Karl Jordan and International Organization in Entomology 1910-1955: Ordering Natural and Disciplinary Diversity

SES 0328634项目由简·迈恩谢恩赞助，克里斯汀·约翰逊作为博士后，将考察昆虫学家卡尔·乔丹在20世纪上半叶作为国际主义者的工作。根据他在世纪之交对昆虫学作为一门学科的无组织状态的经验，以及在科学中民族主义的颠覆性影响，卡尔·乔丹于1910年创立了第一届国际昆虫学大会。在接下来的40年里，他领导了国会，领导了第一次和第二次世界大战后昆虫学友谊和会议的恢复。他的坚持不仅是因为他坚信大会对昆虫学的成功很重要，而且是因为他相信科学家可以在所有人类事务中领导和平与统一的道路。但随着约旦将昆虫学家聚集在国际会议上，自然历史工作中存在的各种优先事项、方法和传统变得明显起来。来自相互卷入紧张政治对抗的国家的昆虫学家经常发现，在大会场馆的围墙外，很难把他们作为国家成员的感受留在那里。科学的基本原则之一是，探索关于自然世界的知识是一项超越政治和信仰的任务，几个世纪以来，科学确实是各国人民之间互动、交流和友谊的源泉。但科学史学家对民族主义和世界政治对科学的影响的研究表明，科学纯洁性假设背后的错误。国际主义的历史研究，以及世界大战和冷战对科学家的影响。国际网络主要侧重于物理科学。这个项目将通过仔细研究卡尔·乔丹对科学国际化的贡献来考察生命科学的不同之处。乔丹希望，他的同事们不仅能通过这些偶尔的国际会议来改善昆虫学的状况，而且随着科学家们参与寻找真理，也能向世界其他国家展示如何搁置分歧，支持合作。对乔丹和他的同事们在这些努力中的成功和失败的历史背景的分析将为科学和社会之间的持续互动以及参与者所处的文化、社会和政治背景如何影响科学学科的历史提供有价值的研究。该项目将在亚利桑那州立大学进行，在那里，共同的PI Kristin Johnson将与由Jane Maienschein指导的日益增长的历史学家、哲学家和科学社会学家社区合作，她将作为PI负责为该项目提供机构支持和活跃的知识分子社区。在Maienschein的领导下，亚利桑那州立大学目前正在将生命科学学院重组为生命科学学院。新学院将容纳生物学的人的维度，包括一个新的生物学和社会中心，也由Maienschein领导。该中心将包括成长历史和科学哲学、生物学和社会、生物伦理学和法律课程。HPS社区由10名受过博士培训的学者组成，从事生命科学或密切相关领域的研究。此外，亚利桑那州立大学在自然历史和田野科学以及系统学方面都有很大的优势，拥有丰富的昆虫收藏和相关研究项目。这是这项研究的理想场所，它将产生至少两篇关于国际科学的论文和一本卡尔·乔丹作为国际生物学家的完整传记。

Project AbstractSES 0328634This project, undertaken as a post-doctorate by Kristin Johnson under the sponsorship of Jane Maienschein, will examine the entomologist Karl Jordan's work as an internationalist during the first half of the twentieth century. Based on his experiences with the unorganized state of entomology as a discipline at the turn of the century and with the disruptive effects of nationalism in science, Karl Jordan founded the first International Congress of Entomology in 1910. He guided the congresses over the course of the next four decades, leading the recovery of both entomological friendships and meetings after the first and second world wars. His persistence was inspired not only by his firm belief in the congresses as important to the success of entomology, but the internationalist belief that scientists could lead the way toward peace and unity in all human affairs. But as Jordan brought entomologists together at international congresses, the diverse range of priorities, methods, and traditions present among natural history work became apparent. And entomologists from nations involved in tense political confrontations with each other often found it more than difficult to leave their feelings as members of nations outside the walls of the congress venues. It has been one of the fundamental tenets of science that the search for knowledge about the natural world is a task beyond politics and creed, and science has indeed been the source of interaction, exchange, and friendships between nationals for centuries. But examinations by historians of science of the impact of nationalism and world politics on science have demonstrated the falsity behind assumptions of scientific purity. Historical studies of internationalism and the effect of the world wars and the cold war on scientists. International networks have primarily focused on the physical sciences. This project will examine the ways in which the life sciences are different by looking closely at the contributions of Karl Jordan to the internationalization of science. Jordan hoped that his colleagues would not only improve the state of entomology by these occasional international meetings, but also, as scientists involved in the search for truth, show the rest of the world how to put differences aside in favor of cooperation. An analysis of the historical context of Jordan and his colleagues' successes and failures in these endeavors will provide a valuable study of the constant interplay between science and society, and how the cultural, social, and political context in which participants live influences the history of scientific disciplines. The project will take place at Arizona State University, where co-PI Kristin Johnson will work with the growing community of historians, philosophers, and sociologists of science directed by Jane Maienschein, who will take responsibility as PI for providing institutional support and a lively intellectual community for this project. Under Maienschein's leadership, Arizona State University is currently reorganizing the Life Sciences into a School of Life Sciences. The new School will house the Human Dimensions of Biology, including a new Center for Biology and Society also directed by Maienschein. That Center will include growing History and Philosophy of Science, Biology and Society, Bioethics, and Law programs. The HPS community consists of ten Ph.D. trained scholars pursuing research the life sciences or closely related fields. In addition, ASU has great strengths in the natural historical and field sciences and in systematics, with rich insect collections and related research programs. It is an ideal place for this study, which will result in at least two papers on international science and a full-length biography of Karl Jordan as an international biologist.