Byline: Frans van Lunteren
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‘Je moet me gewoon onderbreken hoor’
Een interview met afzwaaiend hoogleraar Frans van Lunteren Op een rustige maandagmiddag ontmoet ik Frans van Lunteren. We spreken elkaar op de VU, waar hij juist het laatste lege vergaderhokje tussen de flexplekken (‘geen goede ontwikkeling’) weet te bemachtigen. Ons gesprek zal regelmatig raken aan het thema van goede en minder goede ontwikkelingen, binnen het…
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Making sense of conflicts in science
The history of science is littered with fierce and bitter conflicts. Historians of science have generally shown a strong interest in such personal vendettas. This is not merely because they impart a human interest to their narratives, but also because of their revelatory nature. These clashes often bring into the open thoughts and feelings that…
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The missing history of the ‘laws of nature’
As historians, we historicize. Indeed, it is our firm belief that everything in our world is open to historical analysis and that, in the case of a job well done, the result will invariably be a deeper understanding of the object of our study. In fact, the more timeless and placeless this object appears to…
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Mediating machines: a proposal for a big picture of the history of science
Over the last few decades there have been several calls for a ‘big picture’ of the history of science. The gradual fragmentation – or even dismissal – of older grand narratives, accelerated by the cultural turn, is increasingly seen as problematic. There is a general need for a concise overview of the rise of modern…