards and criteria for validation have been put in place. We used interviews and document analysis from the United Kingdom and The Netherlands to examine how data validation serves as a point of connection between the diverse people and practices in natural history citizen science networks. We found that rather than a unidirectional imposition of standards, validation was performed collectively. Specifically, it was enacted in ongoing circulations of biodiversity records between recorders and validators as they jointly negotiated the biodiversity that was observed and the validity of the records. These collective validation practices contributed to the citizen science character or natural history networks and tied these networks together. However, when biodiversity records were included in biodiversity-information initiatives on different policy levels and scales, the circulation of records diminished. These initiatives took on a more extractive mode of data use. Validation ceased to be collective with important consequences for the natural history networks involved and citizen science more generally. © 2016 The Authors. Conservation Biology published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Society for Conservation Biology.

  6. Book received: Towards a Science of Art History: J. J. Tikkanen and Art Historical Scholarship in Europe and The shaping of Art History in Finland

    OpenAIRE

    Publications of the Society of Art History in Finland

    2010-01-01

    Publications of the Society of Art History in Finland: Towards a Science of Art History: J. J. Tikkanen and Art Historical Scholarship in Europe and The shaping of Art History in Finland, Helsinki 2007 with tables of contents.

  7. Doing science: Lessons learned from the oral histories of women scientists

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koehl, Laura Ann

    The major purpose of this study was to examine, through the use of oral history technique, the lived experiences of seven women scientists and the factors that affected their pursuit of science. Numerous reports indicate that while women are gaining ground in the sciences, they are behind their male counterparts in many areas and continue to face barriers (National Science Foundation Report, 2002; Wilson, 2004). There is still work to be done to understand how gender differences in science participation affect the lives of women scientists (Clewell and Campbell, 2002). The qualitative data from seven women's histories was coded to identify emerging themes in the areas of family life, education and experiences with science. The seven women interviewed represented work in science, technology, engineering and math, had terminal degrees and 10 to 55 years of professional experience. Six themes were identified as major factors in the science careers of these women; experiences with science, support from others, an ethic of care, passions of the mind, self efficacy in science and belonging vs. marginality. Each of these had some impact on each woman's sense of identity as a scientist and their strong sense of agency for accomplishing their career goals. The factors and influences that lead them to their careers speak to the ways in which they were able to overcome any barriers and become successful scientists. The stories of these women present a picture that is both consistent with and offers some challenge to the feminist critique of science. While their stories attest to the predominance of males in science they also refute that image in the way these women were able to create a science career for themselves that is not solely defined by the conditions of a male science. As the feminist critique suggests, gender is an important variable in the factors influencing the pursuit of science. While these women acknowledged the role of gender in their scientific experience

  8. Physics teacher use of the history of science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Winrich, Charles

    The School of Education and the Department of Physics at Boston University offer a sequence of 10 two-credit professional development courses through the Improving the Teaching of Physics (ITOP) project. The ITOP courses combine physics content, readings from the physics education research (PER) literature, and the conceptual history of physics (CHOP). ITOP participants self-report changes to their teaching practices as a result of their participation in ITOP. The purpose of this study was to verify and characterize those changes in the specific area of the participants' use of history after their study of CHOP. Ten recent ITOP participants were observed, interviewed, and asked to provide lesson plans and samples of student work from their classes. Case studies of each participant's teaching were constructed from the data. The individual cases were synthesized to characterize the impact of CHOP on the ITOP participants. The results show that the participants integrate CHOP into their pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) to inform their understanding of: (1) the relationship between physics and other disciplines, (2) the relationship between specific physics concepts, (3) student understanding of physics concepts, (4) student difficulties in learning physics concepts, and (5) methods for teaching physics concepts. The participants use history to teach a variety of topics, although the most common were mechanics and electromagnetism. All of the participants used history to teach aspects of the nature of science (NOS) and to increase student interest in physics, while eight participants taught physics concepts through history. The predominant mode of incorporating history was through adding anecdotes about the scientists who worked on the concepts, but seven participants had their students study the historical development of physical concepts. All the participants discussed a lack of time as a factor that inhibits a greater use of history in their courses. Eight

  9. Life histories of female elementary teachers and their science/teacher role construction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramseur, Aletha Johnson

    The research conducted in this study focuses on life histories of female elementary teachers and their science/teacher role construction. Identity theorists argue that the self consists of a collection of identities founded on occupying a particular role. Who we are depends on the roles we occupy. These roles are often referred to as "role identities". In the case of these participants, many role identities (mother, wife, sibling, and teacher) exist. This study focuses primarily on their (science) teacher role identity. Literature on women's lives, as learners and teachers, suggest that women's experiences, currently and throughout history influenced their teacher role construction. There is however, little knowledge of women's lives as elementary teachers of science and the affect of their experiences, currently and throughout history, on their (science) teacher identity construction. Schools delineated by race, class, and gender relations, are similar to other sectors of society's, social and cultural spheres within which race, class, and gender identities are constructed. Using in-depth-interviews female elementary teachers were encouraged to actively reconstruct their life and work-life experiences focusing on family, school and science interactions. They addressed the intellectual and emotional connections between their life and work experiences by focusing on details of their past and present experiences and examining the meaning of those experiences. It was the scrutiny of these connections between their life and work experiences, the meaning derived from them and historical events, and the constraints imposed on their personal choices by broader power relations, such as those of class, race, and gender that informed why we teach, how we teach, and what we teach.

  10. Introducing the History of Science at the French Middle School

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fauque, Danielle M. E.

    2009-01-01

    In scientific teaching, especially in physics and chemistry, some historical aspects have been introduced at the secondary level in France, since 1993. Particularly, in 2007, the syllabuses of 11'-15' years old level ("college") propose precise activities in history of science and technology. Detailed guidance has been distributed in…

  11. History, Philosophy and Sociology of Science in Science Education: Results from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Hsingchi A.; Sshmidt, William H.

    Throughout the history of enhancing the public scientific literacy, researchers have postulated that since every citizen is expected to have informal opinions on the relationships among government, education, and issues of scientific research and development, it is imperative that appreciation of the past complexities of science and society and the nature of scientific knowledge be a part of the education of both scientists and non-scientists. HPSS inclusion has been found to be an effective way to reach the goal of enhancing science literacy for all citizens. Although reports stated that HPSS inclusion is not a new educational practice in other part of the world, nevertheless, no large scale study has ever been attempted to report the HPSS educational conditions around the world. This study utilizes the rich data collected by TIMSS to unveil the current conditions of HPSS in the science education of about forty TIMSS countries. Based on the analysis results, recommendations to science educators of the world are provided.

  12. Cosmic Times: Engaging Students in Science through History and Journalism

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lochner, J. C.; Mattson, B. J.

    2009-12-01

    Cosmic Times tells the story of how our understanding of the nature of the universe has changed over the past 100 years. Designed to fulfill the need for quality science literature in the classroom, Cosmic Times takes the form of six posters, each mimicking the front page of a newspaper at a key point in this history, with articles describing the discoveries. These milestones include the confirmation of Einstein’s theory of gravity, Hubble’s evidence for an expanding universe, the detection of the microwave background, and finally the discovery of dark energy. Telling this story also involves tracing astronomer’s efforts to determine the size of the universe, understand the nature of supernovae, and comprehend the expansion of the universe. Through the scope of this history, students experience the process of science and how new technology and data change our ideas. The posters are accompanied by 28 lessons, designed for grades 7-12 by scientists and teachers and field-tested by third-party teachers in rural communities. The lessons teach the science concepts behind the discoveries, the process of science, and skills for science literacy. To facilitate these lessons and meet student’s individual science literacy needs, the articles are also available in two newsletter versions: one with the same articles as on the posters, the second at a slightly lower reading level. In addition, lessons include cross-curricular activities which explore the times and social circumstances of the discoveries. In a capstone lesson, students write and design the 2019 edition of Cosmic Times, not only predicting what we will know in the future, but also applying expository writing skills. In addition, an on-line Teacher Guide provides background material for all the articles. All these materials are available on the Cosmic Times website, http://cosmictimes.gsfc.nasa.gov/. In this presentation, we shall describe how Cosmic Times uses a journalistic storytelling approach to

  13. From interventions to interactions: Science Museum Arts Projects’ history and the challenges of interpreting art in the Science Museum

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hannah Redler

    2009-06-01

    Full Text Available Hannah Redler’s paper examines the 13 year history of Science Museum, London’s contemporary art programme and explores how changing cultural conditions and the changing function of museums are making the questions raised by bringing art into the Science Museum context increasingly significant. It looks at how Science Museum Arts Projects started as a quirky, experimental sideline aimed at shaking up the Museum and its visitors’ assumptions, but has now become a fundamental means by which the Science Museum chooses to represent the impact of science, medicine, engineering and technology on peoples’ everyday lives.

  14. Map Resource Packet: Course Models for the History-Social Science Framework, Grade Seven.

    Science.gov (United States)

    California State Dept. of Education, Sacramento.

    This packet of maps is an auxiliary resource to the "World History and Geography: Medieval and Early Modern Times. Course Models for the History-Social Science Framework, Grade Seven." The set includes: outline, precipitation, and elevation maps; maps for locating key places; landform maps; and historical maps. The list of maps are…

  15. Definition and Facts for Constipation

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Causes Diagnosis Treatment Eating, Diet, & Nutrition Clinical Trials Definition & Facts for Constipation What is constipation? Constipation is ... and Treatment. New York, NY: Springer Science and Business Media; 2014. May 2018 Share Previous: Constipation Next: ...

  16. Fuels planning: science synthesis and integration; social issues fact sheet 04: Three critical topics to cover when talking about hazards

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rocky Mountain Research Station USDA Forest Service

    2004-01-01

    The amount of science applicable to the management of wildfire hazards is increasing daily. In addition, the attitudes of landowners and policymakers about fire and fuels management are changing. This fact sheet discusses three critical keys to communicating about wildfire hazards.

  17. Different People in Different Places - Secondary School Students' Knowledge About History of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gandolfi, Haira Emanuela

    2018-05-01

    This article presents the results of an exploratory study of students' knowledge about scientists and countries' contributions to science, aiming at answering two research questions: "In which ways are students aware of the history of scientific development carried out by different people in different places of the world? What can be influencing and shaping their awareness?" Thus, this study aimed at depicting students' knowledge about History of Science (HOS), focusing on what they know about science being done by people and communities from different parts of the world and on how this knowledge is constructed through their engagement with school science. An exploratory research was carried out at two multicultural state secondary schools in London, UK, involving 200 students aged 12-15 (58.5% girls, 41.5% boys) and five science teachers. The method involved an initial exploration of students' knowledge about HOS through an open-ended survey, followed by classroom-based observations and semi-structured interviews with the participants. Results showed a disconnection between remembering scientists and knowing about their work and background, hinting at an emphasis on illustrative and decontextualised approaches towards HOS. Additionally, there was a lack of diversity in these students' answers in terms of gender and ethnicity when talking about scientists and countries in science. These findings were further analysed in relation to their implications for school science and for the fields of HOS, science education and public perception of science.

  18. The naturalism of the sciences.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dawes, Gregory W; Smith, Tiddy

    2018-02-01

    The sciences are characterized by what is sometimes called a "methodological naturalism," which disregards talk of divine agency. In response to those who argue that this reflects a dogmatic materialism, a number of philosophers have offered a pragmatic defense. The naturalism of the sciences, they argue, is provisional and defeasible: it is justified by the fact that unsuccessful theistic explanations have been superseded by successful natural ones. But this defense is inconsistent with the history of the sciences. The sciences have always exhibited what we call a domain naturalism. They have never invoked divine agency, but have always focused on the causal structure of the natural world. It is not the case, therefore, that the sciences once employed theistic explanations and then abandoned them. The naturalism of the sciences is as old as science itself. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Tannery and Duhem on the concept of a system in the history of philosophy and history of science

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Catana, Leo

    2011-01-01

    historical disciplines, creating the impression that they were mutually independent. Modern commentators have tended to take these declarations at face value. This article argues that Tannery and Duhem, some of the first historians of science, transferred historiographical concepts from history of philosophy...

  20. History of Science as Interdisciplinary Education in American Colleges: Its Origins, Advantages, and Pitfalls

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paula Viterbo

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available Before 1950, history of science did not exist as an independent academic branch, but was instead pursued by practitioners across various humanities and scientific disciplines. After professionalization, traces of its prehistory as a cross-disciplinary area of interest bound to an interdisciplinary, educational philosophy have remained. This essay outlines the development of history of science as an interdisciplinary academic field, and argues that it constitutes an obvious choice for inclusion in an interdisciplinary academic program, provided faculty and administrators learn how best to manage its advantages and pitfalls.

  1. Biological Evolution and the History of the Earth Are Foundations of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    2008-01-01

    AGU affirms the central importance of including scientific theories of Earth history and biological evolution in science education. Within the scientific community, the theory of biological evolution is not controversial, nor have ``alternative explanations'' been found. This is why no competing theories are required by the U.S. National Science Education Standards. Explanations of natural phenomena that appeal to the supernatural or are based on religious doctrine-and therefore cannot be tested through scientific inquiry-are not scientific, and have no place in the science classroom.

  2. Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lundvall, Bengt-Åke; Borrás, Susana

    2005-01-01

    This chapter is about what governments have done and could do to promote the production, diffusion, and use of scientific and technical knowledge in order to realize national objectives. We begin the chapter with "story-telling" based on sketchy historical facts. The aim of  the two stories...... is to illustrate that innovation policy covers a wide set of issues that have been on the agenda far back in history while still remaining important today. We move on to sketch the history of innovation policy, splitting it up into the three ideal types: science, technology, and innovation policy. We use OECD...

  3. Ernst Mach, George Sarton and the Empiry of Teaching Science Part I

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siemsen, Hayo

    2012-04-01

    George Sarton had a strong influence on modern history of science. The method he pursued throughout his life was the method he had discovered in Ernst Mach's Mechanics when he was a student in Ghent. Sarton was in fact throughout his life implementing a research program inspired by the epistemology of Mach. Sarton in turn inspired many others (James Conant, Thomas Kuhn, Gerald Holton, etc.). What were the origins of these ideas in Mach and what can this origin tell us about the history of science and science education nowadays? Which ideas proved to be successful and which ones need to be improved upon? The following article will elaborate the epistemological questions, which Darwin's "Origin" raised concerning human knowledge and scientific knowledge and which led Mach to adapt the concept of what is "empirical" in contrast to metaphysical a priori assumptions a second time after Galileo. On this basis Sarton proposed "genesis and development" as the major goal of Isis. Mach had elaborated this epistemology in La Connaissance et l'Erreur ( Knowledge and Error), which Sarton read in 1913 (Hiebert 1905/1976; de Mey 1984). Accordingly for Sarton, history becomes not only a subject of science, but a method of science education. Culture—and science as part of culture—is a result of a genetic process. History of science shapes and is shaped by science and science education in a reciprocal process. Its epistemology needs to be adapted to scientific facts and the philosophy of science. Sarton was well aware of the need to develop the history of science and the philosophy of science along the lines of this reciprocal process. It was a very fruitful basis, but a specific part of it, Sarton did not elaborate further, namely the psychology of science education. This proved to be a crucial missing element for all of science education in Sarton's succession, especially in the US. Looking again at the origins of the central questions in the thinking of Mach, which provided

  4. Explaining History. Hippolyte Taine's Philosophy of Historical Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Müller, Philipp

    Historians of European historiography have often characterized Hippolyte Taine (1828-1893) as an adherent of the positivist school of thought, typical for the development of a scientific culture in Western Europe that differed from its German counterpart.1 In accordance with that view, Wilhelm Dilthey grouped him together with other scholars like John Stuart Mill and Herbert Spencer against who Dilthey tried to develop his conception of the human sciences based on the notion of "verstehen" (see Dilthey [1924] 1957, 139ff.). Dilthey understood Taine as proposing to analyze the human mind by identifying its individual components and then explaining their meaning by laws of their relation. He argued that such an approach might be adequate for the natural sciences, but neglected the fact that an analysis of the mind had to start from a given psychological connection that was prior to any definition of particular phenomena. From Dilthey's point of view, applying Taine's theory to historical studies only made them look more objective while actually Taine was unaware of just following the prevailing convictions of his time (idem, 191f.).

  5. Report on a Boston University Conference December 7-8, 2012 on "How Can the History and Philosophy of Science Contribute to Contemporary US Science Teaching?"

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garik, Peter; Benétreau-Dupin, Yann

    2014-01-01

    This is an editorial report on the outcomes of an international conference sponsored by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) (REESE-1205273) to the School of Education at Boston University and the Center for Philosophy and History of Science at Boston University for a conference titled: "How Can the History and Philosophy of…

  6. Heuristic Diagrams as a Tool to Teach History of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chamizo, Jose A.

    2012-01-01

    The graphic organizer called here heuristic diagram as an improvement of Gowin's Vee heuristic is proposed as a tool to teach history of science. Heuristic diagrams have the purpose of helping students (or teachers, or researchers) to understand their own research considering that asks and problem-solving are central to scientific activity. The…

  7. Developing Greek Primary School Students' Critical Thinking through an Approach of Teaching Science which Incorporates Aspects of History of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Malamitsa, Katerina; Kasoutas, Michael; Kokkotas, Panagiotis

    2009-01-01

    In this paper, the development of sixth grade students' critical thinking skills in science courses is discussed relatively to the contribution of the integration of aspects of History of Science into instruction. Towards this direction a project on electromagnetism was designed and implemented aiming to engage primary school students in a…

  8. Biohumanities: rethinking the relationship between biosciences, philosophy and history of science, and society.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stotz, Karola; Griffiths, Paul E

    2008-03-01

    We argue that philosophical and historical research can constitute a "Biohumanities" that deepens our understanding of biology itself engages in constructive "science criticism," helps formulate new "visions of biology," and facilitates "critical science communication." We illustrate these ideas with two recent "experimental philosophy" studies of the concept of the gene and of the concept of innateness conducted by ourselves and collaborators. We conclude that the complex and often troubled relations between science and society are critical to both parties, and argue that the philosophy and history of science can help to make this relationship work.

  9. Concussion: A History of Science and Medicine, 1870-2005.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Casper, Stephen T

    2018-03-14

    To review the intellectual history of concussion from the mid-19th century to the opening decade of the 21st century. Head injuries (HI) and their acute and long-term effects have been investigated for centuries, with major reviews of the topic appearing by 1870. Thus, while it has long been acknowledged that chronic traumatic encephalopathy was first described by Harrison Martland in 1928, an examination of the history of concussion research up to Martland's seminal report places his studies in a deeper historical context. This history makes clear that Martland's findings were one among many such studies showcasing the lasting dangers of blows to the head. In the years after Martland published his study, his paper was frequently cited in other papers that made clear that blows to the head, of all ranges of severity, were dangerous injuries with potentially life-changing consequences. The author has engaged in an historical analysis of the development and elaboration of concussion research in clinical medicine, neurology, neurosurgery, and those scientific disciplines related to clinical medicine. The author has found numerous primary sources from the history of medicine and science that describe the acute and chronic effects of single and repeated sub-concussive and concussive blows to the head. This study makes clear that evidence-based methodologies inevitably short-change the knowledge of past clinicians and scientists by holding these figures to normative standards of recent invention. What criticism of this kind fails to recognize is that past investigators, many of them pioneers in their fields, published their work in ways that matched the highest normative standards of their day for the presentation of evidence. It has been recognized for a long time that concussions are dangerous injuries with potentially life-changing consequences, ranging from permanent symptoms to degenerative neurological states. The intellectual history of medicine and science from

  10. Using the History of Research on Sickle Cell Anemia to Affect Preservice Teachers' Conceptions of the Nature of Science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Howe, Eric M.

    This paper examines how using a series of lessons developed from the history of research on sickle cell anemia affects preservice teacher conceptions of the nature of science (NOS). The importance of a pedagogy that has students do science through an integral use of the history of science is effective at enriching students' NOS views is presented.…

  11. Why Implementing History and Philosophy in School Science Education Is a Challenge: An Analysis of Obstacles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hottecke, Dietmar; Silva, Cibelle Celestino

    2011-01-01

    Teaching and learning with history and philosophy of science (HPS) has been, and continues to be, supported by science educators. While science education standards documents in many countries also stress the importance of teaching and learning with HPS, the approach still suffers from ineffective implementation in school science teaching. In order…

  12. Finding "Science" in the Archives of the Spanish Monarchy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Portuondo, Maria M

    2016-03-01

    This essay explores the history of several archives that house the early modern records of Spanish imperial science. The modern "archival turn" urges us to think critically about archives and to recognize in the history of these collections an embedded, often implicit, history that--unless properly recognized, acknowledged, and understood--can distort the histories we are trying to tell. This essay uses a curious episode in the history of science to illustrate how Spanish archives relate to each other and shape the collections they house. During the late eighteenth century a young navy officer, Martín Fernández de Navarrete, was dispatched to all the principal archives of the Spanish monarchy with a peculiar mission: he was to search for evidence that the Spanish in fact had a scientific tradition. This essay uses his mission to explain how the original purpose of an archive--the archive's telos--may persist as a strong and potentially deterministic force in the work of historians of science. In the case of the archives discussed, this telos was shaped by issues as wide ranging as defending a nation's reputation against claims of colonial neglect and as idiosyncratic as an archivist's selection criteria.

  13. Sandia National Laboratories: News: Publications: Fact Sheets

    Science.gov (United States)

    Environmental Management System Pollution Prevention History 60 impacts Diversity Locations Facts & Figures Does Sandia Buy? Opportunities Small Business Procurement Technical Assistance Program (PTAP) Current Technology Partnerships Business, Industry, & Non-Profits Government Universities Center for

  14. The Early History of the European Conferences on Science and Religion and of ESSSAT

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Drees, W.B.

    The early history of the European Conferences on Science and Religion and ESSSAT, the European Society for the Study of Science And Theology, is documented and discussed. In Europe, there were, and still are, genuine differences in attitude towards methodology, ideas about the reach of knowledge,

  15. [Heritages of science history in the gerontological discussion on multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary perspectives].

    Science.gov (United States)

    von Kondratowitz, Hans-Joachim

    2015-04-01

    Since the beginning of the nineteenth century, the history of science in modern Germany has been characterized by a development going in opposite directions. The old scientific disciplines with their traditional Gestus of knowledge acquisition are in contrast to new sciences resulting from external pressures, combining and mobilizing different areas of knowledge, which challenge former dominances and help to establish new open disciplines. However, gerontology in Germany is in this respect a clear latecomer and can only cast off the impact of medicine in the twentieth century to some extent. This article describes this process by the superposition of different lines of tradition, which have long-term effects reaching into the history of the early Federal Republic of Germany.

  16. Introducing History (and Philosophy) of Science in the Classroom: A Field Research Experience in Italy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dibattista, Liborio; Morgese, Francesca

    2013-01-01

    For quite some time, many EU and Italian Ministry of Education official documents have warmly suggested the introduction of the history and the philosophy of science in the teaching of science disciplines at school. Accordingly, there is a shared agreement between pedagogists and science historians about the efficacy of this approach towards an…

  17. Wolfgang Pauli - a portrait. History of science

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fischer, E.P.

    2008-01-01

    Wolfgang Pauli (1900-1958) is named by his colleagues in the same breath with Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein, who named Pauli his ''mental son''. The history of science had neglected Pauli for a long time. The reason for this may be found in Pauli's attempts to capture the role of the unconscious in physics and the meaning of dreams in the creation of scientific pictures of the world. For Pauli a scientific method consisted in activating the unconscious and hoping that it would start up that specific type of ''painting viewing'' from which the terms can arise by which we express our understanding

  18. Biotechnology's Regulatory Science: The Case of Roundup Ready Soybean's Patent Expiration

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Puente Rodriguez, D.; Swart, J.A.A.

    2014-01-01

    The patent held by Monsanto for Roundup Ready® soybeans will expire soon and, therefore, the first generic agro-food product in the short history of agro-biotechnology will become a fact. Using insights from science and technology studies, the article elaborates on the importance of regulatory

  19. Organization of knowledge and the complex identity of history of science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alfonso-Goldfarb, Ana M; Waisse, Silvia; Ferraz, Márcia H M

    2013-09-01

    History of science as a formal and autonomous field of research crosses over disciplinary boundaries. For this reason, both its production and its working materials are difficult to classify and catalog according to discipline-based systems of organization of knowledge. Three main problems might be pointed out in this regard: the disciplines themselves are subject to a historical process of transformation; some objects of scientific inquiry resist constraint within rigid disciplinary grids but, rather, extend across several disciplinary boundaries; and the so-called digital revolution has replaced spatial with temporal display sequences and shifted the traditional emphasis on knowledge to user-oriented approaches. The first part of this essay is devoted to a conceptual analysis of the various approaches to the organization of knowledge formulated over time, whereas the second considers the new possibilities afforded by a faceted model of knowledge organization compatible with user-oriented relational databases to the research materials and production of history of science.

  20. Didactic implications of the history of science in Physics Education: a literature review through discursive textual analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Edmundo Rodrigues Junior

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available This work presents a literature review of the educational implications of the history of science in the teaching of Physics in the period 2010 to 2014. The technique used to analyze the data was the discursive textual analysis with the categories defined a priori. These categories include different teaching strategies for the teaching of history of science in Physics classes such as the use of primary or original sources, historical case studies, science through drama activities, historical experiments, biographies and /or autobiographies of scientists and the content analysis of the history of science present in textbooks. The result showed that 36 articles of 1659 available in journals use these teaching strategies. The results of the interpretative step consisted in the production of six metatexts in which two learning objectives were identified: the first one is related to physical concepts and the second one in aspects related to understanding the Nature of Science. The evaluation tools used by the authors to assess the students’ knowledge were identified in our corpus too.

  1. MendelWeb: An Electronic Science/Math/History Resource for the WWW.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blumberg, Roger B.

    This paper describes a hypermedia resource, called MendelWeb that integrates elementary biology, discrete mathematics, and the history of science. MendelWeb is constructed from Gregor Menders 1865 paper, "Experiments in Plant Hybridization". An English translation of Mendel's paper, which is considered to mark the birth of classical and…

  2. Forms of presentism in the history of science. Rethinking the project of historical epistemology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Loison, Laurent

    2016-12-01

    Since the late 1980s, presentism has seen a resurgence among some historians of science. Most of them draw a line between a good form of presentism and typical anachronism, but where the line should be drawn remains an open question. The present article aims at resolving this problem. In the first part I define the four main distinct forms of presentism at work in the history of science and the different purposes they serve. Based on this typology, the second part reconsiders what counts as anachronism, Whiggism and positivist history. This clarification is used as a basis to rethink the research program of historical epistemology in the third section. Throughout this article, I examine the conceptual core of historical epistemology more than its actual history, from Bachelard to Foucault or others. Its project should be defined - as Canguilhem suggested - as an attempt to account for both the contingency and the rationality of science. As such, historical epistemology is based on a complex fifth form of presentism, which I call critical presentism. The critical relation at stake not only works from the present to the past, because of the acknowledged rationality of science, but also from the past to the present because of the contingency and historicity of scientific knowledge. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Darwinism Defined: The Difference Between Fact and Theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gould, Stephen Jay

    1987-01-01

    Discusses various developments in both science and theology following the work of Charles Darwin on evolution. Differentiates between the facts regarding evolution and the theory of natural selection as a mechanism for evolutionary change. Warns that the differences between facts and theory have not been adequately emphasized by scientists. (TW)

  4. Empirical evaluation and justification of methodologies in psychological science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Proctor, R W; Capaldi, E J

    2001-11-01

    The purpose of this article is to describe a relatively new movement in the history and philosophy of science, naturalism, a form of pragmatism emphasizing that methodological principles are empirical statements. Thus, methodological principles must be evaluated and justified on the same basis as other empirical statements. On this view, methodological statements may be less secure than the specific scientific theories to which they give rise. The authors examined the feasibility of a naturalistic approach to methodology using logical and historical analysis and by contrasting theories that predict new facts versus theories that explain already known facts. They provide examples of how differences over methodological issues in psychology and in science generally may be resolved using a naturalistic, or empirical, approach.

  5. And yet it is heard musical, multilingual and multicultural history of the mathematical sciences

    CERN Document Server

    Tonietti, Tito M

    2014-01-01

    We bring into full light some excerpts on musical subjects which were until now scattered throughout the most famous scientific texts. The main scientific and musical cultures outside of Europe are also taken into consideration. The first and most important property to underline in the scientific texts examined here is the language they are written in. This means that our multicultural history of the sciences necessarily also becomes a review of the various dominant languages used in the different historical contexts. In this volume, the history of the development of the sciences is told as it happened in real contexts, not in an alienated ideal world.

  6. The Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries Annual Statistics: a thematic history.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shedlock, James; Byrd, Gary D

    2003-04-01

    The Annual Statistics of Medical School Libraries in the United States and Canada (Annual Statistics) is the most recognizable achievement of the Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries in its history to date. This article gives a thematic history of the Annual Statistics, emphasizing the leadership role of editors and Editorial Boards, the need for cooperation and membership support to produce comparable data useful for everyday management of academic medical center libraries and the use of technology as a tool for data gathering and publication. The Annual Statistics' origin is recalled, and survey features and content are related to the overall themes. The success of the Annual Statistics is evident in the leadership skills of the first editor, Richard Lyders, executive director of the Houston Academy of Medicine-Texas Medical Center Library. The history shows the development of a survey instrument that strives to produce reliable and valid data for a diverse group of libraries while reflecting the many complex changes in the library environment. The future of the Annual Statistics is assured by the anticipated changes facing academic health sciences libraries, namely the need to reflect the transition from a physical environment to an electronic operation.

  7. Youth Engagement through Science (YES!) - Engaging Underrepresented Minorities in Science through High School Internships at the National Museum of Natural History

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robertson, G.; Cruz, E.; Selvans, M. M.

    2014-12-01

    The Smithsonian's Youth Engagement through Science (YES!) program at the National Museum of Natural History gives young people from the Washington, D.C. area the opportunity to engage in science out of school through 16-week internships. We will present the program's successful strategies and lessons learned around recruiting and engaging young people from underserved communities, and maintaining relationships that help to support their pursuit of STEM and other career paths. The YES! program connects Smithsonian collections, experts, and training with local DC youth from communities traditionally underrepresented in science careers. YES! is now in its fifth year and has directly served 122 students; demographics of alumni are 67% female, and 51% Latino, 31% African-American, 7% Asian, 5% Caucasian and 6% other. The program immerses students in science research by giving them the opportunity to work side-by-side with scientists and staff from the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Gardens, and National Zoo. In addition to working on a research project, students have college preparatory courses, are trained in science communication, and apply their skills by interacting with the public on the exhibit floor.

  8. [Eugène-Humbert Guitard and French Institute of History of Science (1932-1939)].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lefebvre, Thierry

    2015-01-01

    Named "membre-conseil" of the French Institute of History of Science in April 1932, Guitard gives there, from January 1935 to February 1939, a dozen history of pharmacy conferences. Those conferences will give birth to her especially valuable Manuel d'histoire de la littérature pharmaceutique, published in 1942 by Caffin. The author re-examines this intellectual adventure.

  9. How to Cope with Gauss's Errors? Motivation for Teaching Data and Uncertainty Analysis from a History of Science Perspective

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heinicke, Susanne

    2014-01-01

    Every measurement in science, every experimental decision, result and information drawn from it has to cope with something that has long been named by the term "error". In fact, errors describe our limitations when it comes to experimental science and science looks back on a long tradition to cope with them. The widely known way to cope…

  10. The pursuit of understanding: A study of exemplary high school students' conceptions of knowledge validation in science and history

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boix Mansilla, Veronica Maria

    The study presented examined 16 award-winning high school students' beliefs about the criteria by which scientific theories and historical narratives are deemed trustworthy. It sought to (a) describe such beliefs as students reasoned within each discipline; (b) examine the degree to which such beliefs were organized as coherent systems of thought; and (c) explore the relationship between students' beliefs and their prior disciplinary research experience. Students were multiple-year award-winners at the Massachusetts Science Fair and the National History Day---two pre-collegiate State-level competitions. Two consecutive semi-structured interviews invited students to assess and enhance the trustworthiness of competing accounts of genetic inheritance and the Holocaust in science and history respectively. A combined qualitative and quantitative data analysis yielded the following results: (a) Students valued three standards of acceptability that were common across disciplines: e.g. empirical strength, explanatory power and formal and presentational strength. However, when reasoning within each discipline they tended to define each standard in disciplinary-specific ways. Students also valued standards of acceptability that were not shared across disciplines: i.e., external validity in science and human understanding in history. (b) In science, three distinct epistemological orientations were identified---i.e., "faith in method," "trusting the scientific community" and "working against error." In history students held two distinct epistemologies---i.e., "reproducing the past" and "organizing the past". Students' epistemological orientations tended to operate as collections of mutually supporting ideas about what renders a theory or a narrative acceptable. (c) Contrary to the standard position to date in the literature on epistemological beliefs, results revealed that students' research training in a particular discipline (e.g., science or history) was strongly related to

  11. Munazza's story: Understanding science teaching and conceptions of the nature of science in Pakistan through a life history study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Halai, Nelofer

    In this study I have described and tried to comprehend how a female science teacher understands her practice. Additionally, I have developed some understanding of her understanding of the nature of science. While teaching science, a teacher projects messages about the nature of science that can be captured by observations and interviews. Furthermore, the manner is which a teacher conceptualizes science for teaching, at least in part, depends on personal life experiences. Hence, I have used the life history method to understand Munazza's practice. Munazza is a young female science teacher working in a private, co-educational school for children from middle income families in Karachi, Pakistan. Her stories are central to the study, and I have represented them using a number of narrative devices. I have woven in my own stories too, to illustrate my perspective as a researcher. The data includes 13 life history interviews and many informal conversations with Munazza, observations of science teaching in classes seven and eight, and interviews with other science teachers and administrative staff of the school. Munazza's personal biography and experiences of school and undergraduate courses has influenced the way she teaches. It has also influenced the way she does not teach. She was not inspired by her science teachers, so she has tried not to teach the way she was taught science. Contextual factors, her conception of preparation for teaching as preparation for subject content and the tension that she faces in balancing care and control in her classroom are some factors that influence her teaching. Munazza believes that science is a stable, superior and value-free way of knowing. In trying to understand the natural world, observations come first, which give reliable information about the world leading inductively to a "theory". Hence, she relies a great deal on demonstrations in the class where students "see" for themselves and abstract the scientific concept from the

  12. The Nobel Prize in the Physics Class: Science, History, and Glamour

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eshach, Haim

    2009-01-01

    This paper introduces a novel strategy for teaching physics: using the Nobel Physics Prize as an organizational theme for high school or even first year university physics, bringing together history, social contexts of science, and central themes in modern physics. The idea underlying the strategy is that the glamour and glitter of the Nobel Prize…

  13. Science Night at the Museum of the History of Science

    CERN Multimedia

    2004-01-01

    Would it surprise you to know that you can measure the speed of light using chocolate and a microwave oven? If you're interested in this and in finding out much more, come along to the Museum of the History of Science on 3 and 4 July 2004, when dozens of companies, institutions, colleges and organizations will be running exhibits, shows, and displays on the theme of counting and measuring. CERN will be there with a display stand that includes two particle detectors; one to sense muons arriving from cosmic rays that strike the Earth's atmosphere, and the other a prototype of an element of the OPAL detector which was used in the LEP to measure particle tracks from high energy electron-positron collisions. Full details are available from the Museum website at: http://www.lanuitdelascience.ch/

  14. Matters of Fact: Language, Science, and the Status of Truth in Late Colonial Korea

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christopher P. Hanscom

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available This article addresses the status of the fact in literary and historical discourses in late colonial Korea, focusing on the elaboration of the relationship between scientific and literary truths primarily in the work of philosopher and critic Sŏ Insik (1906–?. It points to a growing tendency in late 1930s and early 1940s Korea to question the veracity of the fact (or of empiricism more broadly in an environment where the enunciation of the colonial subject had been rendered problematic and objective statements had arguably lost their connection with social reality. In a period when the relationship between signifier and referent had come into question, how did this major critic understand the relationship between science and literature, or between truth and subjectivity? Sŏ warns against a simplistic apprehension of the notion of truth as unilaterally equivalent with what he calls “scientific truth” (kwahakchŏk chilli—a nomological truth based on objective observation and confirmation by universal principles—and argues that a necessary complement to apparently objective truth is “literary truth” (munhakchŏk chinsil. Against the fixed, conceptual form of scientific thought, literary truth presents itself as an experiential truth that returns to the sensory world of the sociolinguistic subject (chuch’e as a source of credibility.

  15. A general overview of the history of soil science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brevik, Eric C.; Cerdà, Artemi

    2017-04-01

    Human knowledge of soil has come a long way since agriculture began about 9000 BCE, when finding the best soils to grow crops in was largely based on a trial and error approach. Many innovations to manage and conserve soil, such as the plow, irrigation techniques, terraces, contour tillage, and even the engineering of artificial soils, were developed between 9000 BCE and 1500 CE. Scientific methods began to be employed in the study of soils during the Renaissance and many famous scientists addressed soil issues, but soil science did not evolve into an independent scientific field of study until the 1880s. In the early days of the study of soil as a science, soil survey activities provided one of the major means of advancing the field. As the 20th century progressed, advances in soil biology, chemistry, genesis, management, and physics allowed the use of soil information to expand beyond agriculture to environmental issues, human health, land use planning, and many other areas. The development of soil history as a subfield of the discipline in the latter part of the 20th century has promise to help advance soil science through a better understanding of how we have arrived at the major theories that shape the modern study of soil science.

  16. [Information production by scientists and the history of science: typological study of personal archives].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Silva, Maria Celina Soares de Mello E; Trancoso, Márcia Cristina Duarte

    2015-01-01

    This article addresses the study of document typology in the personal archives of scientists and its importance in the history of science studies and for the archivist's work. A brief history is presented of diplomatic to typological information, emphasizing that identifying document production activity as essential for its classification. The article illustrates personal archive characteristics as regards the diversity of documental types and, in particular, those belonging to physicists. Furthermore, it presents five examples of documental types found in the archives of physicists as examples of research in progress. It also highlights the elaboration of a glossary of different documental kinds and types found in the private archives of Museum of Astronomy and Related Sciences in Rio de Janeiro.

  17. Scientific literacy: Role of natural history studies in constructing understanding of the nature of science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lutz, Martha Victoria Rosett

    2002-01-01

    Scientific literacy is a central goal of science education. One purpose of this investigation was to reevaluate the definition of 'scientific literacy.' Another purpose was to develop and implement new curriculum involving natural history experiments with insects, with the goal of allowing students opportunities to construct an understanding of the nature of science, a crucial aspect of scientific literacy. This investigation was a qualitative case study. Methods of data collection included direct observations, analysis of sketches and written products created by students and class-room teachers, and analysis of audio tapes. Major findings include: (1) Scientific literacy is generally defined by lists of factual information which students are expected to master. When asked to evaluate their knowledge of selected items on a list published in a science education reform curriculum guide, 15 practicing scientists reported lack of familiarity or comprehension with many items, with the exception of items within their areas of specialization. (2) Genuine natural history experiments using insects can be incorporated into the existing school schedule and need not require any increase in the budget for science materials. (3) Students as young as first through third grade can learn the manual techniques and conceptual skills necessary for designing and conducting original natural history experiments, including manipulating the insects, making accurate sketches, developing test able hypotheses, recording data, and drawing conclusions from their data. Students were generally enthusiastic both about working with live insects and also conducting genuine science experiments. (4) Girls appear both positive and engaged with natural history activities and may be more likely than boys to follow through on designing, conducting, and reporting on independent experiments. The results imply that a valid definition of scientific literacy should be based on the ability to acquire scientific

  18. Exhibitions as learning environments: a review of empirical research on students’ science learning at Natural History Museums, Science Museums and Science Centres

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nils Petter Hauan

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available One aim for many natural history museums, science museums and science centres is to contribute to school-related learning in science. In this article we review published empirical studies of this challenging area. The review indicates that the effectiveness of educational activities at different types of science-communication venues (SCV in supporting students’ science learning varies. There is also evidence of interesting differences between activities, depending on how these activities are designed. Firstly, these activities can stimulate interest and conceptual focus through a well-designed combination of structure and openness. Secondly, they can stimulate talks and explorations related to the presented topics. We have identified two possible areas which might prove fruitful in guiding further research: an exploration of the effects of different designs for guided exploratory learning, and an evaluation of the effectiveness of educational activities by studying the presence and quality of the learning processes visitors are engaged in. 

  19. The idea of human prehistory: the natural sciences, the human sciences, and the problem of human origins in Victorian Britain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goodrum, Matthew R

    2012-01-01

    The idea of human prehistory was a provocative and profoundly influential new notion that took shape gradually during the nineteenth century. While archaeology played an important role in providing the evidence for this idea many other sciences such as geology, paleontology, ethnology, and physical anthropology all made critical contributions to discussions about human prehistory. Many works have explored the history of prehistoric archaeology but this paper examines the conceptual content of the idea of "human prehistory" as it developed in the British scientific community. Both the natural and the human sciences contributed to what was in fact a complex collection of individual elements that together constituted the prevailing idea of human prehistory, although there were other competing conceptions of human prehistory endorsed by various scientists and critics of the new view of early human history.

  20. Vision and the representation of Africans: on historical encounters between science and art.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Phaf-Rheinberger, Ineke

    2013-01-01

    By focusing on the Brueghel/Rubens painting Vision of 1617, it is argued that these two artists were very much aware of global expansion overseas. In consideration of this fact, they seem to suggest on their canvas that art and science both play with images but that there is a difference in the understanding of knowledge transmitted through the visual medium in the history of art and science.

  1. Should We Add History of Science to Provide Nature of Science into Vietnamese Biology Textbook: A Case of Evolution and Genetics Teaching?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Diem, Huynh Thi Thuy; Yuenyong, Chokchai

    2018-01-01

    History of science (HOS) plays a substantial role in the enhancement of rooted understanding in science teaching and learning. HOS of evolution and genetics has not been included in Vietnamese biology textbooks. This study aims to investigate the necessity of introducing evolution and genetics HOS into Vietnamese textbooks. A case study approach…

  2. Invention of science a new history of the scientific revolution

    CERN Document Server

    Wootton, David

    2015-01-01

    We live in a world made by science. How and when did this happen? This book tells the story of the extraordinary intellectual and cultural revolution that gave birth to modern science, and mounts a major challenge to the prevailing orthodoxy of its history. Before 1492 it was assumed that all significant knowledge was already available; there was no concept of progress; people looked for understanding to the past not the future. This book argues that everything changed with the discovery of America, which demonstrated that new knowledge was possible: indeed it introduced the very concept of "discovery", and opened the way to the invention of science. The first crucial discovery was Tycho Brahe's nova of 1572: proof that there could be change in the heavens. The telescope (1610) rendered the old astronomy obsolete. Torricelli's experiment with the vacuum (1643) led directly to the triumph of the experimental method in the Royal Society of Boyle and Newton. By 1750 Newtonianism was being celebrated throughout E...

  3. Report on the activities of the PAU Commission on the History of Science in 2015/2016

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michał Kokowski

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available The report discusses the activities of the Commission on the History of Science of the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2015/2016. It presents the lists of: scientific meeting, administrative-election meetings, new members, and new publications.

  4. [Beyond Weimar Culture--the significance of the Forman thesis for a cultural approach to the history of science].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Trischler, Helmuth; Carson, Cathryn; Kojevnikov, Alexei

    2008-12-01

    '"Forman thesis', published in 1971, argued for a historical linkage among the intellectual atmosphere of Weimar Germany, popular revolts against determinism and materialism, and the creation of the revolutionary new theory of quantum mechanics. Paul Forman's long essay on "Weimar Culture" has shaped research agendas in numerous fields, from the history and philosophy of physics to German history to the sociology of scientific knowledge. Despite its status as a classic and its transformative effect, Weimar Culture has always inspired as much critique as assent. In particular in the history of science, cohorts of students and two generations of scholars have debated the Forman thesis as a conceptual tool for linking scientific change with cultural processes. The Forman thesis raises critical questions for both the ongoing debates over cultural approaches to the history of science and the burgeoning newer scholarship on physics in and beyond Weimar Germany. Exploring these implications has been the aim of a transnational project of the three authors of this article which sheds some light on these debates and briefly introduces the following papers of this special issue devoted to Paul Forman and his seminal works in the history of science.

  5. Towards Household History

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Rappard, J.F.H.

    1998-01-01

    It is maintained that in contradistinction to the natural sciences, in psychology (and other human sciences) ‘history is not past tense’. This is borne out by the contemporary relevance of a specific part of the history of psychology, which focuses on the internal-theoretical significance of history

  6. Between fact and interpretation : Teachers' beliefs and practices in intepretational history teaching

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wansink, B.G.J.

    2017-01-01

    In the last two decades, Dutch history teachers have witnessed a curriculum renewal for upper secondary education towards more emphasis on interpretational history teaching. This teaching approach means that, rather than teaching history as a factual and undisputable narrative, teachers come to

  7. Scottish science fiction: writing Scottish literature back into history

    OpenAIRE

    Miller, Gavin

    2010-01-01

    The increasing vigour of Scottish literature since the 1980s has led not only to a revival in literary fiction, but also to a growing diversification into other narrative genres. The detective story – in the form of so-called “tartan noir” – has been the most obvious popular genre to undergo revival, but science fiction has also blossomed in the work of authors such as Alasdair Gray, Iain (M.) Banks, and Ken MacLeod. In this article, I trace something of the problematic history of Scottish sc...

  8. Teaching about Israel in the Seventh Grade: How It Relates to the History/Social Science Framework.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benson, Cecile

    1981-01-01

    Describes an eight-week unit on Israel for seventh graders and shows how the unit relates to the 1981 "California History/Social Science Framework." The unit introduces students to framework content goals in history and the humanities. Activities include journal writing, artifact building, archaeological simulations, and a geographical…

  9. Antoni Quintana-Marí (1907-1998): A Pioneer of the Use of History of Science in Science Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roca-Rosell, Antoni; Grapí-Vilumara, Pere

    2010-09-01

    In the early 1930s, the young Antoni Quintana-Marí undertook some research on Antoni de Martí i Franquès, one of the most prominent Catalan scientists of the Enlightenment. This scientist worked in Tarragona, where Quintana-Marí lived. Quintana-Marí learnt about Martí i Franquès from Josep Estalella, his teacher of physics and chemistry at the secondary school. It was while researching on Martí i Franquès that Quintana-Marí became a true historian of science. He subsequently collaborated with other Spanish and foreign historians of science in the early years of this discipline. Quintana-Marí never forgot that his passion for history of science had been aroused by his school teacher.

  10. Althusserian Theory: From Scientific Truth to Institutional History

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Philip Goldstein

    1994-01-01

    Full Text Available Scholars have emphasized the scientific and the rationalist features of Althusser's work, but few have noted its post-structuralist aspects, especially its Foucauldian accounts of discourse and power. In the early Pour Marx , Althusser divides ideological practices from objective science and theoretical norms from empirical facts; however, in several later essays Althusser repudiates his earlier faith in theory's normative force as well as his broad distinction between science and ideology. He argues that every discipline establishes its own relationship between its ideological history and its formal, scientific ideals. This argument, together with Althusser's earlier rejection of totalizing approaches, establishes important parallels with Foucault's archaeological studies. The literary theory of Tony Bennett, who develops a Foucauldian critique of traditional and Marxist aesthetics, illuminates the rich implications of these parallels for cultural analyses.

  11. The report on the activities of the PAU Commission on the History of Science in 2016/2017

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michał Kokowski

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available The report discusses the activities of the Commission on the History of Science of the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2016/2017. It presents the lists of: scientific meeting, conferences, and new publications.

  12. DU weaponry: a view on facts and deceptions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Joksimovich, V.

    2002-01-01

    The paper summarizes the results of literature research conducted by the author on the use of depleted uranium (DU) weaponry. The research was initiated during the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia in 1999 with an objective of searching for facts in the presence of massive deceptions staged by the huge propaganda machinery of DU weaponry use proponents. The U.S. made use of DU penetrators in the Persian Gulf war as well as in the Balkan wars both in Bosnia and Kosovo. Brief science and history backgrounds are provided including overviews of DU uses and abuses in these three wars. The U.S./NATO public pronouncements have been centered around the theme that there has been no proven link between DU and cancers. In the author's view, these types of carefully word engineered statements are motivated by possible compensation and cleanup claims rather than supported by hard data and sound science. Since underlying causes of so called Gulf and Balkan syndromes have not been found despite a decade elapsed since conclusion of the Persian Gulf War, the DU must continue to be a front-line suspect. From the standpoint of public health and safety, it is prudent and responsible to call for a moratorium. DU use in the Kosovo war, which was not sanctioned by the UN Security Council, was reckless in the extreme. (author)

  13. The Science of Optics; The History of Art

    Science.gov (United States)

    Falco, Charles

    Recently, renowned artist David Hockney observed that certain drawings and paintings from as early as the Renaissance seemed almost ''photographic'' in detail. Following an extensive visual investigation of western art of the past 1000 years, he made the revolutionary claim that artists even of the prominence of van Eyck and Bellini must have used optical aids. However, many art historians insisted there was no supporting evidence for such a remarkable assertion. In this talk I will show a wealth of optical evidence for his claim that Hockney and I subsequently discovered during an unusual, and remarkably productive, collaboration between an artist and a scientist. I also discuss the imaging properties of the concave mirror and some of the implications this work has for the history of science as well as the history of art (and the modern fields of machine vision and computerized image analysis). These discoveries convincingly demonstrate optical instruments were in use - by artists, not scientists - nearly 200 years earlier than commonly thought possible, and account for the remarkable transformation in the reality of portraits that occurred early in the 15th century. Acknowledgment: This work was done in collaboration with David Hockney.

  14. More than "Cool Science": Science Fiction and Fact in the Classroom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Singh, Vandana

    2014-01-01

    The unfortunate negative attitude toward physics among many students, including science majors, warrants creative approaches to teaching required physics courses. One such approach is to integrate science fiction into the curriculum, either in the form of movies or the written word. Historically this has been done since at least the 1970s, and by…

  15. Value Added: History of Physics in a ``Science, Technology, and Society'' General Education Undergraduate Course

    Science.gov (United States)

    Neuenschwander, Dwight

    2016-03-01

    In thirty years of teaching a capstone ``Science, Technology, and Society'' course to undergraduate students of all majors, I have found that, upon entering STS, to most of them the Manhattan Project seems about as remote as the Civil War; few can describe the difference between nuclear and large non-nuclear weapons. With similar lack of awareness, many students seem to think the Big Bang was dreamed up by science sorcerers. One might suppose that a basic mental picture of weapons that held entire populations hostage should be part of informed citizenship. One might also suppose that questions about origins, as they are put to nature through evidence-based reasoning, should be integral to a culture's identity. Over the years I have found the history of physics to be an effective tool for bringing such subjects to life for STS students. Upon hearing some of the history behind (for example) nuclear weapons and big bang cosmology, these students can better imagine themselves called upon to help in a Manhattan Project, or see themselves sleuthing about in a forensic science like cosmology. In this talk I share sample student responses to our class discussions on nuclear weapons, and on cosmology. The history of physics is too engaging to be appreciated only by physicists.

  16. História da Ciência: objetos, métodos e problemas History of Science: purposes, methods and problems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lilian Al-Chueyr Pereira Martins

    2005-08-01

    Full Text Available O objetivo deste artigo é auxiliar o trabalho de pessoas que estão se iniciando na pesquisa de História da Ciência, especialmente em relação a um determinado tipo de trabalho a que nos dedicamos. Este tratará da escolha de um tema adequado de pesquisa, dos tipos de fontes encontradas em História da Ciência e de alguns problemas encontrados em trabalhos de História da Ciência. Este estudo levou à conclusão de que só se apreende a fazer pesquisa em História da Ciência a partir da prática e que um bom historiador da ciência se constrói a longo prazo.The aim of this paper is to help people who are starting History of Science research, especially concerning a definite kind of work to which we dedicate ourselves. It deals with the choice of a suitable research subject, the kinds of sources in History of Science, as well as some problems which may be found in the works on History of Science. This study leads to the conclusion that beginners learn how to do History of Science research through the praxis and that a person becomes a good historian of science in the long term.

  17. Balancing Fact and Formula in the Science of Complex Systems: The example of 1/f spectra.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Watkins, N. W.

    2014-12-01

    More than 100 years ago, Thomson and Tait's classic "Treatise on Natural Philosophy" cautioned its readers against "considering the formula and not the fact as physical reality". Deciding what the facts actually *were*, then as now, was left as an exercise for the student! Complex systems, of which space plasmas are a very rich example, show many cases [1] of what Thomson & Tait were talking about. I will discuss one such case today-the "1/f" spectral shape seen in many areas of physics. As Mandelbrot pointed out in several papers in the mid 1960s [2] this could be explained by long range dependence (LRD) in a stationary model, or various forms of nonstationarity. He was at pains to urge us to use our eyes as well as formalism, and I will discuss several results inspired by this approach, including new Bayesian methods for choosing between LRD models [3], and work on a dynamical origin for the Hurst effect [4]. [1] Watkins, Bunched Black Swans, Invited GRL Frontiers Review, 2013 [2] Graves et al, A Brief History of Long Memory, Submitted 2014 [3] Graves et al, Efficient Bayesian inference for long memory processes, Submitted 2014 [4] Watkins and Franzke, Hurst Without Joseph, In prep.

  18. Visual cultures in science and technology a comparative history

    CERN Document Server

    Hentschel, Klaus

    2014-01-01

    This book attempts a synthesis. It delves into the rich reservoir of case studies on visual representations in scientific and technological practice that have been accumulated over the past couple of decades by historians, sociologists, and philosophers of science. The main aim is thus located on the meta-level. It adopts an integrative view of recurrently noted general features of visual cultures in science and technology, something hitherto unachieved and believed by many to be a mission impossible. By systematic comparison of numerous case studies, the purview broadens away from myopic microanalysis in search of overriding patterns. The many different disciplines and research areas involved encompass mathematics, technology, natural history, medicine, the geosciences, astronomy, chemistry, and physics. The chosen examples span the period from the Renaissance to the late 20th century. Some pioneers of new visual cultures are portrayed, along with the modes of skill transfer and development. The broad range ...

  19. Validating concepts of mental disorder: precedents from the history of science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miller, Robert

    2014-10-01

    A fundamental issue in any branch of the natural sciences is validating the basic concepts for use in that branch. In psychiatry, this issue has not yet been resolved, and indeed, the proper nature of the problem has scarcely been recognised. As a result, psychiatry (or at least those parts of the discipline which aspire to scientific status) still cannot claim to be a part of scientific medicine, or to be incorporated within the common language of the natural sciences. While this creates difficulties within the discipline, and its standing in relation to other branches of medicine, it makes it an exciting place for "frontiersmen" (and women). This is one of the key growing points in the natural science tradition. In this essay, which moves from the early history of that tradition to today's debates in scientific psychiatry, I give my views about how these fundamental issues can move towards resolution.

  20. Virtual Reality and Cyberspace: From Science Fiction to Science Fact.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stone, Robert J.

    1991-01-01

    Traces the history of virtual reality (VR), or cyberspace, and describes some of the research and development efforts currently being carried out in the United Kingdom, Europe, and the United States. Applications of VR in interactive computer-aided design (CAD), the military, leisure activities, spaceflight, teleconferencing, and medicine are…

  1. Science From Beyond: NASA's Pioneer Plaque and the History of Interstellar Communication, 1957- 1972

    Science.gov (United States)

    Macauley, William

    2012-05-01

    In the late twentieth century, science and technology facilitated exploration beyond the Solar System and extended human knowledge through messages comprised of pictures and mathematical symbols, transmitted from radio telescopes and inscribed on material artifacts attached to spacecraft. ‘Interstellar communication' refers to collective efforts by scientists and co-workers to detect and transmit intelligible messages between humans and supposed extraterrestrial intelligence in remote star systems. Interstellar messages are designed to communicate universal knowledge without recourse to text, human linguistic systems or anthropomorphic content because it is assumed that recipients have no prior knowledge of humankind or the planet we inhabit. Scientists must therefore imagine how extraterrestrials will relate to human knowledge and culture. The production and transmission of interstellar messages became interdisciplinary design problems that involved collaboration and exchange of ideas between scientists, visual artists, and others. My proposed paper will review sociocultural aspects of interstellar communication since the late 1950s and focus on key issues regarding conception, design and production of a specific interstellar message launched into space during the early 1970s - NASA's Pioneer plaque. The paper will explore how research on the history of interstellar communication relates to previous historical and sociological studies on rhetorical aspects of visual representation and mathematics in scientific practice. In particular, I will explain how the notion of ‘inscription' is an appropriate conceptual tool for analyzing how scientists have used pictures to articulate and validate knowledge claims and scientific facts. I argue that scientific knowledge carried on interstellar messages such as the Pioneer plaque is constituted in material practices and inscription technologies that translate natural objects, agency and culture into legible forms

  2. Faith, Fact, and Behaviorism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Staddon, J E R

    2013-01-01

    David Hume argued that ought cannot be derived from is . That is, no set of facts, no amount of scientific knowledge, is by itself sufficient to urge us to action. Yet generations of well-meaning scientists (more and more as secular influences grow in the West) seem to have forgotten Hume's words of wisdom. All motivated action depends ultimately on beliefs that cannot be proved by the methods of science, that is, on faith.

  3. A Brief History of the Soil Science Society of America

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brevik, Eric C.

    2013-04-01

    Career Professional Award. SSSA has also hosted the World Congress of Soil Science in 1960 and 2006. In 2010 SSSA membership was at 6,367, the third highest membership total in SSSA history. SSSAJ published 259 items totaling 2,201 pages. But unlike 1937, SSSAJ is no longer SSSA's only journal. In 2009 Journal of Environmental Quality published 272 items on 2,480 pages, Soil Survey Horizons (renamed Soil Horizons in 2012) published 26 items on 133 pages, Vadose Zone Journal published 116 items on 1,088 pages, and Journal of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Education published 48 items on 250 pages, giving Society journals a total of 721 items published on 6,132 pages. At the end of 2010 SSSA was worth 3,130,163. All of these numbers show significant achievement in the years since the Society's founding, but not all of those years have been rosy. For example, SSSA's membership dropped from an all-time high of 6,402 in 1985 to 5,319 in 2002 and the Society's net worth declined from 2,132,750 in 1999 to 984,866 in 2002. This period from the mid-1980s through the early 2000s has probably been the most challenging so far in SSSA's history. Many changes are also in store going into the future. Over the past few years SSSA has become increasingly independent from ASA. While the two societies (along with the Crop Science Society of America (CSSA)) still maintain close ties, the members of SSSA have expressed a desire to emphasize that soils are more than agronomic. One indication of this increasing independence can be seen in the annual meetings. SSSA met jointly with the Geological Society of America in 2008 and will meet with the Entomological Society of America in 2015. There are also plans for SSSA to meet independently of ASA and CSSA for the first time in 2018. Another indication is the recent rearrangement of the governing structures of ASA, CSSA, and SSSA.

  4. Ernst Mach, George Sarton and the Empiry of Teaching Science Part I

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siemsen, Hayo

    2012-01-01

    George Sarton had a strong influence on modern history of science. The method he pursued throughout his life was the method he had discovered in Ernst Mach's "Mechanics" when he was a student in Ghent. Sarton was in fact throughout his life implementing a research program inspired by the epistemology of Mach. Sarton in turn inspired many…

  5. HEART OF MYTH - HEART OF SCIENCE Part I: Harriet Martineau's cardiac symptoms: a Victorian case history.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bound Alberti, Fay

    This article explores the history and meanings of the heart and its diseases as aspects of the histories of science and emotion. Analyzing the twofold meanings of the heart as both bodily object and cultural symbol, it explores the reasons for the apparent conflict in meanings of the heart of science and the heart of emotion in Western medical culture since the 19th century. In Part I, a case study of the writer, economist, and philosopher Harriet Martineau is used to demonstrate and trace that conflict, while Part II highlights the manifold meanings of the heart both in the past and in the present.

  6. History of science and technology

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jang, Byeong Ju

    1986-04-15

    This book shows origin of technology and development of civilization, origin of science and dissemination of ironware, accumulation of science and technology in the Middle Age society, the era of the Renaissance and science, factory-made manual industry and mechanistic nature view, the era of scientific enlightenment, industrial revolution, science and technology of Korea, formation of modern science and technology, modern technology and approach to science and technology, science and technology in the twenty century such as biochemistry and physics, and cooperation of science and technology.

  7. History of science and technology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jang, Byeong Ju

    1986-04-01

    This book shows origin of technology and development of civilization, origin of science and dissemination of ironware, accumulation of science and technology in the Middle Age society, the era of the Renaissance and science, factory-made manual industry and mechanistic nature view, the era of scientific enlightenment, industrial revolution, science and technology of Korea, formation of modern science and technology, modern technology and approach to science and technology, science and technology in the twenty century such as biochemistry and physics, and cooperation of science and technology.

  8. Ernst Mach and George Sarton's Successors: The Implicit Role Model of Teaching Science in USA and Elsewhere, Part II

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siemsen, Hayo

    2013-05-01

    George Sarton had a strong influence on modern history of science. The method he pursued throughout his life was the method he had discovered in Ernst Mach's Mechanics when he was a student in Ghent. Sarton was in fact throughout his life implementing a research program inspired by the epistemology of Mach. Sarton in turn inspired many others in several generations (James Conant, Thomas Kuhn, Gerald Holton, etc.). What were the origins of these ideas in Mach and what can this origin tell us about the history of science and science education nowadays? Which ideas proved to be successful and which ones need to be improved upon? The following article will elaborate the epistemological questions, which Charles Darwin's "Origin" raised concerning human knowledge and scientific knowledge and which led Mach to adapt the concept of what is "empirical" in contrast to metaphysical a priori assumptions a second time after Galileo. On this basis Sarton proposed "genesis and development" as the major goal of his journal Isis. Mach had elaborated this epistemology in La Connaissance et l'Erreur ( Knowledge and Error), which Sarton read in 1911 (Hiebert in Knowledge and error. Reidel, Dordrecht, 1976; de Mey in George Sarton centennial. Communication & Cognition, Ghent, pp. 3-6, 1984). Accordingly for Sarton, history becomes not only a subject of science, but a method of science education. Culture—and science as part of culture—is a result of a genetic process. History of science shapes and is shaped by science and science education in a reciprocal process. Its epistemology needs to be adapted to scientific facts and the philosophy of science. Sarton was well aware of the need to develop the history of science and the philosophy of science along the lines of this reciprocal process. It was a very fruitful basis, but a specific part of it Sarton did not elaborate further, namely the erkenntnis-theory and psychology of science education. This proved to be a crucial missing

  9. The Oral History Program: II. Personal views of health sciences librarianship and the Medical Library Association.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McKenzie, D; Pifalo, V

    1998-07-01

    The Medical Library Association Oral History Program uses accepted oral history techniques to collect and preserve interviews with members. The original taped interviews and transcripts are kept in the Medical Library Association archives and made available for research purposes; edited copies of the interviews are distributed through the National Network of Libraries of Medicine, and members are encouraged to borrow and read the histories. Summaries of forty-three interviews provide personal views on health sciences librarianship and the Medical Library Association.

  10. [A political matter: science and ideology in the 21st century].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wahrig, Bettina

    2010-06-01

    In the last two decades, history of science and science studies have been quite reluctant to adopt the notion of ideology when analyzing the dynamics of science. This may be an effect of the decreasing popularity of neo-marxist approaches within this disciplinary field; but it is also due to the fact that alternative approaches have been developed, for example Michel Foucault's notion of problematization, Roland Barthes' semiotic mythology, Bruno Latour's re-interpretation of the ontological difference between fact and fetish in science, or Donna Haraway's semi-fictional re-narrations of the techno-scientific world. This contribution undertakes to sketch the impact of two strands of 19th century immanentism on the authors named above, and on their use of concepts related to the notion of ideology, namely fetish, fetishism, myth and mythology respectively. It is argued that in some respect, Marx' concept of commodity fetishism is worth being re-examined, since it articulates a dialectical relation of 'reality' and 'seeming', and its impact on Barthes' mythology is deeper than it might appear at first glance.

  11. Fake facts and alternative truths in medical research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hofmann, Bjørn

    2018-01-27

    Fake news and alternative facts have become commonplace in these so-called "post-factual times." What about medical research - are scientific facts fake as well? Many recent disclosures have fueled the claim that scientific facts are suspect and that science is in crisis. Scientists appear to engage in facting interests instead of revealing interesting facts. This can be observed in terms of what has been called polarised research, where some researchers continuously publish positive results while others publish negative results on the same issue - even when based on the same data. In order to identify and address this challenge, the objective of this study is to investigate how polarised research produce "polarised facts." Mammography screening for breast cancer is applied as an example. The main benefit with mammography screening is the reduced breast cancer mortality, while the main harm is overdiagnosis and subsequent overtreatment. Accordingly, the Overdiagnosis to Mortality Reduction Ratio (OMRR) is an estimate of the risk-benefit-ratio for mammography screening. As there are intense interests involved as well as strong opinions in debates on mammography screening, one could expect polarisation in published results on OMRR. A literature search identifies 8 studies publishing results for OMRR and reveals that OMRR varies 25-fold, from 0.4 to 10. Two experts in polarised research were asked to rank the attitudes of the corresponding authors to mammography screening of the identified publications. The results show a strong correlation between the OMRR and the authors' attitudes to screening (R = 0.9). Mammography screening for breast cancer appears as an exemplary field of strongly polarised research. This is but one example of how scientists' strong professional interests can polarise research. Instead of revealing interesting facts researchers may come to fact interests. In order to avoid this and sustain trust in science, researchers should disclose

  12. History of science, physics, and art: a complex approach in Brazilian syllabuses

    Science.gov (United States)

    Braga, Marco; Guerra, Andreia; Reis, José Claudio

    2013-09-01

    This paper is about new contents that can be introduced into science education. It is a description of an experience aimed at introducing a complex approach into the final grade of a Brazilian elementary school. The aim is to show the transformation of the conception of space and time from the Middle Ages with the physics of Aristotle to the 20th century, when a new conception arose with the physics of Einstein. These changes were accompanied by new visions of space and time in both physics and arts. Comparison between these two expressions of human culture is used to introduce science as a human construct inserted into history.

  13. What about Global History? Dilemmas in the Selection of Content in the School Subject History

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Poulsen, Jens Aage

    2013-01-01

    Abstract: It is a cliché, but also a fundamental fact that we live in a world where globalization and international challenges, opportunities and relationships play an increasing role. However, how have these changing conditions affected the content of school history? To what degree have curricul...... and experiment with practices for the selection and organization of the content of the history curriculum, with the aim of increasing the international and global dimensions in history teaching.......Abstract: It is a cliché, but also a fundamental fact that we live in a world where globalization and international challenges, opportunities and relationships play an increasing role. However, how have these changing conditions affected the content of school history? To what degree have curricula...... and textbooks addressed these challenges? Is the main focus in school history still on the history of the nation state, or has it successfully integrated topics and themes from world history? These are questions I discuss in this paper. In the main, my starting point is the situation in Denmark...

  14. "Frankenstein" as Science Fiction and Fact

    Science.gov (United States)

    van der Laan, J. M.

    2010-01-01

    Often called the first of its kind, "Frankenstein" paved the way for science fiction writing. Its depiction of a then impossible scientific feat has in our time become possible and is essentially recognizable in what we now refer to as bioengineering, biomedicine, or biotechnology. The fiction of "Frankenstein" has as it were given way to…

  15. Abandoning evolution. The forgotten history of antievolution activism and the transformation of American social science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lienesch, Michael

    2012-12-01

    From its inception, antievolution activism has been aimed not only at the natural sciences but also, and almost as often, at the social sciences. Although almost entirely overlooked by scholars, this activism played a significant part in the development of American social science in the early twentieth century. Analyzing public writings and private papers of antievolution activists, academic social scientists, and university officials from the 1920s, this essay recalls this forgotten history, showing how antievolution activism contributed to the abandonment of evolutionary theory and the adoption of a set of secular, scientific, and professional characteristics that have come to define much of modern social science.

  16. The Societal Impact of Extraterrestrial Life: The Relevance of History and the Social Sciences

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dick, Steven J.

    This chapter reviews past studies on the societal impact of extraterrestrial life and offers four related ways in which history is relevant to the subject: the history of impact thus far, analogical reasoning, impact studies in other areas of science and technology, and studies on the nature of discovery and exploration. We focus particularly on the promise and peril of analogical arguments, since they are by necessity widespread in the field. This chapter also summarizes the relevance of the social sciences, particularly anthropology and sociology, and concludes by taking a closer look at the possible impact of the discovery of extraterrestrial life on theology and philosophy. In undertaking this study we emphasize three bedrock principles: (1) we cannot predict the future; (2) society is not monolithic, implying many impacts depending on religion, culture and worldview; (3) the impact of any discovery of extraterrestrial life is scenario-dependent.

  17. Examples of the Zeroth Theorem of the History of Science

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jackson, J.D.

    2007-08-24

    The zeroth theorem of the history of science, enunciated byE. P. Fischer, states that a discovery (rule,regularity, insight) namedafter someone (often) did not originate with that person. I present fiveexamples from physics: the Lorentz condition partial muAmu = 0 definingthe Lorentz gauge of the electromagnetic potentials; the Dirac deltafunction, delta(x); the Schumann resonances of the earth-ionospherecavity; the Weizsacker-Williams method of virtual quanta; the BMTequation of spin dynamics. I give illustrated thumbnail sketches of boththe true and reputed discoverers and quote from their "discovery"publications.

  18. The Book and the Archive in the History of Science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yale, Elizabeth

    2016-03-01

    In recent years, the history of archives has opened up rich possibilities for understanding early modern science and medicine in material terms. Yet two strands of inquiry, vital to understanding the development of science and medicine as "paper knowledge," have been left largely unpursued: the archiving of personal papers, as distinct from the formation of institutional archives; and the ways in which printed books and archival papers functioned in relation to each other. This essay brings these two strands to the forefront, considering in particular books published posthumously from the notes and correspondence left behind by Nicholas Culpeper, a popular mid-seventeenth-century English vernacular medical author, and John Ray, naturalist and Fellow of the Royal Society. Culpeper's and Ray's cases illustrate, in particular, the central role of women in preserving, circulating, and certifying the authenticity of medical and scientific papers and of any books published posthumously from them.

  19. Meat science from 1976: A history of the journal.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ledward, D A; Hopkins, D L

    2017-10-01

    The journal Meat Science was first published in 1976/77 and it initially comprised 4 issues per year. The first issue contained 4 papers and the first volume (4 issues) contained 27 articles, a mixture of papers and research notes. Its growth/popularity increased, and it has continued to thrive and in 2016 of the 1010 papers processed 292 were accepted. Over 90% of the papers published in the first volume were concerned with muscle biochemistry/meat properties. During the last years of the 20th century, meat products and their properties became a far larger proportion of the submissions as did those concerned with nutrition and safety. More recently there has been a resurgence of papers concerned with meat quality. Over the last 40years, the journal has reported on the major developments in meat science research and this paper will discuss both the history of the journal, and aspects of meat research as reflected in its publications. Possible future research trends are also discussed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. [Concise history of toxicology - from empiric knowledge to science].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tompa, Anna; Balázs, Péter

    2018-01-01

    Toxicology is a science of poisonings by xenobiotics and endogenous physiological changes. Its empiric roots may be traced back to the emerging of the human race because the most important pledge of our predecessors' survival was the differentiation between eatable and poisonous plants and animals. In the course of social evolution, there were three main fields of using poisons: 1) hunting and warfare, 2) to settle social tensions by avoiding military conflicts through hiding strategy of eliminating enemies by toxic substances, 3) medicines applied first as anti-poisons and later by introducing strong substances to defeat diseases, but paradoxically active euthanasia is also a part of the whole story. The industrial revolution of the 19th century changed the sporadic occupational diseases to mass conditions. Later the chemical industry and subsequently the mass production of synthetic materials turned out as a global environmental catastrophe. This latest change initiated the emerging of ecological toxicology which is a future history of the concerning ancient science. Orv Hetil. 2018; 159(3): 83-90.

  1. Islands of knowledge: science and agriculture in the history of Latin America and the Caribbean.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fernández Prieto, Leida

    2013-12-01

    This essay explores the participation of Latin America and the Caribbean in the construction and circulation of tropical agricultural science during the nineteenth century and the first half of the twentieth century. It uses the term "islands of knowledge" to underscore the idea that each producing region across the global tropics, including Latin America and the Caribbean, was instrumental in the creation, adoption, and application of scientific procedures. At the same time, it emphasizes the value of interchange and interconnection between these regions, as well as the many and heterogeneous local areas, for analyzing what it calls "global archipelago agricultural scientific knowledge." This focus challenges the traditional center/periphery hierarchy and opens it to a wider vision of science and practice in agriculture. This essay shows how writing in related areas of research--specifically, commodity histories, biological exchange studies, and knowledge exchange studies--introduces approaches and case studies that are useful for the history of tropical agricultural science. In particular, this work provides analytical frameworks for developing studies of exchanges across the Global South.

  2. History of CERN. Volume 3

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Krige, J.

    1996-01-01

    The present volume continues the story of the history of the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva, Switzerland, concentrating on the years between the mid 1960s and the late 1970s. Whereas the first two volumes were the product of a team of historians, this book is rather a collection of studies by authors with very different professional backgrounds and institutional locations. It also differs from the predecessor volumes in the fact that it consists of distinct case studies dealing with a number of issues deemed important. The first part of this volume, containing contributions by historians of science, perceives the laboratory as being at the node of a complex of interconnected relationships between scientists and science managers on the staff, the users in the member states, and the governments which were called upon to finance the laboratory. In part 2 the physical results, obtained at CERN, are surveyed, while in part 3 two chapters are presented, one on engineering and technology, and the other on the research and development of electronic position detectors

  3. Projective methodical system of students training to the course «History of computer science»

    OpenAIRE

    С А Виденин

    2008-01-01

    Components of teachers readiness to professional activity are described in the item. The projective methods of training to a course « History of computer science « in favour to improve professional grounding of students' are considered.

  4. What's in a Domain: Understanding How Students Approach Questioning in History and Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Portnoy, Lindsay Blau; Rabinowitz, Mitchell

    2014-01-01

    How students ask questions as they learn has implications for understanding, retention, and problem solving. The current research investigates the influence of domain, age, and previous experience with content on the ways students approach questioning across history and science texts. In 3 experiments, 3rd-, 8th-, and 10th-grade students in large…

  5. Teaching the history of science in physics classrooms—the story of the neutrino

    Science.gov (United States)

    Demirci, Neset

    2016-07-01

    Because there is little connection between physics concepts and real life, most students find physics very difficult. In this frontline I have provided a timely link of the historical development using the basic story of neutrino physics and integrated this into introductory modern physics courses in high schools or in higher education. In this way an instructor may be able to build on students’ curiosity in order to enhance the curriculum with some remarkable new physics. Using the history of science in the classroom shapes and improves students’ views and knowledge of the nature of science and increase students’ interest in physics.

  6. History of science in basic physics education: what topics are part of this history?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andre Coelho da Silva

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Taking as theme the use of the history and philosophy of science as a strategy for the physics teaching in high school, we aim to investigate which topics of physics have already been the object of proposals and investigations in this sense. For this, we search for papers in the two most traditional Brazilian journals in the physics education area, the “Revista Brasileira de Ensino de Física” e the “Caderno Brasileiro de Ensino de Física”. We found papers that addressed the following topics: electric and magnetic fields, gravitation, relativity, astronomy, energy, electromagnetism, relations between force and motion, units of measurement, atmospheric pressure and vacuum. In this context, we point out the pertinence in expanding the list of topics that are the subject of studies of this type.

  7. The History of Science and Technology at Bell Labs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bishop, David

    2008-03-01

    Over the last 80 years, Bell Labs has been one of the most scientifically and technologically productive research labs in the world. Inventions such as the transistor, laser, cell phone, solar cell, negative feedback amplifier, communications satellite and many others were made there. Scientific breakthroughs such as discovery of the Big Bang, the wave nature of the electron, electron localization and the fractional quantum hall effect were also made there making Bell Labs almost unique in terms of large impacts in both science and technology. In my talk, I will discuss the history of the lab, talk about the present and give some suggestions for how I see it evolving into the future.

  8. Facts, values, and journalism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gilbert, Susan

    2017-03-01

    At a time of fake news, hacks, leaks, and unverified reports, many people are unsure whom to believe. How can we communicate in ways that make individuals question their assumptions and learn? My colleagues at The Hastings Center and many journalists and scientists are grappling with this question and have, independently, reached the same first step: recognize that facts can't be fully understood without probing their connection to values. "Explaining the basics is important, of course, but we also need to diversify our approach to the coverage of science-particularly as it intersects with the matrix of cultural, religious, social, and political values of our readers," said an article in Undark, an online magazine of science journalism. An editorial in Nature called for scientists to engage directly with citizens in debates over climate change and genome editing, noting that "the ethical issues can be critically dependent on the science, for example, in understanding where the boundaries between non-heritable and heritable genome modifications might be." We're here to help. © 2017 The Hastings Center.

  9. History of Science as Interdisciplinary Education in American Colleges: Its Origins, Advantages, and Pitfalls

    Science.gov (United States)

    Viterbo, Paula

    2007-01-01

    Before 1950, history of science did not exist as an independent academic branch, but was instead pursued by practitioners across various humanities and scientific disciplines. After professionalization, traces of its prehistory as a cross-disciplinary area of interest bound to an interdisciplinary, educational philosophy have remained. This essay…

  10. The facts on file dictionary of environmental science

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Stevenson, L.H.; Wyman, B. (eds.)

    1991-01-01

    More than 3000 entries of terms related to environmental science are included in this volume. The terms are defined in words meant to be understood by the nonexpert, for use in reporting to the general public. Definitions are one to two sentences in length and are accurate without being highly technical. The Appendix lists over 500 commonly used environmental science acronyms and abbreviations as well as a table of standard human factors.

  11. THE HISTORY OF SCIENCE IN THE INTERACTIVE SPACE OF CBME

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    D.F.B Ovigli

    2007-05-01

    Full Text Available Considering that since the 1980’s it has a paradigm change, strengtheningthe perception of Science as a human construction and not as "natural truth", newapproaches of teaching emphasizes the importance of the History of Science inthe educational process, also recommended by the Brazilian PCNs. In thiscontext, it is presented the conclusion of the elaboration and evaluation of anillustrated historical panel that is in permanent exposition in the Interactive Spaceof Biotechnology of the CBME. It presents 25 pictures, inserted in a timeline thatselects important events related to cell biology, microbiology and immunology. Thetimeline is initiated in century XVI, with the microbial theory of the illnesses;spontaneous generation and the experiments of Needham and Spallanzani alsoare commented, as well as the production of the first vaccine. Koch, in centuryXIX, is remembered with its postulates and the discovery of some illnessescausative agents. Brazilians’ researchers - Adolfo Lutz, Oswaldo Cruz, Vital Braziland Carlos Chagas – and institutes are presented too. The panel revealed itself asan important source of information, awakening the interest of the visitors for thesubject. The idea was based on presenting Science as a human knowledgeadventure, emphasizing the scientific process in the construction of theknowledge, based on procedures, needs and different interests and values.

  12. Celestial sleuth using astronomy to solve mysteries in art, history and literature

    CERN Document Server

    Olson, Donald W

    2013-01-01

    For a general audience interested in solving mysteries in art, history, and literature using the methods of science, 'forensic astronomy'  is a thrilling new field of exploration. Astronomical calculations are the basis of the studies, which have the advantage of bringing to readers both evocative images and a better understanding of the skies. Weather facts, volcano studies, topography, tides, historical letters and diaries, famous paintings, military records, and the friendly assistance of experts in related fields add variety, depth, and interest to the work. The chosen topics are selected

  13. The history of science as the progress of the human spirit: The historiography of astronomy in the eighteenth century.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Špelda, Daniel

    2017-06-01

    In the eighteenth century, the historiography of astronomy was part of a wider discussion concerning the history of the human spirit. The concept of the human spirit was very popular among Enlightenment authors because it gave the history of human knowledge continuity, unity and meaning. Using this concept, scientists and historians of science such as Montucla, Lalande, Bailly and Laplace could present the history of astronomy in terms of a progress towards contemporary science that was slow and could be interrupted at times, but was still constant, regular, and necessary. In my paper I intend to explain how the originally philosophical concept of the human spirit was transferred to the history of astronomy. I also introduce the basic principles to which the development of the spirit is subject in astronomy, according to historians of astronomy. The third part of the paper describes how historians of astronomy took into account the effect of social and natural factors on the history of astronomy. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Intersections of Life Histories and Science Identities: The Stories of Three Preservice Elementary Teachers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Avraamidou, Lucy

    2016-01-01

    Grounded within Connelly and Clandinin's conceptualization of teachers' professional identity in terms of "stories to live by" and through a life-history lens, this multiple case study aimed to respond to the following questions: (a) How do three preservice elementary teachers view themselves as future science teachers? (b) How have the…

  15. Citation Behavior of Undergraduate Students: A Study of History, Political Science, and Sociology Papers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hendley, Michelle

    2012-01-01

    The goal of this analysis was to obtain local citation behavior data on undergraduates researching history, political science, and sociology papers. The study found that students cited books and journals even with the availability of web sources; however, usage varied by subject. References to specific websites' domains also varied across subject…

  16. Thermodynamics: The Unique Universal Science

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wassim M. Haddad

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Thermodynamics is a physical branch of science that governs the thermal behavior of dynamical systems from those as simple as refrigerators to those as complex as our expanding universe. The laws of thermodynamics involving conservation of energy and nonconservation of entropy are, without a doubt, two of the most useful and general laws in all sciences. The first law of thermodynamics, according to which energy cannot be created or destroyed, merely transformed from one form to another, and the second law of thermodynamics, according to which the usable energy in an adiabatically isolated dynamical system is always diminishing in spite of the fact that energy is conserved, have had an impact far beyond science and engineering. In this paper, we trace the history of thermodynamics from its classical to its postmodern forms, and present a tutorial and didactic exposition of thermodynamics as it pertains to some of the deepest secrets of the universe.

  17. Why Implementing History and Philosophy in School Science Education is a Challenge: An Analysis of Obstacles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Höttecke, Dietmar; Silva, Cibelle Celestino

    2011-03-01

    Teaching and learning with history and philosophy of science (HPS) has been, and continues to be, supported by science educators. While science education standards documents in many countries also stress the importance of teaching and learning with HPS, the approach still suffers from ineffective implementation in school science teaching. In order to better understand this problem, an analysis of the obstacles of implementing HPS into classrooms was undertaken. The obstacles taken into account were structured in four groups: 1. culture of teaching physics, 2. teachers' skills, epistemological and didactical attitudes and beliefs, 3. institutional framework of science teaching, and 4. textbooks as fundamental didactical support. Implications for more effective implementation of HPS are presented, taking the social nature of educational systems into account.

  18. [History and psychoanalysis: the stakes of history].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chertok, L; Stengers, I

    1993-01-01

    Freud's definition of the relationship between hypnosis and psychoanalysis is a political one that even then pointed to the paradigmatical sciences as defined by Kuhn. Nevertheless, the historian who applies to psychoanalysis the technique of symetry elaborated for such sciences, runs up against a set of singularities that risk bringing him to a position of denouncer of a "fake science". We emphasize that, if the historian does not limit himself to the positivist position or to the history of ideas, he will inevitably find himself engaged in the history that he is analyzing, but with the responsibility of his mode of engagement. We propose to define hypnosis and psychoanalysis as fields inhabited by the question of science in the modern sense of the term, and raising the issue of pertinence, as far as they are concerned, of the theoretical experimental model that guided them.

  19. Drug Facts

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... Facts Bath Salts Facts Cocaine (Coke, Crack) Facts Heroin (Smack, Junk) Facts Marijuana (Weed, Pot) Facts MDMA ( ... Videos Information About Drugs Alcohol Bath Salts Cocaine Heroin Marijuana MDMA Meth Pain Medicines Spice (K2) Tobacco/ ...

  20. Status of JSFR development in phase I FaCT project

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aoto, Kazumi; Chikazawa, Yoshitaka; Kotake, Shoji; Ito, Takaya

    2011-01-01

    The Fast Reactor Cycle Technology Development (FaCT) project is pursuing commercialization of fast reactor cycle system around 2050 under cooperation of MEXT (Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology), METI (Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry), utilities, venders and JAEA (Japan Atomic Energy Agency). As results of the FaCT Phase I, the key technologies for Japan Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor (JSFR) has been evaluated. (author)

  1. Using a Professional Development Program for Enhancing Chilean Biology Teachers' Understanding of Nature of Science (NOS) and Their Perceptions about Using History of Science to Teach NOS

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pavez, José M.; Vergara, Claudia A.; Santibañez, David; Cofré, Hernán

    2016-01-01

    A number of authors have recognized the importance of understanding the nature of science (NOS) for scientific literacy. Different instructional strategies such as decontextualized, hands-on inquiry, and history of science (HOS) activities have been proposed for teaching NOS. This article seeks to understand the contribution of HOS in enhancing…

  2. Are opinions based on science: modelling social response to scientific facts.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gerardo Iñiguez

    Full Text Available As scientists we like to think that modern societies and their members base their views, opinions and behaviour on scientific facts. This is not necessarily the case, even though we are all (over- exposed to information flow through various channels of media, i.e. newspapers, television, radio, internet, and web. It is thought that this is mainly due to the conflicting information on the mass media and to the individual attitude (formed by cultural, educational and environmental factors, that is, one external factor and another personal factor. In this paper we will investigate the dynamical development of opinion in a small population of agents by means of a computational model of opinion formation in a co-evolving network of socially linked agents. The personal and external factors are taken into account by assigning an individual attitude parameter to each agent, and by subjecting all to an external but homogeneous field to simulate the effect of the media. We then adjust the field strength in the model by using actual data on scientific perception surveys carried out in two different populations, which allow us to compare two different societies. We interpret the model findings with the aid of simple mean field calculations. Our results suggest that scientifically sound concepts are more difficult to acquire than concepts not validated by science, since opposing individuals organize themselves in close communities that prevent opinion consensus.

  3. 'Facts about Ourselves': Negotiating sexual knowledge in early twentieth-century South Africa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S.E. Duff

    Full Text Available The focus of this article is on the introduction of sex education to middle-class white children in South Africa during the 1920s and 1930s. It argues that 'Facts about Ourselves for Growing Girls and Boys', a pamphlet put out by the Johannesburg Public Health Department in 1934, opens a window onto the ways in which sexual knowledge was mobilised to teach white, middle-class children correct forms of heterosexuality, as well as to assert and patrol boundaries between these children and African adults, particularly men. Until relatively recently, the field of the history of sexuality has been dominated by efforts to retrieve the histories of marginalised groups. This risks implying that heterosexuality is not historically contingent - that it is fixed, unchanging, and not inflected by race, class and gender. An analysis of 'Facts about Ourselves' and the mobilisation of sexual knowledge becomes, then, a means of tracing the history of the construction of 'normal' sexuality and so historicising heterosexuality.

  4. NuclearFACTS: public engagement about the impacts of nuclear research

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dalzell, M.T.J.; Alexander, R.N.; Main, M.G., E-mail: matthew.dalzell@fedorukcentre.ca [Sylvia Fedoruk Canadian Centre for Nuclear Innovation, Saskatoon, SK, (Canada)

    2015-07-01

    The Forum for Accountability and Communities Talking nuclear Science - nuclearFACTS - is a cornerstone of the Sylvia Fedoruk Canadian Centre for Nuclear Innovation's efforts to engage the people of Saskatchewan in evidence-based conversations about the impacts of the nuclear research, development and training activities supported by the Fedoruk Centre. The second annual nuclearFACTS public colloquium was held 20 November 2014, and featured the participation of 16 research projects. This paper discusses the continued development of the nuclearFACTS concept and its role in the Fedoruk Centre's upstream engagement efforts. (author)

  5. Pupils Produce their Own Narratives Inspired by the History of Science: Animation Movies Concerning the Geocentric-Heliocentric Debate

    Science.gov (United States)

    Piliouras, Panagiotis; Siakas, Spyros; Seroglou, Fanny

    2011-07-01

    In this paper, we present the design and application of a teaching scenario appropriate for 12-years-old pupils in the primary school aiming to a better understanding of scientific concepts and scientific methods, linking the development of individual thinking with the development of scientific ideas and facilitating a better understanding of the nature of science. The design of the instructional material supporting this scenario has been based on the study of the history of astronomy and especially on: (a) The various theories concerning the movement of Earth, our solar system and the universe. (b) Key-stories highlighting the evolutionary character of scientific knowledge as well as the cultural interrelations of science and society. The design of the teaching scenario has focused on the participation of pupils in gradually evolving discourses and practices encouraging an appreciation of aspects of the nature of science (e.g. the role of observation and hypothesis, the use of evidence, the creation and modification of models). In this case, pupils are asked to produce their own narratives: animation movies concerning the geocentric-heliocentric debate inspired by the history of science, as the animation technique presents strong expressional potential and currently has many applications in the field of educational multimedia. The research design of this current case study has been based on the SHINE research model, while data coming from pupils' animation movies, questionnaires, interviews, worksheets, story-boards and drawings have been studied and analyzed using the GNOSIS research model. Elaborated data coming from our analysis approach reveal the appearance, transformation and evolution of aspects of nature of science appreciated by pupils and presented in their movies. Data analysis shows that during the application pupils gradually consider more and more the existence of multiple answers in scientific questions, appreciate the effect of culture on the way

  6. FACT. Energy spectrum of the Crab Nebula

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Temme, Fabian; Einecke, Sabrina; Buss, Jens [TU Dortmund, Experimental Physics 5, Otto-Hahn-Str.4, 44221 Dortmund (Germany); Collaboration: FACT-Collaboration

    2016-07-01

    The First G-APD Cherenkov Telescope is the first Imaging Air Cherenkov Telescope which uses silicon photon detectors (G-APDs aka SiPM) as photo sensors. With more than four years of operation, FACT proved an application of SiPMs is suitable for the field of ground-based gamma-ray astronomy. Due to the stable flux at TeV energies, the Crab Nebula is handled as a ''standard candle'' in Cherenkov astronomy. The analysis of its energy spectrum and comparison with other experiments, allows to evaluate the performance of FACT. A modern analysis chain, based on data stream handling and multivariate analysis methods was developed in close cooperation with the department of computer science at the TU Dortmund. In this talk, this analysis chain and its application are presented. Further to this, results, including the energy spectrum of the Crab Nebula, measured with FACT, are shown.

  7. Teaching issues of contemporary history using historical sources and modern teaching methods

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gruber Gabriela

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The study of history is becoming increasingly less interesting to students, despite the fact that the history teaching process has been continuously modernized during recent years. It is an observation which can be perceived even if we don`t make an elaborated research in the field. Some empirical data show us that students in secondary and High Schools are less interested in studying History than in studying Geography or other social sciences. The number of students who are determined to study History in universities has significantly dropped in recent years [1]. Of course, there are multiple causes and the factors behind this change are numerous and varied. In this paper we handle only some changes in teaching History in High Schools, as they are designed in History Curricula and in History textbooks. Therefore during the first sequence of this paper we shall analyze the History Curricula for High School, 11th and 12th grades, regarding their finalities (competencies, some relevant contents and the recommended pedagogical approaches about the teaching methods and the auxiliary material. In the second part of the paper we propose some teaching activities through which students would practice the specific competencies from their Curriculum for History. We aim at presenting attractive teaching material and learning methods and applying the methodological recommendations from the High school Curricula for History, 11th and 12th grades.

  8. A brief history of science as seen through the development of scientific instruments

    CERN Document Server

    Crump, Thomas

    2002-01-01

    From earliest pre-history, with the dawning understanding of fire and its many uses, up to the astonishing advances of the twenty-first century, Thomas Crump traces the ever more sophisticated means employed in our attempts to understand the universe. The result is a vigorous and readable account of how our curious nature has continually pushed forward the frontiers of science and, as a consequence, human civilization.

  9. Rosalind Franklin and the DNA molecular structure: A case of history of science to learn about the nature of science

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    José Antonio Acevedo-Díaz

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available The Rosalind Franklin’s case regarding the elucidation of the molecular structure of DNA is presented as an interesting story of the history of science to address a set of questions related to the nature of science (NOS from an explicit and reflective approach. The teaching proposal is aimed to the pre-service teachers training in NOS issues and its didactics. Attention is given to both epistemic and non-epistemic aspects in the narration and the NOS questions asked for reflecting about them. Also, some methodological recommendations for implementing the didactic proposal in science classroom are offered. This involves the follows: (i in small groups, the students read the controversy and respond to some questions on NOS; (ii they present their responses to the whole-class; and (iii they revise their initial responses in light of the whole-class discussion.

  10. Inquiry-based laboratory and History of Science: a report about an activity using Oersted’s experiment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    José Antonio Ferreira Pinto

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available This work presents an example of how to explore an historical experiment as a problem to be investigated in an inquiry-based laboratory model. The elaborated and executed purpose is one of the possibilities to insert History of Science in Science classroom. The inquiry-based experimental activity, the texts with historical approach based on modern historiography of science and teacher’s pedagogical knowledge allowed the development of argumentative skills and the comprehension of electromagnetism concepts. This study was developed with 3rd grade high school students from a public school of State of Paraiba.

  11. Science and sports: a brief history of muscle, motion and ad hoc organizations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clarys, Jan Pieter; Alewaeters, Katrien

    2003-09-01

    Both the history of biolocomotion (later to become motion analysis/biomechanics) and of electrology (later kinesiological electromyography) are to be traced back to approximatively the same period in the second half of the seventeenth century. The major contributors to these emergent sciences were Swammerdam in 1658 and Borelli in 1680. Some 150 years later, electrophysiological methods were derived and motion-cinephotography was developed from their pioneering work. Subsequently, use was made of motion analysis by means of cinephotography, forming a basis for biomechanics. The work of Marey in 1873 in particular stimulated the multidisciplinary study of human activity, providing models for contemporary sports scientists working in applied settings. The link between theory and practice in motion sciences and the multidisciplinary model of Marey were the motive and the example for establishing the Working Group of Biomechanics in the 1960s. This body has gone through a series of progressive developments, culminating in the approval of the World Commission of Science and Sports as a service group of the International Council for Sport Science and Physical Education (recognized by UNESCO).

  12. History of Geoscience Research Matters to You

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fleming, J. R.

    2017-12-01

    The geosciences have a long, distinguished, and very useful history Today's science is tomorrow's history of science. If we don't study the past, then every decision we face will seem unprecedented. If we don't study the history of science and apply its lessons, then I don't think we can say we really understand science. Actual research results and ongoing programs will be highlighted, with a focus on public understanding and support for atmospheric science and global change.

  13. The Animal Sciences Academic Quadrathlon: history, current status, and recommendations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kauffman, R G; Jobsis, C T; Onan, G; Day, B N

    2011-07-01

    The Animal Sciences Academic Quadrathlon (AQ) provides opportunities for teams of undergraduate animal and dairy science students to participate in regional American Society of Animal Science (ASAS)/American Dairy Science Association (ADSA) meetings and to collectively exhibit their knowledge and talents competitively in 4 categories: 1) solving practical, hands-on, laboratory-type problems; 2) providing written answers to essay-type questions about principles and concepts; 3) preparing and communicating orally and extemporaneously topics of current animal science interest; and 4) quickly responding to short-answer questions provided in the form of double-elimination quiz bowls. Each team is selected by winning the local AQ at their university. Overall and individual category winning teams are recognized, but team rankings are not emphasized. The ASAS/ADSA members provide leadership for organizing and conducting the AQ, and ASAS and each university provide travel expenses for students. The ultimate purpose is to stimulate academic excellence among undergraduate students and for the students to attend ASAS/ADSA regional scientific meetings to meet faculty and students and to attend scientific research presentations. The purpose of this document was to provide a history of the event and to make recommendations for its improvement. The AQ was conceived in 1967. During the next 10 yr, an ASAS committee developed procedures for a trial AQ held in 1980 at the ASAS Midwestern Section, Kansas State University-Manhattan, and in the next year the first official AQ was held at the ASAS Midwestern Section at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Starting in 1985, AQ programs were initiated at the other 3 ASAS sectional meetings, and an estimated 50,000 students representing 60 universities have participated in AQ programs since that time. If the AQ is to continue its improvement over time, it will greatly depend on sustained ASAS/ADSA faculty interest and support, as well as

  14. Recent Periodicals: Local History, Family and Community History, Cultural Heritage, Folk Studies, Anthropology - A Review (2016

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R. Vladova

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available An annual bibliography of papers in the field of local history, family and community history, cultural heritage, folk studies and anthropology, published in 2016, is collected. The inspected journals are: Bulgarian Journal of Science and Education Policy, Chemistry: Bulgarian Journal of Science Education, Current Anthropology, Family and Community History, Folklore, History and Memory, Journal of Family History, Journal of Folklore Research, Past & Present, Winterthur Portfolio. Many of those journals are available at us under subscription.

  15. On the Ethology of Female Homo Sapiens Sapiens at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Whittle, Christopher

    This study is a followup to the author's earlier study of the learning differences exhibited by museum exhibit visitors and seeks to discern the effects of the pathological cultural problems identified by other researchers in a science education setting. The setting for this followup study was the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science.…

  16. Romanticism and Romantic Science: Their Contribution to Science Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hadzigeorgiou, Yannis; Schulz, Roland

    2014-01-01

    The unique contributions of romanticism and romantic science have been generally ignored or undervalued in history and philosophy of science studies and science education. Although more recent research in history of science has come to delineate the value of both topics for the development of modern science, their merit for the educational field…

  17. History from the ground up: bugs, political economy, and God in Kirby and Spence's Introduction to Entomology (1815-1856).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clark, J F M

    2006-03-01

    William Kirby and William Spence's Introduction to Entomology is generally recognized as one of the founding texts of entomological science in English. This essay examines the ideological allegiances of the coauthors of the Introduction. In particular, it analyzes the ideological implications of their divergent opinions on animal instinct. Different vocational pursuits shaped each man's natural history. Spence, a political economist, pursued fact-based science that was shorn of references to religion. Kirby, a Tory High Churchman, placed revelation at the very heart of his natural history. His strong commitment to partisan sectarianism cautions against reference to a homogeneous "natural theology" that was an agent of mediation. Fissures in the "common intellectual context" reached beyond the clash between natural theologians and radical anatomists to render the intellectual edifice of natural theology structurally less sound for the future.

  18. Working knowledges before and after circa 1800: practices and disciplines in the history of science, technology, and medicine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pickstone, John V

    2007-09-01

    Historians of science, inasmuch as they are concerned with knowledges and practices rather than institutions, have tended of late to focus on case studies of common processes such as experiment and publication. In so doing, they tend to treat science as a single category, with various local instantiations. Or, alternatively, they relate cases to their specific local contexts. In neither approach do the cases or their contexts build easily into broader histories, reconstructing changing knowledge practices across time and space. This essay argues that by systematically deconstructing the practices of science and technology and medicine (STM) into common, recurrent elements, we can gain usefully "configurational" views, not just of particular cases and contexts but of synchronic variety and diachronic changes, both short term and long. To this end, we can begin with the customary actors' disciplines of early modern knowledge (natural philosophy, natural history, mixed mathematics, and experimental philosophy), which can be understood as elemental "ways of knowing and working," variously combined and disputed. I argue that these same working knowledges, together with a later mode-synthetic experimentation and systematic invention-may also serve for the analysis of STM from the late eighteenth century to the present. The old divisions continued explicitly and importantly after circa 1800, but they were also "built into" an array of new sciences. This historiographic analysis can help clarify a number of common problems: about the multiplicity of the sciences, the importance of various styles in science, and the relations between science and technology and medicine. It suggests new readings of major changes in STM, including the first and second scientific revolutions and the transformations of biomedicine from the later twentieth century. It offers ways of recasting both microhistories and macrohistories, so reducing the apparent distance between them. And it may thus

  19. Reviews Book: The Age of Wonder Equipment: Portoscope DVD: Around the World in 80 Images Book: Four Laws that Drive the Universe Book: Antimatter Equipment: Coffee Saver Starter Set Equipment: Graphite Levitation Kit Book: Critical Reading Video: Science Fiction-Science Fact Web Watch

    Science.gov (United States)

    2009-03-01

    WE RECOMMEND The Age of Wonder This book tells the stories of inspiring 19th-century scientists Antimatter A fast read that gives an intriguing tour of the antimatter world Science Fiction-Science Fact A video from a set of resources about the facts in science fiction WORTH A LOOK Portoscope Lightweight ×30 microscope that is easy on the purse Four Laws that Drive the Universe In just 124 pages Peter Atkins explains thermodynamics Coffee Saver Starter Kit A tool that can demonstrate the effect of reduced air pressure Graphite Levitation Kit Compact set that demonstrates diamagnetic behaviour Critical Reading A study guide on how to read scientific papers HANDLE WITH CARE Around the World in 80 Images Navigate through images from Envistat, country by country WEB WATCH This month's issue features real-time simulation program Krucible 2.0, which enables learners to run virtual experiments

  20. Drug Facts

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  1. Drug Facts

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  2. Drug Facts

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  3. Drug Facts

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  4. Drug Facts

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  6. Drug Facts

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  7. Drug Facts

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  8. Drug Facts

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    Full Text Available ... Cocaine (Coke, Crack) Facts Heroin (Smack, Junk) Facts Marijuana (Weed, Pot) Facts MDMA (Ecstasy, Molly) Facts Meth (Crank, ... Information About Drugs Alcohol Bath Salts Cocaine Heroin Marijuana MDMA Meth Pain Medicines Spice (K2) Tobacco/Nicotine ...

  9. A Brief History of the Most Remarkable Numbers "e," "i" and "?" in Mathematical Sciences with Applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Debnath, Lokenath

    2015-01-01

    This paper deals with a brief history of the most remarkable Euler numbers "e,"?"i"?and?"?" in mathematical sciences. Included are many properties of the constants "e,"?"i"?and?"?" and their applications in algebra, geometry, physics, chemistry, ecology, business and industry. Special…

  10. Materials Science Experiments Under Microgravity - A Review of History, Facilities, and Future Opportunities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stenzel, Ch.

    2012-01-01

    Materials science experiments have been a key issue already since the early days of research under microgravity conditions. A microgravity environment facilitates processing of metallic and semiconductor melts without buoyancy driven convection and sedimentation. Hence, crystal growth of semiconductors, solidification of metallic alloys, and the measurement of thermo-physical parameters are the major applications in the field of materials science making use of these dedicated conditions in space. In the last three decades a large number of successful experiments have been performed, mainly in international collaborations. In parallel, the development of high-performance research facilities and the technological upgrade of diagnostic and stimuli elements have also contributed to providing optimum conditions to perform such experiments. A review of the history of materials science experiments in space focussing on the development of research facilities is given. Furthermore, current opportunities to perform such experiments onboard ISS are described and potential future options are outlined.

  11. The role of probability arguments in the history of science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weinert, Friedel

    2010-03-01

    The paper examines Wesley Salmon's claim that the primary role of plausibility arguments in the history of science is to impose constraints on the prior probability of hypotheses (in the language of Bayesian confirmation theory). A detailed look at Copernicanism and Darwinism and, more briefly, Rutherford's discovery of the atomic nucleus reveals a further and arguably more important role of plausibility arguments. It resides in the consideration of likelihoods, which state how likely a given hypothesis makes a given piece of evidence. In each case the likelihoods raise the probability of one of the competing hypotheses and diminish the credibility of its rival, and this may happen either on the basis of 'old' or 'new' evidence.

  12. History, Medicine, and Culture: History for Science Students.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Balog, C. Edward

    1980-01-01

    Describes college level history course entitled "Healers and Persons" for undergraduate medicine students. Topics include Greek medicine and Hippocrates, Galen of Pergamum, Islamic and Roman culture, medieval medicine, the Renaissance, Harvey, Pasteur, Lister, and Mendel. (KC)

  13. The contribution of Osvaldo Rodrigues da Cunha (1928-2011 to History of Science

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nelson Sanjad

    2011-04-01

    Full Text Available The article describes and analyzes the historiographical works of Brazilian Herpetologist Osvaldo Rodrigues da Cunha (1928-2011, researcher of Museu Paraense Emilio Goeldi. It presents his published works, mainly in the field of History of Science, in which he studied the institution he belonged to and the scientists who lived in Amazonia. Cunha's complete works dedicated to the theme, composed along of almost 50 years, are reported in the paper.

  14. Body dysmorphic disorder: history and curiosities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    França, Katlein; Roccia, Maria Grazia; Castillo, David; ALHarbi, Mana; Tchernev, Georgi; Chokoeva, Anastasia; Lotti, Torello; Fioranelli, Massimo

    2017-10-01

    Body dysmorphic disorder is a chronic psychiatric disorder characterized by excessive preoccupation with an absent or minimal physical deformity. It causes severe distress and impairs normal functioning. In the last centuries, this disorder has been mentioned in the medical literature by important mental health practitioners by different names, such as "dysmorphophobia" or "dermatologic hypochondriasis". However, not until the last century was it included among the obsessive-compulsive disorders, although its classification has changed over time.Patients with body dysmorphic disorder constantly seek cosmetic treatments in order to improve their physical appearance, which more often deteriorates their mental condition. The high prevalence of psychiatric disorders in cosmetic medical practice has led in this field of study to the new science "cosmetic psychodermatology". This paper presents a summary of important facts about body dysmorphic disorder and its description throughout the history of medicine.

  15. An Analysis of the Model and Enacted Curricula for a History of Science Course in a Nationwide Teacher Education Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nouri, Noushin

    2017-01-01

    The UTeach program, a national model for undergraduate teacher preparation, includes "Perspectives on Science and Mathematics," a class designed to share content about the History of Science (HOS) with preservice teachers. UTeach provides a model curriculum as a sample for instructors teaching "Perspectives." The purpose of…

  16. The Effect of Project-Based History and Nature of Science Practices on the Change of Nature of Scientific Knowledge

    Science.gov (United States)

    Çibik, Ayse Sert

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this study is to compare the change of pre-service science teachers' views about the nature of scientific knowledge through Project-Based History and Nature of Science training and Conventional Method. The sample of the study consists of two groups of 3rd grade undergraduate students attending teacher preparation program of science…

  17. Bringing values and deliberation to science communication.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dietz, Thomas

    2013-08-20

    Decisions always involve both facts and values, whereas most science communication focuses only on facts. If science communication is intended to inform decisions, it must be competent with regard to both facts and values. Public participation inevitably involves both facts and values. Research on public participation suggests that linking scientific analysis to public deliberation in an iterative process can help decision making deal effectively with both facts and values. Thus, linked analysis and deliberation can be an effective tool for science communication. However, challenges remain in conducting such process at the national and global scales, in enhancing trust, and in reconciling diverse values.

  18. The History and Philosophy of Science in Physics Teaching: A Research Synthesis of Didactic Interventions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Teixeira, Elder Sales; Greca, Ileana Maria; Freire, Olival, Jr.

    2012-01-01

    This work is a systematic review of studies that investigate teaching experiences applying History and Philosophy of Science (HPS) in physics classrooms, with the aim of obtaining critical and reliable information on this subject. After a careful process of selection and exclusion of studies compiled from a variety of databases, an in-depth review…

  19. College Students Constructing Collective Knowledge of Natural Science History in a Collaborative Knowledge Building Community

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hong, Huang-Yao; Chai, Ching Sing; Tsai, Chin-Chung

    2015-01-01

    This study investigates whether engaging college students (n = 42) in a knowledge building environment would help them work as a community to construct their collective knowledge of history of science and, accordingly, develop a more informed scientific view. The study adopted mixed-method analyses and data mainly came from surveys and student…

  20. DinoViz: Exploring the History and Nature of Science through the Progression of Dinosaur Visualization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clary, Renee; Wandersee, James

    2011-01-01

    Dinosaurs in the middle school classroom can be exciting. These extinct reptiles are both an exotic subject and familiar to our students. Because students are inherently interested, dinosaurs can serve as an effective portal for the integration of biology, geology, ecology, and the history and nature of science. The field of dinosaur study is…

  1. (A)Historical science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Casadevall, Arturo; Fang, Ferric C

    2015-12-01

    In contrast to many other human endeavors, science pays little attention to its history. Fundamental scientific discoveries are often considered to be timeless and independent of how they were made. Science and the history of science are regarded as independent academic disciplines. Although most scientists are aware of great discoveries in their fields and their association with the names of individual scientists, few know the detailed stories behind the discoveries. Indeed, the history of scientific discovery is sometimes recorded only in informal accounts that may be inaccurate or biased for self-serving reasons. Scientific papers are generally written in a formulaic style that bears no relationship to the actual process of discovery. Here we examine why scientists should care more about the history of science. A better understanding of history can illuminate social influences on the scientific process, allow scientists to learn from previous errors, and provide a greater appreciation for the importance of serendipity in scientific discovery. Moreover, history can help to assign credit where it is due and call attention to evolving ethical standards in science. History can make science better. Copyright © 2015, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

  2. Are you afraid of the dark? Notes on the psychology of belief in histories of science and the occult.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sommer, Andreas

    2016-04-02

    The popular view of the inherent conflict between science and the occult has been rendered obsolete by recent advances in the history of science. Yet, these historiographical revisions have gone unnoticed in the public understanding of science and public education at large. Particularly, reconstructions of the formation of modern psychology and its links to psychical research can show that the standard view of the latter as motivated by metaphysical bias fails to stand up to scrutiny. After highlighting certain basic methodological maxims shared by psychotherapists and historians, I will try to counterbalance simplistic claims of a 'need to believe' as a precondition of scientific open-mindedness regarding the occurrence of parapsychological phenomena by discussing instances revealing a presumably widespread 'will to disbelieve' in the occult. I shall argue that generalized psychological explanations are only helpful in our understanding of history if we apply them in a symmetrical manner.

  3. Ernst Mach and George Sarton's Successors: The Implicit Role Model of Teaching Science in USA and Elsewhere, Part II

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siemsen, Hayo

    2013-01-01

    George Sarton had a strong influence on modern history of science. The method he pursued throughout his life was the method he had discovered in Ernst Mach's "Mechanics" when he was a student in Ghent. Sarton was in fact throughout his life implementing a research program inspired by the epistemology of Mach. Sarton in turn inspired many…

  4. Critical Science Literacy: What Citizens and Journalists Need to Know to Make Sense of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Priest, Susanna

    2013-01-01

    Increasing public knowledge of science is a widely recognized goal, but what that knowledge might consist of is rarely unpacked. Existing measures of science literacy tend to focus on textbook knowledge of science. Yet constructing a meaningful list of facts, even facts in application, is not only difficult but less than satisfying as an indicator…

  5. Education science and biological anthropology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krebs, Uwe

    2014-01-01

    This contribution states deficits and makes proposals in order to overcome them. First there is the question as to why the Biological Anthropology--despite all its diversifications--hardly ever deals with educational aspects of its subject. Second it is the question as to why Educational Science neglects or even ignores data of Biological Anthropology which are recognizably important for its subject. It is postulated that the stated deficits are caused by several adverse influences such as, the individual identity of each of the involved single sciences; aspects of the recent history of the German Anthropology; a lack of conceptual understanding of each other; methodological differences and, last but not least, the structure of the universities. The necessity to remedy this situation was deduced from two groups of facts. First, more recent data of the Biological Anthropology (e.g. brain functions and learning, sex specificity and education) are of substantial relevance for the Educational Science. Second, the epistemological requirements of complex subjects like education need interdisciplinary approaches. Finally, a few suggestions of concrete topics are given which are related to both, Educational Science and Biological Anthropology.

  6. Are you afraid of the dark? Notes on the psychology of belief in histories of science and the occult

    OpenAIRE

    Sommer, Andreas

    2016-01-01

    This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Taylor & Francis via https://doi.org/ 10.1080/13642537.2016.1170062 The popular view of the inherent conflict between science and the occult has been rendered obsolete by recent advances in the history of science. Yet, these historiographical revisions have gone unnoticed in the public understanding of science and public education at large. Particularly reconstructions of the formation of modern psychology and its links to...

  7. History and Nature of Science enriched Problem-Based Learning on the origins of biodiversity and of continents and oceans

    OpenAIRE

    Sousa, Cristina

    2014-01-01

    [EN] The episode of the History of Science (HOS) on the theory of continental drift proposed by Alfred Wegener has been considered an excellent example for teaching students aspects of Nature of Science (NOS) and the relation of Science with social and tecnological contexts. We implemented a NOS and HOS-enriched Problem-Based Learning environment at the middle (year 7 of the Portuguese National Curriculum) and secondary level (year 10) for teaching the origins of biodiversity and of continent...

  8. Beyond the center: Sciences in Central and Eastern Europe and their histories. An interview with professor Michael Jordan conducted by Jan Surman

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael Gordin

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available What is special about sciences in Central and Eastern Europe? What are the obstacles for writing histories of science done beyond metropoles? Is this science different than the science in the centers and what makes it so? How imperial are sciences made by representatives of dominant nations compared to non-dominant nations? These are some of the questions touched upon in the interview with Michael Gordin, a leading historian of science from Princeton University.

  9. The scientists A history of science told through the lives of its greatest inventors

    CERN Document Server

    Gribbin, John

    2004-01-01

    By focusing on the scientists themselves, Gribbin has written an anecdotal narrative enlivened with stories of personal drama, success and failure. A bestselling science writer with an international reputation, Gribbin is among the few authors who could even attempt a work of this magnitude. Praised as “a sequence of witty, information-packed tales” and “a terrifi c read” by The Times upon its recent British publication, The Scientists breathes new life into such venerable icons as Galileo, Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein and Linus Pauling, as well as lesser lights whose stories have been undeservedly neglected. Filled with pioneers, visionaries, eccentrics and madmen, this is the history of science as it has never been told before.

  10. Mellem historie- og krigsvidenskab

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hansen Schøning, Anna Sofie

    2016-01-01

    history was used to establish national and organisational identity. In the 1880s, military history was used as a means to find, explain and apply universal principles of war and, in the 1910s, military history should be used as a means to gain general insight that could potentially lead to a better......The article investigates how military history was taught as part of the Danish higher officer education from 1830 to 1920 and how the subject was affected by developments in academic history and the science of war. It argues that military history, as it was taught in the formal officer education......, could not be seen solely as a historic subject but also as a subject under the influence of the discipline of military science. Three very different understandings of how military history can contribute to higher officer education are shown through the analysis of textbooks. In the 1830s military...

  11. The use of history of science in physics teaching: an application for electromagnetism

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    María Andrea Perea

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available The present is a revision of different proposals that utilize History of Science in teaching. They have been grouped according to the purpose they pursue: to evoke discoveries, to highlight the human aspect of Science through the contributions of renamed scientists, to teach the processes of scientific construction, to detect students' preconceptions and teach concepts, and to highlight the socio-cultural basis of scientific ideas and research. We discuss why we consider that this last aspect includes the other ones, and elaborate general guidelines for the use of HC in a particular case dealing with electromagnetic field. Our proposal is focused on the controversy between "action-at-a-distance" and "field", and is elaborated on the basis of key experiments carried out by Heinrich Hertz.

  12. The Great War as a Crucial Point in the History of Russian Science and Technology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saprykin, Dmitry L

    2016-01-01

    The paper is devoted to one of the most important and, at the same time, relatively unexplored phases in the history of Russian science and technology. The Great War coincided with the beginning of a heyday in science, engineering education, and technology in Russia. It was precisely the time in which Russia's era of "Big Science" was emer- ging. Many Russian and Soviet technical projects and scientific schools were rooted in the time of the Great War. The "engineerization" of science and a "physical-technical" way of thinking had already begun before the war. But it was precisely the war which encouraged a large proportion of the Russian academic community to take part in industrial projects. Academics also played a significant role in developing concepts and implementing strategic plans during the Great War. This article also discusses how the organization of science and the academic community was transformed during, and after, the Great War. And it looks at the impact that war had on Russia's participation in the international scientific community.

  13. NOAA History - Main Page

    Science.gov (United States)

    NOAA History Banner gold bar divider home - takes you to index page about the site contacts noaa americas science and service noaa legacy 1807 - 2007 NOAA History is an intrinsic part of the history of Initiative scroll divider More NOAA History from Around the Nation scroll divider drawing of a tornado NOAA

  14. From the history of physics (Scientific session of the General Meeting of the Physical Sciences Division of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 17 December 2012)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2013-01-01

    A scientific session of the General Meeting of the Physical Sciences Division of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) was held in the conference hall of the Lebedev Physical Institute, RAS on 17 December 2012. The following reports were put on the session's agenda posted on the website http://www.gpad.ac.ru of the RAS Physical Sciences Division: (1) Dianov E M (Fiber Optics Research Center, RAS, Moscow) O n the threshold of a peta era ; (2) Zabrodskii A G (Ioffe Physical Technical Institute, RAS, St. Petersburg) S cientists' contribution to the great victory in WWII using the example of the Leningrad (now A F Ioffe) Physical Technical Institute ; (3) Ilkaev R I (Russian Federal Nuclear Center --- All-Russian Research Institute of Experimental Physics, Sarov) M ajor stages of the Soviet Atomic Project ; (4) Cherepashchuk A M (Sternberg State Astronomical Institute of Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow) H istory of the Astronomy history . Papers written on the basis of the reports are published below. . On the Threshold of Peta-era, E M Dianov Physics-Uspekhi, 2013, Volume 56, Number 5, Pages 486–492 . Scientists' contribution to the Great Victory in WWII on the example of the Leningrad (now A F Ioffe) Physical Technical Institute, A G Zabrodskii Physics-Uspekhi, 2013, Volume 56, Number 5, Pages 493–502 . Major stages of the Atomic Project, R I Ilkaev Physics-Uspekhi, 2013, Volume 56, Number 5, Pages 502–509. History of the Universe History, A M Cherepashchuk Physics-Uspekhi, 2013, Volume 56, Number 5, Pages 509–530 (conferences and symposia)

  15. Science, History, Progress: Myth as a Story about Time Caught between Eternity and Infinity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Miha Pintarič

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available The function of myth, just like that of science, is to achieve a uniform picture of the world in the human mind. Myth, however, is based on supposed truth, not reality. Rather than a beginning, it is the end of any possible discussion. The article, based on French mediaeval and renaissance literature, introduces a view on how Western consciousness wrestled itself out of myth and into history.

  16. Drug Facts

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  17. Drug Facts

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    Full Text Available ... Facts Search form Search Menu Home Drugs That People Abuse Alcohol Facts Bath Salts Facts Cocaine (Coke, ... Drugs? Effects of Drugs Drug Use and Other People Drug Use and Families Drug Use and Kids ...

  18. Drug Facts

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    Full Text Available ... Home Drugs That People Abuse Alcohol Facts Bath Salts Facts Cocaine (Coke, Crack) Facts Heroin (Smack, Junk) ... treatment. Watch Videos Information About Drugs Alcohol Bath Salts Cocaine Heroin Marijuana MDMA Meth Pain Medicines Spice ( ...

  19. Are you afraid of the dark? Notes on the psychology of belief in histories of science and the occult

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sommer, Andreas

    2016-01-01

    Abstract The popular view of the inherent conflict between science and the occult has been rendered obsolete by recent advances in the history of science. Yet, these historiographical revisions have gone unnoticed in the public understanding of science and public education at large. Particularly, reconstructions of the formation of modern psychology and its links to psychical research can show that the standard view of the latter as motivated by metaphysical bias fails to stand up to scrutiny. After highlighting certain basic methodological maxims shared by psychotherapists and historians, I will try to counterbalance simplistic claims of a ‘need to believe’ as a precondition of scientific open-mindedness regarding the occurrence of parapsychological phenomena by discussing instances revealing a presumably widespread ‘will to disbelieve’ in the occult. I shall argue that generalized psychological explanations are only helpful in our understanding of history if we apply them in a symmetrical manner. PMID:27226762

  20. The Relevance of History of Biology to Teaching and Learning in the Life Sciences: The Case of Mendel's Laws

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dagher, Zoubeida R.

    2014-01-01

    Using Mendel's laws as a case in point, the purpose of this paper is to bring historical and philosophical perspectives together to help students understand science as a human endeavor. Three questions as addressed: (1) how did the Mendelian scheme, principles, or facts become labeled as laws, (2) to what extent do Mendel's laws exhibit…

  1. A proposal for investment recovery of FACTS devices in deregulated electricity markets

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mithulananthan, Nadarajah; Acharya, Naresh

    2007-01-01

    The paper presents a methodology to quantify the benefits, in terms of monetary values, of FACTS devices when used in deregulated electricity market for congestion management. The proposed methodology is used in the proposal for investment recovery of FACTS devices. Despite the long history of development and mature technology, the practical installations of FACTS devices are still limited. The main reasons for few installations are high investment cost and lack of viable measures to quantify the long list of benefits offered by FACTS device. In this respect, the methodology proposed in the paper provides a promising solution. The proposed methodology is based on establishing pricing schemes with and without FACTS devices using OPF formulation. The volume of market with FACTS devices and the increase in surplus due to them forms the basis of quantifying their benefits. The pricing scheme does not destroy the incentive effect in short run and also makes possible the provision of merchant FACTS. The proposed concept was tested and validated with TCSC in five-bus test system. Result shows that, when TCSC is used to relieve congestion in the system and the investment on TCSC can be recovered. (author)

  2. Drug Facts

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... Pain Medicine (Oxy, Vike) Facts Spice (K2) Facts Tobacco and Nicotine Facts Other Drugs of Abuse What ... Heroin Marijuana MDMA Meth Pain Medicines Spice (K2) Tobacco/Nicotine Other Drugs You can call 1-800- ...

  3. Drug Facts

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... Oxy, Vike) Facts Spice (K2) Facts Tobacco and Nicotine Facts Other Drugs of Abuse What is Addiction? ... Marijuana MDMA Meth Pain Medicines Spice (K2) Tobacco/Nicotine Other Drugs You can call 1-800-662- ...

  4. Claiming lesbian history: the romance between fact and fiction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garber, Linda

    2015-01-01

    The contested field of lesbian history exists along a continuum, with undisputed evidence on one end and informed speculation on the other. Lesbian historical fiction extends the spectrum, envisioning the lives of lesbian pirates, war heroes, pioneers, bandits, and stock romantic characters, as well as the handful of protagonists examined here whose quests specifically highlight the difficulty and importance of researching the lesbian past. The genre blossomed in the 1980s, just as the Foucauldian insistence that homosexual identity did not exist before the late nineteenth century gained sway in the academy. The proliferation of lesbian historical fictions signals the growing desire for more thorough (if not completely factual) historical underpinnings of the burgeoning lesbian identities, communities, and politics set in motion in the 1970s.

  5. Oral Insulin – Fact or Fiction? - Possibilities of Achieving Oral ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Home; Journals; Resonance – Journal of Science Education; Volume 8; Issue 5. Oral Insulin – Fact or Fiction? - Possibilities of Achieving Oral Delivery of Insulin. K Gowthamarajan Giriraj T Kulkarni. General Article Volume 8 Issue 5 May 2003 pp 38-46 ...

  6. “Learning Science Is About Facts and Language Learning Is About Being Discursive”—An Empirical Investigation of Students' Disciplinary Beliefs in the Context of Argumentation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heitmann, Patricia; Hecht, Martin; Scherer, Ronny; Schwanewedel, Julia

    2017-01-01

    Argumentation is considered crucial in numerous disciplines in schools and universities because it constitutes an important proficiency in peoples' daily and professional lives. However, it is unclear whether argumentation is understood and practiced in comparable ways across disciplines. This study consequently examined empirically how students perceive argumentation in science and (first) language lessons. Specifically, we investigated students' beliefs about the relevance of discourse and the role of facts. Data from 3,258 high school students from 85 German secondary schools were analyzed with multigroup multilevel structural equation modeling in order to disentangle whether or not differences in argumentation across disciplines exist and the extent to which variation in students' beliefs can be explained by gender and school track. Results showed that students perceived the role of facts as highly relevant for science lessons, whereas discursive characteristics were considered significantly less important. In turn, discourse played a central role in language lessons, which was believed to require less knowledge of facts. These differences were independent of students' gender. In contrast, school track predicted the differences in beliefs significantly. Our findings lend evidence on the existence of disciplinary school cultures in argumentation that may be the result of differences in teachers' school-track-specific classroom practice and education. Implications in terms of a teacher's role in establishing norms for scientific argumentation as well as the impact of students' beliefs on their learning outcomes are discussed. PMID:28642727

  7. History of Science and Science Museums

    Science.gov (United States)

    Faria, Cláudia; Guilherme, Elsa; Gaspar, Raquel; Boaventura, Diana

    2015-01-01

    The activities presented in this paper, which are addressed to elementary school, are focused on the pioneering work of the Portuguese King Carlos I in oceanography and involve the exploration of the exhibits belonging to two different science museums, the Aquarium Vasco da Gama and the Maritime Museum. Students were asked to study fish…

  8. Science Song Project: Integration of Science, Technology and Music to Learn Science and Process Skills

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jiyoon Yoon

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available It has been critical to find a way for teachers to motivate their young children to learn science and improve science achievement. Since music has been used as a tool for educating young students, this study introduces the science song project to teacher candidates that contains science facts, concepts, laws and theories, and combines them with music for motivating their young children to learn science and improve science achievement. The purpose of the study is to determine the effect of the science song project on teacher candidates’ understanding of science processing skills and their attitudes toward science. The participants were 45 science teacher candidates who were enrolled in an EC-6 (Early Childhood through Grade 6 program in the teacher certification program at a racially diverse Texas public research university. To collect data, this study used two instruments: pre-and post-self efficacy tests before and after the science teacher candidates experienced the science song project and final reflective essay at the end of the semester. The results show that while developing their songs, the participating teacher candidates experienced a process for science practice, understood science concepts and facts, and positively improved attitudes toward science. This study suggests that the science song project is a science instruction offering rich experiences of process-based learning and positive attitudes toward science.

  9. History of information science

    OpenAIRE

    Buckland, MK; Liu, Z

    1998-01-01

    This informative volume concentrates on the following areas: Historiography of Information Science; Paul Otlet and His Successors; Techniques, Tools, and Systems; People and Organizations; Theoretical Topics; and Literature.

  10. [History of pedagogy and educational sciences in the Baltic countries from 1940 to 1990. An overview] / Mare Oja

    Index Scriptorium Estoniae

    Oja, Mare, 1960-

    2014-01-01

    Arvustus: History of pedagogy and educational sciences in the Baltic countries from 1940 to 1990. An overview. Hrsg. im Auftrag der Baltic Association of Historians of Pedagogy von Vadim Rõuk und Vidimantas Raudys. Verlag RaKa. Riga 2013

  11. The History and Significance of the Incommensurability Thesis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pearce, James Jacob

    The incommensurability thesis (IT) maintains that there are no non-prejudicial means of choosing between competing theories in the empirical sciences. If true, IT would entail that natural science is a fundamentally subjective or irrational activity. Should this latter claim prove justifiable, then empirical science cannot be regarded as an organ of objective knowledge, and "scientific realism" is eo ipso false. I follow the origin of IT from its pre-history in Logical Positivism, through certain preliminary philosophical developments in the work of Karl Popper, W. V. O. Quine, Stephen Toulmin and N. R. Hanson, to the eventual formulation and introduction of IT by Thomas Kuhn and Paul Feyerabend. I then examine the rigorous criticism of IT by various philosophers since about 1964, and discuss different methods of objective theory comparison which have been advanced by such philosophers as Hilary Putnam, W. H. Newton-Smith, Michael Devitt, Hartry Field, Philip Kitcher and Howard Sankey. I conclude by arguing for two counterintuitive claims: (1) Even if true, IT fails to provide evidence against scientific realism. (2) In fact, the truth of IT actually furnishes evidence for a necessary condition for scientific realism, and hence evidence which can be construed as indirectly favorable to scientific realism.

  12. 3. THE NATIONAL ACADEMIC UNCONSCIOUS IN QUESTION. HISTORY OF CONCEPTS, HISTORICAL SEMANTICS, CRITICAL SOCIOLOGY OF LEXICAL USAGE WITHIN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Olivier Christin

    2013-08-01

    Full Text Available A few years ago, together with Franz Schultheis, of the University of Saint-Gallen and coordinator of the social sciences network ESSE, we chose to study the international circulation of the categories and concepts that are in use in European social sciences. With the publication of the Dictionnaire des concepts  nomades (“Dictionary of nomadic concepts”, that includes only a small number of quite lengthy entries, what we tried to propose were not ready-made solutions, or vademecums for the comparative academic, but a series of questions, or rather the means to ask crucial questions for anyone who practises history, political science, history of economic ideas, or comparative sociology. We did so with two considerations in mind: one political, and the other academic, both of which I will evoke in turn in this paper.

  13. Deep Carbon Observatory investigates Carbon from Crust to Core: An Academic Record of the History of Deep Carbon Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mitton, S. A.

    2017-12-01

    Carbon plays an unparalleled role in our lives: as the element of life, as the basis of most of society's energy, as the backbone of most new materials, and as the central focus in efforts to understand Earth's variable and uncertain climate. Yet in spite of carbon's importance, scientists remain largely ignorant of the physical, chemical, and biological behavior of many of Earth's carbon-bearing systems. The Deep Carbon Observatory (DCO) is a global research program to transform our understanding of carbon in Earth. At its heart, DCO is a community of scientists, from biologists to physicists, geoscientists to chemists, and many others whose work crosses these disciplinary lines, forging a new, integrative field of deep carbon science. As a historian of science, I specialise in the history of planetary science and astronomy since 1900. This is directed toward understanding of the history of the steps on the road to discovering the internal dynamics of our planet. Within a framework that describes the historical background to the new field of Earth System Science, I present the first history of deep carbon science. This project will identifies the key discoveries of deep carbon science. It will assess the impact of new knowledge on geochemistry, geodynamics, and geobiology. The project will lead to publication, in book form in 2019, of an illuminating narrative that will highlight the engaging human stories of many remarkable scientists and natural philosophers from whom we have learned about the complexity of Earth's internal world. On this journey of discovery we will encounter not just the pioneering researchers of deep carbon science, but also their institutions, their instrumental inventiveness, and their passion for exploration. The book is organised thematically around the four communities of the Deep Carbon Observatory: Deep Life, Extreme Physics and Chemistry, Reservoirs and Fluxes, and Deep Energy. The presentation has a gallery and list of Deep Carbon

  14. The Challenges of Figure Overuse in STEM Education: Lessons Learned From the Recent History of Science Education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vinson Carter

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available In technology and engineering education the design loop has become ubiquitous. For example, the authors challenge you to go into any technology and engineering classroom, and not find some form or fashion of the design loop, process, or method displayed prominently on the wall. Similarly, if you were to survey pre-service teacher candidates about their definition of “engineering”, they would likely refer to the design loop, process, or method. The science education community faced a similar situation in the past regarding “the scientific method”. In fact, the scientific method has even become pervasive within the public’s view of doing science. Perhaps it is time to rethink how we present the design process to students.

  15. Argumentation Tasks in Secondary English Language Arts, History, and Science: Variations in Instructional Focus and Inquiry Space

    Science.gov (United States)

    Litman, Cindy; Greenleaf, Cynthia

    2018-01-01

    This study drew on observations of 40 secondary English language arts, history, and science lessons to describe variation in opportunities for students to engage in argumentation and possible implications for student engagement and learning. The authors focused their analysis on two broad dimensions of argumentation tasks: (1) "Instructional…

  16. Alchemy & algorithms: perspectives on the philosophy and history of open science

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leo Lahti

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available This paper gives the reader a chance to experience, or revisit, PHOS16: a conference on the History and Philosophy of Open Science. In the winter of 2016, we invited a varied international group to engage with these topics at the University of Helsinki, Finland. Our aim was a critical assessment of the defining features, underlying narratives, and overall objectives of the contemporary open science movement. The event brought together contemporary open science scholars, publishers, and advocates to discuss the philosophical foundations and historical roots of openness in academic research. The eight sessions combined historical views with more contemporary perspectives on topics such as transparency, reproducibility, collaboration, publishing, peer review, research ethics, as well as societal impact and engagement. We gathered together expert panelists and 15 invited speakers who have published extensively on these topics, which allowed us to engage in a thorough and multifaceted discussion. Together with our involved audience we charted the role and foundations of openness of research in our time, considered the accumulation and dissemination of scientific knowledge, and debated the various technical, legal, and ethical challenges of the past and present. In this article, we provide an overview of the topics covered at the conference as well as individual video interviews with each speaker. In addition to this, all the talks were recorded and they are offered here as an openly licensed community resource in both video and audio form.

  17. History of Science and Instructional Design: The Case of Electromagnetism

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seroglou, Fanny; Koumaras, Panagiotis; Tselfes, Vassilis

    This paper deals with two main research questions: a) Can we search for pupils'' potential alternative ideas in the history of science and especially in those areas where early scientific ideas were distinct from the current ones? b) Is it possible to overcome pupils'' alternative ideas by using experiments in the classroom, based on early experiments carried out by scientists in the past, in order to promote current scientific ideas? In this paper we present a case study in the field of electromagnetism. From the age of Thales up to the 16th century electrostatic and magnetic phenomena were unified in the context of a ''magic'' idea and were supposed to be of the same nature. Their differences were pointed out during the 16th century by Gardano and Gilbert and the two fields of science were established: electrostatics and magnetism. From the 17th century up to 1830, scientists dealt with the question whether electricities derived from different sources were of the same nature. During 1832-1833, Faraday successfully carried out a number of experiments in order to compare the ability of various electricities to produce the same effects. The above data from the history of science indicated electrostatic, electrodynamic and magnetic phenomena as a field of research on pupils'' and student-teachers'' ideas. The research was carried out in three phases: 10 individual in-depth interviews with 10-14-year-old pupils and 19-21-year-old student-teachers, questionnaire distribution to 109 13-year-old pupils and 148 student-teachers, 10 individual in-depth interviews for further clarification of pupils'' and student-teachers'' reasoning. Research results show that 53% of the student-teachers and 83% of the pupils that were involved in the investigation relate electrostatic with magnetic phenomena, in the same way scientists related these phenomena up to the 16th century. The results also indicate that the lack of common perceptions, commonly observed effects or procedures

  18. Introduction: The Humanities and the Sciences.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bod, Rens; Kursell, Julia

    2015-06-01

    The humanities and the sciences have a strongly connected history, yet their histories continue to be written separately. Although the scope of the history of science has undergone a tremendous broadening during the past few decades, scholars of the history of the humanities and the history of science still seem to belong to two separate cultures that have endured through the past century. This Focus section explores what common ground would enable a study of the histories of the humanities and the sciences to investigate their shared epistemic objects, virtues, values, methods, and practices.

  19. Nuclear and Energy Research Institute (1956-2000). A case study under the science, technology and brazilian culture history

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gordon, Ana Maria Pinho Leite

    2003-01-01

    We analysed a period of the contemporary Brazilian history with the aim to discuss the inter-relationship between science, technology (S and T) and culture in a developing country, showing as a background for a case of study the history of the 'Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares'. The history of Science and Technology, as a result of the human brain ability of innovate using the resources offered by nature, it is not only the description of successive findings carried out by talented men. It is a reflex of determined age of history as a consequence of accumulated knowledge connected also to human and cultural relationships, which together leads to the scientific and technological progress. In fact, the human brain and society march along together and can not be separated in this journey. In our study we recovered the initial steps of IPEN's outbreak; inserted its achievements in the context of the national policy for nuclear technology and evaluated how this policy was a reply of the governmental organizations to the worldwide situation. Finally, we spread the scientific ideas and technological findings of this institution, who has translate much of the life style and culture of our society. For this purposes, we analysed internal technical report series elaborated by several researchers and few testimonies. The Institution developed the fuel cycle technology, supplied radioisotopes for medical diagnosis and treatment purposes, generating economic resources for our country. The nuclear techniques are a relevant tool for researchers of this Institution applied for several purposes, including the assessment of the radioactivity levels in the environment, radioprotection, etc. Besides those applications, other techniques including the laser technology, the fuel cell, corrosion studies, etc, were implemented as a result of the improved capabilities and skills acquired during the almost 50 years of the Institute's existence. We make evident two strong

  20. "To Feel at Home in the Wonderful World of Modern Science": New Chinese Historiography and Qing Intellectual History.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sela, Ori

    2017-09-01

    Argument In recent decades a large body of scholarship on the first half of twentieth-century China has successfully shown the ways in which history and historiography had been constructed at the time, as well as the links between history, national identity, education, and politics that was forged during this period. In this paper, I examine Qing intellectual history, in particular that of the mid or "High Qing." I discuss the development of the historiography of this field in the early twentieth century by drawing on the larger developments in historiography; by demonstrating how these developments had shaped Qing intellectual history for later times; by focusing on the historical actors' sense of the importance of "science," being "scientific," and "modernization"; and, by unraveling the intimate connections to older historiographical narratives going back all the way to the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

  1. Culture of science: strange history of the methodological thinking in psychology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Toomela, Aaro

    2007-03-01

    In pre-World-War-II psychology, two directions in methodological thought-the German-Austrian and North American ways-could be differentiated. After the war, the German-Austrian methodological orientation has been largely abandoned. Compared to the pre-WWII German-Austrian psychology, modern mainstream psychology is more concerned with accumulation of facts than with general theory. Furthermore, the focus on qualitative data-in addition to quantitative data-is rarely visible. Only external-physical or statistical-rather than psychological controls are taken into account in empirical studies. Fragments--rather than wholes-and relationships are studied, and single cases that contradict group data are not analyzed. Instead of complex psychological types simple trait differences are studied, and prediction is not followed by thorough analysis of the whole situation. Last (but not least), data are not systematically related to complex theory. These limits have hindered the growth of knowledge in the behavioral sciences. A new return to an updated version of the German-Austrian methodological trajectory is suggested.

  2. The Use of Theater and the Performing Arts in Science Education and the Teaching of History

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schwartz, Brian

    2015-03-01

    Over the past 15 years there has been a surge in the general field of the interaction of STEM and the arts including theatre, music dance and the visual arts leading to STEAM. There seems to be no limits to the amount of creativity and diversity of subject matter especially in areas of biography, major science events, scientific and technical innovation, the benefits and dangers of modern science, and science as metaphor. For the past 15 years, I and my colleagues have been running a science outreach series under the title Science & the Performing Arts at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. The objective is to bring science to students and the public in ways that are engaging, instructive, and artistic and always, content-driven: the medium is the arts; the message is the joy of science. This has resulted in over 120 science and performing arts programs which have been documented on the website http://sciart.commons.gc.cuny.edu/ . The author co-taught a course titled Staging Science, http://sciart.commons.gc.cuny.edu/staging-science/outline-of-the-course-staging-science/ with Marvin Carlson, Professor of Theatre at CUNY. An excellent book, Science on Stage: From Doctor Faustus to Copenhagen by Kirsten Shepherd-Barr, can be used to develop a customized courses on Science, Theatre and History for both science and non-science majors. The book's appendix includes an annotated listing of plays on such subjects as quantum mechanics, chaos theory, evolution, genetics and morality and responsibility. The talk will include many examples how courses on science and theatre can actively engage students and enhance active participation and learning. Supported in part by the National Science Foundation.

  3. When science became Western: historiographical reflections.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Elshakry, Marwa

    2010-03-01

    While thinking about the notion of the "global" in the history of the history of science, this essay examines a related but equally basic concept: the idea of "Western science." Tracing its rise in the nineteenth century, it shows how it developed as much outside the Western world as within it. Ironically, while the idea itself was crucial for the disciplinary formation of the history of science, the global history behind this story has not been much attended to. Drawing on examples from nineteenth-century Egypt and China, the essay begins by looking at how international vectors of knowledge production (viz., missionaries and technocrats) created new global histories of science through the construction of novel genealogies and through a process of conceptual syncretism. Turning next to the work of early professional historians of science, it shows how Arabic and Chinese knowledge traditions were similarly reinterpreted in light of the modern sciences, now viewed as part of a diachronic and universalist teleology ending in "Western science." It concludes by arguing that examining the global emergence of the idea of Western science in this way highlights key questions pertaining to the relation of the history of science to knowledge traditions across the world and the continuing search for global histories of science.

  4. A Conceptual Approach to Library History: Towards a History of Open Science

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Miert, D.K.W.

    2016-01-01

    This article argues that Library History ought to be guided by well-contextualized questions of cultural history. It proposes one such question: that which asks after the ways in which repositories of knowledge were created, organized and used in the past. The examples that are discussed in this

  5. History of the Fort Collins Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Shea, Thomas J. (compiler)

    2006-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey’s Fort Collins Science Center ("the Center") has been a nucleus of research, technology development, and associated scientific activities within the Department of the Interior for more than 30 years. The Center’s historical activities are deeply rooted in federal biological resources research and its supporting disciplines, particularly as they relate to the needs of the U.S. Department of the Interior and its resource management agencies. The organizational framework and activities of the Center have changed and adapted over the years in response to shifts in the scientific issues and challenges facing the U.S. Department of the Interior and with the development of new strategies to meet these challenges. Thus, the history of the Center has been dynamic.

  6. Schools of California Online Resources for Education: History-Social Science One Stop Shopping for California's Social Studies Teachers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hill, Margaret; Benoit, Robert

    1998-01-01

    Reviews the resources available for social studies teachers from the Schools of California Online Resources for Education (SCORE): History Social Science World Wide Web site. Includes curriculum-aligned resources and lessons; standards and assessment information; interactive projects and field trips; teacher chat area; professional development…

  7. History and Philosophy of Science: a Phylogenetic approach História e filosofia da ciência: uma abordagem filogenética

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    James G. Lennox

    2001-12-01

    Full Text Available In the aftermath of Thomas Kuhn's The structure of scientific revolutions, there was a great deal of discussion about the relationship between the History of Science and the Philosophy of Science. A wider issue was at stake in these discussions: 'normativism' versus 'naturalism' in Epistemology. If the History of Science, at best, gives us reliable information about what actually occurred historically, how can it inform debates about such things as confirmation or explanation in Philosophy of Science? This essay makes a case for the centrality of historical investigation in the Philosophy of Science. I will defend what I term the 'Phylogenetic' approach to the Philosophy of Science. I will argue that since the foundations and dominant methods of a particular scientific field are shaped by its history, studying that History can give us considerable insight into conceptual and methodological problems in a particular Science. The case will be made both on general, philosophical grounds, and by compelling instantiation.A publicação de A estrutura das revoluções científicas de Thomas Khun resultou em uma grande discussão sobre a relação entre a história da ciência e a filosofia da ciência. Nessa discussão, o que estava em jogo era algo bem mais abrangente, isto é, o 'normativismo' versus o 'naturalismo' em epistemologia. Se a história da ciência, na melhor das hipóteses, nos dá informações confiáveis quanto ao que realmente ocorreu historicamente, como é que ela pode auxiliar os debates da filosofia da ciência sobre aspectos tais como confirmação e explicação? O presente artigo defende a centralização da investigação histórica para a filosofia da ciência. O autor defende o que ele chama de abordagem 'filogenética' à filosofia da ciência, argumentando que, uma vez que a as bases e métodos que prevalecem em uma área científica são moldados pela sua história, estudar esta história pode esclarecer

  8. [History in the public communication of specialist scientific societies: history marketing].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moll, F H; Halling, T; Rathert, P; Fangerau, H

    2014-10-01

    History is nowadays used as an economic factor. The past is therefore specifically targeted and cultivated, which for specialist scientific associations and societies often fullfils totally different functions in comparison to the open market, although the techniques and requirements are similar. Within medical specialties these facts are often still unknown. Museums and archives as well as the historians and curators working in them are very familiar with the special cultures of communication within these scientific communities and they play a major role in the establishment and development of history as a modern part of public relations and public identity.

  9. The atom in human thought history

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pullman, B.

    1995-01-01

    This book speaks of atom history. From the ancient Greece until now, science debated around the question for or against the atom conception of universe. In this book of sciences history, the author goes over the major events of this intellectual joust with a real pedagogic care, from Democrite, Aristote, Platon to Planck, Bohr, Einstein, Schroedinger and some others

  10. The Montreal Protocol treaty and its illuminating history of science-policy decision-making

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grady, C.

    2017-12-01

    The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, hailed as one of the most effective environmental treaties of all time, has a thirty year history of science-policy decision-making. The partnership between Parties to the Montreal Protocol and its technical assessment panels serve as a basis for understanding successes and evaluating stumbles of global environmental decision-making. Real-world environmental treaty negotiations can be highly time-sensitive, politically motivated, and resource constrained thus scientists and policymakers alike are often unable to confront the uncertainties associated with the multitude of choices. The science-policy relationship built within the framework of the Montreal Protocol has helped constrain uncertainty and inform policy decisions but has also highlighted the limitations of the use of scientific understanding in political decision-making. This talk will describe the evolution of the scientist-policymaker relationship over the history of the Montreal Protocol. Examples will illustrate how the Montreal Protocol's technical panels inform decisions of the country governments and will characterize different approaches pursued by different countries with a particular focus on the recently adopted Kigali Amendment. In addition, this talk will take a deeper dive with an analysis of the historic technical panel assessments on estimating financial resources necessary to enable compliance to the Montreal Protocol compared to the political financial decisions made through the Protocol's Multilateral Fund replenishment negotiation process. Finally, this talk will describe the useful lessons and challenges from these interactions and how they may be applicable in other environmental management frameworks across multiple scales under changing climatic conditions.

  11. Empirical philosophy of science

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wagenknecht, Susann; Nersessian, Nancy J.; Andersen, Hanne

    2015-01-01

    A growing number of philosophers of science make use of qualitative empirical data, a development that may reconfigure the relations between philosophy and sociology of science and that is reminiscent of efforts to integrate history and philosophy of science. Therefore, the first part...... of this introduction to the volume Empirical Philosophy of Science outlines the history of relations between philosophy and sociology of science on the one hand, and philosophy and history of science on the other. The second part of this introduction offers an overview of the papers in the volume, each of which...... is giving its own answer to questions such as: Why does the use of qualitative empirical methods benefit philosophical accounts of science? And how should these methods be used by the philosopher?...

  12. Introduction to the history of science and technology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jang, Byeong Ju

    1998-08-01

    This book contains origin of technology and development of civilization, national philosophy and ancient science and technology, Middle Age society and accumulation of science and technology, the era of the Renaissance and science and technology, development of science revolution and experimental science, technology and Mechanistic nature view of the manufacture time, science and evolution theory of the time of enlightenment idea, science and technology of the Industrial Revolution time, Korea's science and technology, modern technique and scientific approach, science and technology of the twenty-first century, and the role of science and technology in modern society.

  13. Introduction to the history of science and technology

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jang, Byeong Ju

    1998-08-15

    This book contains origin of technology and development of civilization, national philosophy and ancient science and technology, Middle Age society and accumulation of science and technology, the era of the Renaissance and science and technology, development of science revolution and experimental science, technology and Mechanistic nature view of the manufacture time, science and evolution theory of the time of enlightenment idea, science and technology of the Industrial Revolution time, Korea's science and technology, modern technique and scientific approach, science and technology of the twenty-first century, and the role of science and technology in modern society.

  14. První světový kongres Business History v Bergenu

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Doležalová, A.; Hlavačka, Milan

    2017-01-01

    Roč. 115, č. 3 (2017), s. 889-894 ISSN 0862-6111 Institutional support: RVO:67985963 Keywords : business history * world congress * Bergen 2016 Subject RIV: AB - History OBOR OECD: History (history of science and technology to be 6.3, history of specific sciences to be under the respective headings)

  15. Disciplined by the discipline: a social-epistemic fingerprint of the history of science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vanderstraeten, Raf; Vandermoere, Frederic

    2015-06-01

    The scientific system is primarily differentiated into disciplines. While disciplines may be wide in scope and diverse in their research practices, they serve scientific communities that evaluate research and also grant recognition to what is published. The analysis of communication and publication practices within such a community hence allows us to shed light on the dynamics of this discipline. On the basis of an empirical analysis of Isis, we show how the process of discipline-building in history of science has led its practitioners to be socialized and sensitized in relatively strong intra-disciplinary terms--with minimal interdisciplinary openness.

  16. Middle School Students' Attitudes toward Science, Scientists, Science Teachers and Classes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kapici, Hasan Özgür; Akçay, Hakan

    2016-01-01

    It is an indispensable fact that having a positive attitude towards science is one of the important factors that promotes students for studying in science. The study is a kind of national study that aims to investigate middle school students', from different regions of Turkey, attitudes toward science, scientists and science classes. The study was…

  17. Navigation and history of science: Scurvy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ignacio Jáuregui-Lobera

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available The history of scurvy might be summarized in terms of mystery, death, tenacity and finally success. In this history three very important people deserve special mention, two of them were doctors, the other one was a famous navigator: Lind, Blane and Cook. The first one had the glory of having been the author of the first clinical trial, as we understand it nowadays, with all the criticisms that could be done at present. However, the joint effort of these three men led to the solution of something, which seemed to be an irresolvable mystery.

  18. Navigation and History of Science: Beriberi

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ignacio Jáuregui-Lobera

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available The history of beriberi is an example of national pride, different social classes, research efforts and also luck. All histories have their main protagonists. In this case, perhaps the most significant people were Christiaan Eijkman, William Fletcher and Kanehiro Takaki. Infection, toxicity and feeding, among other factors, were the starting points to support the initial etiopathogenic bases of the disease. The experimental and epidemiological work of these authors gave the key about the cause of beriberi and its effective treatment. As in the case of scurvy, the mystery was solved not without very hard work and many previous mistakes.

  19. Life lines: An art history of biological research around 1800.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bruhn, Matthias

    2011-12-01

    Around 1800, the scientific "illustrator" emerged as a new artistic profession in Europe. Artists were increasingly sought after in order to picture anatomical dissections and microscopic observations and to translate drawings into artworks for books and journals. By training and technical expertise, they introduced a particular kind of knowledge into scientific perception that also shaped the common image of nature. Illustrations of scientific publications, often undervalued as a biased interpretation of facts and subordinate to logic and description, thus convey an 'art history' of science in its own right, relevant both for the understanding of biological thought around 1800 as well as for the development of the arts and their historiography. The article is based on an analysis of botanical treatises produced for the Göttingen Society of Sciences in 1803, during an early phase of microscopic cell research, in order to determine the constitutive role of artistic knowledge and the media employed for the visualization and conceptualization of biological issues. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Wolfgang Pauli - a portrait. History of science; Wolfgang Pauli - ein Portrait. Wissenschaftsgeschichte

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fischer, E.P.

    2008-07-01

    Wolfgang Pauli (1900-1958) is named by his colleagues in the same breath with Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein, who named Pauli his ''mental son''. The history of science had neglected Pauli for a long time. The reason for this may be found in Pauli's attempts to capture the role of the unconscious in physics and the meaning of dreams in the creation of scientific pictures of the world. For Pauli a scientific method consisted in activating the unconscious and hoping that it would start up that specific type of ''painting viewing'' from which the terms can arise by which we express our understanding.

  1. Teaching History in a Post-Industrial Age

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bianchetti, Ann

    2004-01-01

    As a social studies teacher, the author emphasizes the story of history (sticking to the facts as much as they are known) and the human qualities of the players. Middle school kids are in the throes of exploring self-identity and attempting to define their worlds. They love drama, and history provides plenty of it. The author finds that teaching…

  2. Space science comes of age: Perspectives in the history of the space sciences Proceedings of the Symposium, Washington, DC, March 23, 24, 1981

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hanle, P.A.; Chamberlain, V.D.

    1981-01-01

    The development of space science is recounted in two parts, the first written by founders and pioneers in the field who recount some of the important scientific discoveries in their areas, the second offering a preliminary view of space science by professional historians. The subjects of the first part are solar physics, rocket astronomy, the ultraviolet spectra of stars, lunar exploration and geology. James Van Allen's lecture first disclosing his discovery of the radiation belts surrounding the earth is reprinted. The second part includes the story of the development of theories about the origin of the solar system before 1960, a discussion of studies of the upper atmosphere, a concise history of space-launch vehicles, and a review of the politics and funding of the Landsat project

  3. Scientific Facts and Methods in Public Reason

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jønch-Clausen, Karin; Kappel, Klemens

    2016-01-01

    Should scientific facts and methods have an epistemically privileged status in public reason? In Rawls’s public reason account he asserts what we will label the Scientific Standard Stricture: citizens engaged in public reason must be guided by non-controversial scientific methods, and public reason...... must be in line with non-controversial scientific conclusions. The Scientific Standard Stricture is meant to fulfill important tasks such as enabling the determinateness and publicity of the public reason framework. However, Rawls leaves us without elucidation with regard to when science...

  4. Integrating History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences in Practice to Enhance Science Education: Swammerdam's "Historia Insectorum Generalis" and the Case of the Water Flea

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kendig, Catherine

    2013-01-01

    Hasok Chang ("Sci Educ" 20:317-341, 2011) shows how the recovery of past experimental knowledge, the physical replication of historical experiments, and the extension of recovered knowledge can increase scientific understanding. These activities can also play an important role in both science and history and philosophy of science…

  5. Controversy as a Blind Spot in Teaching Nature of Science. Why the Range of Different Positions Concerning Nature of Science Should Be an Issue in the Science Classroom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kötter, Mario; Hammann, Marcus

    2017-07-01

    In this article, the argument is put forth that controversies about the scope and limits of science should be considered in Nature of Science (NOS) teaching. Reference disciplines for teaching NOS are disciplines, which reflect upon science, like philosophy of science, history of science, and sociology of science. The culture of these disciplines is characterized by controversy rather than unified textbook knowledge. There is common agreement among educators of the arts and humanities that controversies in the reference disciplines should be represented in education. To teach NOS means to adopt a reflexive perspective on science. Therefore, we suggest that controversies within and between the reference disciplines are relevant for NOS teaching and not only the NOS but about NOS should be taught, too. We address the objections that teaching about NOS is irrelevant for real life and too demanding for students. First, we argue that science-reflexive meta-discourses are relevant for students as future citizens because the discourses occur publicly in the context of sociopolitical disputes. Second, we argue that it is in fact necessary to reduce the complexity of the above-mentioned discourses and that this is indeed possible, as it has been done with other reflexive elements in science education. In analogy to the German construct Bewertungskompetenz (which means the competency to make informed ethical decisions in scientific contexts), we suggest epistemic competency as a goal for NOS teaching. In order to do so, science-reflexive controversies must be simplified and attitudes toward science must be considered. Discourse on the scientific status of potential pseudoscience may serve as an authentic and relevant context for teaching the controversial nature of reflexion on science.

  6. The faces of British science: narrating lives in science since c.1945

    OpenAIRE

    Wainman, Ruth

    2017-01-01

    This thesis uses archived oral history interviews to trace the identities of scientists in narratives that capture their lived experiences of science. It draws upon fifty-four life history interviews with both men and women scientists from the British Library's 'An Oral History of British Science' (OHBS) archive. The OHBS was first established in 2009 to address the lack of comprehensive oral history archives devoted to documenting the personal experiences and memories of professionals involv...

  7. Facts as Theory: Aspects of Goethe's Philosophy of Science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zajonc, Arthur G.

    1983-01-01

    After showing that Goethe's declarations and admonishments concerning the scope and methods of science often foreshadowed later developments, the author reconsiders Goethe's own scientific efforts. Goethe continually strove to fully integrate human experience into all levels of scientific inquiry and discovery. (JMK)

  8. Drug Facts

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... to main content Easy-to-Read Drug Facts Search form Search Menu Home Drugs That People Abuse Alcohol Facts ... Past Drug Use Prevention Phone Numbers and Websites Search Share Listen English Español Information about this page ...

  9. Science and Society: Public History in the Context of Historical Culture of the Globalization Era

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lorina P. Repina

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available In the XIX century known as the „historical age”, a high degree of trust to history and social prestige of historical science relied on the entrenched in public consciousness the idea of continuity of historical development of a human civilization and, respectively, of the unique opportunities of the use of the past experience as a means to solve the problems of the present and to build „the bright future”. But the understanding of the dramatic experi-ence of the XX century undermined the belief in the “use of history”, and this situation has been greatly aggravated with intensification of the processes of globalization on the bor-der of XX and XXI centuries. The problems of interaction between “academic (professional history” and the wide public in the concrete societies and the changes in their relations in the context of deep social transformations proved to take place at the center of many re-searchers’ attention. Public history is purposefully overcoming the typical for historical science of the XX century alienation from „the uninitiated”; it strives to restore the interest of the consumer to the historians’ production, to propagate professional standards, histor-ical knowledge and proper understanding of the specific character of “historian’s craft” among the wide circles of the non-professionals.

  10. Common Core State Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects for English Language Learners

    Science.gov (United States)

    de Oliveira, Luciana C., Ed.

    2016-01-01

    This volume in the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for English Language Learners series was designed to deepen teacher's knowledge and provides instructional approaches and practices for supporting grades 6-12 ELLs as they meet the ambitious expectations of the CCSS for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects. This…

  11. Just truth? Carefully applying history, philosophy and sociology of science to the forensic use of CCTV images.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Edmond, Gary

    2013-03-01

    Using as a case study the forensic comparison of images for purposes of identification, this essay considers how the history, philosophy and sociology of science might help courts to improve their responses to scientific and technical forms of expert opinion evidence in ways that are more consistent with legal system goals and values. It places an emphasis on the need for more sophisticated models of science and expertise that are capable of helping judges to identify sufficiently reliable types of expert evidence and to reflexively incorporate the weakness of trial safeguards and personnel into their admissibility decision making. Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  12. Recognizing history in range ecology: 100 years of science and management on the Santa Rita Experimental Range

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nathan F. Sayre

    2003-01-01

    At the centennial of the Santa Rita Experimental Range, historical analysis is called for on two levels. First, as a major site in the history of range ecology, the Santa Rita illuminates past successes and failures in science and management and the ways in which larger social, economic, and political factors have shaped scientific research. Second, with the turn away...

  13. [The role of the genetics history in genetics teaching].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Ming-Hui

    2006-08-01

    The research of the scientific history and development status reflect the science and technology level of a nation. The genetic history is one of the branches of the life science and the 21st century is life science century. The genetics history in the teaching of genetics not only can help students get familiar with the birth and development of genetics, but also enhance their thinking ability and scientific qualities. The roles and approaches of teaching are discussed in this paper.

  14. Ludwik Fleck e a presente história das ciências Ludwik Fleck and the history of science today

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ilana Löwy

    1994-10-01

    original ideas on science. These ideas were rooted in Fleck's own experience as bacteriologist and immunologist and, on the other hand, in the practice-based thought of the Polish School of Philosophy of Medicine. Fleck affirmed that 'scientific facts' are constructed by groups of scientists, in his terms, by "thought collectives". Each thougth collective elaborates a "thought style" which contains norms, concepts and practices of that collective. Newcomers to a professional community are socialized into its specific thought style and develop an unique way of viewing the world. Scientific facts produced by a given thought collective are therefore shaped by that collective's thought style, and are incommensurable with facts produced by other thought collectives. The incommensurability of scientific facts and its consequence, the need to 'translate' these facts into the style of different thought collectives in an inter-community use are, Fleck proposed, an important source of innovations in science and in society. Fleck ideas were rediscovered in the 1960's and 70's, first by Thomas Kuhn, who in the introduction to his book, The structure of scientific revolutions, acknowledges his ties with Fleck's thought, then by sociologists of science. Beyond their direct influence, Fleck's epistemology has many affinities with new trends in science studies, focused on the scientists' practices, and interested in their material, discursive and social techniques.

  15. Rhetoric and History in Brian Friel’s Making History

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Manfredi Bernardini

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available This paper proposes an analysis of the rhetorical devices of representation and recording of history, investigated and deconstructed by the so-called "history play" Making History, written by Brian Friel and performed by the Field Day Theatre Company in 1988. The play tells of the heroic deeds of Hugh O’ Neill, a Sixteenth century Ulster gaelic Lord, intertwining his personal facts with the crucial events in Irish History. Friel rediscovers a paradigmatic figure in Irish history, using the theatrical performance in order to dissect and thoroughly scrutinize the basis for the nationalist rhetoric which is at the root of contemporary conflicts in Northern Ireland. Starting from the theoretical contributions of seminal authors such as Hayden White, Paul Ricoeur, Walter Benjamin, Michel De Certeau, the northern Irish playwright challenges the supposedly scientific nature of History, that would decidedly mark it as different from other forms of narrative, such as literature. Hence History’s metalinguistic nature, based on specific rhetorical strategies, is uncovered.  Therefore, on the one hand Friel questions the theoretical foundations of History, of its “grand narratives”,  giving ‘stories’ the chance to be part of official History’s discourse. On the other hand, he lifts the veil on the rhetorical (and in some ways ideological mechanisms involved in the process of History writing, through the character of archbishop Peter Lombard - O’ Neill’s biographer, storyteller and master in elocutio - and sheds light on how History is a form of rhetorical narrative, almost a patchwork of events collected (inventio and assembled (dispositio by the historian according to specific criteria of representation. By taking us inside the very nucleus of the rhetorical devices used by storiography, Friel unmasks the delicate processes of making and unmaking history, the ones that help give birth to identity as well as History.

  16. Popper's Fact-Standard Dualism Contra "Value Free" Social Science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eidlin, Fred H.

    1983-01-01

    Noncognitivism, the belief that normative statements (unlike empirical statements) do not convey objective knowledge is contrasted to Karl Popper's "critical dualism," which maintains that science is imbued with values and value judgments. Noncognitivism impedes the development of a social scientific method which would integrate…

  17. Facts, theories and ideologies: Viola Klein and Sociology of Scientific Knowledge

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eulalia Pérez Sedeño

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available Several studies on history, philosophy and sociology of science have demonstrated that science is not autonomous and value-neutral and its selfless search of truth is an ideal theoretical myth far from the real practice of science, which is an aggregate of social practices. Viola Klein was a pioneer in studying science using the same instruments and categories utilized in any other social practice. The aim of this work is to highlight her contributions to Sociology of Scientific Knowledge at a moment when this discipline was, at the most, incipient.

  18. Inquiry learning for gender equity using History of Science in Life and Earth Sciences’ learning environments

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    C. Sousa

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available The main objective of the present work is the selection and integration of objectives and methods of education for gender equity within the Life and Earth Sciences’ learning environments in the current portuguese frameworks of middle and high school. My proposal combines inquiry learning-teaching methods with the aim of promoting gender equity, mainly focusing in relevant 20th century women-scientists with a huge contribute to the History of Science. The hands-on and minds-on activities proposed for high scholl students of Life and Earth Sciences onstitute a learnig environment enriched in features of science by focusing on the work of two scientists: Lynn Margulis (1938-2011  and her endosymbiosis theory of the origin of life on Earth and Inge Leehman (1888-1993 responsible for a breakthrough regarding the internal structure of Earth, by caracterizing a discontinuity within the nucleus, contributing to the current geophysical model. For middle scholl students the learning environment includes Inge Leehman and Mary Tharp (1920-2006 and her first world map of the ocean floor. My strategy includes features of science, such as: theory-laden nature of scientific knowledge, models, values and socio-scientific issues, technology contributes to science and feminism.  In conclusion, I consider that this study may constitute an example to facilitate the implementation, by other teachers, of active inquiry strategies focused on features of science within a framework of social responsibility of science, as well as the basis for future research.

  19. Interpretation of Historical Facts in Modern Italian Literature by the Example of Umberto Eco’s Novel “Baudolino”

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oxana Yu. Mushtanova

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The article is devoted to interpretation of historical facts in Umberto Eco's novel " Baudolino ". The subject of interpretation in the novel is medieval history, in particular, the reign of the emperor Frederick Barbarossa. Eco uses the typical for the historical novel method, which is the combination of facts from chronicles and fictional elements; the events are shown by the eyes of an invented character Baudolino. Emphasizing the connection between history and modernity, Eco proposes to revise the stereotypes associated with the mentioned historical period. The portraits of historical figures are borrowed from the chronicles, however in the novel they get more emotional in the perception of the protagonist, typical cliches are replaced by individuality. The opposition of italian communes to the government of Frederick also becomes a part of Baudolino's personal history. The interpretation of many events is based on legendary sources, including local tales of the italian city Alessandria, the legends of Grail and of Prester John. The legendary material fills in the gaps in medieval history. Many events (in particular, the participation of Barbarossa in the Third Crusade correspond to the chronicles in the descriptive part, however they acquire a fictional motivation. The mystery of the emperor's death is solved in a detective key. The novel presents various doctrines elaborated in the imperial office of Frederick, their authorship is attributed to Baudolino. In the novel «Baudolino» Umberto Eco not only interprets creatively certain facts of the past, but he also practices the postmodern concept of history, according to which the past is unknowable as objective and ultimate truth and therefore it exists only in the form of a narrative. The past and the present have no fundamental difference, the history is always interpreted from the perspective of the present.

  20. A teaching proposal on electrostatics based on the history of science through the reading of historical texts and argumentative discussions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Castells, Marina; Konstantinidou, Aikaterini; Cerveró, Josep M.

    2015-01-01

    Researches on electrostatics’ conceptions found that students have ideas and conceptions that disagree with the scientific models and that might explain students’ learning difficulties. To favour the change of student’s ideas and conceptions, a teaching sequence that relies on a historical study of electrostatics is proposed. It begins with an exploration of electrostatics phenomena that students would do with everyday materials. About these phenomena they must draw their own explanations that will be shared and discussed in the class. The teacher will collect and summarize the ideas and explanations which are nearer the history of science. A brief history of electrostatics is introduced then, and some texts from scientists are used in an activity role-play-debate type in which the 'supporters of a single fluid' and 'supporters of two fluids' have to present arguments for their model and/or against the other model to explain the phenomena observed in the exploration phase. In the following, students will read texts related to science applications, the main aim of this activity is to relate electrostatics phenomena with current electricity. The first text explains how Franklin understood the nature of the lightning and the lightning rod and the second is a chapter of a roman about one historical episode situated in the Barcelona of the XVIII Century. Students will use the historical models of one and of two fluids to explain these two phenomena, and will compare them with the scientific explanation of the 'accepted' science of nowadays introduced by the teacher. With this type of teaching proposal, conceptual aspect of electrostatics will be learnt, but also the students will learn about the nature and history of science and culture, as well as about the practice of argumentation.

  1. A teaching proposal on electrostatics based on the history of science through the reading of historical texts and argumentative discussions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castells, Marina; Konstantinidou, Aikaterini; Cerveró, Josep M.

    2016-05-01

    Researches on electrostatics' conceptions found that students have ideas and conceptions that disagree with the scientific models and that might explain students' learning difficulties. To favour the change of student's ideas and conceptions, a teaching sequence that relies on a historical study of electrostatics is proposed. It begins with an exploration of electrostatics phenomena that students would do with everyday materials. About these phenomena they must draw their own explanations that will be shared and discussed in the class. The teacher will collect and summarize the ideas and explanations which are nearer the history of science. A brief history of electrostatics is introduced then, and some texts from scientists are used in an activity role-play-debate type in which the "supporters of a single fluid" and "supporters of two fluids" have to present arguments for their model and/or against the other model to explain the phenomena observed in the exploration phase. In the following, students will read texts related to science applications, the main aim of this activity is to relate electrostatics phenomena with current electricity. The first text explains how Franklin understood the nature of the lightning and the lightning rod and the second is a chapter of a roman about one historical episode situated in the Barcelona of the XVIII Century. Students will use the historical models of one and of two fluids to explain these two phenomena, and will compare them with the scientific explanation of the "accepted" science of nowadays introduced by the teacher. With this type of teaching proposal, conceptual aspect of electrostatics will be learnt, but also the students will learn about the nature and history of science and culture, as well as about the practice of argumentation.

  2. The briefest history of time the history of histories of time and the misconstrued association between entropy and time

    CERN Document Server

    Ben-Naim, Arieh

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this book is to explain in simple language what we know about time and about the history of time. It is shown that the briefest (as well as the lengthiest) history of time can be described in one or two pages. The second purpose of the book is to show that neither entropy, nor the Second Law of Thermodynamics has anything to do with time. The third purpose is to educate the lay reader how to read popular science books, critically. Towards this goal, detailed reviews of four books on time are presented. There are many popular science books on Time, on the beginning of Time and the end of Time. This book is unique in the following two senses: It explains in simple terms what Time is, and why it is not related to entropy. It critically reviews a few popular science books which perpetuate all kinds of unfounded ideas about the relationship between Time and the Second Law. Readership: Interested lay public, students of any of the sciences, scientists, teachers and researchers.

  3. Science as religion: when science becomes (too) irrational.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muzur, Amir; Rinčić, Iva

    2017-04-01

    Science is expected to be objective: however, since practiced and produced by humans, it has to reflect human flows - prejudices, stubbornness, malice, and the tendency to be misused. No wonder an excellent scientist like John Eccles proclaimed science to be among the most personal activities he had known. By analysing a few examples from the history of science (in particular the intellectual development of Van Rensselaer Potter, the American onco-biochemist and bioethics pioneer), as well as the current trend of the evidence-based approach, the present paper will try to demonstrate that denying, distrusting, and opposing science for the sake of religion, as seen so many times in human history, has significant similarities to the overestimation of science we more often encounter in our times.

  4. Global histories, vernacular science, and African genealogies; or, Is the history of science ready for the world?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tilley, Helen

    2010-03-01

    Scholars in imperial and science studies have recently begun to examine more systematically the different ways knowledge systems around the world have intersected. This essay concentrates on one aspect of this process, the codification of research into "primitive" or "indigenous" knowledge, especially knowledge that was transmitted orally, and argues that such investigations were a by-product of four interrelated phenomena: the globalization of the sciences themselves, particularly those fields that took the earth and its inhabitants as their object of analysis; the professionalization of anthropology and its growing emphasis on studying other cultures' medical, technical, and natural knowledge; the European push, in the late nineteenth century, toward "global colonialism" and the ethnographic research that accompanied colonial state building; and, finally, colonized and marginalized peoples' challenges to scientific epistemologies and their paradoxical call that scientists study their knowledge systems more carefully. These phenomena came together on a global scale in the decades surrounding the turn of the twentieth century to produce a subgenre of research within the sciences, here labeled "vernacular science," focused explicitly on "native" knowledge.

  5. Using a replica of Leeuwenhoek's microscope to teach the history of science and to motivate students to discover the vision and the contributions of the first microscopists.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sepel, Lenira M N; Loreto, Elgion L S; Rocha, João B T

    2009-01-01

    The history of science should be incorporated into science teaching as a means of improving learning and also to increase the students' understanding about the nature of science. In biology education, the history of microscopy deserves a special place. The discovery of this instrument not only opened a new and fantastic microworld but also led to the development of one unifying principle of biological sciences (i.e., cell theory). The microscopes of Leeuwenhoek and Hooke opened windows into the microworld of living organisms. In the present work, the knowledge of these themes was analyzed in a group of students beginning an undergraduate biology course. Our data suggest that the history of microscopy is poorly treated at the secondary school level. We propose a didactic activity using a replica of Leeuwenhoek's microscope made with Plexiglas and a lens obtained from a key chain laser pointer or from a broken CD drive. The proposed activity motivated students to learn about microscopy and helped them to appreciate scientific knowledge from a historical perspective.

  6. Karawajew's ant type specimens (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) in the National Museum of Natural History of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martynov, Alexander V; Radchenko, Alexander G

    2016-03-30

    The collection of W.A. Karawajew is one of the richest and most famous ant collections of the World. Much of this collection consists of dry mounted specimens, including types of about 550 taxa, housed in the Shmalhausen Institute of Zoology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (Kiev). Nevertheless, we located a considerable part of Karawajew's collection, containing about 25,000 specimens in alcohol, that is preserved in the National Museum of Natural History of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (Kiev). The latter material was recently examined and we found types of 24 taxa. This type material was partly mounted, re-ordered and catalogued. In this paper we present a catalogue of these type specimens housed in the National Museum of Natural History.

  7. Fulltext PDF

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    The study of history, including history of science, is fraught with dangers of misinterpretations of facts. Often national pride and racial prejudice tend to add flavours to the otherwise mundane facts of history. The current debate raging in our country over some aspects of ancient Indian history is a case in poin t. As practitioners ...

  8. The art of translating nutritional science into dietary guidance: history and evolution of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Watts, Mary Lee; Hager, Mary H; Toner, Cheryl D; Weber, Jennifer A

    2011-07-01

    The United States government has published official Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) since 1980 and has recently released the 2010 version. Serving as a foundational cornerstone for federal nutrition policy, the DGA embrace current nutritional science and translate it into practical guidance to enhance the overall health of Americans. This article reviews the history and process for developing the DGA, including the incorporation of sophisticated and systematic techniques for reviewing emerging evidence. It also explores issues related to implementation of the guidelines through federal policy, the food supply, and consumer knowledge and behavior. © 2011 International Life Sciences Institute.

  9. Water: Facts without Myths

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marc Henry

    2009-08-01

    Full Text Available Among all the chemical substances available in the universe, water, with its deceptively simple formula H2O, is the most discussed subject either in science or in philosophy [1]. If you are not convinced by this affirmation, a little experiment at no cost may help you change your mind. Just open your favorite web browser and type the word “water” in any search engine. When I have done that using Google, the number of hits was about 682,000,000 (please do not try to read all the pages. In fact, the only words that seem to beat water at this little game are “air” (770,000,000 hits with Google and 3,120,000,000 with Yahoo, and “food” (689,000,000 hits with Google and 3,820,000,000 with Yahoo. Of course this should not be a surprise, as breathing, eating, drinking just mean that you are a living entity. In fact extending the water search to “eau” (French, “wasser” (German, “agua” (Spanish, Portuguese and “acqua” (Italian leads to 978,900,000 hits under Google and 3,426,000,000 hits under Yahoo, showing now that water is about as important as food. After all, as everybody knows, “water is life”, and do we really have to read about one billion documents to know at least what water really is? [...

  10. Oral History Archives | Fellowship | Indian Academy of Sciences

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Home; Fellowship; Oral History Archives. Oral history archive ... video documentaries of some of the leading scientists of the country from among Academy's fellowship. ... Math Art and Design: MAD about Math, Math Education and Outreach.

  11. A Midsummer Night's Science

    CERN Multimedia

    2001-01-01

    Last year, the first Science Night attracted nearly 1500 people. Dipping into history for the space of one night? This is the idea of Geneva's Museum of the History of Science, which is organizing its second Science Night, on 7 and 8 July, on the history of science. The first such event, held last year, was a considerable success with almost 15 000 visitors. The second Science Night, to be held in the magnificent setting of the Perle du Lac Park in Geneva, promises to be a winner too. By making science retell its own history, this major event is intended to show how every scientific and technical breakthrough is the culmination of a long period of growth that began hundreds of years in the past. Dozens of activities and events are included in this programme of time travel: visitors can study the night sky through telescopes and see what Galileo first observed, and then go to see a play on the life of the Italian scientist. Another play, commissioned specially for the occasion, will honour Geneva botanist De ...

  12. Enhancing Science Literacy and Art History Engagement at Princeton Through Collaboration Between the University Art Museum and the Council on Science and Technology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riihimaki, C. A.; White, V. M.

    2016-12-01

    science and art history concepts, energizes the faculty by providing new opportunities for them to interact with colleagues across the University, and enhances funding requests by broadening the typical audience for Art Museum and science departments.

  13. The re-emergence of hyphenated history-and-philosophy-of-science and the testing of theories of scientific change.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laudan, Larry; Laudan, Rachel

    2016-10-01

    A basic premise of hyphenated history-and-philosophy-of-science is that theories of scientific change have to be based on empirical evidence derived from carefully constructed historical case studies. This paper analyses one such systematic attempt to test philosophical claims, describing its historical context, rationale, execution, and limited impact. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. The science of human factors: separating fact from fiction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Russ, Alissa L; Fairbanks, Rollin J; Karsh, Ben-Tzion; Militello, Laura G; Saleem, Jason J; Wears, Robert L

    2013-10-01

    Interest in human factors has increased across healthcare communities and institutions as the value of human centred design in healthcare becomes increasingly clear. However, as human factors is becoming more prominent, there is growing evidence of confusion about human factors science, both anecdotally and in scientific literature. Some of the misconceptions about human factors may inadvertently create missed opportunities for healthcare improvement. The objective of this article is to describe the scientific discipline of human factors and provide common ground for partnerships between healthcare and human factors communities. The primary goal of human factors science is to promote efficiency, safety and effectiveness by improving the design of technologies, processes and work systems. As described in this article, human factors also provides insight on when training is likely (or unlikely) to be effective for improving patient safety. Finally, we outline human factors specialty areas that may be particularly relevant for improving healthcare delivery and provide examples to demonstrate their value. The human factors concepts presented in this article may foster interdisciplinary collaborations to yield new, sustainable solutions for healthcare quality and patient safety.

  15. A brief history of Sandia National Laboratories and the Department of Energy%3CU%2B2019%3Es Office of Science : interplay between science, technology, and mission.

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tsao, Jeffrey Yeenien; Myers, Samuel Maxwell, Jr.; Simmons, Jerry Alvon; McIlroy, Andrew; Vook, Frederick L.; Collis, Samuel Scott; Picraux, Samuel Thomas

    2011-08-01

    In 1957, Sandia National Laboratories (Sandia) initiated its first programs in fundamental science, in support of its primary nuclear weapons mission. In 1974, Sandia initiated programs in fundamental science supported by the Department of Energy's Office of Science (DOE-SC). These latter programs have grown to the point where, today in 2011, support of Sandia's programs in fundamental science is dominated by that Office. In comparison with Sandia's programs in technology and mission applications, however, Sandia's programs in fundamental science are small. Hence, Sandia's fundamental science has been strongly influenced by close interactions with technology and mission applications. In many instances, these interactions have been of great mutual benefit, with synergies akin to a positive 'Casimir's spiral' of progress. In this report, we review the history of Sandia's fundamental science programs supported by the Office of Science. We present: (a) a technical and budgetary snapshot of Sandia's current programs supported by the various suboffices within DOE-SC; (b) statistics of highly-cited articles supported by DOE-SC; (c) four case studies (ion-solid interactions, combustion science, compound semiconductors, advanced computing) with an emphasis on mutually beneficial interactions between science, technology, and mission; and (d) appendices with key memos and reminiscences related to fundamental science at Sandia.

  16. Chemistry, the Central Science? The History of the High School Science Sequence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sheppard, Keith; Robbins, Dennis M.

    2005-01-01

    Chemistry became the ''central science'' not by design but by accident in the US high schools. The three important factors, which had their influence on the high school science, are sequenced and their impact on the development of US science education, are mentioned.

  17. Sun-Earth Day Connects History, Culture and Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cline, T.; Thieman, J.

    2003-12-01

    The NASA Sun-Earth Connection Education forum annually promotes and event called Sun-Earth Day: a national celebration of the Sun, the space around the Earth (geospace), and how all of it affects life on our planet. For the past 3 years this event has provided a venue by which classrooms, museums, planetaria, and at NASA centers have had a sensational time sharing stories, images, and activities related to the Sun-Earth connections and the views o fthe Sun from Earth. Each year we select a different theme by which NASA Space Science can be further related to cross-curricular activities. Sun-Earth Day 2002, "Celebrate the Equinox", drew parallels between Native American Cultures and NASA's Sun-Earth Connection research via cultural stories, interviews, web links, activities and Native American participation. Sun-Earth Day 2003, "Live From the Aurora", shared the beauty of the Aurora through a variety of activities and stories related to perspectives of Northern Peoples. Sun-Earth Day 2004 will share the excitement of the transit of Venus through comparisons of Venus with Earth and Mars, calculations of the distances to nearby stars, and the use of transits to identify extra-solar planets. Finally, Sun-Earth Day 2005 will bring several of these themes together by turning our focus to the history and culture surrounding ancient observatories such as Chaco Canyon, Machu Picchu, and Chichen Itza.

  18. Superfund fact sheet: The remedial program. Fact sheet

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1992-09-01

    The fact sheet describes what various actions the EPA can take to clean up hazardous wastes sites. Explanations of how the criteria for environmental and public health risk assessment are determined and the role of state and local governments in site remediation are given. The fact sheet is one in a series providing reference information about Superfund issues and is intended for readers with no formal scientific training

  19. Soap, science, and flat-screen TVs a history of liquid crystals

    CERN Document Server

    Dunmur, David

    2011-01-01

    The terms 'liquid crystal' or 'liquid crystal display' (LCD) are well-known in the context of flat-screen televisions, but the properties and history of liquid crystals are little understood. This book tells the story of liquid crystals, from their controversial discovery at the end of the nineteenth century, to their eventual acceptance as another state of matter to rank alongside gases, liquids and solids. As their story unfolds, the scientists involved and their works are put into illuminating broader socio-political contexts. In recent years, liquid crystals have had a major impact on the display industry, culminating in the now widely available flat-screen televisions; this development is described in detail over three chapters, and the basic science behind it is explained in simple terms accessible to a general reader. New applications of liquid crystals in materials, bio-systems, medicine and technology are also explained.

  20. The historiography of contemporary science, technology, and medicine writing recent science

    CERN Document Server

    Söderqvist, Thomas

    2006-01-01

    As historians of science increasingly turn to work on recent (post 1945) science, the historiographical and methodological problems associated with the history of contemporary science are debated with growing frequency and urgency. Bringing together authorities on the history, historiography and methodology of recent and contemporary science, this book reviews the problems facing historians of technology, contemporary science and medicine, and explores new ways forward. With contributions from key researchers in the field, the text covers topics that will be of ever increasing interest to historians of post-war science, including the difficulties of accessing and using secret archival material, the interactions between archivists, historians and scientists, and the politics of evidence and historical accounts.

  1. The discovery of radium 100 years ago and the impact on the early history of nuclear science

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Adloff, J.P.

    1999-01-01

    One hundred years ago, Pierre and Marie Curie reawakened the topic of uranic rays and discovered two radioelements, polonium in July 1898 and radium in December. The circumstances of these events which announced the beginning of radiochemistry are reviewed at the light of the laboratory notebooks and the publications of the authors. The role of radium in the early history of radioactivity and nuclear sciences is emphasized. (author)

  2. The discovery of radium 100 years ago and the impact on the early history of nuclear science

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Adloff, J.P. [University Louis Pasteur, 63 Rue Saint Urbain 67100 Strasbourg (France)

    1999-09-01

    One hundred years ago, Pierre and Marie Curie reawakened the topic of uranic rays and discovered two radioelements, polonium in July 1898 and radium in December. The circumstances of these events which announced the beginning of radiochemistry are reviewed at the light of the laboratory notebooks and the publications of the authors. The role of radium in the early history of radioactivity and nuclear sciences is emphasized. (author)

  3. Little-known truths, quirky anecdotes, seething scandals, and even some science in the history of (primarily achievement) motivation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weiner, Bernard

    2013-08-01

    This article presents a history of the study of motivation from approximately 1900-1975, focusing on achievement strivings and containing little-known and often surprising facts about the main contributors to this field. Four theorists are highlighted: David McClelland, Kurt Lewin, John Atkinson, and Fritz Heider, each associated with a different theoretical approach (respectively and in order of historical emergence: trait, Gestalt, expectancy/value, and attribution theory). A fifth conception, drive theory, is also represented. In addition, a number of individuals who influenced these theorists and others who followed them are discussed. The article emphasizes the interrelations between the theorists and the interaction between personal and scientific life.

  4. 'Where is the damned collection?' Charles Davies Sherborn's listing of named natural science collections and its successors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taylor, Michael A

    2016-01-01

    C. D. Sherborn published in 1940, under the imprint of Cambridge University Press but at his own expense, Where is the - Collection? This idiosyncratic listing of named natural science collections, and their fates, was useful, but incomplete, and uneven in its accuracy. It is argued that those defects were inevitable, given Sherborn's age and wartime conditions, and that what might seem one of Sherborn's less impressive works was in fact a pioneering work highly influential in stimulating the production of successor works now much used in curation, and in systematic and descriptive biology and palaeontology. The book also contributed to the development of collections research in the natural sciences, and the history of collections and of museums.

  5. History of Science in Physics Teaching: A Study About the Teaching of Gravitational Attraction Developed Among Prospective Teachers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sandra Regina Teodoro Gatti

    2010-03-01

    Full Text Available We report here some outcomes of a research related to a didactical experience aiming to integrate the History of Science to the Physics Teaching, taking as background the historical development of the gravitational attraction. The research, of qualitative approach, is a case study and it was carried out in a sample of eleven students belonging to an undergraduate physics program (called licenciatura in Brazil designed to from High School physics teachers in a São Paulo State Public University. We tried initially to reveal prospective teachers’ conceptions in order to provide a prepare that was used to guide the activities from the reality’s diagnosis. The aim was to promote discussions on the existence and persistence of alternative conceptions, on the historical evolution of the subject gravitational attraction, through readings and debates of texts contemplating recent subjects on the Science Education research, in order to generate dissatisfaction with traditional teaching models. The future High School physics teachers were asked to construct their own teaching proposal, through the development, in real situations, in a High School, of a mini-course based on: debates and synthesis developed in University classroom, the History of the Science and the student’s alternative conceptions. In this paper we will analyze future teachers’ alternative conceptions, the development of the course proposed, and details of the mini-courses taught by the prospective teachers in real situations, among High School students, its coherence and the posture changes observed in them.

  6. Oral History Archives | Fellowship | Indian Academy of Sciences

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Oral history archive. Audio and video documentaries. In the Academy Council meeting held in December 2011, the proposal of creating an 'Oral history archive' was discussed and finalized for implementation. The archive is intended to be a repository of audio and video documentaries of some of the leading scientists of ...

  7. Reclaiming lost ground – the history play in Zulu

    OpenAIRE

    H.C. Groenewald

    2004-01-01

    This article briefly sketches the history of African-language literatures as initiated by missionaries and formed by Bantu education. Against this background the aim of this article is to establish what the objectives of Zulu dramatists were when they presented historical fact, flawed history, as well as ideological sentiment in their historical plays. Are history plays in Zulu simply the products of writers whose objective was to meet a publisher’s requirements, namely to extend the dramatic...

  8. Formalism in the first half of the twentieth century: ‘pure science’ or a case of effective rhetoric? Mitchell B. Frank and Daniel Adler (eds, German Art History and Scientific Thought – Beyond Formalism, Ashgate, 2012

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Arnold Witte

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available German Art History and Scientific Thought – Beyond Formalism discusses the relation between art history and the human and natural sciences in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. All contributions in this volume highlight the way in which this exchange affected art history on a practical and methodological level, but at the same time illustrate how the quest for objectivity and scientific methods was accompanied by an irrational search for essential characteristics of art through race. Especially the exchange with psychology, physiognomy, and psychophysiology supported this kind reasoning in circles in which objectivity was related to holistic explanations. This led to a rhetoric of objective Kunstwissenschaft that spoke in terms of rational facts, but in which the concepts of character and evolution resulted in highly ideological interpretations, which became discredited after 1945. However, the post-war reaction to this in itself again affected another turn towards the ‘objective’ which goes to show how external, political, changes affected the relation between art history and the sciences.

  9. Inquiry learning for gender equity using History of Science in Life and Earth Sciences’ learning environments

    OpenAIRE

    C. Sousa

    2016-01-01

    [EN] The main objective of the present work is the selection and integration of objectives and methods of education for gender equity within the Life and Earth Sciences’ learning environments in the current portuguese frameworks of middle and high school. My proposal combines inquiry learning-teaching methods with the aim of promoting gender equity, mainly focusing in relevant 20th century women-scientists with a huge contribute to the History of Science.The hands-on and minds-on activities p...

  10. Nanostructures-History

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    First page Back Continue Last page Graphics. Nanostructures-History. Inspiration to Nanotechnology-. The Japanese scientist Norio Taniguchi of the Tokyo University of Science was used the term "nano-technology" in a 1974 conference, to describe semiconductor processes such as thin film His definition was, ...

  11. Rhetoric of Science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harris, R. Allen

    1991-01-01

    Places rhetoric of science in context with sociology, psychology, history, and philosophy of science. Generates a typology of concerns for rhetoric of science. Characterizes the central issues of the field. (RS)

  12. Marine Sciences: from natural history to ecology and back, on Darwin's shoulders

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ferdinando Boero

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available The naturalist Charles Darwin founded modern ecology, considering in a single conceptual framework the manifold aspects regarding the organization of life at various levels of complexity and its relationship with the physical world. The development of powerful analytical tools led to abandon Darwin's natural history and to transform naturalists, as Darwin labelled himself, into the practitioners of more focused disciplines, aimed at tackling specific problems that considered the various aspects of the organization of life in great detail but, also, in isolation from each other. Among the various disciplines that stemmed from the Darwinian method, ecology was further split into many branches, and marine ecology was no exception. The compartmentalization of the marine realm into several sub-domains (e.g., plankton, benthos, nekton led to neglect of the connections linking the various parts that were separated for the ease of analyses that, in this way, prevented synthetic visions. The way marine sciences were studied also led to separate visions depending on the employed tools, so that ship-based biological oceanography developed almost separately from marine station-based marine biology. The necessity of putting together such concepts as biodiversity and ecosystem functioning is rapidly leading to synthetic approaches that re-discover the historical nature of ecology, leading to the dawn of a new natural history.

  13. A Diversity of Divisions: Tracing the History of the Demarcation between the Sciences and the Humanities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bouterse, Jeroen; Karstens, Bart

    2015-06-01

    Throughout history, divides between the sciences and the humanities have been drawn in many different ways. This essay shows that the notion of a divide became more urgent and pronounced in the second half of the nineteenth century. While this shift has several causes, the essay focuses on the rise of the social sciences, which is interpreted as posing a profound challenge to the established disciplines of the study of humankind. This is demonstrated by zooming in on linguistics, one of the key traditional disciplines of the humanities. Through the assumption of a correspondence between mental and linguistic categories, psychology became of central importance in the various conceptions of linguistics that emerged in the nineteenth century. Both linguistics and psychology were very much engaged in a process of discipline formation, and opinions about the proper directions of the fields varied considerably. Debates on these issues catalyzed the construction of more radical divisions between the sciences and the humanities. Both Wilhelm Dilthey's dichotomy between understanding and explanation and Wilhelm Windelband's dichotomy between nomothetic and idiographic sciences respond to these debates. While their constructions are often lumped together, the essay shows that they actually meant very different things and have to be treated accordingly.

  14. What about Global History? Dilemmas in the Selection of Content in the School Subject History

    Science.gov (United States)

    Poulsen, Jens Aage

    2013-01-01

    It is a cliché, but also a fundamental fact that we live in a world where globalization and international challenges, opportunities and relationships play an increasing role. However, how have these changing conditions affected the content of school history? To what degree have curricula and textbooks addressed these challenges? Is the main focus…

  15. Matrix Mathematics Theory, Facts, and Formulas (Second Edition)

    CERN Document Server

    Bernstein, Dennis S

    2011-01-01

    When first published in 2005, Matrix Mathematics quickly became the essential reference book for users of matrices in all branches of engineering, science, and applied mathematics. In this fully updated and expanded edition, the author brings together the latest results on matrix theory to make this the most complete, current, and easy-to-use book on matrices. Each chapter describes relevant background theory followed by specialized results. Hundreds of identities, inequalities, and matrix facts are stated clearly and rigorously with cross references, citations to the literature, and illuminat

  16. [Vaccines: history and stories between reality and imagination].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Terracciano, Elisa; Zorzoli, Ermanno; D'Alò, Gian Loreto; Zaratti, Laura; Franco, Elisabetta

    2016-01-01

    Vaccinations and the controversy around them always go in parallel. We identified four categories blending in various amounts of truth and imagination: history, myths, shams and frauds. Over the years, they have alternated and sometimes transformed into one another. This sharp separation into categories is certainly academic and forced. In fact, the line between these aspects is not clear enough to allow a rigid and well-defined division. Our work starts from the category containing the most truthfulness: history, and goes on to analyze two categories that add fantasy to facts: myths and shams (or better, "old wives' tales"). The history deals with the topics of variolation and the first anti-vaccine activists' disputes. Myths that arose around immunization include immune overload, homeoprophylaxis, and excessive hygiene. In this context, immunization itself risked becoming a myth, being considered not amenable to improvements. In the category of old wives' tales we find rumors about the presence in the vaccines of considerable quantities of supposedly toxic components such as aluminum, squalene, Thimerosal and nanoparticles, as well as the existence of secret techniques of vaccine preparation that involve unethical procedures. The last category, fraud, is the poorest in both truth and fantasy but it is still hard to confront. The most famous fraud is the supposed link between vaccines and autism. In this frame, disinformation is certainly a fertile substrate for the emergence both of elements close to reality and of very imaginative ones. Vaccine hesitancy is believed to be responsible for decreasing vaccine coverage and increasing the risk of vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks and epidemics. The role of communication in immunization is essential to its success, especially taking into account the deep transformations the world of information is going through. The great multitude of voices seem to carry the same weight, but it is not so in science. Web searches

  17. "Why Do I have to Study History?"

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kidwell, F. L.

    1996-01-01

    Recommends beginning classes in history with a short unit on historiography (why and how we study history). This not only provides a context for the succeeding material but also allows for a discussion of inquiry and research methodologies. Defends history-social science as a foundational skill. (MJP)

  18. History of Great Ideas: An Honors Seminar.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Terrill, Marty; And Others

    The History of Great Ideas is an interdisciplinary seminar course for sophomore honor students at North Arkansas Community Technical College that teaches the intellectual history of western civilization. Each semester, students study 14 ideas from science, philosophy, history, religion, sociology, and economics to discover how philosophical…

  19. History of science and technology in the 20th century and super-technologies at present. 20 seiki no kagaku gijutsushi to genzai no (cho) gijutsu

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Futami, S. (Yasukawa Electric Mfg. Co. Ltd., Kitakyushu (Japan))

    1992-10-05

    Technologies whose names are prefixed with super are discussed from a viewpoint of history of science and technology. A chronology for super-prefixed sciences and technologies in the 20th century is presented. Since Bohr's quantum theory and Einstein's fundamental formula for atomic energy: E = mc[sup 2] that rank as two heads of super-science, were published in the begining of the 20th century, their theories have been playing roles as a foundation of the development of science and technology in this century. Namely, on the basis of quantum theory, semi-conductors were invented and super-conduction has been developed. The Einstein's fundamental formula has led to atomic bombs and commercial power reactors. Development to super-technologies in various fields of sciences and technologies is explained. When a nation's history of science and technology is assumed as a process from mimicry to self-sustenance that is composed of the following four steps: (1) import of products, (2)initiation of production and transfer of technology, (3)transit to technological self-sustain, (4) establishment of creative technology. Japan is in a process between(3) and(4). Further, super-technologies under research and development for the present in Japan are enumerated. 6 refs., 2 figs.

  20. Archives and the Boundaries of Early Modern Science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Popper, Nicholas

    2016-03-01

    This contribution argues that the study of early modern archives suggests a new agenda for historians of early modern science. While in recent years historians of science have begun to direct increased attention toward the collections amassed by figures and institutions traditionally portrayed as proto-scientific, archives proliferated across early modern Europe, emerging as powerful tools for creating knowledge in politics, history, and law as well as natural philosophy, botany, and more. The essay investigates the methods of production, collection, organization, and manipulation used by English statesmen and Crown officers such as Keeper of the State Papers Thomas Wilson and Secretary of State Joseph Williamson to govern their disorderly collections. Their methods, it is shown, were shared with contemporaries seeking to generate and manage other troves of evidence and in fact reflect a complex ecosystem of imitation and exchange across fields of inquiry. These commonalities suggest that historians of science should look beyond the ancestors of modern scientific disciplines to examine how practices of producing knowledge emerged and migrated throughout cultures of learning in Europe and beyond. Creating such a map of knowledge production and exchange, the essay concludes, would provide a renewed and expansive ambition for the field.

  1. First Handbooks on History of Religion and Comparative Religion Abroad

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Barashkov Viktor

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available One of the important aspects of institutionalization of the religious studies in 1870– 1910s was the publishing of the fi rst handbooks on history of religion and comparative religion. The aim of the paper is to analyze methods and approaches of religious studies, as they described in these handbooks. The main characteristic of religion for the historians of religion was its universality. The most important methods, according to them, were historical approach, comparative approach, using of the notion «development». It is important, that we deal foremost with the «history of religion» in these handbooks, not with the «history of religions». Primitive religions were usually excluded from these handbooks, because they «have not history». First handbooks on history of religion often were edited in the series of theological handbooks, that’s why Christianity was described in them quite often as «higher» religion. Researches on comparative religion were based upon the history of religion. One of the main principles of comparative religion was that it should not deal with religious values, but only with a comparison of facts. The author concludes that scholars of religion nowadays should not only collect the facts, but also realize projects on the general history (theory of religion.

  2. Psychical research in the history and philosophy of science. An introduction and review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sommer, Andreas

    2014-12-01

    As a prelude to articles published in this special issue, I sketch changing historiographical conventions regarding the 'occult' in recent history of science and medicine scholarship. Next, a review of standard claims regarding psychical research and parapsychology in philosophical discussions of the demarcation problem reveals that these have tended to disregard basic primary sources and instead rely heavily on problematic popular accounts, simplistic notions of scientific practice, and outdated teleological historiographies of progress. I conclude by suggesting that rigorous and sensitively contextualized case studies of past elite heterodox scientists may be potentially useful to enrich historical and philosophical scholarship by highlighting epistemologies that have fallen through the crude meshes of triumphalist and postmodernist historiographical generalizations alike. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. WATER AND THE HISTORY OF MAN

    Science.gov (United States)

    The importance of water is presented from a myriad of aspects including its creation in cosmic history; its importance in the texts of ancient history; references within various religious writings; and significance with respect to modern science, art, music, transportation, archi...

  4. Theses in Archaeology for the Degrees of Doctor and Candidate of Historical Sciences Defended at the Sh. Marjani Institute of History, Tatarstan Academy of Sciences, in 2013

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Khuzin Fayaz Sh.

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available An overview of the theses in Archaeology defended in 2013 at the Institute of History named after Sh. Marjani, Tatarstan Academy of Sciences, is presented in the article. Three theses were submitted for the conferment of Doctor’s Degree (I.L. Izmailov, Yu.A. Zeleneyev, A.G. Sitdikov, and seven – for the conferment of Candidate’s Degree (M.L. Pereskokov, M.M. Zubareva, I.V. Molchanov, R.V. Matveyev, M.D. Kalmenov, K.M. Kireeyva, A.V. Lyganov. One thesis was defended specialized in Russian History, which is undoubtedly of interest to archaeologists engaged in Bulgar studies (Sh. R. Mingazov. A brief outline of the content of the submitted theses is offered; basic problems tackled in them are characterized. The latter are predominantly concentrated around issues of ethnogenesis, history and culture of the population of the Volga river region and adjacent territories during the Middle Ages and preceding periods: the Bonze Age and the Early Iron Age.

  5. History Microcomputer Games: Update 2.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sargent, James E.

    1985-01-01

    Provides full narrative reviews of B-1 Nuclear Bomber (Avalon, 1982); American History Adventure (Social Science Microcomputer Review Software, 1985); Government Simulations (Prentice-Hall, 1985); and The Great War, FDR and the New Deal, and Hitler's War, all from New Worlds Software, 1985. Lists additional information on five other history and…

  6. The International Big History Association

    Science.gov (United States)

    Duffy, Michael; Duffy, D'Neil

    2013-01-01

    IBHA, the International Big History Association, was organized in 2010 and "promotes the unified, interdisciplinary study and teaching of history of the Cosmos, Earth, Life, and Humanity." This is the vision that Montessori embraced long before the discoveries of modern science fleshed out the story of the evolving universe. "Big…

  7. [Carlos Chagas Filho: an articulator of the history of sciences in Brazil].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Domingues, Heloisa Maria Bertol

    2012-06-01

    A letter sent in 1982 by a group of scientists to the president of Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico appealed for a policy of preservation of Brazilian scientific culture. The name of Carlos Chagas Filho topped the list of signatures thereby proving his commitment to that proposal, the ideological structure of which was part of his experience in scientific policy in Brazil and abroad. This document harks back to the practice of the history of the sciences in Brazil and the creation of places for the safeguard and organization of scientific memory, such as the Museu de Astronomia e Ciências Afins, Casa de Oswaldo Cruz and the Sociedade Brasileira de História da Ciência, of which Carlos Chagas Filho was an inaugural member of the board of directors.

  8. CREATING EDUCATIONAL MATERIAL TO HIGH SCHOOL EDUCATION WITH COMIC BOOKS: THE VACCINA´S HISTORY.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. Corrêa

    2008-05-01

    Full Text Available The Comic book "The Vaccine’s History" is part of a project that creates educational material intended to improve high school education, and is being developed for approximately ten years at the Bioenergetics Laboratory under Prof. Leopoldo de Meis supervision. The project's objective is joining art and science language to create more interesting and playful science education diffusion material for high school students and the general public, working as an entertainment or as an auxiliary tool for teachers in their classrooms. The book’s subject is the history of immunology, from primitive man until present times, using comic book language. An extensive research was necessary in the elaboration of this present work to produce a book that is as true to facts as possible and, at the same time, develop an accessible language to general public. Collaboration of diverse scientists from the Immunology research field made possible an accurate use of academic information, translating this knowledge to students and general pub lic about many topics of discovery and production of vaccines. All products of this project were well received by school teachers all over the country (Brazil, according to data obtained with letters and comments, and the number of requested materials of  the previous works developed by this research group.

  9. Knowledge systems and the colonial legacies in African science education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ziegler, John R.; Lehner, Edward

    2017-10-01

    This review surveys Femi Otulaja and Meshach Ogunniyi's, Handbook of research in science education in sub-Saharan Africa, Sense, Rotterdam, 2017, noting the significance of the theoretically rich content and how this book contributes to the field of education as well as to the humanities more broadly. The volume usefully outlines the ways in which science education and scholarship in sub-Saharan Africa continue to be impacted by the region's colonial history. Several of the chapters also enumerate proposals for teaching and learning science and strengthening academic exchange. Concerns that recur across many of the chapters include inadequate implementation of reforms; a lack of resources, such as for classroom materials and teacher training; and the continued and detrimental linguistic, financial, and ideological domination of African science education by the West. After a brief overview of the work and its central issues, this review closely examines two salient chapters that focus on scholarly communications and culturally responsive pedagogy. The scholarly communication section addresses the ways in which African science education research may in fact be too closely mirroring Western knowledge constructions without fully integrating indigenous knowledge systems in the research process. The chapter on pedagogy makes a similar argument for integrating Western and indigenous knowledge systems into teaching approaches.

  10. Facts about Glaucoma

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... Information » Glaucoma » Facts About Glaucoma Listen Facts About Glaucoma This information was developed by the National Eye ... is the best person to answer specific questions. Glaucoma Defined What is Glaucoma? Glaucoma is a group ...

  11. Cognitive science contributions to decision science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Busemeyer, Jerome R

    2015-02-01

    This article briefly reviews the history and interplay between decision theory, behavioral decision-making research, and cognitive psychology. The review reveals the increasingly important impact that psychology and cognitive science have on decision science. One of the main contributions of cognitive science to decision science is the development of dynamic models that describe the cognitive processes that underlay the evolution of preferences during deliberation phase of making a decision. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  12. John of Salisbury on Aristotelian Science

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bloch, David

    The First substantial treatment of John of Salisbury's views on Aristotelian science. Important for our understanding of the reception of Aristotle's works and for the history of theories of science.......The First substantial treatment of John of Salisbury's views on Aristotelian science. Important for our understanding of the reception of Aristotle's works and for the history of theories of science....

  13. The artful mind meets art history: toward a psycho-historical framework for the science of art appreciation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bullot, Nicolas J; Reber, Rolf

    2013-04-01

    Research seeking a scientific foundation for the theory of art appreciation has raised controversies at the intersection of the social and cognitive sciences. Though equally relevant to a scientific inquiry into art appreciation, psychological and historical approaches to art developed independently and lack a common core of theoretical principles. Historicists argue that psychological and brain sciences ignore the fact that artworks are artifacts produced and appreciated in the context of unique historical situations and artistic intentions. After revealing flaws in the psychological approach, we introduce a psycho-historical framework for the science of art appreciation. This framework demonstrates that a science of art appreciation must investigate how appreciators process causal and historical information to classify and explain their psychological responses to art. Expanding on research about the cognition of artifacts, we identify three modes of appreciation: basic exposure to an artwork, the artistic design stance, and artistic understanding. The artistic design stance, a requisite for artistic understanding, is an attitude whereby appreciators develop their sensitivity to art-historical contexts by means of inquiries into the making, authorship, and functions of artworks. We defend and illustrate the psycho-historical framework with an analysis of existing studies on art appreciation in empirical aesthetics. Finally, we argue that the fluency theory of aesthetic pleasure can be amended to meet the requirements of the framework. We conclude that scientists can tackle fundamental questions about the nature and appreciation of art within the psycho-historical framework.

  14. Co-opting Science: A preliminary study of how students invoke science in value-laden discussions

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, J. A.

    2012-01-01

    '. As a preliminary step, this study investigated how Danish upper secondary biology students actually interwove science facts and values in socio-scientific discussions. In particular, the focus was the argumentative effects of different ways of blurring the fact-value distinction. The data consisted...

  15. Reflecting on Teaching of the "Appliance of Science"

    Science.gov (United States)

    Linfield, Rachel

    2016-01-01

    As a primary school teacher, Rachel Linfield has always been insistent that her students were taught and understood the use behind a particular science fact or process. These days, however, she finds very few students who can recall a single useful science fact that they learned in primary school. Linfield wonders if teaching of the National…

  16. The Impact of Science Fiction Film on Student Understanding of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barnett, Michael; Wagner, Heather; Gatling, Anne; Anderson, Janice; Houle, Meredith; Kafka, Alan

    2006-01-01

    Researchers who have investigated the public understanding of science have argued that fictional cinema and television has proven to be particularly effective at blurring the distinction between fact and fiction. The rationale for this study lies in the notion that to teach science effectively, educators need to understand how popular culture…

  17. VirSchool: The Effect of Background Music and Immersive Display Systems on Memory for Facts Learned in an Educational Virtual Environment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fassbender, Eric; Richards, Deborah; Bilgin, Ayse; Thompson, William Forde; Heiden, Wolfgang

    2012-01-01

    Game technology has been widely used for educational applications, however, despite the common use of background music in games, its effect on learning has been largely unexplored. This paper discusses how music played in the background of a computer-animated history lesson affected participants' memory for facts. A virtual history lesson was…

  18. How to Motivate Science Teachers to Use Science Experiments

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Josef Trna

    2012-10-01

    Full Text Available A science experiment is the core tool in science education. This study describes the science teachers' professional competence to implement science experiments in teaching/learning science. The main objective is the motivation of science teachers to use science experiments. The presented research tries to answer questions aimed at the science teachers' skills to use science experiments in teaching/learning science. The research discovered the following facts: science teachers do not include science experiments in teaching/learning in a suitable way; are not able to choose science experiments corresponding to the teaching phase; prefer teachers' demonstration of science experiments; are not able to improvise with the aids; use only a few experiments. The important research result is that an important motivational tool for science teachers is the creation of simple experiments. Examples of motivational simple experiments used into teachers' training for increasing their own creativity and motivation are presented.

  19. A short history of the soil science discipline

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brevik, E. C.; Hartemink, A. E.

    2012-04-01

    Since people have cultivated the land they have generated and created knowledge about its soil. By the 4th century most civilizations around had various levels of soil knowledge and that includes irrigation, the use of terraces to control soil erosion, methods to maintain and improve soil fertility. The early soil knowledge was largely empirical and based on observations. Many famous scientists, for example, Francis Bacon, Robert Boyle, Charles Darwin, and Leonardo da Vinci worked on soil issues. Soil science became a true science in the 19th century with the development of genetic soil science, lead by the Russian Vasilii V. Dokuchaev. In the beginning soil science had strong ties to both geology and agriculture but in the 20th century, soil science is now being applied in residential development, the planning of highways, building foundations, septic systems, wildlife management, environmental management, and many other applications. The discipline is maturing and soil science plays a crucial role in many of the current issues that confront the world like climate change, water scarcity, biodiversity and environmental degradation.

  20. Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures

    Medline Plus

    Full Text Available ... Share the facts: Quick Facts Prevalence Mortality Caregivers Cost Special Report Alzheimer's in each state Quick Facts Share the facts: Prevalence The number of Americans living with Alzheimer's is growing — and growing fast. An ...

  1. Science Fiction and Ontologies of Leadership

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jana Vizmuller-Zocco

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available The role of leadership in science fiction receives a particular analysis which is based on what can be termed transhumanist novels published in Italy between 2008 and 2013. The main purpose of this study is to answer the following question: What happens to (the nature of leadership in a technologically-driven society? Four novels form the backbone of the description of futuristic leadership. The four conclusions drawn from this analysis regarding the nature of leadership in a technologically-driven society point to a much greater need for leadership studies to pay attention to technological advances (and the philosophical underpinnings of, specifically, transhumanism. The impact of nano-bio-technology affecting the role of leaders, followers, goals, alignment, commitment has ontological repercussions on the manner in which (augmented and unaugmented humans deal with each other. If early augmented humans/cyborgs and any other sentient beings are in fact comparable to Giambattista Vico’s brutes, and if his corsi e ricorsi (ebbs and flows of human history can apply to non-human, sentient beings’ history, then the work is cut out for all disciplines, but especially for those which deal with ontologies of leadership.

  2. Historical Experiments and Physics Teaching: adding considerations from a Bibliographic Review and the Cultural History of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jardim, W. T.; Guerra, A.

    2017-12-01

    In this paper, a discussion about the purposes of historical experiments in science teaching found in the literature will be presented. As a starting point, we carried out a bibliographic review, on the websites of six relevant periodicals for the area of Science Teaching and, especially for Physics Teaching. The search was based, at first, on works published between the years 2001 and 2016, from terms like "historical experiments", "museums" and "experience". Thereon, due to the large number of publications found, a screening process was developed based on the analysis of titles, abstracts, keywords and, whether necessary, the whole text, aiming to identify which searches emphasize working with historical experiments in Physics teaching, from a theoretical perspective or based on manipulation of a replica of historical apparatus. The selected proposals were arranged in categories adapted from the work of Heering and Höttecke (2014) which allowed us to draw a parallel between the national and international publication that presented resembling scopes. Furthermore, the analysis of the results leads us to infer that, in general, extralab factors, inherent to science, when not neglected, are placed in a peripheral perspective. Thus, we draw theoretical considerations based on Historians of Science, which develop their researches based on the bias of the Cultural History of Science, seeking to add reflections to what has been developed about historical experiments in teaching up to now.

  3. Wor(l)ds of Czech Oral History (1990-2015). A Couple of Historiographical Remarks

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Mücke, Pavel

    2017-01-01

    Roč. 2017, č. 43 (2017), s. 28-39 ISSN 2109-9537 R&D Projects : GA ČR GA15-08130S Institutional support: RVO:68378114 Keywords : oral history * Czech Republic * contemporary history Subject RIV: AB - History OBOR OECD: History (history of science and technology to be 6.3, history of specific sciences to be under the respective headings) https://afas.revues.org/3049

  4. Text-Based Argumentation with Multiple Sources: A Descriptive Study of Opportunity to Learn in Secondary English Language Arts, History, and Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Litman, Cindy; Marple, Stacy; Greenleaf, Cynthia; Charney-Sirott, Irisa; Bolz, Michael J.; Richardson, Lisa K.; Hall, Allison H.; George, MariAnne; Goldman, Susan R.

    2017-01-01

    This study presents a descriptive analysis of 71 videotaped lessons taught by 34 highly regarded secondary English language arts, history, and science teachers, collected to inform an intervention focused on evidence-based argumentation from multiple text sources. Studying the practices of highly regarded teachers is valuable for identifying…

  5. The American Indian Reader: History. Book Four of a Series in Educational Perspectives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Costo, Rupert; Henry, Jeannette, Ed.

    In an attempt to rewrite American history incorporating "long hidden facts" pertinent to the American Indian, this book endeavors to relate the "truth in history" and make "humanity see itself face to face without fear and in spite of the pangs of conscience". Each of 7 chapters addresses a specific aspect of American history relevant to the…

  6. Low-level radiation effects: a fact book

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brill, A.B.; Adelstein, S.J.; Saenger, E.L.; Webster, E.W.

    1982-01-01

    Low Level Raidation Effects: A Fact Book, prepared by the Society of Nuclear Medicine Subcommittee on the Risks of Low-Level Ionizing Radiation, attempts to examine the health effects of small doses of radiation. For immediate questions, this work provides a well-organized brief summary of recent radiologic data from refereed scientific literature and from the publications of advisory groups such as the National Council of Radiation Protection and Measurement (NCRP), the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP), the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR), and the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). Since it consists almost entirely of tables and graphs from the above-mentioned sources along with summary paragraphs, the Fact Book is very useful in the preparation of lectures. The book is divided into seven sections. Chapter One, Glossary, Units and Conversion Factors, is useful because nearly all data given in the rest of the book is in conventional units and should be converted to SI units for future technical audiences. Chapter 2, Radiobiology, covers the fundamental principles of the field. Chapter 3, Radiation Doses, can be used to help an audience appreciate the relative magnitudes of radiation exposures they may read about or encounter. Chapter 4, Late Somatic Effects of Low Doses of Ionizing Radiation, gives data concerning cancer induction and embryonic effects, and Chapter 5 provides data on genetic effects Chapter 6, Risks, Statistical Facts and Public Perception can be used to compare the risks of radiation exposure with more commonly encountered risks

  7. A brief history of the most remarkable numbers e, i and γ in mathematical sciences with applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Debnath, Lokenath

    2015-08-01

    This paper deals with a brief history of the most remarkable Euler numbers e, i and γ in mathematical sciences. Included are many properties of the constants e, i and γ and their applications in algebra, geometry, physics, chemistry, ecology, business and industry. Special attention is given to the growth and decay phenomena in many real-world problems including stability and instability of their solutions. Some specific and modern applications of logarithms, complex numbers and complex exponential functions to electrical circuits and mechanical systems are presented with examples. Included are the use of complex numbers and complex functions in the description and analysis of chaos and fractals with the aid of modern computer technology. In addition, the phasor method is described with examples of applications in engineering science. The major focus of this paper is to provide basic information through historical approach to mathematics teaching and learning of the fundamental knowledge and skills required for students and teachers at all levels so that they can understand the concepts of mathematics, and mathematics education in science and technology.

  8. Teaching the Conceptual History of Physics to Physics Teachers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garik, Peter; Garbayo, Luciana; Benétreau-Dupin, Yann; Winrich, Charles; Duffy, Andrew; Gross, Nicholas; Jariwala, Manher

    2015-01-01

    For nearly a decade we have taught the history and philosophy of science as part of courses aimed at the professional development of physics teachers. The focus of the history of science instruction is on the stages in the development of the concepts and theories of physics. For this instruction, we designed activities to help the teachers…

  9. The New Outlook for Science. Science and Belief: from Copernicus to Darwin, Block VI, Units 15-16.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Open Univ., Walton, Bletchley, Bucks (England).

    This text contains units 15-16 in the Open University course, Science and Belief: from Copernicus to Darwin. It is an inter-faculty second level course in the history of science. Unit 15 is concerned with Nature and History and includes uniformitarianism, human history, evolutionism, and Darwinism. Unit objectives, readings, and questions with the…

  10. The Actuality of Gentile's Philosophy of History

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Peters, Richard

    2014-01-01

    This essay reconstructs Gentile's conception of history as the product of the eternal act of thinking. Peters charts the development of this distinctive position, presenting it as a sustained attempt to unite past and present, fact and value, thought and action within a single theory. He argues,

  11. The Actuality of Gentile's Philosophy of History

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Peters, Richard; Haddock, Bruce; Wakefield, James

    2015-01-01

    This essay reconstructs Gentile's conception of history as the product of the eternal act of thinking. Peters charts the development of this distinctive position, presenting it as a sustained attempt to unite past and present, fact and value, thought and action within a single theory. He argues,

  12. Employment, Employability and History: Helping Students to See the Connection

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baker, Geoff

    2013-01-01

    Five years ago, in "Teaching History 132", Harris and Haydn drew attention to the fact that while the vast majority of Key Stage 3 students claimed to enjoy history and even to regard it as a useful subject, relatively few of them were able to explain why they thought it was so important. Geoff Baker set out to address this issue, in…

  13. School of Political Science

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. D. Voskresensky

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Out of all the departments of political sciences in Russia - the Department at MGIMO-University is probably the oldest one. In fact it is very young. While MGIMO-University is celebrating its 70th anniversary the Department of Political Sciences turns 15. Despite the fact that political analyst is a relatively new profession in Russia, it acquired a legal standing only in the 1990s, the political science school at MGIMO-University is almost as old as the university itself. Unlike many other universities, focused on the training teachers of political science or campaign managers MGIMO-University has developed its own unique political science school of "full cycle", where students grow into political sciences from a zero level up to the highest qualifications as teachers and researchers, and campaign managers, consultants and practitioners. The uniqueness of the school of political science at MGIMO-University allows its institutional incarnation -the Department of Political Science - to offer prospective studentsa training in a wide range of popular specialties and specializations, while ensuring a deep theoretical and practical basis of the training. Studying at MGIMO-University traditionally includes enhanced linguistic component (at least two foreign languages. For students of international relations and political science learning foreign languages is particularly important.It allows not only to communicate, but also to produce expertise and knowledge in foreign languages.

  14. Fuels planning: science synthesis and integration; social issues fact sheet 09: Benefits of collaboration

    Science.gov (United States)

    Christine Esposito

    2006-01-01

    Wildland fire professionals at the Federal, State, and local levels have a long tradition of collaborating across agencies and jurisdictions to achieve goals that they could not achieve independently. This fact sheet discusses the reasons and resources for collaboration.Other...

  15. Global warming -- Science and anti-science

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Preining, O. [Univ. of Vienna, Wien (Austria). Inst. for Experimental Physics]|[Austrian Academy of Sciences, Wien (Austria). Clean Air Commission

    1995-06-01

    The global warming debate has sparked many facts activities in almost all sectors of human endeavors. There are the hard facts, the measurements of the greenhouse gases, the statistics of human activities responsible for emissions, the demographic figures. There are the soft facts, the interpretations of the hard facts requiring additional assumptions. There are the media, the press, television, for whom environmental problems make good stories, these can be used to rise emotions, to make heroes and antiheroes. There are politicians, the global warming debate can be used even in electron campaigns. Global warming is a topic within and beyond science. The judgment (and hence use) of scientific facts is overwhelmingly influenced by the ``Weltbild`` (underlying beliefs how the world operates), and consequently opposing positions of well-known scientists arise. There are the attempts to invent futures of man on Earth: policies, regulations, laws on nation, international, and global levels shall facilitate a change in the basic behavior of all men. The global warming issue has many facets and cannot be successfully discussed without including, e.g., the North-South dialogue, world population, etc.

  16. Gore vidal's early Hollywood: history, fiction and film Gore vidal's early Hollywood: history, fiction and film

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Thomas LaBorie Burns

    2008-04-01

    Full Text Available Although Gore Vidal has both worked as a Hollywood screenwriter and written criticism on Film—in this regard, he is perhaps best known for a sustained attack on the auteur theory of the magisterial director—I am concerned in this paper mainly with his fiction account of the early days of film-making in his novel Hollywood (1990 and the relation of film to national political life depicted therein. This novel is the sixth in a series that gives a more or less continuous historical picture of the social and political history of the US from colonial times to the present. “Political” for Vidal, however, means primarily the acts of statesmen, diplomats, and high-ranking military personnel, and the social history he presents is that of the upper-class which supplies their ranks, so that what Vidal is in fact offering in these six novels is what one might call the history of the American “movers-and-shakers”. Although Gore Vidal has both worked as a Hollywood screenwriter and written criticism on Film—in this regard, he is perhaps best known for a sustained attack on the auteur theory of the magisterial director—I am concerned in this paper mainly with his fiction account of the early days of film-making in his novel Hollywood (1990 and the relation of film to national political life depicted therein. This novel is the sixth in a series that gives a more or less continuous historical picture of the social and political history of the US from colonial times to the present. “Political” for Vidal, however, means primarily the acts of statesmen, diplomats, and high-ranking military personnel, and the social history he presents is that of the upper-class which supplies their ranks, so that what Vidal is in fact offering in these six novels is what one might call the history of the American “movers-and-shakers”.

  17. Th unnatural order of things: A history of the high school science sequence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robbins, Dennis M.

    Historical studies of US high school science education are rare. This study examines the historical origins of a unique characteristic of the secondary science curriculum, the Biology-Chemistry-Physics (B-C-P) order of courses. Statements from scientists, educators and the media claim that B-C-P has been the traditional curriculum sequence for over a century and can be traced back to the influential educational commission known as the Committee of Ten (CoT) of 1893. This study examines the history of the ordering of high school science subjects over the last 150 years. The reports and primary documents of important national educational commissions, such as the CoT, were searched for their recommendations on secondary science, particularly on course ordering. These recommendations were then compared to national, state and local statistical data on subject offerings and student enrollments to measure the effect of these national commissions on school policy. This study concludes that the Committee of Ten did not create B-P-C. The CoT made six recommendations, five placed Chemistry before Physics (P-C). One recommendation for C-P met with strong disagreement because it was thought an illogical order. Biology as a "uniform" course did not exist at this time and so the CoT made no recommendations for its grade placement. Statistical data shows that B-C-P evolved over many decades. From 1860 up to 1920 most schools used a P-C curriculum believing Physics was a foundational prerequisite of Chemistry. Biology was introduced in the early 1900s and it assumed a position before the physical sciences. Through the 1920s Chemistry and Physics were placed equally likely in 11th or 12 th grades and Biology was in the 10th grade. After World War II, B-C-P became the dominant pattern, exhibited in over 90% of schools. But up to this point in time no educational body or national commission had recommended B-C-P. The Biology-Chemistry-Physics order of courses is a product of many

  18. Cross-border collaboration in history among Nordic students

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Spante, Maria; Karlsen, Asgjerd; Nortvig, Anne-Mette

    2014-01-01

    the use of information and communication technology (ICT) in history education in elementary schools is limited, thus calling for contemporary investigations in this particular subject domain. The Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) model, enhancing the combination of teachers’ pedagogical...... mathematics, language, science, social studies and history. This paper provides an in-depth description and analysis of how four social science and history elementary school teachers and their 70 students (5th–7th grades) worked together between November 2011 and December 2012. Previous research regarding...... with the synchronous model concentrated on the content and quality of the communication. Notwithstanding obstacles, cross-border collaboration provided added value. The nation-specific differences triggered curiosity and motivation to produce digital presentations of history content to be understood by the students...

  19. Comment: "Science" Rejects Postmodernism

    Science.gov (United States)

    St. Pierre, Elizabeth Adams

    2002-01-01

    The National Research Council report "Scientific Research in Education" claims to present an inclusive view of science as it responds to federal government attempts to legislate educational research. This author argues, however, that the report in fact narrowly defines "science" as positivism and "methodology" as quantitative. These definitions…

  20. The World of Science Fiction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schwartz, Sheila

    1971-01-01

    Science fiction is discussed from the following standpoints: What Is Science Fiction?; The History of Science Fiction; and The Themes of Science Fiction. A list of films, books, and records about science fiction is given. (DB)