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From prehistoric metal extraction to medieval alchemy to modern
industry, chemistry has been central to our understanding and use
of the physical world as well as to trade, warfare and medicine. In
its turn, chemistry has been shaped by changing technologies,
institutions and cultural beliefs. A Cultural History of Chemistry
presents the first detailed and authoritative survey from antiquity
to today, focusing on the West but integrating key developments in
Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the Arabic-Islamic and Byzantine empires.
Chapter titles are identical across each of the volumes. This gives
the choice of reading about a specific period in one of the
volumes, or following a theme across history by reading the
relevant chapter in each of the six. The themes (and chapter
titles) are: Theory and Concepts; Practice and Experiment; Sites
and Technology; Culture and Knowledge; Society and Environment;
Trade and Industry; Learning and Institutions; Art and
Representation. The six volumes cover: 1 - Antiquity (3,000 BCE to
600 CE); 2 - Medieval Age (600 to 1500); 3 - Early Modern (1500 to
1700); 4 - Eighteenth Century (1700 to 1815); 5 - Nineteenth
Century (1815 to 1914); 6 - Modern Age (1914 to the Present).
Volume 1 is available open access under a Creative Commons
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives v4.0 International (CC
BY-NC-ND 4.0) license. Open access is funded by the European
Research Council. The page extent for the pack is 1728pp. Each
volume opens with an Introduction and concludes with Notes,
Bibliography, and an Index. The Cultural Histories Series A
Cultural History of Chemistry is part of The Cultural Histories
Series. Titles are available both as printed hardcover sets for
libraries needing just one subject or preferring a one-off purchase
and tangible reference for their shelves, or as part of a
fully-searchable digital library available to institutions by
annual subscription or on perpetual access (see
www.bloomsburyculturalhistory.com).
The editors wish to thank the European Science Foundation for its
support of the programme on the Evolution of Chemistry in Europe,
1789-1939, as well as for sponsoring the publication of this
volume. Through the subdivision of this initiative that deals
specifically with chemical industry it has been possible for
historians of science, technology, business and economics to share
often widely differing viewpoints and develop consensus across
disciplinary and cultural boundaries. The contents of this volume
are based on the third of three workshops that have considered the
emergence of the modern European chemical industry prior to 1939,
the first held in Liege (1994), the second in Maastricht (1995),
and the third in Strasbourg (1996). All contributors and
participants are thanked for their participation in often lively
and informative debates. The generous hospitality of the European
Science Foundation and its staff in Strasbourg is gratefully
acknowledged. Introduction Emerging chemical knowledge and the
development of chemical industry, and particularly the interaction
between them, offer rich fields of study for the historian. This is
reflected in the contents of the three workshops dealing with the
emergence of chemical industry held under the aegis of the European
Science Foundation's Evolution of Chemistry in Europe, 1789-1939,
programme. The first workshop focused mainly on science for
industry, 1789- 1850, and the second on the two-way traffic between
science and industry, 1850-1914. The third workshop, dealing with
the period 1900-1939, covers similar issues, but within different,
and wider, contexts.
The editors wish to thank the European Science Foundation for its
support of the programme on the Evolution of Chemistry in Europe,
1789-1939, as well as for sponsoring the publication of this
volume. Through the subdivision of this initiative that deals
specifically with chemical industry it has been possible for
historians of science, technology, business and economics to share
often widely differing viewpoints and develop consensus across
disciplinary and cultural boundaries. The contents of this volume
are based on the third of three workshops that have considered the
emergence of the modern European chemical industry prior to 1939,
the first held in Liege (1994), the second in Maastricht (1995),
and the third in Strasbourg (1996). All contributors and
participants are thanked for their participation in often lively
and informative debates. The generous hospitality of the European
Science Foundation and its staff in Strasbourg is gratefully
acknowledged. Introduction Emerging chemical knowledge and the
development of chemical industry, and particularly the interaction
between them, offer rich fields of study for the historian. This is
reflected in the contents of the three workshops dealing with the
emergence of chemical industry held under the aegis of the European
Science Foundation's Evolution of Chemistry in Europe, 1789-1939,
programme. The first workshop focused mainly on science for
industry, 1789- 1850, and the second on the two-way traffic between
science and industry, 1850-1914. The third workshop, dealing with
the period 1900-1939, covers similar issues, but within different,
and wider, contexts.
This history of the government-funded synthetic rubber research
program (1942-19 6) offers a rare analysis of a cooperative
research program geared to the improvement of existing products and
the creation of new ones. The founders of the program believed the
best way to further research in the new field was through
collaboration among corporations, universities, and the federal
government. Morris concludes that, in fact, the effort was
ultimately a failure and that vigorous competition proves the best
way to stimulate innovation. Government programs, like the rubber
research program, are far better at improving existing products,
the author contends, than creating wholly new ones.
This fascinating and unique history reveals the major influence of
the Oxford Chemistry School on the advancement of chemistry. It
shows how the nature of the University, and individuals within it,
have shaped the school and made great achievements both in teaching
and research. The book will appeal to those interested in the
history of science and education, the city of Oxford and chemistry
in general. Chemistry has been studied in Oxford for centuries but
this book focuses on the last 400 years and, in particular, the
seminal work of Robert Boyle, Robert Hooke, and the proto- Royal
Society of the 1650's. Arranged in chronological fashion, it
includes specialist studies of particular areas of innovation. The
book shows that chemistry has advanced, not just as a consequence
of research but, because of the idiosynchratic nature of the
collegiate system and the characters of the individuals involved.
In other words, it demonstrates that science is a human endeavour
and its advance in any institution is conditioned by the
organization and people within it. For chemists, the main appeal
will be the book's examination of the way separate branches of
chemistry (organic, physical, inorganic and biological) have
evolved in Oxford. It also enables comparison with the development
of the subject at other universities such as Cambridge, London and
Manchester. For historians and sociologists, the book reveals the
motivations of both scientists and non-scientists in the management
of the School. It exposes the unusual character of Oxford
University and the tensions between science and administration. The
desire of the college to retain its academic values in the face of
external and financial pressures is emphasized.
Most chemists today have either taken part in, or been affected by,
the chemical revolution that has taken place over the course of the
last century. Developments in instrumentation have changed not just
what chemists do, but also how they think about chemistry. New and
exciting areas of previously inaccessible research have been opened
up as a direct result of this revolution. This is the first book to
examine this instrumental revolution and goes on to assess the
impact on chemical practice in areas ranging from organic chemistry
and biochemistry to environmental analysis and process control,
thus demonstrating how fundamental and extensive are the changes
that have occurred. With contributions from internationally
recognised specialists, this lavishly illustrated book provides a
focal point for any historian of chemistry or chemist with an
interest in this fascinating topic. This book is published in
association with the Science Museum, London, UK and the Chemical
Heritage Foundation, Philadelphia.
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