Scientific Knowledge among Non-Scientists: Medieval Sources

University Of California-Davis, Davis CA

Investigators

Abstract

SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE AMONG NON-SCIENTISTS: SOURCES ON MEDIEVAL WOMEN Exploratory research will determine the feasibility of a new, major project on the dissemination of scientific knowledge in the Middle Ages. The theoretical and historical basis of the research has been established; funding is sought to survey the extent of accessible empirical evidence. Intellectual Merit As the basis for a comparative study of men's and women's familiarity with scientific and medical concepts from the ninth through the fifteenth centuries, the research will identify texts written by women that contain references to or discussions of learned concepts about the natural world. The exploratory research will permit preliminary mapping (in space, time, social locus, and scientific discipline) of women's knowledge. The project draws upon a significant literature concerning 1) natural philosophy and theoretical medicine produced by men; and 2) the participation of women in other domains of medieval society and culture. It will establish a primary source base from which to examine the scientific literacy of medieval women and the ways in which they deployed their knowledge. Broader Impacts If the proposed research is successful, it will lay the foundation for innovation concerning gender and the command of systematic knowledge about nature. It will thus contribute to the history of science, as well as to medieval studies and women's/gender studies, It will have implications for the place of science in medieval culture, and, more generally, for the study of public awareness of scientific ideas. In addition, the study will provide historical context for a broad range of studies relating to gender in scientific education and scientific personnel. The proposal is time-sensitive, because of the PI's research schedule and the availability of a graduate student Research Assistant with the appropriate skills and expertise.