THREE POST-DOCTORAL RESEARCH FELLOWSHIPS
To work on the "Science in the Nineteenth-Century Periodical" Project
at the Universities of Sheffield (Centre for Nineteenth Century
Studies) and Leeds (Division of History & Philosophy of Science).
Applications are invited to fill the following posts on or soon after
1st January 1999:
1. An HRB/Funding Councils' Institutional Fellowship initially for a
period of six years at a starting salary no higher than the second
point on the Lecturer B scale (stlg17,570 - stlg23,651 as of 1 October
1998). After the first three years funding for this post will be
assumed by one or both of the universities involved, depending on the
Fellow's area of expertise. The post may be converted into a
Lectureship and extended beyond the initial six years, but no
commitment can be made at the present time.
2. Two Research Fellowships funded by the Leverhulme Trust for a
period of three years at a starting salary of spinal point 6 on the
IA research scale (stlg17,570 as of 1 October 1998). Appointments
will only be made to these positions after confirmation by the
Leverhulme Trust.
Job Requirements:
At the time of commencing work on the project, applicants should
possess a PhD in a relevant aspect of Nineteenth-Century British
History (especially History of Science) or Literature. A high level
of expertise is required in the history, literature and science of
the period.
Experience working with general Victorian journals would be an
advantage , as would advanced computer skills. Candidates will be
expected to possess moderate computer skills and be prepared for more
advanced computer training in areas relevant to the project. Good
English prose style is essential as is the ability of the Researchers
to work constructively with other members of the team.
How to proceed
If you wish to apply please obtain application form from:
Professor Sally Shuttleworth,
Department of English Literature,
University of Sheffield,
Shearwod Road, Sheffield,
S10 2TD. UK
Closing date for applications: 15 October 1998.
Interviews will be held on 12 or 13 November 1998.
The Project Directors are:
Professor Sally Shuttleworth - Tel: 0114 222 8474;
e-mail: [log in to unmask]
Professor G.N. Cantor -Tel: 0113 233 3269;
e-mail: [log in to unmask]
Dr G.J.N. Gooday - Tel: 0113 233 3274;
e-mail:[log in to unmask]
Further Details follow:
Introduction
In Darwin and the General Reader: The Reception of Darwin's Theory of
Evolution in the British Periodical Press, 1859-1872 (1958; recently
reprinted) Alvar Ellegard studied early responses to Darwin's theory
through a close analysis of the periodical literature. Although
methodology has clearly moved on since then, Ellegard's book is
generally recognised as an ingenious attempt to use periodicals to
answer a key historical question. Our project follows Ellegard's path
but, instead of being directed to a answering a specific historical
problem, it will explore on a much wider front the portrayal of
science and the inter-penetration of science and literature. Thus in
our project we will examine not only the reception of scientific ideas
but also the creation of non-specialist forms of scientific discourse
within the periodical frame, and their interrelationship with the
surrounding literature.
This highly interdisciplinary project will strike out in an
innovative research direction. It will not only provide scholarly
analyses of key themes in the representation of science but also a
sophisticated bibliographical aid to help future researchers engaged
in a wide range of historical and literary projects.
The project aims, firstly, to analyse through a series of analytical
essays the representation of specific sciences within the general
nineteenth-century periodical literature. Not only will the reception
of scientific ideas be examined but also the creation of
non-specialist forms of discourse within the periodical frame.
Secondly, through a printed descriptive catalogue and a searchable
electronic index, the scientific content of these periodicals will be
made available to other researchers engaged in a wide range of
historical and literary projects.
Job description
The Researchers will work through the selected general periodicals,
noting those articles on scientific topics and also articles that
mention scientific themes. As an example of the material to be
gleaned, the two 1865 volumes of All-the-Year Round contain 28
articles on scientific subjects out of a total of approximately 300.
Among these are articles on astronomy, spiritualism, botany,
lighting, the portrayal of birds in Greek mythology and a biography
of the fossil hunter Mary Anning. A further 20 articles, several of
which are stories, mention scientific topics. In this instance, 16%
of the articles would need to be recorded. The Researchers will enter
the appropriate bibliographical details onto a computerised database,
together with computer-coded information relating to subject matter
and other relevant factors. Also to be entered on the database are (i)
a summary of the article's contents and (ii) an indication of its
place in contemporary debates linking it to other publications and
on-going debates.
In the early part of the project, its scope will have to be delimited
in two respects. First, in the light of initial forays, the list of
periodicals may need to be refined. Since several hundred general
periodicals were published in the nineteenth century, the number and
range of titles that can be covered in the first three-year period
will be limited, probably between twenty and twenty five. The
periodicals selected will cover the whole century, including the
early decades that tend to be overlooked by students of the Victorian
period and are underrepresented in both the Wellesley Index and
Poole's Guide. Moreover, the selected titles will be chosen to
reflect a significant range of social, political and religious
positions.
Second, the range of sciences to be covered will need to be finalised
(recognising that the map of the sciences changed significantly
throughout the nineteenth century). For example, decisions will have
to be taken whether to include articles on the application of certain
sciences to medicine and engineering. Depending on the backgrounds
and expertise of the Researchers, each will be assigned a specific
range of sciences; for example, one might work on physics and
astronomy and another on natural history.
During the latter half of the project, the emphasis will shift
increasingly from collecting data to writing the analytical essays.
Several main themes will be chosen as the most appropriate subjects
of these essays, for example, the portrayal of botany or
representations of electricity. The Researchers, working with the
Project Directors, will prepare these essays for publication. Also,
using an appropriate electronic medium, the team will prepare data
that will form the analytical catalogue. In preparing this database
the necessary expertise and resources will be provided by the
Humanities Research Institute at Sheffield, which has produced the
Hartlib Papers on CD-ROM and several other major electronic editions.
Throughout the project weekly meetings will be held between the
Directors and the Researchers in order to review progress and to
confront the many methodological problems that will be encountered.
These meetings will be supplemented by seminars delivered by members
of the team and by visiting scholars.
Each Researcher will be located primarily at one of the two
participating universities, but must be prepared to spend some time
at the other. The libraries of Sheffield and Leeds -- including not
only the university libraries, but the main public libraries and the
Leeds Library (founded 1768) are well-stocked with nineteenth-century
journals. From lists already obtained it is clear that the majority of
the research will be pursued in these two locations, but the
Researchers may have to undertake occasional visits to London and the
British Library at Boston Spa(West Yorkshire) to read the few titles
not available in Leeds or Sheffield.
Towards the end of the three-year period, each Researcher will be
involved in producing two volumes, one containing the series of five
or six substantial essays dealing with how specific topics are
portrayed in the periodical literature, the other being the
analytical catalogue. In the catalogue a summary of each article will
be given, together with a succinct discussion of its place in
scientific and cultural debate. These books will be published under
the joint names of the Director(s) and Researcher(s) responsible for
the topics covered. Oxford University Press has already expressed an
interest in publishing the volumes.
We will be hosting an international conference on `Science in the
Nineteenth-Century Periodical' in the Easter vacation of 2000. A
further conference, planned for the following year, will be organised
by Harriet Ritvo at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The Research Team
This project is jointly organised by the Centre for
Nineteenth-Century Studies (within the Department of English
Literature) at the University of Sheffield and the Division of
History and Philosophy of Science (part of the School of Philosophy)
at the University of Leeds. The three Directors of the project are
Professor Sally Shuttleworth (Sheffield), Professor Geoffrey Cantor
and Dr Graeme Gooday (both Leeds). The other present member of the
team is Sam Alberti, who holds a White Rose postgraduate scholarship.
With the three new appointments the research group will consist of
seven members, but several other research-active staff at both Leeds
and Sheffield will also be involved.
Sally Shuttleworth is Professor of Modern English Literature at the
University of Sheffield and director of the Centre for
Nineteenth-Century Studies . Among her publications are George Eliot
and Nineteenth-Century Science (Cambridge, 1984), Charlotte Bronte
and Victorian Psychology (Cambridge, 1996) and coeditor, with Jenny
Taylor, of Embodied Selves: An Anthology of Psychological Texts,
1830-1890 (Oxford, 1998).
Geoffrey Cantor is Professor of the History of Science at the
University of Leeds. His publications include Optics after Newton
(Manchester, 1983), Michael Faraday, Sandemanian and Scientist
(London, 1991) and, with John Brooke, Reconstructing Nature. The
1995-6 Gifford Lectures at Glasgow (Edinburgh, 1998).
Graeme Gooday is currently completing a book entitle 'The Morals of
Measurement'. A lecturer in the History of Science and Technology at
Leeds, most of his publications have been directed to the history
of technology and the role of laboratories in the second half of the
nineteenth century, and draw extensively on the periodical press.
Sam Alberti holds a White Rose Studentship and is writing a
dissertation on the role of laboratories and fieldwork in late
nineteenth-century natural history. For the past year he has devoted
one day each week undertaking preliminary work for the journals
project.
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Dr Graeme Gooday,
Division of History & Philosophy of Science
School of Philosophy
University of Leeds
LEEDS LS2 9JT
U.K.
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
Tel: (0)113 233 3274
Fax: (0)113 233 3265
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