Calculating Value: using and collecting the tools of early modern mathematics
Lead Research Organisation:
Swansea University
Department Name: College of Arts and Humanities
Abstract
The student will work on the Science Museum's early modern printed books relating to mathematics and the mathematical sciences (astronomy, mechanics, navigation, surveying, etc.), studying annotations, bindings and other indications of ownership and use that can illuminate the market for such publications in the era in which they were produced. The student will also study the subsequent history of these volumes and the routes by which they entered the Museum's collections.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Adam Mosley (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Kevin Tracey (Student) |
| Description | This research makes a novel and significant contribution to a developing field, advancing our understanding of the historical culture and experience of mathematics from the perspective of users. Through analysis of texts, their ownership, and the ways in they were read and used by owners and collectors, the methods by which mathematics and the mathematical sciences were taught, learned, and utilised is brought into greater focus. The change in social status mathematics underwent in the early modern period is crucial to modern science and society. By attending to previously unseen users of mathematical texts and instruments, this research bring to light new perspectives on: * The role of mathematics in pedagogical and philosophical networks in late 16th century Northern Europe * The ways in which technological advances, particularly in relation to the printing press, were engaged with by producers and by users * Readers utilising mathematical information for navigational, mercantile, and ecumenical reasons * The value attributed to users and their collections in both pre-modern and modern eras, and the role key mathematical texts played in such collections * The construction and maintenance of both individual and institutional libraries In the process, the Science Museum's Rare Books Collection has been positioned as a large-scale resource representative of the culture which produced its constituent materials. |
| Exploitation Route | Research findings will contribute to the growing body of literature focusing on the interstices shared by histories of science, mathematics, reading, the book, and intellectual culture. The emphasis this project places upon the users of early modern mathematical texts and instruments - rather than their producers - brings important new perspectives to the field, and exists in dialogue with work by more established researchers such as Benjamin Wardhaugh, Renee Raphael, and Richard Oosterhoff. It is hoped that this research will help to further advance scholarly interest in less-expert users and their engagement with the history and culture of mathematical experience. Along with conference presentations, articles and chapters published in relevant journals and edited collections will contribute to this growing field, in the process highlighting the unique collections of the Science Museum, London, as a suitable locus for future research. Large scale qualitative and quantitative data accrued throughout the research project will be made available through the institution's library and linked to COPAC and other bibliographical resources. Additional data not featured in the final thesis will be included so as to provide other users with relevant information on the breadth of individual texts surveyed throughout this project. Finally, it is hoped that research finding will further help to inform future Science Museum galleries and smaller exhibitions. |
| Sectors | Creative Economy,Education,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |
| Description | Findings have been used in presentations and educational materials delivered on behalf of The Brilliant Club, a charity encouraging school pupils from lower-attainment backgrounds to apply to highly selective universities. Additional findings accrued throughout this research have been provided to Science Museum curators to aid the construction of future museum galleries. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2018 |
| Sector | Education,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |
| Impact Types | Cultural,Societal |
| Description | AHRC International Placement Scheme |
| Amount | £3,200 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | 0 |
| Organisation | Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 07/2017 |
| End | 09/2017 |
| Title | Unique data added to Science Museum Library online catalogue |
| Description | Addition of multiple unique provenance identifiers (bookplates, signatures, annotation, and binding information) to more than 800 individual catalogue entries |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2019 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | n/a as yet |
| URL | https://smg.koha-ptfs.co.uk/ |