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Was Isaac Newton, considered by many to be the most important scientist of all time, actually a mystical occultist? Was Galileo, often viewed as science's greatest voice of reason, to blame for his conflict with the Catholic Church? Four Treatises for the Reconsideration of the History of Science examines these and other momentous episodes in the history of science by shedding light on some of the more prevalent misconceptions regarding our views concerning the genesis of science. Historian and freelance writer, Fabio J. A. Farina, provides an excellent academic introduction to four important case studies necessary for understanding the historical contexts that have influenced science. His arguments show that there is a far more complex interplay of issues, ideologies, and philosophies rather than the simple rationalist evolution as many may view it today. The many interesting concepts and viewpoints presented in this small yet invaluable collection will undoubtedly fuel interest for further research and future discussions.
The story of the development of Taylor and Francis in this text is more than an isolated account of one small company - it throws light on the whole process of scientific communication during the last 200 years. In this bicentenary edition the story of the company's growth from the launch of the "Philosophical Magazine" and other scientific periodicals and books, into a significant academic publishing player is brought within the context of late 20th-century innovation and expansion.
This book is the first full-length study of one of the most widely read publications of Victorian Britain, the London Journal, inserting the story of this magazine into the wider context of the Victorian mass-market periodical. It draws on traditional modes of scholarship in history, art history, and literature as well as on developments in sociology, psychoanalysis, and cultural theory. However, the author ultimately relies on new and extensive primary research to ground the changing ways in which the reading public became consumers of literary commodities on a scale never before seen. Previous commentators have coded the mass market as somehow always 'feminine', and King offers a genealogy of how such a gender identity came about. Finally, King recontextualizes within the Victorian mass market three key nineteenth-century novels-Walter Scott's Ivanhoe, Mary Braddon's Lady Audley's Secret, and Émile Zola's The Ladies' Paradise-and in so doing suggests radically new and unexpected meanings.
Astronomy was a popular and important part of Victorian sciences, and British astronomers carried telescopes to remote areas in India, North America, and Caribbean and Pacific islands to watch solar eclipses. This book tells the full story of these expeditions: the long periods of planning and financing, and the day-to-day work of getting to field sites, setting up camp, and preparing, observing, and recording eclipses.
Periodicals played a vital role in the developments in science and medicine that transformed nineteenth-century Britain. Proliferating from a mere handful to many hundreds of titles, they catered to audiences ranging from gentlemanly members of metropolitan societies to working-class participants in local natural history clubs. In addition to disseminating authorized scientific discovery, they fostered a sense of collective identity among their geographically dispersed and often socially disparate readers by facilitating the reciprocal interchange of ideas and information. As such, they offer privileged access into the workings of scientific communities in the period. The essays in this volu...
The author's aim in these essays, which complement his pioneering books on natural history, has been to find out more about the different categories of people who engaged in this field in the past, and to piece together how the subject has been shaped by changes in society as a whole. For long the historical study of natural history was neglected, being questionably science as historians of science chose to define that word; David Allen’s work has done much to remedy this. One group of the essays included here seeks to reinterpret and document more fully topics covered in The Naturalist in Britain; others look at crazes that swept society, notably the Victorian mania for fern collecting, and at the biographies of some of the leading naturalists in 18th- and 19th-century Britain.
Images of animals generate perceptions that have a profound effect on attitudes toward species. Can representations contribute to their extinction? Paper Tiger considers the role of illustrations in the demise of the thylacine or Tasmanian ‘tiger’. It critiques 80 engravings, lithographs, drawings and photographs published between 1808 and 1936, paying attention to the messages they convey, the politics of representation, and the impact on the lives of animals. This approach challenges conventional histories, offers new understandings of human-animal interactions, and presents a chilling story of just how misleading and powerful visual representation can be. It demonstrates how pictures, together with words, can have a vital influence on species’ survival. " ... this book is a remarkable achievement. Freeman writes thoughtfully, carefully and with force, and the book is a very good read."’ (Nigel Rothfels, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee)
Science is a defining feature of the modern world, and popular science is where most of us make sense of that fact. Understanding Popular Scienceprovides a framework to help understand the development of popular science and current debates about it. In a lively and accessible style, Peter Broks shows how popular science has been invented, redefined and fought over. From early-nineteenth century radical science to twenty-first century government initiatives, he examines popular science as an arena where the authority of science and the authority of the state are legitimized and challenged. The book includes clear accounts of the public perception of scientists, visions of the future, fears of an “anti-science†movement and concerns about scientific literacy. The final chapter proposes a new model for understanding the interaction between lay and expert knowledge. This book is essential reading in cultural studies, science studies, history of science and science communication.
As one of the most monumental and recognisable landmarks from Zanzibar’s years as a British Protectorate, the distinctive domed building of the Zanzibar Museum (also known as the Beit al-Amani or Peace Memorial Museum) is widely known and familiar to Zanzibaris and visitors alike. Yet the complicated and compelling history behind its construction and collection has been overlooked by historians until now. Drawing on a rich and wide range of hitherto unexplored archival, photographic, architectural and material evidence, this book is the first serious investigation of this remarkable institution. Although the museum was not opened until 1925, this book traces the longer history of colonial ...