Stuffed Animals and Pickled Heads

The Culture and Evolution of Natural History Museums
Erscheinungsjahr 2001
ISBN: 978-0-19-516336-0
Verlag: Oxford University Press

Buch, Englisch, 320 Seiten, Print PDF, Format (B × H): 152 mm x 229 mm, Gewicht: 522 g

This book will trace the cultural history of natural history museums from their origins in the 18th century through the present day, by tracing the changing attitudes and philosophies that influence the public displays of major natural history museums. The author will make his points with many anecdotes and stories, showing the development over time from displays of individual collectors' curios and occasionally gruesome oddities, to the more politically sensitive and intellectually ambitious exercises in public education that constitute the modern day permanent exhibitions at museums. This book will make an entertaining and thoughtful contribution to recent comparative cultural and intellectual history, the history of public education, and the popularization of science. The dichotomy between the front window, exhibit portion of natural history museums, and the backstage areas where scientific work goes forward, and the dual roles and missions served by this cultural institution, are well portrayed here.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Asma, Stephen T.

Fachgebiete

• Interdisziplinäres Wissenschaften Wissenschaft und Gesellschaft | Kulturwissenschaften
• Technische Wissenschaften Technik Allgemein Technologie: Soziale & Ethische Aspekte
• Sozialwissenschaften Soziologie | Soziale Arbeit Spezielle Soziologie Wissenssoziologie, Wissenschaftssoziologie, Techniksoziologie

Über Autor(innen)

Stephen T. Asma is Professor of Philosophy and Interdisciplinary Humanities at Columbia College, in Chicago. He has written articles on a broad range of topics that bridge the humanities and sciences, including pieces in Chronicle of Higher Education and The Humanist, and he is a regular contributor to Skeptic Magazine. The author of the bestselling Buddha for Beginners, he lives in Chicago.