The Cambridge History of Science: Volume 6, The Modern Biological and Earth Sciences

Front Cover
David C. Lindberg, Peter J. Bowler, Ronald L. Numbers, Roy Porter
Cambridge University Press, 2003 - History - 662 pages
This book in the highly respected Cambridge History of Science series is devoted to the history of the life and earth sciences since 1800. It provides comprehensive and authoritative surveys of historical thinking on major developments in these areas of science, on the social and cultural milieus in which the knowledge was generated, and on the wider impact of the major theoretical and practical innovations. The articles were written by acknowledged experts who provide concise accounts of the latest historical thinking coupled with guides to the most important recent literature. In addition to histories of traditional sciences, the book covers the emergence of newer disciplines such as genetics, biochemistry, and geophysics. The interaction of scientific techniques with their practical applications in areas such as medicine is a major focus of the book, as is its coverage of controversial areas such as science and religion and environmentalism.
 

Selected pages

Contents

Section 1
4
Section 2
14
Section 3
18
Section 4
22
Section 5
33
Section 6
38
Section 7
44
Section 8
48
Section 19
153
Section 20
184
Section 21
185
Section 22
194
Section 23
210
Section 24
216
Section 25
220
Section 26
239

Section 9
58
Section 10
82
Section 11
87
Section 12
93
Section 13
112
Section 14
115
Section 15
120
Section 16
126
Section 17
138
Section 18
140
Section 27
244
Section 28
247
Section 29
255
Section 30
260
Section 31
279
Section 32
287
Section 33
288
Section 34
301
Section 35
308
Section 36
337

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About the author (2003)

Peter J. Bowler is Professor of the History of Science at Queen's University in Belfast. He was president of the British Society for the History of Science from 2004 to 2006, is a member of the Royal Irish Academy, and is a Fellow of the British Academy and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He is the author of numerous books, including Charles Darwin: The Man and His Influence, published by Cambridge University Press in 1996 and Reconciling Science and Religion: The Debate in Early Twentieth-Century Britain (University of Chicago Press, 2001).