Smart people can have really bad ideas – like selectively breeding human beings to improve the species. Put into practice, Galton's concept proved discriminatory, damaging, even deadly.
Academic rigor, journalistic flair
Articles on History of science
Displaying 1 - 20 of 79 articles
Driven by a desire to eliminate pain, some people have shockingly advocated taking the rest of nature with us.
Science communication succeeds when it takes community knowledge seriously, works with other belief systems, and expects researchers to contribute to society.
What do ammonium nitrate and iodine have in common? Both substances are of immense service to humankind, and the history of their discovery is closely linked to that of the production of explosives.
Is magic all about spells and hocus pocus, or is it simply another way of looking at how the universe works?
The man who explained the greenhouse effect was accidentally killed by his wife.
Online sleuthing and deductive reasoning identifies what appears to be the only existent portrait painted of the celebrated scientist during his lifetime.
Franklin was born a century ago, and her X-ray crystallography work crucially contributed to determining the structure of DNA.
Neowise has an orbit of almost 6800 years, meaning that the last generation of people to see it would have lived during the 5th millennium BC.
Early clinical trials into ginseng, rhubarb and rice paved the way for testing coronavirus treatments today.
Albert Einstein may have been the ultimate example of a visionary genius, but that did not stop him from twice losing his way due to beliefs that were perhaps not so scientific.
When the outlook is dark, astronomy can help us take the long view and build for the future.
Climate change is affecting our planet's biodiversity, yet some species can find ways to adapt. Using citizen-science data, a French research team is studying how birds adjust to local heat levels.
Understanding that germs can cause illness was an important step in learning how to stop the spread of disease
A Hungarian obstetrician was the first to nail down the importance of handwashing to stop the spread of infectious disease.
How science has been used to predict wind and rain for over 1,000 years.
Even before people understood how germs spread disease, they tried to isolate the sick to keep them from infecting others.
This 20th century ornithologist earned the respect of her contemporaries for her animal behavior research that went against the grain of traditional science.
Born on July 18, 1635, this polymath broke ground in fields ranging from pneumatics, microscopy, mechanics and astronomy to civil engineering and architecture.
The early days of science writing were largely confined to men, with women treated to texts labelled "for the ladies". Things have changed, but more needs to be done.
Top contributors
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Richard Gunderman is a Friend of The Conversation.Chancellor's Professor of Medicine, Liberal Arts, and Philanthropy, Indiana University
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Professor of Natural Philosophy in the Department of Physics, University of York
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Associate professor in astronomy, Monash University
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Professor of Science Communication and Chemistry, University of Hull
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Professor in High Medieval History, Durham University
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Associate Professor in Experimental Psychology (Perception), University of Oxford
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Lecturer in South Asian History, University of Reading
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Visiting Lecturer of History, Georgia State University
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Astronomer-at-Large, Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources, Australian Astronomical Observatory
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Professor of History, University of Western Australia
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Professor and Head of School, School of History and Philosophy of Science, University of Sydney
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Professor Emerita, Classical Studies, The Open University
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Postdoctoral Researcher, Centre de Cosmologie Physique de Paris
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Honorary Fellow, School of Historical and Philosophical Sciences, University of Melbourne
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Professor, Australian National University
