MAX-PLANCK-INSTITUT FÜR WISSENSCHAFTSGESCHICHTE Max Planck Institute for the History of Science

Event

Apr 16, 2024
Approaching, Translating, and Engaging Cosmology

What does “cosmology” mean when historians of science refer to the term? Some historians have shown that the thought and practice of modern science constitutes a cosmology. Some have argued that our present cosmological concepts arisen from modern science have shaped the language of progress or phenomena such as global political economies. Some also use cosmology to holistically describe systems of thought, worldviews, or perspectives that may have little to do with principles ordered precisely around an understanding of naturally-occurring bodies. In order to deepen an understanding of multiple cosmologies, this roundtable engages three prominent scholars in fields such as Indigenous studies, art history, folk studies, and the history and philosophy of science.

Speakers

  • Melissa K. Nelson (Arizona State University)

    Melissa K. Nelson (Turtle Mountain Chippewa), PhD, is an Indigenous ecologist and award-winning scholar-activist and media-maker. She is a professor of Indigenous Sustainability at Arizona State University (ASU). She is the founding executive director of The Cultural Conservancy (TCC), a Native-led organization she directed from 1993 to 2021, and currently serves as their board chair. Her work is dedicated to Indigenous rights, protecting biocultural heritage and Indigenous food systems, elevating Indigenous knowledges and land stewardship, and renewing community health and cultural arts through higher education, activism, and philanthropy. She is the co-founder and leader of the Global Future Laboratory’s Indigenous Knowledges Focal Area and Principal Investigator for a National Science Foundation grant focused on Racial Equity in STEM. Her research examines the epistemological roots of the global polycrisis and Indigenous strategies of regeneration. Dr. Nelson’s publications include Original Instructions – Indigenous Teachings for A Sustainable Future (2008) and Traditional Ecological Knowledge: Learning from Indigenous Practices for Environmental Sustainability (2018).

    Dr. Nelson’s Podcast: The Native Seed Pod

    Dr. Nelson on Social Media: Twitter, LinkedIn

  • Francesca Rochberg (UC Berkeley)

    Francesca Rochberg is Catherine and William L. Magistretti Distinguished Professor of Near Eastern Studies Emerita in the Department of Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures, the Graduate Group in Ancient History and Mediterranean Archaeology and the Office for the History of Science and Technology. She is a John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Fellow, a Guggenheim Fellow, and a member of the American Philosophical Society. In 2023 she was awarded the California Institute of Technology’s (Caltech) Francis Bacon Award in the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology.  Her works have focused on the astral sciences of Babylonia and Assyria, including editions of primary texts. She is the author of Before Nature: Cuneiform Knowledge and the History of Science (University of Chicago Press, 2016) and Worldmaking and Cuneiform Antiquity: An Anthropology of Science (CUP 2023 forthcoming).

  • John Tresch (Warburg Institute)

    John Tresch is Professor of History of Art, Science, and Folk Practice at the Warburg Institute, University of London. He has published widely on science, technology and the arts including work on cosmology and practices of collective attention. He is the author of The Romantic Machine: Utopian Science and Technology after Napoleon (2012) and The Reason for the Darkness of the Night: Edgar Allan Poe and the Forging of Modern Science (2021), and is editor-in-chief of the History of Anthropology Review. His first degree is in anthropology from the University of Chicago and he studied social sciences in Paris (ENS/EHESS and Ecole des Mines) before receiving his PhD from Cambridge in History and Philosophy of Science. From 2005-2017 he taught at the University of Pennsylvania. His current book project, Cosmograms: How to do Things with Worlds (Chicago, 2025) approaches the history of science through images of the universe.

Organizer(s)
Related Project(s)
Address
Harnack House, Conference Venue of the Max Planck Society, Ihnestraße 16-20, 14195 Berlin, Germany
Contact and Registration

The MPIWG Institute’s Colloquium 2023–24 is open to all. Academics, students, and members of the public are all welcome to attend, listen, and participate in the discussion. This is a hybrid event. No registration required for in-person participants. Those who cannot join in person may register via the Dept. III Office event_dept3@mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de and will receive a zoom link. 

INSTITUTE'S COLLOQUIUM 2023–24:

This event is part of the MPIWG's Institute's Colloquium 2023–24 series, dedicated to showcasing the wide spectrum of research themes being pursued at the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science. 

 

View Program
2024-04-16T14:00:00SAVE IN I-CAL 2024-04-16 14:00:00 2024-04-16 15:30:00 Approaching, Translating, and Engaging Cosmology What does “cosmology” mean when historians of science refer to the term? Some historians have shown that the thought and practice of modern science constitutes a cosmology. Some have argued that our present cosmological concepts arisen from modern science have shaped the language of progress or phenomena such as global political economies. Some also use cosmology to holistically describe systems of thought, worldviews, or perspectives that may have little to do with principles ordered precisely around an understanding of naturally-occurring bodies. In order to deepen an understanding of multiple cosmologies, this roundtable engages three prominent scholars in fields such as Indigenous studies, art history, folk studies, and the history and philosophy of science. Speakers Melissa K. Nelson (Arizona State University) Melissa K. Nelson (Turtle Mountain Chippewa), PhD, is an Indigenous ecologist and award-winning scholar-activist and media-maker. She is a professor of Indigenous Sustainability at Arizona State University (ASU). She is the founding executive director of The Cultural Conservancy (TCC), a Native-led organization she directed from 1993 to 2021, and currently serves as their board chair. Her work is dedicated to Indigenous rights, protecting biocultural heritage and Indigenous food systems, elevating Indigenous knowledges and land stewardship, and renewing community health and cultural arts through higher education, activism, and philanthropy. She is the co-founder and leader of the Global Future Laboratory’s Indigenous Knowledges Focal Area and Principal Investigator for a National Science Foundation grant focused on Racial Equity in STEM. Her research examines the epistemological roots of the global polycrisis and Indigenous strategies of regeneration. Dr. Nelson’s publications include Original Instructions – Indigenous Teachings for A Sustainable Future (2008) and Traditional Ecological Knowledge: Learning from Indigenous Practices for Environmental Sustainability (2018). Dr. Nelson’s Podcast: The Native Seed Pod Dr. Nelson on Social Media: Twitter, LinkedIn Francesca Rochberg (UC Berkeley) Francesca Rochberg is Catherine and William L. Magistretti Distinguished Professor of Near Eastern Studies Emerita in the Department of Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures, the Graduate Group in Ancient History and Mediterranean Archaeology and the Office for the History of Science and Technology. She is a John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Fellow, a Guggenheim Fellow, and a member of the American Philosophical Society. In 2023 she was awarded the California Institute of Technology’s (Caltech) Francis Bacon Award in the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology.  Her works have focused on the astral sciences of Babylonia and Assyria, including editions of primary texts. She is the author of Before Nature: Cuneiform Knowledge and the History of Science (University of Chicago Press, 2016) and Worldmaking and Cuneiform Antiquity: An Anthropology of Science (CUP 2023 forthcoming). John Tresch (Warburg Institute) John Tresch is Professor of History of Art, Science, and Folk Practice at the Warburg Institute, University of London. He has published widely on science, technology and the arts including work on cosmology and practices of collective attention. He is the author of The Romantic Machine: Utopian Science and Technology after Napoleon (2012) and The Reason for the Darkness of the Night: Edgar Allan Poe and the Forging of Modern Science (2021), and is editor-in-chief of the History of Anthropology Review. His first degree is in anthropology from the University of Chicago and he studied social sciences in Paris (ENS/EHESS and Ecole des Mines) before receiving his PhD from Cambridge in History and Philosophy of Science. From 2005-2017 he taught at the University of Pennsylvania. His current book project, Cosmograms: How to do Things with Worlds (Chicago, 2025) approaches the history of science through images of the universe. Harnack House, Conference Venue of the Max Planck Society, Ihnestraße 16-20, 14195 Berlin, Germany Lisa OnagaStamatina Mastorakou Lisa OnagaStamatina Mastorakou Europe/Berlin public