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

keep Nordics and Anglo-Saxons safe from the contamination of other and ‘lesser’ orders. He spent most
of his career attempting to prove his assertions through the collection of fossil evidence, and promoting
his ideas to the wider world. His efforts included becoming active in the eugenics and immigration
restriction movements as well as sponsoring the famous Central Asiatic Expeditions to ‘Outer Mongolia’
led by Roy Chapman Andrews. This paper will examine the racial thinking in Osborn’s work and how it
evolved over time.
Reidy, Michael
E-mail Address: mreidy@montana.edu
'Scientists' and 'Subordinate Labourers': Class and the Creation of Victorian Science
William Whewell coined the term "scientist" in 1833 owing to the dramatic changes that occurred in
science in the early Victorian era. Natural philosophers transformed our understanding of light, heat,
electricity and magnetism, and consolidated the fields of chemistry, physics, and geology. Furthermore,
Susan Faye Cannon noted in this same period a change in focus to global, geophysical research in
Britain. This changed natural philosophy in Britain from a limited and domestic undertaking, receiving
parsimonious state support and embracing little communication among scientists of different nations, to
a worldwide and relatively well-financed scientific practice that extended far beyond the confines of
Britain. Historians have since taken up Cannon’s initial analysis with enthusiasm, but they have failed
to link this prevalent type of research to the broader trend of professionalization of the discipline. In this
paper, I will demonstrate that Humboldtian initiatives relied on a broad base of support and a far-reaching
network of observers that included large segments of the working classes. These "subordinate
laborours" -- one of Whewell’s favorite phrases -- not only furthered the acquisition of accurate observational
data, but they also built the scientific instruments, advanced methods of mathematical analysis,
suggested new areas of research, and were the first to apply the results to the testing of theory. They
were essential participants in British geophysical research. However, I also will demonstrate the manner
in which the elite theorists in Britain effectively excluded the working classes from the scientific establishment,
and thereby created the niche of the modern "scientist."
Rice, Adrian
E-mail Address: arice4@rmc.edu
G.H. Hardy, the London Mathematical Society, and the rise of British pure mathematical research
in the first half of the 20th century
It has often been observed that the early years of the 20th century witnessed a significant and noticeable
resurgence, both at home and abroad, in the research profile of British pure mathematicians. Invariably,
in these observations, it is the name of G.H. Hardy (1877-1947) which features most prominently
as the driving force behind this revival. But how accurate is this interpretation? For many years during
this period Hardy occupied prominent positions in the London Mathematical Society, which grew
considerably in size and stature at this time. The fact that the Society was de facto the mouthpiece of the
British pure mathematical community, nationally and internationally, gives rise to a number of intriguing
questions. In particular, to what extent were the changes in fortune of the London Mathematical Society
and British pure mathematics connected, and how much can be directly attributed to Hardy? This paper
is the first step in a re-evaluation of Hardy's influence on the British mathematical community, its international
reputation and its pure mathematics, during the first half of the twentieth century, with particular
reference to his relationship with the London Mathematical Society.
Richards, Joan
E-mail Address: Joan_Richards@brown.edu