Seven Societies Travel Grants for Students, Independent Scholars and Recent PhDs

该奖项将使七个STS协会能够在2011-2013年间向研究生、独立学者和初级学者提供旅费补助金，以参加这些协会的专业会议。这七个学会是科学史学会(HSS)、技术史学会(SOT)、科学哲学协会(PSA)、国际科学哲学史学会(HOPOS)、美国环境历史学会(ASEH)、国际科学技术心理学学会(ISPST)和国际生物历史、哲学和社会研究学会(ISHPSSB)。自20世纪90年代中期以来，NSF向HSS提供了旅费，以便研究生和独立学者参加HSS、SET、PSA、和科学社会研究学会(4S)。这些助学金的学术价值可以通过调查每个学会过去的会议并注意到学生、独立学者和过去5年来最近的博士的高参与率来轻松衡量。因此，由于这些学者的参与，社会会议变得更加丰富和多样化。反过来，这些学者的研究和职业生涯(正如他们所证明的那样)也因这种参与而得到推动。这种职业化在几个方面至关重要：年轻学者将在主要的研究型大学、文理学院和社区学院任教；策划博物馆展品；在研究机构工作；监督图书馆藏品；并帮助政府项目；而向独立学者提供的资助将允许这些学者与他们的专业学会保持联系，在他们继续在博物馆、研究机构、图书馆和政府机构工作的同时，创造智力和实践的刺激。最后，在削减或取消部门差旅资金的预算中，最近的博士将有机会保持他们的职业轨迹。潜在的更广泛的影响当前的提案还将通过纳入正在经历快速增长的相关一般领域，如正在经历快速增长的ASH，并通过欢迎诸如ISHPSSB、HOPOS和ISPST等同样在数量和影响力上增加的专门子领域，来对STS学科产生更广泛的影响。纳入后一类群体特别重要，因为它们代表了代表科学分领域的学会的迅速增长。赠款所需的合作将确保我们在这些不同领域保持关系。NSF的旅行补助金一直是促进国际交流的主要力量，允许美国学者前往海外分享他们的研究成果。这种交流提高了会议的知识质量，同时促进了对科学的不同观点和解释。随着美国大学入学人数在世界上所占比例的下降，这七个协会及其以美国人为主的成员分享关于科学及其对社会的影响的想法和问题就变得更加重要。

Project summaryThis award will enable seven STS societies to provide travel grants to graduate students, independent scholars, and junior scholars to attend professional meetings of these societies from 2011-2013. The seven societies are the History of Science Society (HSS), the Society for the History of Technology (SHOT), the Philosophy of Science Association (PSA), the International Society for the History of Philosophy of Science (HOPOS), the American Society for Environmental History (ASEH), the International Society for the Psychology of Science and Technology (ISPST), and the International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology (ISHPSSB).Intellectual MeritSince the mid 1990s, NSF has provided travel grants to the HSS so that graduate students and independent scholars could attend the conferences of HSS, SHOT, PSA, and the Society for Social Studies of Science (4S). The intellectual merits of these grants can be easily measured by surveying the past conferences of each society and noting the high rate of participation by students, independent scholars, and, in the past 5 years, recent PhDs. As a result, society conferences have been richer and more diverse due to the participation of these scholars. In turn, the research and careers of these scholars (as they have testified) have been boosted by this participation. Such professionalization is crucial on several fronts: younger scholars will be teaching at major research universities, liberal arts colleges, and community colleges; curating museum exhibits; working at research institutes; overseeing library collections; and helping with government programs, whereas grants to independent scholars will allow these scholars to maintain contact with their professional societies, creating intellectual and practical stimulation as they continue to work in museums, research institutes, libraries, and government agencies. Finally, recent PhDs, in the midst of budgets that have cut or eliminated departmental travel funds, will have the opportunity to maintain their career trajectory.Potential Broader ImpactsThe current proposal will also lead to broader impacts for STS disciplines by including related general fields, such as ASEH, that are experiencing rapid growth, and by welcoming specialized subfields, such as ISHPSSB, HOPOS, and ISPST, that are likewise gaining in numbers and influence. The inclusion of the latter groups is particularly important since they represent the rapid growth in societies representing scientific sub fields. The cooperation that the grant will require will insure that we maintain relationships in these divergent fields. NSF travel grants have been a major force in facilitating international exchange, allowing US scholars to travel overseas to share the results of their research. This exchange enhances the intellectual quality of the meetings, while fostering diverse viewpoints and interpretations of science. As the US sees its share of college enrollees in the world dwindle, it is all the more important that these seven societies and their largely US membership share ideas and questions about science and its influence on society.