Biennial History of
Astronomy Workshops at the University of Notre Dame
ND IX
Ninth Biennial History
of Astronomy Workshop
Notre Dame, Indiana
July 8 - 12, 2009
The
History of Astronomy after 400 Years of the Telescope
This year the
workshop falls during the International Year of Astronomy (IYA). Among the main
goals of the IYA are to celebrate the impact that astronomy has and has had on
human societies and cultures, as well as to increase the publicÕs awareness of
this rich heritage. (For more, see http://www.astronomy2009.org/). We invite papers and sessions that
promote these goals.
Paper and
session themes can include such diverse subjects as advances in the science
itself, for example, through scholarship or instrumentation; the impact of
astronomy on the broader culture, such as through literature or religion; and
the means to promote knowledge of astronomy and its history among the public,
such as through museums, teaching, and public outreach. As always, we are open
to proposals that deal with subjects from a broad range of time periods and
geographical regions. We are also open to nontraditional sessions, such as
hands-on activities that could be used in classrooms or in public outreach.
The invention of
the telescope and its use as an astronomical instrument was a watershed event
in the history of astronomy. It changed the human understanding of the universe
and our place in it. Those of us who study and appreciate the history of the
science of astronomy recognize the immense impact that this instrument had on
the science, even if our specific studies are not oriented around the
telescope. For this reason we encourage papers and session proposals that will
consider how the telescope has been treated by historians over the past four
centuries. Have we been asking the most useful questions about the
telescope over time? What should we be asking about the role of the
telescope in shaping the practice of astronomy? What should historians of
today be asking about the telescopes of today to help the historians of
tomorrow answer the questions they may be asking?
We regret to
report that this yearÕs invited international speaker, Paolo Brenni, has
unfortunately had to cancel his appearance.
Generous
support for the conference is provided by the Graduate Program in the History
and Philosophy of Science at the University of Notre Dame, the Institute for
Scholarship in the Liberal Arts (ISLA) in the College of Arts and Letters at
the University of Notre Dame, along with the Adler Planetarium and Astronomy
Museum.
Call for Papers and Submission
Instructions
Please
send questions to Matt Dowd, mdowd1@nd.edu
Paper
proposals should be sent via email to histast@nd.edu
Workshop
Chairs: Matt Dowd, mdowd1@nd.edu; Marv Bolt, mbolt@adlernet.org; David DeVorkin, DeVorkinD@si.edu
Local
Organizer: Christina
Turner, cturner2@nd.edu
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