This dissertation examines the body of literature that formed around anomalous light apparitions (comets, new stars, the aurora borealis, and rainbows) as it explores questions about the representation and response to celestial and meteorological phenomena during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in colonial America. I further consider the ways that these texts’ meanings are informed by rational scientific thought and by other non-scientific or non-rational, emotive, or aesthetic modes of thinking. I consider how these phenomena elicit a set of empirical yet emotionally-charged observational practices that complicate how we understand the roles of the rational and the non-rational in the scientific literature of this period. I argue that non-rational passionate investments are evident within or as part of the period’s rational scientific literature; they act as the impetus for scientific inquiry therefore forming an integral part of the scientific endeavor. This dissertation further explores how the practice of writing about these phenomena generates and facilitates the formation of communities of amateur scientific observers in colonial America. I further investigate how practices of data collection contribute to knowledge about the regular and irregular behaviors of celestial bodies, and how this knowledge impacts everyday practices essential for survival such as farming and travelling. What science writing from this period demonstrates is the ability for multiple ways of thinking to be in play simultaneously; these texts show how several worldviews (i.e. science, Puritanism, popular religion) are intrinsic to each other. Because of their liminality, these texts function outside of traditional categories such science, religion, and natural philosophy. Furthermore, they destabilize traditional conceptions of genre with their blend of rational and non-rational modes of thought and their incorporation of fact and fiction. While I treat these literary texts within their historical contexts, I am also interested in the ways in which these texts reach modern audiences, particularly in academia at a time when the humanities and sciences are positioned against one another. / English

In 1987, statistics transformed rape from a rare and personal concern into an epidemic in popular consciousness. Mary Koss and colleagues conducted victimization surveys with thousands of college women, 1 in 4 of whom reported completed or attempted rape. This finding received tremendous attention in the 1980s, and continues to influence activists and state officials. Notwithstanding the importance of this and other scientific facts, scholars have rarely explored the role of scientists in shaping perceptions of and responses to sexual violence. This project addresses that gap in the literature, via the following questions: (1) how have scientists conceptualized sexual violence among adults; and (2) what social mechanisms enable, constrain, and otherwise influence scientific research on sexual violence? Drawing on insights from feminist science studies, I approach sexual violence as an intra-active phenomenon, and regard objects of study (sexual violence) as inseparable from agencies of observation (research instruments, researchers). Data came from three sources: content analysis of journal abstracts (N=1,313), in-depth assessment of texts in different subfields (N=84), and interviews with researchers (N=31). Ultimately, I argue that sexual violence research has been dominated by psychological inquiries, as well as gendered assumptions regarding who is most capable of perpetrating and experiencing rape. Scientists have produced a tremendous body of knowledge regarding the individual-level causes, individual-level outcomes, and prevalence of men’s sexual aggression toward women. Systemic forces and sexual violence that deviates from this particular gendered pattern remain underexamined. I further argue that scientific research on sexual violence is shaped by a range of social mechanisms that are particular to fields associated with questions of social morality and social movements including feminism(s). / Sociology

As the professional identity of political scientists has changed, so have their constructions of political knowledge. Political scientists initially defined themselves in terms of their ability to aid a modernizing polity. By the 1970’s, though, political knowledge was strongly affected by vocational necessity, i. e., by the need to conduct research in an increasingly competitive publication market. The discipline of political science has grown tremendously since its inception in the university. Political research and political knowledge have expanded apace. Through looking at the discipline’s major attempts to establish a professional identity in the university one can begin to understand ways in which political scientists have constructed political knowledge in response to prevailing social and political phenomena. Through this lens we can assess the current state of the discipline and, based on a historical account of the discipline, perhaps begin to understand which direction the discipline may go in the future, especially in terms of the usefulness of political knowledge in society. / Master of Arts

Thomas S. Kuhn claimed that the meanings of scientific terms change in theory changes or in scientific revolutions. In philosophy, meaning change has been taken as the source of a group of problems, such as untranslatability, incommensurability, and referential variance. For this reason, the majority of analytic philosophers have sought to deny that there can be meaning change by focusing on developing a theory of reference that would guarantee referential stability. A number of philosophers have also claimed that Kuhn’s view can be explained by the fact that he accepted and further developed many central tenets of logical empiricism. I maintain that the genesis of Kuhn’s meaning theorising lies in his historical approach and that his view of meaning change is justified. Later in his career he attempted to advance a theory of meaning and can be said to have had limited success in it. What is more, recent cognitive science has unexpectedly managed to shed light on Kuhn’s insights on the organisation of information in the mind, concept learning, and concept definition. Furthermore, although Kuhn’s critique of Putnam’s causal theory of reference has often been dismissed as irrelevant, he has a serious point to address. Kuhn thought that the causal theory that works so well with proper names cannot work with scientific terms. He held that conceptual categories are formed by similarity and dissimilarity relations; therefore, several features and not only one single property are needed for determination of extension. In addition, the causal theory requires universal substances as points of reference of scientific terms. Kuhn was a conceptualist, who held that universals do not exist as mind-independent entities and that mind-dependent family resemblance concepts serve the role of universals. Further, at the beginning of his career, Kuhn was interested in the question of what concepts or ideas are and how they change in their historical context. Although he did not develop his theorising on this issue, I demonstrate that this is a genuine problem in the philosophy of history. Finally, Kuhn argued that scientists cannot have access to truth in history because we cannot transcend our historical niche, and as a consequence, the truth of a belief cannot be a reason for theory choice. Instead of truth, we can rely on justification. I also discuss Kuhn’s idea that problem-solving is the main aim of science and show that this view can be incorporated into coherentist epistemology.

Economic integration between major powers has long been viewed as a force for international stability. The intuitive logic is appealing: states that are trading with and investing in each other stand to lose if that commerce is jeopardized by conflict. Yet there are sound reasons for supposing that such deepening economic integration can also shift the balance of power between major states, by causing follower economies – states that are not among the most developed in the international system – to grow faster than leading economies, and economic size and development are what underpin national material capabilities. Moreover, a rich body of theory and history suggests that such shifts in the balance of power make interstate war more likely. This dissertation argues, therefore, that economic integration can actually be a potent cause of security competition and war. A theoretical framework that unites economic theory on the differential growth impact of trade, financial flows, and technology diffusion with realist arguments on the conflict implications of polarity shifts and dynamic power differentials is constructed. It is then explored using evidence from three key historical cases: the rise of the Dutch Republic during the 1581-1648 period, the relative decline of the United Kingdom and the relative rise of other great powers between 1870 and 1914, and the differential growth rates and corresponding tensions of 1945-89. Certain scope conditions and qualifications notwithstanding, the empirical evidence supports the theoretical framework. As such, the argument that deepening economic integration raises the mutual cost of fighting and thereby makes conflict less likely is not directly refuted, but an important countervailing mechanism is found to be at work. Such a finding has implications for debates over the security implications of economic globalization, the foundations of realist theory, and the causes and potential consequences of the rise of new powers today.

This thesis examines the role of microscope technology in informing medical and anatomical knowledge during the Enlightenment. Past historians have claimed that microscopy generally stagnated until the popularisation of achromatic microscopes and cell theory in the middle of the nineteenth century. As evidence for this decline, historians have pointed to the poor quality and slow development of microscope designs until the popularisation of achromatic microscopes in the 1820s. In contrast, this thesis highlights the role of specific Enlightenment-era microscopes in answering medical and anatomical questions. It suggests that medical microscopy was far more advanced than previous scholarship has ascertained. Thus far, instrument historians have focused more attention on competing instrument makers as opposed to rival instrument users. This thesis presents several case studies which explore both makers and users. These concern the histories of Enlightenment-era epidemiology, reproduction theory, anatomy, and physiology as well as the different types of microscopes which influenced these fields. In terms of methodology, this thesis neither follows nor casts doubt on any particular theory of historical development; rather, it attempts to shed further light on available primary sources and their contexts. Presenting key case studies illustrates the difficulties that early microscope users faced in acquiring and publishing new observations. To explore the practice of early microscopy further, this thesis presents re-enactments of these case studies using Enlightenment-era microscopes and modern tissue samples. Thus, this thesis is a call to broaden the scope of primary sources available to historians of science and medicine to include instruments and re-enactments. This thesis finds that technological advances did not correlate to microscopical discovery in medicine or anatomy. Both simple and complex microscope designs aided anatomical and medical research. Broader advances in anatomy, physiology, and medical etiology dictated the utility of medical microscopy. Although various groups, such as the French clinicians, saw little need for microscopy towards the end of the eighteenth century, microscope-based evidence continued to play a diagnostic role among lesser-known practitioners despite its lack of visibility in medical literature.

The present DPhil research attempts to develop an appropriate method for the historiography of ideas by taking into consideration cultural, linguistic and socio-political limitations and obstacles to free thinking in a predominantly closed society like Qajar Iran. By applying such a method the study then investigates the history of the idea of freedom in Iran during one of the most important periods in the evolution of this concept. The research method is grounded in a hermeneutical interpretation of Collingwood's logic of question and answer. It also employs MacCallum's meta-theoretical frame of analysis which states that freedom is always of something (an agent or agents), from something (conditions), to do something (actions). Using this methodological framework, the research shows how most locutions about freedom uttered in the last century of the Qajar period were formed within the horizon of the question of decline and were somehow related to remedy such situations. It then explores how late Qajar interpretations of the three variables of freedom manifest themselves in the socio-political life of early 20th century Iran. During the first constitutional period (August 1906-June 1908), the major concern of the first majlis was to establish the rule of law. In legislating the constitution and its supplement, the majority of the majlis believed that the main obstacle to freedom was arbitrary rule. Therefore, they endeavoured to restrain the government’s illegal and arbitrary interferences in the people's freedom. However, they did not develop a rational criterion for identifying legitimate and justifiable legal interferences. During the second constitutional period (July 1909– February 1921), the main concern of the second majlis was to restrain chaos and to strengthen the central government in order to put an end to domestic insecurity and foreign threats. To rectify such a situation, the majlis empowered the government to interfere even in the freedoms guaranteed by the constitution. As a result, the situation began to turn from chaos towards arbitrary rule. The research also argues that in most of their interpretations of the aim of freedom, constitutionalists considered an action permissible only if it was compatible with public interest as well as the material and spiritual progress of individuals and society. Theoretically, the aim of freedom could not have been the doing of an action that harmed another person or violated his/her freedom. Furthermore, 'the right to be wrong,' even if it harmed no one, was never defended. Nonetheless, in practice, freedom turned into chaos and licence in both the first and in the second constitutional periods. Finally, this study investigates how the Iranian pioneers of the freedom-seeking movement responded to the question of the eligibility of the agent of freedom, and the question of the equality of agents in having freedom. Iranian society was taking its first steps in experiencing the rule of law and had a long way to go to rectify its discriminatory culture and to establish equal rights. In such conditions, accepting a set of equal fundamental rights for all Iranians should be considered a great achievement for the constitutional movement.

Este estudo aborda a produção brasileira de historiografia da química em artigos de periódicos, no período de 1974 a 2004. O pressuposto investigado é a interligação entre a atividade química industrial desenvolvida no país e a quantidade de artigos produzida. A discussão do debate internalista/externalista foi escolhida para iluminar alguns aspectos dessa produção, ao longo do período. Para isso, realizamos levantamentos dos artigos nos principais periódicos brasileiros que abrigam a historiografia da química, bem como a produção industrial do setor químico nacional no período estudado. A análise desse conjunto de dados nos revelou que existe uma inter-relação entre a produção industrial e a historiografia da química / This study broaches the Brazilian production of chemistry historiography in articles from periodicals embracing the period from 1974 to 2004. The presupposition under investigation is the interconnection between the industrial chemical activity developed in the country and the quantity of articles produced. The discussion on the internalist/externalist issue was chosen to highlight some aspects of that production during that period. In order to achieve that we carried out a survey of articles in the major Brazilian periodicals that cover chemistry historiography as well as the national chemical sector industrial production during the studied period. The analysis of that data has revealed that there is an interconnection between the industrial production and chemical historiography

林國輝. / 論文(哲學碩士)--香港中文大學硏究院歷史學部,1994. / 參考文獻: leaves 234-238 / Lin Guohui. / 導論 --- p.1 / Chapter 一、 --- 引言 --- p.1 / Chapter 二、 --- 經世思想及「經世文編」研究回顧 --- p.3 / Chapter 三、 --- 史料及硏究方法 --- p.10 / Chapter 第一章： --- 葛士濬、盛康與《皇朝經世文續編》 / Chapter ´ؤ、 --- 十九世紀後半期政治及學術思想概況 --- p.24 / Chapter 二、 --- 葛士濬的編纂動機 --- p.33 / Chapter 三、 --- 盛康的編纂動機 --- p.37 / Chapter 第二章： --- 《皇朝經世文續編》學術、治體部分作者背 景之分析 / Chapter 一、 --- 作者背景資料之量化分析 --- p.54 / Chapter 二、 --- 作者間網絡的組成與主導群體的發現 --- p.59 / Chapter 三、 --- 小結 --- p.67 / Chapter 第三章： --- 《皇朝經世文續編》「學術」部分內容析述 / Chapter 一、 --- 對帝王學術修養的關注 --- p.91 / Chapter 二、 --- 有關儒學發展及漢宋之爭的討論 --- p.95 / Chapter 三、 --- 對各種學術內容的討論 --- p.103 / Chapter 四、 --- 學術與政治的互動 --- p.113 / Chapter 五、 --- 師友之道的探求 --- p.125 / Chapter 六、 --- 小 結 --- p.130 / Chapter 第四章： --- 《皇朝經世文續編》「治體」內容析述 / Chapter 一、 --- 施政各項原則的討論 --- p.132 / Chapter 二、 --- 有關君主施政的討論 --- p.144 / Chapter 三、 --- 治法的繁簡與變法的立場 --- p.153 / Chapter 四、 --- 選拔賢才之道及用人之方法 --- p.159 / Chapter 五、 --- 臣下的職責及賢臣應具備的條件 --- p.173 / Chapter 六、 --- 各種具體的施政建議 --- p.180 / Chapter 七、 --- 小結 --- p.197 / Chapter 第五章： --- 從兩種《續編》看晚清「經世思想」之內涵 / Chapter 一、 --- 「經世思想」的具體內涵 --- p.200 / Chapter 二、 --- 從「經世文編」看「經世思想」發展的大概 --- p.209 / Chapter 三、 --- 「經世思想」在晚清的定位 --- p.214 / 結 論 --- p.230 / 參考書目 --- p.234 / 附件：《葛編》及《盛編》各部門總目 --- p.239

Este estudo aborda a produção brasileira de historiografia da química em artigos de periódicos, no período de 1974 a 2004. O pressuposto investigado é a interligação entre a atividade química industrial desenvolvida no país e a quantidade de artigos produzida. A discussão do debate internalista/externalista foi escolhida para iluminar alguns aspectos dessa produção, ao longo do período. Para isso, realizamos levantamentos dos artigos nos principais periódicos brasileiros que abrigam a historiografia da química, bem como a produção industrial do setor químico nacional no período estudado. A análise desse conjunto de dados nos revelou que existe uma inter-relação entre a produção industrial e a historiografia da química / This study broaches the Brazilian production of chemistry historiography in articles from periodicals embracing the period from 1974 to 2004. The presupposition under investigation is the interconnection between the industrial chemical activity developed in the country and the quantity of articles produced. The discussion on the internalist/externalist issue was chosen to highlight some aspects of that production during that period. In order to achieve that we carried out a survey of articles in the major Brazilian periodicals that cover chemistry historiography as well as the national chemical sector industrial production during the studied period. The analysis of that data has revealed that there is an interconnection between the industrial production and chemical historiography