Before the 19th century the idea of more than three dimensions was exceptional. During the 19th century, however, geometry was revolutionized and new branches were developed. This revolution also created the idea of the possibility of a n-dimensional geometry or space; flatland, i.e. n = 2, was a consequence of this new thinking. In 1884 the…

This is an introduction to the following papers of a conference: From Itinerant Lecturers of the 18th Century to Popularizing Science for the 21st Century.

This essay details a public display of four steam engine models assembled in a Leiden orphanage courtyard in 1777. By examining the multiple purposes to which these engines were and could be put, alongside the various interests, goals and interpretations of their inventors, instructors and audience, the notion of a clear division between public…

This paper aims to tell how the Russian national examination in mathematics (the Uniform State Examination or USE) has been conducted most recently. The author must say at once that the history of the system of secondary school graduation examinations or even the history of the USE will be covered only to the small degree that is necessary for…

In 1998, the National Science Foundation (NSF) launched a program of Grants for Vertical Integration of Research and Education in the Mathematical Sciences (VIGRE). These grants were designed for institutions with PhD-granting departments in the mathematical sciences, for the purpose of developing high-quality education programs, at all levels,…

Studied were the characteristics and changes of textbooks used in college zoology instruction in the United States and the relationship of these findings to the development of college zoology instruction. The authors' professional backgrounds, the textbook audience, and the status of zoology and college education at the time each book was written…

This article points out some faults in A. D. White's "History of the Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom" and presents some problems with using it in support of the teaching of evolution in science. (BB)

Outlines Young's scholastic record, involving his educational background, contributions to optics in physics, and deciphering of hieroglyphics in Egyptian philosophy. (CC)

Describing the emergence of the first shipbuilding texts, particularly those in English provides another chapter in the story of the emergence of English technical writing. Shipwrightery texts did not appear in English until the middle decades of the seventeenth century because shipwrightery was a closed discourse community which shared knowledge…

Hydraulics is an engineering specialty and largely neglected as a topic in physics teaching. But the history of hydraulics from the Renaissance to the Baroque, merits our attention because hydraulics was then more broadly conceived as a practical "and" theoretical science; it served as a constant bone of contention for mechanics and…

Gerald Rutherford (1964), one of the original authors of the Harvard Project Physics course which emphasized the history of science, expressed a view of inquiry which advocated the historical re-constructions of significant experiments. To implement this view we examine two modes of historical re-constructions; Heering's ("Paper…

A method is described for teaching the analysis of X-ray diffraction of DNA through a series of steps utilizing the original methods used by James Watson, Francis Crick, Maurice Wilkins and Rosalind Franklin. The X-ray diffraction pattern led to the conclusion of the basic helical structure of DNA and its dimensions while basic chemical principles…

This article discusses the importance of integrating educational material on the history of science into history courses. (PD)

Presents a brief history of astrology and its relation to astronomy. Describes the different types of astrologers, horoscope casting, and horoscope interpretation. Presents reasons for the author's disbelief in astrology. (GS)

Fifteen National Science Foundation executives and managers met with Arnold Thackray to discuss the historian and the progress of science. Presented are comments by participants of this roundtable discussion (part of a series of roundtables which examined theoretical/practical aspects of how the nature of scientific progress is defined and…