OVERVIEW
The history of science has often been presented as the history of a small number of scientists who produced revolutionary theories. As a consequence historians gravitated toward writing about these great men, and as more articles and books were produced these in turn generated further work. We thus have an unestimatable number of articles and books on scientists such as Newton, Darwin, and Einstein, which reinforces the idea that they created modern science on their own. This framework leaves out the very real fact that even these intellectual giants worked as members of various communities, and if we step back and survey the scene more broadly we will find that intellectual landscape populated by many more individuals than we usually notice, and yet played significant roles in their time periods in generating scientific knowledge. In addition, "great man" histories overlook that active engagement of the wider public with scientific ideas, through journalism, educational opportunities such as visiting museums, and books for children, among a number of activities. If we are to understand the history of science and not just the history of a select number of scientists, then we need to broaden our horizons.

ASSIGNMENT DUE:

Essay #1 is due today. There is a 24-hour automatic, no-penalty grace period for Essay #1. If you want to make use of the grace period you do not need to contact the professor.

Upcoming Reading Assignments:

You will be reading Ede & Cormack, Chapter 7, "Science and Empire," and Chapter 8, "Entering the Atomic Age" for Week 2 [these are the basis for Essay #2 due on Friday June 21]