Osiris : a Research Journal devoted to the History of Science and its Cultural Influences. Second Series Volume I - 1985. Historical writing on American Science.

Printed boards, 8vo, 321 pp. The studies that make up the volume are grouped in four sections. The first revisits "classic themes" examining the latest work and interpretations of topics and themes treated in historical writing in the 1960s and earlier. (essays on : Institutional History; Science in Medicine; Science and Religion; and Science in the Federal Government.) .The second set of essays discusses historical writing on six scientific specialties or disciplines. This approach is new because much work on national science has been chronological or thematic rather than disciplinary in orientation. (essays on : History of Geology; History of Astronomy; History of Chemistry; History of Biology; History of Physics; and History of the Social Sciences). Taken collectively, these essays reveal the premises held by those in disciplinary fields and the many gaps in current research. .The third section deals with approaches and areas of study that are, in the mid 1980s, gaining or requiring significant attention. Essays here both examine the connections of the history of science with other disciplines and investigate its relationships with industry, public policy makers, and the military. (essays on : Native Knowledge in the Americas; Science and Technology; Science and War; Science and Public Policy Since World War II). One final, comprehensive essay analyzes the sources and resources available for further historical work. (Bibliographies, Reference Works, and Archives). Indexed. Very Good, a trifle rubbed at extremities.…