279675 Daniel Helsing

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

279675 Daniel Helsing The Literary Construction of the Universe Narratives of Truth, Transcendence, and Triumph in Contemporary Anglo-American Popularizations of Physics and Astronomy Helsing, Daniel 2019 Document Version: Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Link to publication Citation for published version (APA): Helsing, D. (2019). The Literary Construction of the Universe: Narratives of Truth, Transcendence, and Triumph in Contemporary Anglo-American Popularizations of Physics and Astronomy. Centre for Languages and Literature, Lund University. Total number of authors: 1 General rights Unless other specific re-use rights are stated the following general rights apply: Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal Read more about Creative commons licenses: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/ Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. LUND UNIVERSITY PO Box 117 221 00 Lund +46 46-222 00 00 The Literary Construction of the Universe “Science” is a historically variable, connotationally rich, and contested term. No single institution, individual, or group of individuals can claim definitional authority over its meaning. The use of “science” carries weight and credibility in society, at least in many sectors. Yet while “science” is a contested term over which no one can claim definitional authority, science is defined and carried out in practice around the world daily. It is defined in dictionaries and mission statements by scientific organizations, in education guidelines and high school curricula, in media coverage and science fiction novels, and in popular science books. In this dissertation, Daniel Helsing analyzes the construction of the universe, science, and human­ kind in contemporary mainstream Anglo­American popularizations of physics and astronomy. He shows that popularizers use literary techniques and rhetorical strategies to construct and explain science, to represent the universe and humankind’s place in the universe, and to evoke aesthetic and emotional responses in their readers. DANIEL HELSING The Literary Construction of the Universe Narratives of Truth, Transcendence, and Triumph in Contemporary Popularizations of Physics and Astronomy 9 Daniel Helsing 789178 CRITICA LITTERARUM LUNDENSIS 952373 Centre for Languages and Literature ISBN 978-91-7895-237-3 CRITICA LITTERARUM LUNDENSIS 18 ISSN 1651-2367 18 The Literary Construction of the Universe “Science” is a historically variable, connotationally rich, and contested term. No single institution, individual, or group of individuals can claim definitional authority over its meaning. The use of “science” carries weight and credibility in society, at least in many sectors. Yet while “science” is a contested term over which no one can claim definitional authority, science is defined and carried out in practice around the world daily. It is defined in dictionaries and mission statements by scientific organizations, in education guidelines and high school curricula, in media coverage and science fiction novels, and in popular science books. In this dissertation, Daniel Helsing analyzes the construction of the universe, science, and human­ kind in contemporary mainstream Anglo­American popularizations of physics and astronomy. He shows that popularizers use literary techniques and rhetorical strategies to construct and explain science, to represent the universe and humankind’s place in the universe, and to evoke aesthetic and emotional responses in their readers. DANIEL HELSING The Literary Construction of the Universe Narratives of Truth, Transcendence, and Triumph in Contemporary Popularizations of Physics and Astronomy 9 Daniel Helsing 789178 CRITICA LITTERARUM LUNDENSIS 952373 Centre for Languages and Literature ISBN 978-91-7895-237-3 CRITICA LITTERARUM LUNDENSIS 18 ISSN 1651-2367 18 THE LITERARY CONSTRUCTION OF THE UNIVERSE The Literary Construction of the Universe Narratives of Truth, Transcendence, and Triumph in Contemporary Anglo-American Popularizations of Physics and Astronomy Daniel Helsing Division of Comparative Literature Centre for Languages and Literature CRITICA LITTERARUM LUNDENSIS 18 Cover image: Rembrandt, Faust in His Study, c. 1652 Cover design: Staffan Hellkvist, Media-Tryck © Daniel Helsing, Centre for Languages and Literature ISBN 978-91-7895-237-3 (print) ISBN 978-91-7895-238-0 (pdf) ISSN 1651-2367 Printed in Sweden by Media-Tryck, Lund University Lund 2019 Watched the scientists throw up their hands, conceding “progress will resolve it all.” —Bad Religion, “Faith Alone” (1990) Acronyms AAAS—American Association for the Advancement of Science AIP—American Institute of Physics ASLE—Association for the Study of Literature and the Environment BBC—British Broadcasting Corporation BSA—British Science Association BSLS—British Society for Literature and Science CERN—Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire (European Organiza- tion for Nuclear Research) CNN—Cable News Network ERC—European Research Council ID—Intelligent Design LHC—Large Hadron Collider NAS—National Academy of Sciences NASA—National Aeronautics and Space Administration NASEM—National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine NPR—National Public Radio NSB—National Science Board NSF—National Science Foundation PBS—Public Broadcasting Service SLAC—Stanford Linear Accelerator Center SLSA—Society for Literature, Science and the Arts SSK—Sociology of Scientific Knowledge STEM—Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics STS—Science and Technology Studies TEUSH—Triumphant Epic of the Universe, Science, and Humankind WCD—Western Culturally Dominant WEIRD—Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic Contents Introduction..................................................................................................13 The Term “Popular Science”............................................................... 18 The Emergence of Western Science and the Challenges of Popularization......................................................... 20 Aim and Research Questions.............................................................. 27 Theory, Method, and Material............................................................. 28 Theoretical Frameworks and Concepts....................................... 28 Selection Criteria, Scope, and Delimitation................................ 36 Previous Research........................................................................47 Outline of the Dissertation.................................................................. 49 1. Science and Popularization: Historical Perspectives........................... 51 “Popular Science” before the “Scientific Revolution”........................ 53 “Science”..................................................................................... 53 From Ancient Greece to Early Modern Europe...........................56 1632–1834: From Natural Philosophy to Science............................... 58 1834–1945: The Consolidation and Professionalization of Science... 63 1945–: The Growth of Science and the Popular Science Boom......... 69 Popular Science and Gender........................................................ 74 2. Romanticism Meets Science: Revolt, Reform, and Appropriation..... 77 Romanticism and the Disenchantment of the World...........................80 Romantic Science: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.............................. 85 Romantic Scientists? Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein............................ 88 The Romanticization of Science: Cosmos: A Personal Voyage..........90 3. Notions of “Science”: Contemporary Perspectives and Definitions... 97 Academic Disciplines and Cultural Debates....................................... 98 Pursuing the Essence of Science: Philosophy of Science............98 The Emergence of Constructivism: Science and Technology Studies................................................................... 102 The Two Cultures and the Science Wars...................................104 Routine Definitions........................................................................... 107 Dictionaries................................................................................ 107 Scientific Organizations and Government Agencies................. 110 Public Understanding of Science Surveys................................. 111 Science Education......................................................................112 Intelligent Design versus Science in Court............................... 116 The Meaning of Science.................................................................... 119 Approaching Consensus?.......................................................... 119 Mundane and Transcendent Meaning........................................122 An Absence of Values?............................................................. 125 4.The “Science” in Popular Science: Boundary Work, Idealization, and Scientism..................................................................
Recommended publications
  • The Planetary Report Page 23 -Help Design a Mars Rover­ Planetary Society
    A Publication of THEPLANE~ SOCIETY o o • o -e ¢ 0 0 Board of Directors FROIVI THE CARL SAGAN BRUCE MURRAY EDITOR President Vice President Director. Laboratory for Planetary Professor of Planetary Studies, Cornell University Science, California InsUtute of Technology LOUIS FRIEDMAN Executive Director HENRY TANNER California Institute THOMAS O. PAINE of Technology s we go to press, the Phobos 2 space­ proach to Earth provided opportunities to Former Administrator; NASA Chairman, National JOSEPH RYAN A craft is orbiting Mars, preparing to ren­ re-examine its familiar face, and to recall Commission on Space O'Mefveny & Myers dezvous with the moon Phobos. This com­ the work of earlier observers. Board of Advisors plex craft will send two landers to Phobos' Page 13 -The Concept of Extraterres­ DIANE ACKERMAN JOHN M. LOGSDON surface, irradiate it with a laser to measure trial Intelligence: An Emerging Cosmol­ poet and author Director. Space Policy Institute George Washington University its composition and conduct many other ogy?-Is the search for extraterrestrial in­ ISAAC ASIMOV author HANS MARK experiments that should greatly expand our telligence a truly scientifIc endeavor or an Chancellor. RICHARD BERENDZEN University of Texas System understanding of this strange, asteroid-like exercise in metaphysics? A new cosmology, President, American University JAMES MICHENER satellite. JACQUES BLAMONT aurhor based on centuries of thinking about the Scientific Consultant, Centre National dEludes Spa/isles, MARVIN MINSKY As our readers know, Phobos is the fIrst universe, may be unfolding as we search for France Donner Professor of Science. Massachusetts Institute mission in an ambitious Soviet program to signs of other civilizations.
    [Show full text]
  • Great Physicists
    Great Physicists Great Physicists The Life and Times of Leading Physicists from Galileo to Hawking William H. Cropper 1 2001 1 Oxford New York Athens Auckland Bangkok Bogota´ Buenos Aires Cape Town Chennai Dar es Salaam Delhi Florence HongKong Istanbul Karachi Kolkata Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Mumbai Nairobi Paris Sao Paulo Shanghai Singapore Taipei Tokyo Toronto Warsaw and associated companies in Berlin Ibadan Copyright ᭧ 2001 by Oxford University Press, Inc. Published by Oxford University Press, Inc. 198 Madison Avenue, New York, New York 10016 Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of Oxford University Press. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Cropper, William H. Great Physicists: the life and times of leadingphysicists from Galileo to Hawking/ William H. Cropper. p. cm Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0–19–513748–5 1. Physicists—Biography. I. Title. QC15 .C76 2001 530'.092'2—dc21 [B] 2001021611 987654321 Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper Contents Preface ix Acknowledgments xi I. Mechanics Historical Synopsis 3 1. How the Heavens Go 5 Galileo Galilei 2. A Man Obsessed 18 Isaac Newton II. Thermodynamics Historical Synopsis 41 3. A Tale of Two Revolutions 43 Sadi Carnot 4. On the Dark Side 51 Robert Mayer 5. A Holy Undertaking59 James Joule 6. Unities and a Unifier 71 Hermann Helmholtz 7. The Scientist as Virtuoso 78 William Thomson 8.
    [Show full text]
  • CONTENTS Group Membership, January 2002 2
    CONTENTS Group Membership, January 2002 2 APPENDIX 1: Report on Activities 2000-2002 & Proposed Programme 2002-2006 4 1OPAL 4 2H1 7 3 ATLAS 11 4 BABAR 19 5DØ 24 6 e-Science 29 7 Geant4 32 8 Blue Sky and applied R&D 33 9 Computing 36 10 Activities in Support of Public Understanding of Science 38 11 Collaborations and contacts with Industry 41 12 Other Research Related Activities by Group Members 41 13 Staff Management and Implementation of Concordat 41 APPENDIX 2: Request for Funds 1. Support staff 43 2. Travel 55 3. Consumables 56 4. Equipment 58 APPENDIX 3: Publications 61 1 Group Membership, May 2002 Academic Staff Dr John Allison Senior Lecturer Professor Roger Barlow Professor Dr Ian Duerdoth Senior Lecturer Dr Mike Ibbotson Reader Dr George Lafferty Reader Dr Fred Loebinger Senior Lecturer Professor Robin Marshall Professor, Group Leader Dr Terry Wyatt Reader Dr A N Other (from Sept 2002) Lecturer Fellows Dr Brian Cox PPARC Advanced Fellow Dr Graham Wilson (leave of absence for 2 yrs) PPARC Advanced Fellow James Weatherall PPARC Fellow PPARC funded Research Associates∗ Dr Nick Malden Dr Joleen Pater Dr Michiel Sanders Dr Ben Waugh Dr Jenny Williams PPARC funded Responsive Research Associate Dr Liang Han PPARC funded e-Science Research Associates Steve Dallison core e-Science Sergey Dolgobrodov core e-Science Gareth Fairey EU/PPARC DataGrid Alessandra Forti GridPP Andrew McNab EU/PPARC DataGrid PPARC funded Support Staff∗ Phil Dunn (replacement) Technician Andrew Elvin Technician Dr Joe Foster Physicist Programmer Julian Freestone
    [Show full text]
  • Young Alumni Build on Early Success
    OFARIZONASTATEUNIVERSITY Ahead of their time THEMAGAZINE Young alumni build on early success “It’s Time” for a new look for Sun Devil Athletics Coping with technological change Playwrights explore drama in the desert MAY 2011 | VOL. 14 NO. 4 ASU ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD AND NATIONAL COUNCIL 2010–2011 OFFICERS CHAIR Chris Spinella ’83 B.S. CHAIR-ELECT George Diaz Jr. ’96 B.A., ’99 M.P.A. TREASURER President’s Letter Robert Boschee ’83 B.S., ’85 M.B.A. This month, we celebrated the achievements PAST CHAIR of the Class of 2011 at Spring Commencement. Bill Kavan ’92 B.A. This year’s graduating class is filled with PRESIDENT thousands of talented, accomplished students, many of whom have not only studied the top Christine Wilkinson ’66 B.A.E., ’76 Ph.D. challenges in their professions, but taken the first steps toward being part of the solution to BOARD OF DIRECTORS* those challenges. We also have welcomed back Barbara Clark ’84 M.Ed. the Class of 1961 whose members participated in Commencement and other Andy Hanshaw ’87 B.S. activities provided by the Alumni Association as part of Golden Reunion, the 50th anniversary of their graduation from ASU. This is such a special time as Barbara Hoffnagle ’83 M.S.E. we bring back alumni to the university to see what ASU looks like today, Ivan Johnson ’73 B.A., ’86 M.B.A. tour some of the new facilities, learn about new programs and share their Tara McCollum Plese ’78 B.A., ’84 M.P.A. fondest college memories.
    [Show full text]
  • Should Earth Get Demoted from Planet Status Just Like Pluto?
    IOSR Journal of Applied Physics (IOSR-JAP) e-ISSN: 2278-4861.Volume 10, Issue 3 Ver. I (May. – June. 2018), PP 15-19 www.iosrjournals.org Should Earth Get Demoted From Planet Status Just Like Pluto? Dipak Nath Assistant Professor, HOD, Department of Physics, Sao Chang Govt College, Tuensang;Nagaland, India. Corresponding Author: Dipak Nath Abstract: Clyde.W. Tombough discovered Pluto on march13, 1930. From its discovery in 1930 until 2006, Pluto was classified as Planet. In the late 20th and early 21st century, many objects similar to Pluto were discovered in the outer solar system, notably the scattered disc object Eris in 2005, which is 27% more massive than Pluto. On august-24, 2006, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) defined what it means to be a Planet within the solar system. This definition excluded Pluto as a Planet added it as a member of the new category “Dwarf Planet” along with Eris and Ceres. There were many reasons why Pluto got demoted to dwarf planet status, one of which was that it couldn't clear its orbit of asteroids and other debris. But Earth's orbit is also crowded...too crowded for Earth to be a planet? Earth is indeed in a very crowded orbit, surrounded by tens of thousands of asteroids and other objects. The presence of so many asteroids seems like a serious problem for Earth's claim that it has cleared its neighborhood. And Earth isn't alone in this problem - Jupiter is surrounded by some 100,000 Trojan asteroids, and there's similar clutter around Mars and Neptune.
    [Show full text]
  • Coulomb Gluons and Colour Evolution
    Coulomb gluons and colour evolution René Ángeles-Martínez in collaboration with Jeff Forshaw Mike Seymour JHEP 1512 (2015) 091 DPyC, BUAP & arXiv:1602.00623 (accepted for publication) 2016 In this talk: Progress towards including the colour interference of soft gluons in partons showers. PDF Hard process (Q) Parton Shower: Approx: Collinear + Soft radiation Q qµ ⇤ QCD Underlying event Hadronization Hadron-Hadron collision, Soper (CTEQ School) … 2 Motivation • Why? Increase precision of theoretical predictions for the LHC • Is this necessary? Yes, for particular non-inclusive observables. • Are those relevant to search for new physics? Yes, these can tell us about the (absence of) colour of the production mechanism (couplings). 3 Outline • Coulomb gluons, collinear factorisation & colour interference. • Concrete effect: super-leading-logs. • Including colour interference in partons showers. (Also see JHEP 07, 119 (2015), arXiv:1312.2448 & 1412.3967) 4 One-loop in the soft approximation kµ Q ⌧ ij Hard subprocess is a vector Colour matrices acting on 2 colour + spin d d k ↵ pi pj ig2T T − · 2 s i · j (2⇡)d [p k i0][ p k i0][k2+i0] Z j · ± − i · ± ↵ i : i0 i :+i0 i : i0 − − j : i0 j :+i0 j :+i0 − 2 ↵ Introduction: one-loop soft gluon correction After contour integration: d4k (2⇡)δ(k2)✓(k0) (2⇡)2δ(p k)δ( p k) g2µ2✏T T p p + iδ˜ i · − j · 2 s i · j i · j (2⇡)4 [p k][p k] ij 2[k2] Z j · i · ↵ (On-shell gluon: Purely real) (Coulomb gluon: Purely imaginary) 1ifi, j in , ˜ δij = 81ifi, j out , <>0 otherwise.
    [Show full text]
  • "Goodness Without Godness", with Professor Phil Zuckerman
    The HSSB Secular Circular – March 2020 1 Newsletter of the Humanist Society of Santa Barbara www.SBHumanists.org MARCH 2020 Please join us for our March Speaker… How Foreign Policy Really Works: Diplomats’ Tricks of the Trade Hugh Neighbour spent four fascinating decades working around the globe as a U.S. diplomat and as a naval officer. Examine how diplomacy actually works in the real world. The talk will be followed by open discussion and a lively Q & A. Our Speaker: During his long career, Hugh Neighbour specialized in political and economic affairs, working on U.S. Foreign Service Officer (Retired) and Lecturer, Hugh Neighbour multilateral issues, including both arms control and human rights. Hugh's final diplomatic post was as Chief Arms Control Delegate for the U.S. at the OSCE in Vienna, responsible for conventional arms control across Europe, Central Asia, and North America. He was assigned to Germany when the Berlin Wall fell and Germany unified, to Bolivia when an uprising cut off food supplies for weeks, to Panama as General Noriega stole an election, and to Australia when the ANZUS treaty was fundamentally altered. He was stationed in London during the height of the Cold War, in Stockholm when non-aligned Sweden helped NATO intervene in Bosnia, and in the Fiji Islands where he ran U.S. relations with 8 island countries and territories. He was awarded the Secretary of State's Career Achievement Award. Prior to this, Hugh was a bridge watch officer in the U.S. Navy. After service at sea on a missile cruiser, he served ashore in the Middle East.
    [Show full text]
  • Third Wave of Science Studies: Studies of Expertise and Experience H.M
    Social Studies of Science http://sss.sagepub.com/ The Third Wave of Science Studies: Studies of Expertise and Experience H.M. Collins and Robert Evans Social Studies of Science 2002 32: 235 DOI: 10.1177/0306312702032002003 The online version of this article can be found at: http://sss.sagepub.com/content/32/2/235 Published by: http://www.sagepublications.com Additional services and information for Social Studies of Science can be found at: Email Alerts: http://sss.sagepub.com/cgi/alerts Subscriptions: http://sss.sagepub.com/subscriptions Reprints: http://www.sagepub.com/journalsReprints.nav Permissions: http://www.sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav >> Version of Record - Apr 1, 2002 What is This? Downloaded from sss.sagepub.com at UNIV OF RHODE ISLAND LIBRARY on December 9, 2013 DISCUSSION PAPER ABSTRACT Science studies has shown us why science and technology cannot always solve technical problems in the public domain. In particular, the speed of political decision-making is faster than the speed of scientific consensus formation. A predominant motif over recent years has been the need to extend the domain of technical decision-making beyond the technically qualified ´elite, so as to enhance political legitimacy. We argue, however, that the ‘Problem of Legitimacy’ has been replaced by the ‘Problem of Extension’ – that is, by a tendency to dissolve the boundary between experts and the public so that there are no longer any grounds for limiting the indefinite extension of technical decision-making rights. We argue that a Third Wave of Science Studies – Studies of Expertise and Experience (SEE) – is needed to solve the Problem of Extension.
    [Show full text]
  • 1 Ethers, Religion and Politics In
    ORE Open Research Exeter TITLE Ethers, religion and politics in late-Victorian physics: beyond the Wynne thesis AUTHORS Noakes, Richard JOURNAL History of Science DEPOSITED IN ORE 16 June 2008 This version available at http://hdl.handle.net/10036/30065 COPYRIGHT AND REUSE Open Research Exeter makes this work available in accordance with publisher policies. A NOTE ON VERSIONS The version presented here may differ from the published version. If citing, you are advised to consult the published version for pagination, volume/issue and date of publication ETHERS, RELIGION AND POLITICS IN LATE-VICTORIAN PHYSICS: BEYOND THE WYNNE THESIS RICHARD NOAKES 1. INTRODUCTION In the past thirty years historians have demonstrated that the ether of physics was one of the most flexible of all concepts in the natural sciences. Cantor and Hodge’s seminal collection of essays of 1981 showed how during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries British and European natural philosophers invented a range of ethers to fulfil diverse functions from the chemical and physiological to the physical and theological.1 In religious discourse, for example, Cantor identified “animate” and spiritual ethers invented by neo-Platonists, mystics and some Anglicans to provide a mechanism for supporting their belief in Divine immanence in the cosmos; material, mechanistic and contact-action ethers which appealed to atheists and Low Churchmen because such media enabled activity in the universe without constant and direct Divine intervention; and semi-spiritual/semi-material ethers that appealed to dualists seeking a mechanism for understanding the interaction of mind and matter. 2 The third type proved especially attractive to Oliver Lodge and several other late-Victorian physicists who claimed that the extraordinary physical properties of the ether made it a possible mediator between matter and spirit, and a weapon in their fight against materialistic conceptions of the cosmos.
    [Show full text]
  • Download Report 2010-12
    RESEARCH REPORt 2010—2012 MAX-PLANCK-INSTITUT FÜR WISSENSCHAFTSGESCHICHTE Max Planck Institute for the History of Science Cover: Aurora borealis paintings by William Crowder, National Geographic (1947). The International Geophysical Year (1957–8) transformed research on the aurora, one of nature’s most elusive and intensely beautiful phenomena. Aurorae became the center of interest for the big science of powerful rockets, complex satellites and large group efforts to understand the magnetic and charged particle environment of the earth. The auroral visoplot displayed here provided guidance for recording observations in a standardized form, translating the sublime aesthetics of pictorial depictions of aurorae into the mechanical aesthetics of numbers and symbols. Most of the portait photographs were taken by Skúli Sigurdsson RESEARCH REPORT 2010—2012 MAX-PLANCK-INSTITUT FÜR WISSENSCHAFTSGESCHICHTE Max Planck Institute for the History of Science Introduction The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science (MPIWG) is made up of three Departments, each administered by a Director, and several Independent Research Groups, each led for five years by an outstanding junior scholar. Since its foundation in 1994 the MPIWG has investigated fundamental questions of the history of knowl- edge from the Neolithic to the present. The focus has been on the history of the natu- ral sciences, but recent projects have also integrated the history of technology and the history of the human sciences into a more panoramic view of the history of knowl- edge. Of central interest is the emergence of basic categories of scientific thinking and practice as well as their transformation over time: examples include experiment, ob- servation, normalcy, space, evidence, biodiversity or force.
    [Show full text]
  • European Modernism and the Resident Theatre Movement: The
    European Modernism and the Resident Theatre Movement: The Transformation of American Theatre between 1950 and 1970 Sarah Guthu A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Washington 2013 Reading Committee: Thomas E Postlewait, Chair Sarah Bryant-Bertail Stefka G Mihaylova Program Authorized to Offer Degree: School of Drama © Copyright 2013 Sarah Guthu University of Washington Abstract European Modernism and the Resident Theatre Movement: The Transformation of American Theatre between 1950 and 1970 Sarah Guthu Chair of the Supervisory Committee: Dr. Thomas E Postlewait School of Drama This dissertation offers a cultural history of the arrival of the second wave of European modernist drama in America in the postwar period, 1950-1970. European modernist drama developed in two qualitatively distinct stages, and these two stages subsequently arrived in the United States in two distinct waves. The first stage of European modernist drama, characterized predominantly by the genres of naturalism and realism, emerged in Europe during the four decades from the 1890s to the 1920s. This first wave of European modernism reached the United States in the late 1910s and throughout the 1920s, coming to prominence through productions in New York City. The second stage of European modernism dates from 1930 through the 1960s and is characterized predominantly by the absurdist and epic genres. Unlike the first wave, the dramas of the second wave of European modernism were not first produced in New York. Instead, these plays were often given their premieres in smaller cities across the United States: San Francisco, Seattle, Cleveland, Hartford, Boston, and New Haven, in the regional theatres which were rapidly proliferating across the United States.
    [Show full text]
  • The Transient Gravitational-Wave Sky
    Home Search Collections Journals About Contact us My IOPscience The transient gravitational-wave sky This content has been downloaded from IOPscience. Please scroll down to see the full text. 2013 Class. Quantum Grav. 30 193002 (http://iopscience.iop.org/0264-9381/30/19/193002) View the table of contents for this issue, or go to the journal homepage for more Download details: IP Address: 194.94.224.254 This content was downloaded on 23/01/2014 at 11:14 Please note that terms and conditions apply. IOP PUBLISHING CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM GRAVITY Class. Quantum Grav. 30 (2013) 193002 (45pp) doi:10.1088/0264-9381/30/19/193002 TOPICAL REVIEW The transient gravitational-wave sky Nils Andersson1, John Baker2, Krzystof Belczynski3,4, Sebastiano Bernuzzi5, Emanuele Berti6,7, Laura Cadonati8, Pablo Cerda-Dur´ an´ 9, James Clark8, Marc Favata10, Lee Samuel Finn11, Chris Fryer12, Bruno Giacomazzo13, Jose Antonio Gonzalez´ 14, Martin Hendry15, Ik Siong Heng15, Stefan Hild16, Nathan Johnson-McDaniel5, Peter Kalmus17, Sergei Klimenko18, Shiho Kobayashi19, Kostas Kokkotas20, Pablo Laguna21, Luis Lehner22, Janna Levin23, Steve Liebling24, Andrew MacFadyen25, Ilya Mandel26, Szabolcs Marka27, Zsuzsa Marka28, David Neilsen29, Paul O’Brien30, Rosalba Perna13, Jocelyn Read31, Christian Reisswig7, Carl Rodriguez32, Max Ruffert33, Erik Schnetter22,34,35, Antony Searle17, Peter Shawhan36, Deirdre Shoemaker21, Alicia Soderberg37, Ulrich Sperhake7,38,39, Patrick Sutton40, Nial Tanvir30, Michal Was41 and Stan Whitcomb17 1 School of Mathematics, University of Southampton,
    [Show full text]