Science Talk

Changing Notions of Science in American Culture

by Daniel Patrick Thurs

Published by: Rutgers University Press

Subjects:Science, American Studies

252 Pages, 6.1 x 9.3 in

Paperback
9780813544205
Published: August 4, 2008

EPUB
9780813582269
Published: July 24, 2007

PDF
9780813541525
Published: July 24, 2007

Related Topics:SCIENCE / General

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Science news is met by the public with a mixture of fascination and disengagement. On the one hand, Americans are inflamed by topics ranging from the question of whether or not Pluto is a planet to the ethics of stem-cell research. But the complexity of scientific research can also be confusing and overwhelming, causing many to divert their attentions elsewhere and leave science to the “experts.”

Whether they follow science news closely or not, Americans take for granted that discoveries in the sciences are occurring constantly. Few, however, stop to consider how these advances—and the debates they sometimes lead to—contribute to the changing definition of the term “science” itself. Going beyond the issue-centered debates, Daniel Patrick Thurs examines what these controversies say about how we understand science now and in the future. Drawing on his analysis of magazines, newspapers, journals and other forms of public discourse, Thurs describes how science—originally used as a synonym for general knowledge—became a term to distinguish particular subjects as elite forms of study accessible only to the highly educated.

Talking about science
Phrenology
Evolution
Relativity
UFOs
Intelligent design

Daniel Patrick Thurs is a fellow at the New York University's Draper Program. After receiving his Ph.D. in the history of science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Thurs worked at Cornell University, studying public discussion of nanotechnology. He also taught at Oregon State University and the University of Portland.

This volume is a controversial and important contribution that helps clarify some of the reasons why we, as a culture, are so deeply conflicted about a major, if not the major force driving the modern world.
~James Gilbert, author of Redeeming Culture: American Religion in an Age of Science

In this pioneering exploration of nearly 200 years of popular writing about science in America, Daniel Thurs finally puts 'science' into the history of science.
~Ronald L. Numbers, author of The Creationists: From Scientific Creationism to Intelligent Design

This is a finely nuanced, rich text from which we can learn to think anew about the science and Christianity dialogue, especially in its present representation in American culture.
~Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith

"There is much of value in Science Talk and Daniel Patrick Thurs should be commended for bringing to light the process whereby scientific controversies have evolved over time. It is an engaging study, one that will benefit all those interested in science and its place in American history."
~QUEST

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Changing Notions of Science in American Culture

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Changing Notions of Science in American Culture

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