Announcements from the Austrian Society for the History of Science

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The releases of the Austrian Society for the History of Science are a history of science journal . The first year of the journal, which at that time was still restricted to the history of the natural sciences , appeared in 1981. Since 1999, the terms man - science - magic have been used as the superordinate series title ; the historical approach is not yet expressed in this.

Origin and development

The " Austrian Society for the History of Natural Sciences" was founded on December 12, 1980 in the Schottenstift in Vienna . In 1992 this society was renamed: Instead of the "history of natural sciences", the "history of science" was now defined as the subject area of ​​the efforts of this scientific society . Similarly, the name of the notices published since 1981 also changed .

Editor, publisher and design

The editors are Helmuth Grössing , Alois Kernbauer, Kurt Mühlberger and Karl Kadletz (who takes care of the layout). The "Mitteilungen" have been distributed by the ERASMUS Vienna publishing house since 2002 and are presented with the same book cover . The front cover of the book shows the drawing Der Mensch by Albrecht Dürer . The signet appears on the back cover of the book, with a snake circling the initial letters of the company, with the following explanation:

"The signet of the Austrian Society for the History of Science symbolizes the synthesis of myth (Ourobouros, alchemical symbol) and rational thinking (inscribed 'ÖGW' in the form of an equilateral triangle), which is recognizable for the history of science."

On the state of the history of science

The 20th anniversary of the “Austrian Society for the History of Science” ( abbr . ÖGW ) was also an occasion to reflect on the state of the history of science in Austria. Walter Höflechner was disappointed about the little attention given to the history of science by science policy; he spoke of "the plight of the history of science". He explained his regret as follows:

"It is depressing to have to state that the most complex human achievement, namely the knowledge work that has been accumulating and systematically carried out for thousands of years in its historicity and its historically reflective recording in its high orientation value are practically not recorded and appreciated."

Despite the limited public support for the history of science, the scientists working together within the framework of the ÖGW carried out important research and published it. The ÖGW was able to look back on this at its anniversary - in the words of Grössing - “with satisfaction, joy and pride”.

Web links

literature

  • Helmuth Grössing: Chronicle of the events. The Austrian Society for the History of Science (ÖGW) 1980 to 2010 . In: Communications of the Austrian Society for the History of Science 28 (2011), pp. 1–30 (especially on the “Communications” pp. 12–14).

Remarks

  1. ^ ERASMUS publishing house, Vienna
  2. ^ Walter Höflechner : Reminiscences and Hopes - 20 Years of the Austrian Society for the History of Science . In: Communications from the Austrian Society for the History of Science 20 (2000), p. 3f.
  3. ^ Helmuth Grössing: Foreword . In: Communications from the Austrian Society for the History of Science 20 (2000), p. 1f.