INGENIOUS PURSUITS
By Lisa Jardine
Anchor Books, 1999, 444 pages
This historical look at the ‘scientific revolution’ centers on seventeenth century Europe. Many of the most-well-known scientific personalities came to the fore in this mix of philosophical and political upheaval. Jardine helps expose overlaps among fields such as science, engineering and art. Sociological influences point to advantage and disadvantage depending on the culture of the country in question, the gender of the scientist, and how funds availability promoted and detracted efforts.
The heart of much of the story of this era circulated around scientific societies. Some of these were formal such as the Royal Society in London, Academie Royale des Sciences in Paris, or their equivalents in Germany, Italy and other countries. Informal societies also influenced who could participate. For example, Salons of wealthy patrons in Paris became a focal point for many women to share their scientific ideas and discoveries.
Newton, Kepler, Wren, Hobbes, and others interact across society and political lines. Jardine shares many instances when scientists of warring countries still managed to share information about discoveries. In a few cases such sharing brought charges of spying, but by and large knowledge sharing was encouraged among scientific practitioners. Personal jealousies sometimes encouraged the opposite. Jardine depicts a number of such rivalries and the effects on the scientific community.
The stories and topics Jardine shares flow well. The work is readable and the personalities of number of notable ‘characters’ makes for an interesting realistic look into the process of knowledge discovery. In this case the word characters can be taken quite directly, as Jardine even includes a section toward the end she dubs Cast of Characters.
RSS Feed