Overview
'Big Science' is a broad epithet that can be associated with research projects as different as the Manhattan Project, the Hubble Telescope-construction, and the CERN-establishment in Geneva. While the science produced by these projects is vastly different, they have in common the fact that they all involve huge budgets, big facilities, complex instrumentation, years of planning, and large multidisciplinary teams of researchers. In this book the authors examine the complexity of the cultural, social, and political processes from which and in which Big Science develops. They do so by focusing upon the planning and development of the European Spallation Source, ESS, that is to be located in Lund in southern Sweden. Together, the chapters represent a variety of perspectives to highlight the complexity of the processes that are integral to Big Science. Thus, this volume examines the very different roles Big Science may be given in different contexts: locally, regionally, nationally and internationally, as well as historically. The book is based on the research of scholars based at Lund University from the disciplines of archive and library sciences, art history and visual studies, ethnology, gender studies, geography, history of ideas and sciences, media and communication, philosophy, and policy research.
Full Product Details
Author: Thomas Kaiserfeld ,
Tom O'Dell
Publisher: Nordic Academic Press
Imprint: Nordic Academic Press
Dimensions:
Width: 23.00cm
, Height: 2.30cm
, Length: 15.50cm
Weight: 0.540kg
ISBN: 9789187351105
ISBN 10: 9187351102
Pages: 240
Publication Date: 05 April 2013
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: In Print
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Reviews
For writers on big science this book is an important, yet quick, read. The language is clear throughout, with all the Swedish authors providing the footnotes and bibliographies required by those wishing to engage further in the themes presented. The handful of images are also clear and relevant, giving a visual insight into the future site discussed in the text. The realization that this team, alongside other contemporary scholars, are providing a much-needed shift towards the political in our field gives hope for future books, seminars and events from this interdisciplinary group . . . . Although readers may not be familiar with the ESS, the book's interdisciplinary character and broad scope make it a fascinating read for anyone working on any aspect of big science. --Camilla Mork Rostvik, journals.cambridge.org
Author Information
Thomas Kaiserfeld is a professor of history of ideas and sciences at Lund University after having been a professor of history of science and technology at KTH, Stockholm. His research focus is longer historical perspectives such as the founding of different organizations over the past three to four centuries for the transfer of knowledge and research result to users. Tom O’Dell is a professor of ethnology in the department of arts and cultural sciences at Lund University. His research has primarily focused on two areas of study: mobility and the cultural economy. He has often united these two areas of interest through the study of tourism and leisure practices.
