What is meant by 'material culture'?
Usually historians work in archives with historical documents trying to reconstruct theories or the social and cultural context of physics. But not everything about physics' history is written in the documents. Therefore, we try to access new levels of knowledge by analyzing 3d-objects and documents. Including the material aspects of science in the historical narrative can greatly enrich our knowledge about the way science works. We will introduce you to some standard approaches, such as the Winterthur model, to analyzing unknown objects. This model may be extended by considering the biography of the object, which changes in meaning over its lifetime. Another approach to acquiring more information about practical knowledge not written in documents is the historical reconstruction of experiments. We will also practice communicating to wider audiences about the material side of scientific knowledge by planning a small exhibition of selected objects.
Who may participate?
Master and graduate students of the following fields: History of Science, Physics, Didactics of Physics, as well as trainees in science museums. A strong historical interest is the prerequisite for consideration.
Where does it take place?
The seminar includes an online component at the beginning and attendance section at the Deutsches Museum in Munich.
When does it start?
The online section starts on January 15th, 2021, and the attendance section in Munich extends five days from February 22nd to 26th, 2021.
ECTS and Workload:
The workload is 300h, what means that students earn 10 ECTS in the case of a successful participation. They will get a certificate, which allows the transfer of credits to their home university.
Modul examination:
The module examination is an individual essay with 25.000 - 30.000 characters. The essay is due June 1st. |
