In the Land of Marvels : Science, Fabricated Realities, and Industrial Espionage in the Age of the Grand Tour
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| Title: | In the Land of Marvels : Science, Fabricated Realities, and Industrial Espionage in the Age of the Grand Tour |
|---|---|
| Description: | How a journey through Italy casts light on secrets, stereotypes, and the manipulation of information in eighteenth-century science.Winner of the Paul Bunge Prize by the German Chemical SocietyIn 1749, the celebrated French physicist Jean-Antoine Nollet set out on a journey through Italy to solve an international controversy over the medical uses of electricity. At the end of his nine-month tour, he published a highly influential account of his philosophical battle with his Italian counterparts, discrediting them as misguided devotees of the marvelous. Paola Bertucci's In the Land of Marvels brilliantly reveals the mysteries of Nollet's journey, uncovering a subterranean world of secretive and ambitious intelligence gathering masked as scientific inquiry.The advent of electricity was a pivotal phenomenon not only in the history of physical experimentation, but also in the cultivation of popular scientific interest. Nollet's journey was supposedly inspired by the need to investigate, and subsequently report on, claims of the use of electrified'medicated tubes'by their Italian inventor Gianfrancesco Pivati. Motivated by economic interests in the silk industry, Nollet's journey was in fact an undercover mission commissioned by the French state to discover the secrets of Italian silk manufacture and possibly supplant its international success. The event that sparked the medical controversy—the unusual cure of a bishop—was a complete fabrication. Bertucci insightfully contrasts published accounts of the event with private documents and discusses how eighteenth-century scientists published fictional events and results to bolster their careers, ultimately leading to long-lasting misrepresentations of scientific practice and enduring stereotypes. In the Land of Marvels reveals the constellation of historical actors, from reputed physicists to travel writers and electrical amateurs, who manipulated information to gain authority and prestige. |
| Authors: | Paola Bertucci |
| Resource Type: | eBook. |
| Subjects: | Knowledge, Sociology of, Grand tours (Education), Travelers' writings, French--History and criticism, Communication in science--Europe--History--18th century, Science and state--Europe--History--18th century, Scientists--Europe--Biography |
| Categories: | SCIENCE / History, HISTORY / Europe / Italy, HISTORY / Social History |
| Database: | eBook Collection (EBSCOhost) |
| FullText | Links: – Type: ebook-pdf – Type: ebook-epub Text: Availability: 0 |
|---|---|
| Header | DbId: nlebk DbLabel: eBook Collection (EBSCOhost) An: 3564389 RelevancyScore: 1116 AccessLevel: 6 PubType: eBook PubTypeId: ebook PreciseRelevancyScore: 1116.28857421875 |
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| Items | – Name: Title Label: Title Group: Ti Data: In the Land of Marvels : Science, Fabricated Realities, and Industrial Espionage in the Age of the Grand Tour – Name: Abstract Label: Description Group: Ab Data: How a journey through Italy casts light on secrets, stereotypes, and the manipulation of information in eighteenth-century science.Winner of the Paul Bunge Prize by the German Chemical SocietyIn 1749, the celebrated French physicist Jean-Antoine Nollet set out on a journey through Italy to solve an international controversy over the medical uses of electricity. At the end of his nine-month tour, he published a highly influential account of his philosophical battle with his Italian counterparts, discrediting them as misguided devotees of the marvelous. Paola Bertucci's In the Land of Marvels brilliantly reveals the mysteries of Nollet's journey, uncovering a subterranean world of secretive and ambitious intelligence gathering masked as scientific inquiry.The advent of electricity was a pivotal phenomenon not only in the history of physical experimentation, but also in the cultivation of popular scientific interest. Nollet's journey was supposedly inspired by the need to investigate, and subsequently report on, claims of the use of electrified'medicated tubes'by their Italian inventor Gianfrancesco Pivati. Motivated by economic interests in the silk industry, Nollet's journey was in fact an undercover mission commissioned by the French state to discover the secrets of Italian silk manufacture and possibly supplant its international success. The event that sparked the medical controversy—the unusual cure of a bishop—was a complete fabrication. Bertucci insightfully contrasts published accounts of the event with private documents and discusses how eighteenth-century scientists published fictional events and results to bolster their careers, ultimately leading to long-lasting misrepresentations of scientific practice and enduring stereotypes. In the Land of Marvels reveals the constellation of historical actors, from reputed physicists to travel writers and electrical amateurs, who manipulated information to gain authority and prestige. – Name: Author Label: Authors Group: Au Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Paola+Bertucci%22">Paola Bertucci</searchLink> – Name: TypePub Label: Resource Type Group: TypPub Data: eBook. – Name: Subject Label: Subjects Group: Su Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Knowledge%2C+Sociology+of%22">Knowledge, Sociology of</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Grand+tours+%28Education%29%22">Grand tours (Education)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Travelers'+writings%2C+French--History+and+criticism%22">Travelers' writings, French--History and criticism</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Communication+in+science--Europe--History--18th+century%22">Communication in science--Europe--History--18th century</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Science+and+state--Europe--History--18th+century%22">Science and state--Europe--History--18th century</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Scientists--Europe--Biography%22">Scientists--Europe--Biography</searchLink> – Name: SubjectBISAC Label: Categories Group: Su Data: <searchLink fieldCode="ZK" term="%22SCIENCE+%2F+History%22">SCIENCE / History</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="ZK" term="%22HISTORY+%2F+Europe+%2F+Italy%22">HISTORY / Europe / Italy</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="ZK" term="%22HISTORY+%2F+Social+History%22">HISTORY / Social History</searchLink> |
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| RecordInfo | BibRecord: BibEntity: Classifications: – Code: 501.4 Scheme: ddc Type: prePub Languages: – Code: eng Text: English Subjects: – SubjectFull: Knowledge, Sociology of Type: general – SubjectFull: Grand tours (Education) Type: general – SubjectFull: Travelers' writings, French--History and criticism Type: general – SubjectFull: Communication in science--Europe--History--18th century Type: general – SubjectFull: Science and state--Europe--History--18th century Type: general – SubjectFull: Scientists--Europe--Biography Type: general Titles: – TitleFull: In the Land of Marvels : Science, Fabricated Realities, and Industrial Espionage in the Age of the Grand Tour Type: main BibRelationships: HasContributorRelationships: – PersonEntity: Name: NameFull: Paola Bertucci – PersonEntity: Name: NameFull: Paola Bertucci IsPartOfRelationships: – BibEntity: Dates: – D: 01 M: 01 Type: published Y: 2023 – D: 10 M: 10 Type: profile Y: 2023 Identifiers: – Type: isbn-print Value: 9781421447100 – Type: isbn-electronic Value: 9781421447117 Titles: – TitleFull: In the Land of Marvels : Science, Fabricated Realities, and Industrial Espionage in the Age of the Grand Tour Type: main |
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