Prior to 1735, South America was terra incognita to many
Europeans. But that year, the Paris Academy of Sciences sent a
mission to the Spanish American province of Quito (in present-day
Ecuador) to study the curvature of the earth at the Equator.
Equipped with quadrants and telescopes, the mission's participants
referred to the transfer of scientific knowledge from Europe to the
Andes as a "sacred fire" passing mysteriously through European
astronomical instruments to observers in South America.By taking an
innovative interdisciplinary look at the traces of this expedition,
"Measuring the New World "examines the transatlantic flow of
knowledge from West to East. Through ephemeral monuments and
geographical maps, this book explores how the social and cultural
worlds of South America contributed to the production of European
scientific knowledge during the Enlightenment. Neil Safier uses the
notebooks of traveling philosophers, as well as specimens from the
expedition, to place this particular scientific endeavor in the
larger context of early modern print culture and the emerging
intellectual category of scientist as author.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!