Erasmus Darwin: Master of Interdisciplinary Science

Abstract

Dr Erasmus Darwin (1731–1802) was by profession a physician, at Lichfield and later Derby, and was widely regarded as the leading doctor in Britain, author of the massive treatise Zoonomia (1794–6). His many original contributions to science cover a wide range of disciplines, including physics, chemistry, geology, meteorology, plant growth and nutrition and evolutionary biology. He was a prolific inventor, a close friend of Boulton and Watt, and a leading spirit in the ‘Lunar Society’ of Birmingham. In the 1790s he became the most famous poet of the day with his Botanic Garden, which greatly influenced Coleridge, Wordsworth and others.     

Adhesion An Interdisciplinary Science

Abstract

The interdisciplinary science of adhesion is built upon contributions from the classical branches of science: chemistry, physics and mathematics, and some of their more specialized subdivisions such as polymer chemistry, surface chemistry, rheology and continuum mechanics. An historical review of the development of adhesive technology stresses the role of polymer chemistry in the advances made in modern adhesion technology, but many other disciplines have contributed. Their roles are discussed from the point of view of adhesion theories that are biased toward one discipline or another. Such bias can lead to fallacy. Challenging adhesion problems still exist and their solution will involve other disciplines, like biology and medicine.     

Aboriginals: The Smell of Frustration

D. E. Hutchinson (ed.), Aboriginal Progress. A new era? Western Australia U.P. (distributed by M.U.P.), 1969, pp. ix + 189, $3.     

A Challenge to Presidential Wars: Smith v. Obama

From World War II to the present time, presidents have exceeded constitutional and statutory authority in exercising the war power. In doing so, they violate the rule of law, the principle of self-government, and the system of checks and balances. The U.S. Constitution expressly rejected the British model that placed with the Executive exclusive authority over external affairs, including taking the country from a state of peace to one of war. The Framers assigned that power solely to Congress. A lawsuit filed in 2016, Smith v. Obama, asked a federal district court to decide whether President Obama may engage in war without receiving express authority from Congress.     

Harold Laski's International Functionalism: A Socialist Challenge to Federalism

Harold Laski argued for international functionalism from his distinctive socialist perspective. He opposed the existing international system based on the principle of state sovereignty. He also criticised the international federalism proposed as an alternative to the existing system. Although Laski began to devise and present his functionalist case in the 1920s, the circumstances of the following decade led him to adopt and adapt some Marxist ideas and to place less emphasis on functionalism. During and after the Second World War he reconsidered the possibilities for international functional organisation. Although fragmented and undeveloped, his functionalist theory was innovative. By the end of the 1940s he had expressed it in a variety of publications as he reflected on the international conditions of that decade. Unlike what is probably the most well-known functionalist case of the early to mid-twentieth century – that of David Mitrany – Laski's argument bears affinities with the later neofunctionalist theorists. Laski's functionalism was underpinned by the critique of sovereignty which made his political philosophy distinctive. Reasons can be detected for the changes in his attitude to and emphasis on functionalism.     

Science,Technology and Constitutional Rights: An Interdisciplinary Forecast for the US Congress

Abstract

In honor of the bicentennial of the United States Constitution, a Congressional agency undertook an interdisciplinary analysis of the implications of new and emerging science-based technologies for constitutionally protected civil rights and liberties. Four areas of scientific research and development were identified as most likely to give rise to significantly new technological capabilities. Some of these could challenge established assumptions about individual responsibility, civil liberties, and the powers of government: information science, molecular biology, materials science, and social science, particularly as they find applications in communications and publishing, criminal justice, medicine, public health, and bioengineering. Constitutional precedents related to freedom of the press, open scientific communications, the rights of those accused or convicted of crime, due process, equal protection of laws, and individual privacy will have to be re-examined. Science is offering individuals new choices and forcing them to make new decisions, even as it brings into question some assumptions about free will and accountability.     

Science and Theology Diverse Resolutions of an Interdisciplinary Gap by the New Priesthood of Science

Abstract

In an age where the trend towards secularization has been slowed down, new religions and ideological movements are competing with the more traditional positions to be found in society. Those who are anxious to justify their own particular position share only one criterion for comparison with those holding other positions: a belief in the epistemological efficacy of science. A new priesthood of scientist has emerged to offer justification in the name of science for a variety of ideological positions and to explain to a bewildered public what the real relationship is between the various disciplines of science and those of theology or moral and political philosophy. This paper describes the variety of positions taken up by the new priesthood, typifying these as Fundamentalism, Orthodoxy; Liberalism, Modernism, Agnosticism and Atheism.     

Music and Physics: A Cultural,Interdisciplinary History

This essay investigates the triangular exchange among physicists, musicians, and instrument makers in nineteenth‐century Germany by proffering a material, cultural, and interdisciplinary history. It does so by analyzing four concrete examples of such exchanges: the relationship between musical automata and virtuosi, the reed pipe as an object of music and scientific measurement, the history of standardizing performance pitch, and the attempts to measure musical virtuosity. The goal of the essay is to suggest ways in which interdisciplinary cultural histories, which take the scientific content seriously, can be an improvement upon purely disciplinary histories.     

Religion and Violence: A Challenge to the Unity of the Churches

Abstract

The article explores the relationship between religion and violence—both in the role religion has played in overcoming violence and in sometimes being at the heart of violence. Recent Indian history of religiously fuelled violence is the case study in this article. Additionally, the history of Christianity is dotted with violence—imperialism and colonialism have been justified by some historians. This should be the basis for a challenge to the imperial and implicitly ‘Christian’ designs that accompany the present war against Iraq.

The Bible and Christian theology contain violent images. There is ambiguity in defining violence, because sometimes it is difficult to name the more subtle forms of violence. The authority of the Church is questioned as it has sometimes been silent about the violence within its own life.

The Churches need to engage in intra-Christian dialogue so as to mutually focus on the ministry of reconciliation and healing. The Churches need also to engage in inter-religious dialogue, recognizing a common spirituality of non-violence present in all religions.     

Eco-Archaeometry: Interdisciplinary Applications in Egypt

Abstract

One of the problems currently faced by modern society is the worldwide catastrophic deterioration of archaeological and cultural sites directly exposed to the action of the environment. Frequently, it has proved difficult to identify the processes responsible for these deteriorations, which are often the result of an abrupt change in site specific environmental conditions. To understand them a broad interdisciplinary approach is needed, and consequently, a substantial input from several disciplines, such as archaeology and archaeometric, environmental and conservation sciences, is necessary. Such interaction is particularly necessary on a basic research level, and can best be achieved if the relevant disciplines are drawn together a priori on equal footing into a complementary effort in eco-archaeometry. The primary goal of eco-archaeometry is to identify and quantify physicochemical processes which cause the deterioration of ancient cultural patrimony. Its findings are essential prerequisites for the development of optimum, safe methods for conservation and preservation of ancient monuments. Some examples of the eco-archaeometric approach in Egypt are summarised and it is demonstrated that without an interdisciplinary approach such studies would not have been successful.     

Apartment Rents: Another Challenge to the Monocentric Model

Extension of hedonic modeling strategy to the case of apartment rents in the Dallas region reveals the influence of a complex network of activity centers and highway axes. Nodes other than the CBD exert greater influence on rents than the CBD and amenity variables and externalities have both positive and negative effects. These findings demand reevaluation of the place normally assigned to higher-density rental housing in urban models.     

The Perineuronal Net: A Weapon for a Challenge

Theories and data do not always fit and sometimes are sources of conflicts among scientists. This is the case of a morphological structure, the perineuronal net, which was denied on the basis of an ideological conflict between two giants of neurosciences: Camillo Golgi and Santiago Ramón y Cajal. The perineuronal net is a reticular structure enveloping many neurons. Originally reported by Golgi in 1893 and 1898 and confirmed by several authors before the turn of the century, the perineuronal net was used by Golgi to support the reticular theory of the organization of the nervous system. Ramón y Cajal, the paladin of the neuronal theory who had also observed this anatomical structure, denied its existence suggesting that it was a fixation artifact. After Cajal's statements, only a few Italian scientists continued to work in this field, and after the 1930s the perineuronal net was forgotten. Only the recent advances in histochemical and immunocytochemical technology confirmed the existence of this structure opening new fields in functional neuroanatomy and neuropathology.     

Scandinavia and the Huns: An Interdisciplinary Approach to the Migration Era

The aim of this paper is to discuss the early Migration period as a particular period of ‘short term history’ and its formative impact on the Scandinavian longue durée in the first millenium. During this particular period of time, the object world of Scandinavia demonstrates radical changes in symbolic representation, followed by long term continuity and social/mental resistance to change. It is argued that the Huns, as a historical fact, were present in Scandinavia in the early fifth century. Their impact was to generate an ‘episodic transition’ that opened up a whole new set of social, religious and political strategies, in Scandinavia in particular as well as in Barbarian Europe in general, and gave rise to a new Germanic identity in the aftermath of the Roman Empire.     

Quality Challenge in Iran's Higher Education: A Historical Review

Higher education at Iran's state-run universities is not supported by a deeply-rooted tradition of quality assessment. For several decades, Iranian universities have not been able to monitor themselves and develop efficient, internal structures of quality assurance. The academics' attempts at internal monitoring have failed, giving way to a system of bureaucratic supervision and control. Recent changes in Iran have given rise to new concepts, including the principle of universities' self-evaluation, based on academic autonomy and scientific freedom. But the dominant tendency in Iran's political structure and administration is still toward external, bureaucratic control. The conflict between more or less advanced texts and typically solid structures is a reflection of inconsistencies within the Iranian society, pursuing its transitional stage.