Pub Date : 2022-10-11DOI: 10.1163/15733823-20220053
Ashkan Avali Pouryan
Geographic discoveries in the sixteenth century, alongside methodical reforms in the practice of natural history, created a situation that was conducive for information exchange between European agents and local informants and scholars outside of Europe. These contacts, in turn, acted as a strong stimulus for change in European natural history. Until now, research on this process of transformation has been mainly focused on areas like the Indian subcontinent or the Americas, where most of these activities occurred, both in terms of politics and science alike. But Iran, a crucial part of the world trade network in that period, is still largely neglected in this research. This paper seeks to begin to redress the balance, introducing some notable plant species that were designated to the Iranian world by sixteenth-century European naturalists. This introductory survey will help to shed some light on the diversity of scientific exchange in the sixteenth century and the role played by other lesser known areas in this process.
{"title":"Iranian World Plant Species in the European Network of Botanical Information Exchange in the Sixteenth Century","authors":"Ashkan Avali Pouryan","doi":"10.1163/15733823-20220053","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15733823-20220053","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Geographic discoveries in the sixteenth century, alongside methodical reforms in the practice of natural history, created a situation that was conducive for information exchange between European agents and local informants and scholars outside of Europe. These contacts, in turn, acted as a strong stimulus for change in European natural history. Until now, research on this process of transformation has been mainly focused on areas like the Indian subcontinent or the Americas, where most of these activities occurred, both in terms of politics and science alike. But Iran, a crucial part of the world trade network in that period, is still largely neglected in this research. This paper seeks to begin to redress the balance, introducing some notable plant species that were designated to the Iranian world by sixteenth-century European naturalists. This introductory survey will help to shed some light on the diversity of scientific exchange in the sixteenth century and the role played by other lesser known areas in this process.","PeriodicalId":49081,"journal":{"name":"Early Science and Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.3,"publicationDate":"2022-10-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48503771","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-10-11DOI: 10.1163/15733823-20220052
V. Karpenko, J. Kučera
Based on the analysis of Tycho Brahe’s hair and bones for the presence of elevated levels of the elements iron (Fe), cobalt (Co), arsenic (As), silver (Ag) and gold (Au), this paper tries to find their likely sources and to judge whether the unusual concentrations in which they were found could have been due to some form of medication. On the basis of an osteopathological study, an attempt is made moreover to arrive at a comprehensive picture of Brahe’s health. As a possible source of the elements in question, his three elixirs and their compositions are discussed. Additionally, further inorganic medicines of the period containing the above-mentioned elements are presented and, where possible, their medical usage is discussed. While a combination of pathological data and probable medication is used to draw a general picture of Brahe’s health and potential illnesses, some questions cannot be conclusively answered, however, until more data about the astronomer’s health conditions come to light.
{"title":"Tycho Brahe’s Health and Death: What Can We Learn from the Trace Element Levels Found in His Hair and Bone Samples?","authors":"V. Karpenko, J. Kučera","doi":"10.1163/15733823-20220052","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15733823-20220052","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Based on the analysis of Tycho Brahe’s hair and bones for the presence of elevated levels of the elements iron (Fe), cobalt (Co), arsenic (As), silver (Ag) and gold (Au), this paper tries to find their likely sources and to judge whether the unusual concentrations in which they were found could have been due to some form of medication. On the basis of an osteopathological study, an attempt is made moreover to arrive at a comprehensive picture of Brahe’s health. As a possible source of the elements in question, his three elixirs and their compositions are discussed. Additionally, further inorganic medicines of the period containing the above-mentioned elements are presented and, where possible, their medical usage is discussed. While a combination of pathological data and probable medication is used to draw a general picture of Brahe’s health and potential illnesses, some questions cannot be conclusively answered, however, until more data about the astronomer’s health conditions come to light.","PeriodicalId":49081,"journal":{"name":"Early Science and Medicine","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.3,"publicationDate":"2022-10-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41862937","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-09-01DOI: 10.1163/15733823-20220047
Victor D. Boantza
{"title":"Continuity, Change, and Embodied Knowledge in the History of Chymistry","authors":"Victor D. Boantza","doi":"10.1163/15733823-20220047","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15733823-20220047","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":49081,"journal":{"name":"Early Science and Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.3,"publicationDate":"2022-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46559593","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-09-01DOI: 10.1163/15733823-20220049
Alison Calhoun
{"title":"Renaissance Fun: The Machines Behind the Scenes, written by Philip Steadman","authors":"Alison Calhoun","doi":"10.1163/15733823-20220049","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15733823-20220049","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":49081,"journal":{"name":"Early Science and Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.3,"publicationDate":"2022-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44631108","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-09-01DOI: 10.1163/15733823-20220045
M. Donato
This article deals with early modern surgical case literature, more specifically with printed collections of observations in surgery. It examines the work of late seventeenth- to late eighteenth-century Italian practitioners from different backgrounds and of different statuses, and highlights the complexity of cognitive and social purposes pervading the genre, besides that of sharing empirical knowledge. These can be apprehended through a second look at texts and contexts, by analysing the ways in which authors selected, penned, and arranged their narratives. As the anthologies under examination show, collected observations varied significantly in focus and scope, with some seemingly designed to sustain the authoritative legacy of learned surgery, others defying a professional ethos for non-academic practitioners, and others still surveying ailments in light of hospital statistics. In fact, as this article suggests, the genre was flexible enough – and the narratives malleable enough – to adjust to changes in surgical theory and practice. In spite of new intellectual expectations, however, it was not plastic enough to take on new epistemic functions, such as reframing surgical nosology.
{"title":"Practical Knowledge and the Rhetoric of Experience: Three Italian Surgeons and Their Observations","authors":"M. Donato","doi":"10.1163/15733823-20220045","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15733823-20220045","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 This article deals with early modern surgical case literature, more specifically with printed collections of observations in surgery. It examines the work of late seventeenth- to late eighteenth-century Italian practitioners from different backgrounds and of different statuses, and highlights the complexity of cognitive and social purposes pervading the genre, besides that of sharing empirical knowledge. These can be apprehended through a second look at texts and contexts, by analysing the ways in which authors selected, penned, and arranged their narratives. As the anthologies under examination show, collected observations varied significantly in focus and scope, with some seemingly designed to sustain the authoritative legacy of learned surgery, others defying a professional ethos for non-academic practitioners, and others still surveying ailments in light of hospital statistics. In fact, as this article suggests, the genre was flexible enough – and the narratives malleable enough – to adjust to changes in surgical theory and practice. In spite of new intellectual expectations, however, it was not plastic enough to take on new epistemic functions, such as reframing surgical nosology.","PeriodicalId":49081,"journal":{"name":"Early Science and Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.3,"publicationDate":"2022-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47682858","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-09-01DOI: 10.1163/15733823-20220048
L. Saif
{"title":"Micrologus 27, The Diffusion of the Islamic Sciences in the Western World, written by Edizioni del Galluzzo","authors":"L. Saif","doi":"10.1163/15733823-20220048","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15733823-20220048","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":49081,"journal":{"name":"Early Science and Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.3,"publicationDate":"2022-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46388834","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-09-01DOI: 10.1163/15733823-20220046
M. Romaniello
This article focuses on three unique products circulating in the eighteenth-century marketplace – castor, mammoth tusks, and asbestos – and highlights the role of naturalists working for the Royal Society in London and at the Russian Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg in promoting the consumption of these goods. Naturalists’ scientific investigations of these products were essential to distinguish and identify the quality (and, correspondingly, the ideal price) of Siberian commodities as compared to similar, or even equivalent, commodities from other regions. When these products were later discovered in the British colonies, the scientific debates between London and St. Petersburg only gained a new urgency, inspiring arguments about authenticity and efficaciousness.
{"title":"Could Siberian ‘Natural Curiosities’ Be Replaced? Bioprospecting in the Eighteenth-Century","authors":"M. Romaniello","doi":"10.1163/15733823-20220046","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15733823-20220046","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 This article focuses on three unique products circulating in the eighteenth-century marketplace – castor, mammoth tusks, and asbestos – and highlights the role of naturalists working for the Royal Society in London and at the Russian Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg in promoting the consumption of these goods. Naturalists’ scientific investigations of these products were essential to distinguish and identify the quality (and, correspondingly, the ideal price) of Siberian commodities as compared to similar, or even equivalent, commodities from other regions. When these products were later discovered in the British colonies, the scientific debates between London and St. Petersburg only gained a new urgency, inspiring arguments about authenticity and efficaciousness.","PeriodicalId":49081,"journal":{"name":"Early Science and Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.3,"publicationDate":"2022-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45573097","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-09-01DOI: 10.1163/15733823-20220050
M. Rijks
{"title":"Conchophilia: Shells, Art, and Curiosity in Early Modern Europe, edited by Marisa Anne Bass, Anne Goldgar, Hanneke Grootenboer and Claudia Swan","authors":"M. Rijks","doi":"10.1163/15733823-20220050","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15733823-20220050","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":49081,"journal":{"name":"Early Science and Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.3,"publicationDate":"2022-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44662869","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-06-16DOI: 10.1163/15733823-20220043
R. Schuessler
{"title":"Reply to Mark Thakkar","authors":"R. Schuessler","doi":"10.1163/15733823-20220043","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15733823-20220043","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":49081,"journal":{"name":"Early Science and Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.3,"publicationDate":"2022-06-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43611814","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-06-16DOI: 10.1163/15733823-20220044
Lukáš Lička
In examining the roles of the shadow (umbra) in medieval science, this paper analyses a hitherto unstudied early fourteenth-century optical treatise with the incipit Perspectiva cum sit una (PCSU), which, on the basis of medieval evidence, may arguably be attributed to Thomas Bradwardine. The third part of this treatise, on shadows, presents the doctrine of three shadow shapes – a doctrine which was popular in pre-modern optics and astronomy and was important in explaining eclipses – as well as the theory of umbra recta and versa, parallels of (co)tangent functions, which were essential for (instrumental) measurements. While the bulk of the treatise draws on John Peckham’s Perspectiva communis, an extensive analysis of medieval canons to astronomical tables, manuals of practical geometry and texts on instruments leads us to Campanus of Novara’s Practica quadrantis as the chief source of the last chapter of PCSU. Finally, the paper reflects on whether the light-centred conception of optics embodied in the PCSU may echo an alternative current to the otherwise predominantly sight-centred approach in pre-modern optics.
{"title":"Shadows in Medieval Optics, Practical Geometry, and Astronomy: On a Perspectiva Ascribed to Thomas Bradwardine","authors":"Lukáš Lička","doi":"10.1163/15733823-20220044","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15733823-20220044","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000In examining the roles of the shadow (umbra) in medieval science, this paper analyses a hitherto unstudied early fourteenth-century optical treatise with the incipit Perspectiva cum sit una (PCSU), which, on the basis of medieval evidence, may arguably be attributed to Thomas Bradwardine. The third part of this treatise, on shadows, presents the doctrine of three shadow shapes – a doctrine which was popular in pre-modern optics and astronomy and was important in explaining eclipses – as well as the theory of umbra recta and versa, parallels of (co)tangent functions, which were essential for (instrumental) measurements. While the bulk of the treatise draws on John Peckham’s Perspectiva communis, an extensive analysis of medieval canons to astronomical tables, manuals of practical geometry and texts on instruments leads us to Campanus of Novara’s Practica quadrantis as the chief source of the last chapter of PCSU. Finally, the paper reflects on whether the light-centred conception of optics embodied in the PCSU may echo an alternative current to the otherwise predominantly sight-centred approach in pre-modern optics.","PeriodicalId":49081,"journal":{"name":"Early Science and Medicine","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.3,"publicationDate":"2022-06-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45902159","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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