The Cambridge History of Science: Volume 6, The Modern Biological and Earth Sciences

Description

This book in the highly respected Cambridge History of Science series is devoted to the history of the life and earth sciences since 1800. It provides comprehensive and authoritative surveys of historical thinking on major developments in these areas of science, on the social and cultural milieus in which the knowledge was generated, and on the wider impact of the major theoretical and practical innovations. The articles are written by acknowledged experts who provide concise accounts of the latest historical thinking coupled with guides to the most important recent literature. In addition to histories of traditional sciences, the book covers the emergence of newer disciplines such as genetics, biochemistry and geophysics. The interaction of scientific techniques with their practical applications in areas such as medicine is a major focus of the book, as is its coverage of controversial areas such as science and religion, and environmentalism.

Peter J. Bowler is Professor of the History of Science at Queen's University in Belfast. He was president of the British Society for the History of Science from 2004 to 2006, is a member of the Royal Irish Academy, and is a Fellow of the British Academy and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He is the author of numerous books, including Charles Darwin: The Man and His Influence, published by Cambridge University Press in 1996 and Reconciling Science and Religion: The Debate in Early Twentieth-Century Britain (University of Chicago Press, 2001). John V. Pickstone is Wellcome Research Professor at Manchester University, where he founded the Centre for the History of Science, Technology and Medicine and directed it until 2002. His numerous books and articles include Ways of Knowing. A New History of Science, Technology and Medicine (Manchester University Press, 2000, and Chicago University Press, 2001) and Surgeons, Manufacturers and Patients: A Transatlantic History of the Total Hip Replacement, co-authored with Julie Anderson and Francis Neary (Palgrave, 2007).

'... Volume 6 ... together with the others of the same series, will serve as a useful reference source.' Nuncius: Journal of the Material and Visual History of Science