International Conference Travel: Unity and Disunity in Science: International; 14-17 September 2018, London, England

Wayne State University, Detroit MI

Investigators

Abstract

This project will support participation of US scholars in the international conference, "Unity and Disunity' in science, which is the 8th International Conference of the European Society for the History of Science held in conjunction with the British Society for the History of Science. The sessions will take place on 14-17 September 2018 mainly at University of College London's Institute of Education, though some sessions will be held at the Royal Institution and the Science Museum. The participation of US scholars in this European conference will serve to foster international relations and to ensure that early-career and independent scholars, as well as senior scholars, are able to participate, thus helping to diversify and expand the perspectives at the conference, and the collaborations that may be expected to materialize as a result of the US participation, which promises to add dimensions to the discussion of the unity and disunity of science, and the other topics that will be discussed in the 67 accepted symposia. All the US participants are appearing in sessions with European scholars, and such intellectual interactions are expected to lead to intellectual collaborations that may include new projects as well as future publications. In addition, reports of the conference proceedings will be disseminated among a wide variety of US-based society newsletters, such as those of the History of Science Society as well as the International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Science, and notices will also appear in various social media outlets, with the aim of leading to a broader public awareness of the fruits of studies of science, technology, and society. The conference will bring together historians of science from many regions of the world to consider the conference theme, broadly construed. Symposia will address, among other topics, unity and disunity within science, technology, and/or medicine across diverse sciences, nations and blocs, periods, and historiographies; unity and disunity as ideals and realities; and unity and disunity as characterizing relations between the sciences and politics, technology, economics, and the arts. This grant will promote US scholars' contributions in the international exploration of these topics, with particular attention given to the promotion of forming new scholarly relationships among different nationalities, new collaborative projects, and inclusion of participants with limited institutional support, with special focus on graduate students and independent scholars. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.