Comparative history of modern science and the context of dependency

Michel Paty (1)

1 REHSEIS (UMR_7596) - Recherches Epistémologiques et Historiques sur les Sciences Exactes et les Institutions Scientifiques

Historical studies on the place of science in the development of nations and in the relationships between the more wealthy powers and dependent countries have succeeded progressively in broadening the field of history of science to embrace situations and problems not previously appreciated. Such investigations can help widen the notion of science in keeping with what is really experienced in practice, by taking in several factors: the actors in science and technology, the contents of knowledge, the context and the social and cultural implications. If these 'differential' research approaches are confronted (involving studies of spatially and temporally well-defined subjects according to discipline, etc.), they provide essential elements for comparative analysis which can trace out the structural features of the diffusion, conjunction and integration of the different sciences. These elements allow us to pick out some significant epistemological problems posed by this rich chapter in the history of science.

Keywords: history of science; modern science; nation

Domains: History, Philosophy and Sociology of Sciences

Michel Paty. Comparative history of modern science and the context of dependency. Science Technology & Society, 1999, 4 (2), pp.171-204. ⟨halshs-00184938⟩