"Electronic Tools for Research in the History of Science: AnExploratory Study"

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Professor Crane has argued that computers do not make hard tasks easy in the social sciences and humanities; rather, computers make hard tasks possible. He has demonstrated how computer technology can make hard tasks possible in his already completed work in the humanities, Project Perseus. He now proposes to turn his attention to the history and philosophy of science. As in many fields, major, long-term database projects are being planned to provide a new kind of scholarly infrastructure for the fields of Science and Technology Studies (STS). Among these are the Einstein, Oppenheimer and Peirce projects. Questions are being framed and decisions will, in the very short future, be taken that constrain what we can and cannot do for many years to come. The organization of these databases, however, is extremely complex since they incorporate full text, images, linguistic tools, historical and cultural background. Given the lack of broad experience, it is not now possible to predict with accuracy what will and will not work. Yet, Project Perseus does bring relevant experience to bear on issues in STS. The purpose of this exploratory grant is to bring to the attention of the STS research community the way in which Project Perseus has addressed many of the database problems researchers in this area are confronting and to explore how the experience gained in the development of Perseus can be most effectively used for scientific and technical texts. Under this SGER grant, Professor Crane and his colleagues are studying the possibilities of developing an electronic database that would serve as a model that would greatly extend the questions which researchers can pose about science. This database would be built upon the existing Perseus multimedia database on Greek culture, but the framework they construct is meant to help establish standards in STS. With a large amount of information already on-line and accessible in a published database, they are exploring setting the history of Greek science within an unusually rich existing framework. By extending the Perseus database into Greek science, they would not only be able to create a powerful tool more cost-effectively, but they would also be able to create a working model for a comprehensive database for research. Their experiences would in turn help those working in other areas better understand the strengths and weaknesses of the electronic medium and thus have the capacity to allow work in other areas to progress more rapidly and effectively. The SGER project is progressing in two phases: meetings in Washington in December, 1992 to discuss the possibilities of this work with members of the field; and a small conference in late spring, 1993 to plan the actual organization of the database for Greek science.