Listing of Sessions and Abstracts of Papers - History of Science ...

how a series of narratives based on contingent choices, and anchored in the idiosyncratic, historical
experiences of a particular individual, were reified into a formalized conceptual scheme with universal
application. As such it is a useful icon of the way many of the earth sciences -- including meteorology,
oceanography, geology, and paleontology -- conducted their business in the twentieth century.
Gregory Kohlstedt,Sally
E-mail Address:
Gumienny, Kevin
E-mail Address: Kevin.Gumienny@sunysb.edu
"An Irreligious Philosopher Must Be Mad:" Public Lectures on Natural Philosophy and the
Experiences of Captain John MacPherson in Eighteenth-Century Philadelphia
During the latter half of the eighteenth century, lectures on natural philosophy became popular
throughout the transatlantic world. In recent years, much attention has been paid to these lectures by
historians of science, especially in their examination of the multiple ways in which science became a
popular and legitimate method to understand nature in the eighteenth century. One of the problems
encountered by those seeking to trace the influence of natural philosophy lectures, however, has been the
difficulties discovering the impact that these presentations had on the lives of their audience. This paper
uses the experiences of Captain John MacPherson, a one-armed privateer and accused lunatic who lived
in Philadelphia, to explore how one man integrated the knowledge he gained from lectures on natural
philosophy into his everyday life. In 1771, MacPherson attended a public course of lectures on natural
philosophy given by the College of Philadelphia. The course was designed to promote an orrery designed
by David Rittenhouse, a local clockmaker, and to raise enough funds for the College to purchase
it. MacPherson paid little attention to the intent of the lecturers. Instead, he used what he learned in the
course in other ways, not the least of which was to attempt to use natural philosophy to acquit himself of
the charge of insanity that had hung over his head since 1769. It is probable that the experiences of
MacPherson were somewhat unique. However, by comparing the differences between what the faculty
of the College of Philadelphia intended for their course to accomplish and how MacPherson actually
used what he learned, a fine-grained insight can be gained into how lectures on natural philosophy
changed the life of at least one member of eighteenth-century American society.
Hahn,Linda
E-mail Address:
Hall, Karl
E-mail Address: khall@dibinst.mit.edu
"Crushing the enemy with his own weapon": Maturing Young Soviet Cadres Master Quantum
Theory (and Stalinist Culture)
In 1927 an observer of Soviet science wryly noted that "youth in revolutionary times is not a minus,
but a plus." True to this assessment, the first Soviet students of quantum mechanics exploited their
mastery of the esoteric new calculation methods in an effort to create a professional niche for theoretical
physics and wrest institutional control from their Old Regime elders. As survivors of the complex social
antagonisms within Soviet universities in the 1920’s, young theorists like Lev Landau and George