department of History
roinn na staire
networks of science and culture in Nineteenth-century ireland
Most existing studies of Irish science are focused on individuals or on specific institutions. However, it is now generally accepted that the practice of science was shaped by its social context, and that science in turn had a significant impact upon society. This means that networks of communication become crucial to explaining what those influences were and how they worked. This project aims to uncover and map the scientific and cultural networks of nineteenth-century Ireland, and to link them into the better-known British, European and American networks.
The 'Networks of Science and Culture in Nineteenth-Century Ireland' project was originated by Aileen Fyfe (NUI, Galway), and Peter Bowler and Iwan Morus (
Queen's University, Belfast). It seeks to go beyond existing historiography in the history of science in Ireland, by focusing on popular science, rather than the learned science of TCD and the learned Dublin societies. We want to find out who knew what about the sciences, and from whom, or what, did they find it out? This will involve examining museums, lectures, zoos, schools, periodicals and books, to investigate the cultural penetration of the sciences all over the island.
The project has received funding from the
Irish Research Council for Social Sciences and Humanities (Major Project Grant, 2003-2006) and from the Royal Irish Academy's
Third Sector Research Programme (2004-2005). The project is based in the
Centre for the Study of Human Settlement and Historical Change at NUI,G.
Project Director: Aileen Fyfe
Postdoctoral Researcher: Elizabeth Neswald (2003-2005)
Postgraduate Researcher: Juliana Adelman (2003-2006)
There have been two one-day conferences organised during the project:
Science and Civic Culture in the Nineteenth Century (Galway, Sept. 2004) was sponsored by the RIA TSRP. The
programme is still available.
Science and Technology in Ireland, 1790-1914: historical and cultural perspectives (Dublin, June 2005) was sponsored by the RIA and the
British Society for the History of Science. It was held at Collins Barracks, and was a great success. Details
are still available at the BSHS website.
Dr Elizabeth Neswald has been working on scientific clubs and societies (e.g. Mechanics' Institutes), and at the involvement of science in Irish civic culture. She has presented papers at the British Society for the History of Science and the History of Science Society, as well as at the Galway conference.
Juliana Adelman is working on the impact of the establishment of the Queen's Colleges (Belfast, Cork, Galway) on science in Ireland. She has presented papers at the British Society for the History of Science, at the Galway conference, and in Cambridge, and will be presenting at the History of Science Society in 2005.
Leagan Gaeilge
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