Synopses & Reviews
A History of Science in Society: A Reader, edited by Andrew Ede and Lesley B. Cormack, is a collection of primary source documents and an excellent companion to their text by the same name. It includes scientific papers as well as more popular and cultural expressions of scientific ideas from the likes of Margaret Cavendish, Albert Einstein, and Rachel Carson. Readings from the pre-Scientific Revolution, the Middle Ages, the Islamic world, and women scientists are also well represented in this collection. Each of the over 90 readings begins with a short description providing historical context, but readers may also refer to the authors' companion text. Illustrations and maps integral to the readings are included, along with a Chronology of Readings and a Topical Index.
Synopsis
Beginning with the birth of science in the ancient Greeks, the collection contains just about every major textual source in the growth of science, not shying away from recent controversies in the political and social place of contemporary science.