Apologies for crossposting.
Call for papers
XV. Physikhistorische Tagung des Fachverbands Geschichte der Physik der DPG, February 25–March 1, 2013 in Jena (Germany)
Knowledge transfer in the history of physics
What happens when an experimental method or a theoretical tool is applied in a new context? What can be learnt from such processes of knowledge transfer—not only about the abstract dynamics of physics as scientific discipline, but more concretely about the actors and their intentions? What follows for the specific mechanisms of knowledge transmission and transformation, for the generation of knowledge, or for the emergence of local practices and new (sub-)disciplines?
Transferring methods within physics is but one form of knowledge transfer. The history of physics has witnessed many other forms of transfer, be it temporal—such as the reception of atomism of antiquity in the early modern period—or spatial—such as the transfer of optics from the Arabic world to Europe in the middle ages or the diffusion of quantum mechanics in the US during the twentieth century. Similar processes take place when physical concepts and methods are transferred from their original research contexts into teaching at universities or in schools.
Processes of knowledge transfer constitute an important topos in the history of science since at least the 1990s. It turns out that such processes can only be understood if one accounts for the changes that both the knowledge and the actors, instruments, and practices go through during the transfer. Often, a transfer of knowledge affects not only the practices in the new field of application, but also those in the original field.
The XVth History of Physics Conference of the History of Physics Section of the German Physical Society (DPG) will be devoted to the fertile question of knowledge transfer in the history of physics. We invite proposals for contributions (in both English and German) dealing with the transfer of knowledge within physics, between physics and other disciplines, or between physics and society. The unprecedented growth of physics as a discipline during the course of the twentieth century—which went hand in hand with a diversification into sub-disciplines and an internationalization of physics—provides ample opportunity for the historical study of processes of knowledge transfer and transformation in a multitude of contexts. Our conference, however, refrains from focusing solely on modern physics and explicitly invites contributions dealing with earlier processes of knowledge transfer.
The conference will be held on occasion of the spring meeting of the DPG in Jena, Germany, (February 25–March 1, 2013). The deadline for the submission of abstracts is projected to be November 30, 2012. Abstracts will have to be submitted via the online submission system of the DPG
http://www.dpg-physik.de/veranstaltungen/tagungen/ The link to the conference as well as the actual deadline will be published in Summer 2012 in the Physik Journal and on the homepage http://www.physikgeschichte.org/ of the History of Physics Section of the DPG. Abstracts—including title, authors, and addresses—should not exceed 25 lines in the target format, which typically allows for roughly 200 words of text in the abstract. Questions about the conference should be directed (preferably via e-mail) to
Dr. Christian Joas
Max-Planck-Institut für Wissenschaftsgeschichte
Boltzmannstraße 22
D-14195 Berlin
Fax: 030–22 667 124
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and
Dr. Christian Forstner
IGMNT „Ernst-Haeckel-Haus“
Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena
Berggasse 7
07745 Jena
Fax: 03641 – 949 502
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or to the other members of the board of the History of Physics Section—Prof. Dr. D. Hoffmann (Berlin), PD Dr. B. Ceranski (Stuttgart), and Prof. Dr. P. Heering (Flensburg).
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Dr. Christian Joas
Max-Planck-Institut für Wissenschaftsgeschichte
Boltzmannstr. 22
14195 Berlin
+49.30.22.66.7.118
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