After a period of decline, the last decade has seen a steady increase in interest in the history of science in general and in the history of physics in particular. The reasons for this are varied and not yet clear. However, we can say with certainty that the history of physics, like the history of other scientific disciplines, continually has new features. Dates and figures are no longer of primary importance in establishing priority and prominence (a goal once zealously pursued under the impetus of an exaggerated sense of nationalism). What interests us now is to find out how ideas are born, how they develop, and how they decay to make way for new ideas, which remain in some way related to the ideas and experiences that preceded them, even if opposed to them. The often-complex research, in order to arrive at an increasingly satisfactory history of ideas, that is, a history of the study of the investigation of scientific thought, must be based on individual episodes and thus on the study of individual branches within the field of physics; these are studies that only specialists, and better still the protagonists, are able to carry out, thus transforming the chronicle into history. After a period of time, the various insufficient monographs will come together to produce ever larger works of synthesis, which will have to take into account the history of the technical means available to scientific research and the social and economic climate of the time. These studies will become part of the historical heritage of physics, intended to facilitate and encourage further methodological and critical study. Moreover, it is generally recognized that this study has great value in itself, beyond the results. Through it the theorist gains a greater awareness that can be used in the formulation of explanations and predictions. The experimenter can enrich his or her imagination, which is crucial for the planning and execution of his or her verifications and propositions. Indeed, all concerned can more easily overcome the barriers of specialization and engage with a broader cultural landscape, with obvious practical results as well. Similar considerations, though in different dimensions, lead us to see in the history of physics, so understood, a new educational interest. The school aims to encourage both monographic studies and synthesis work by encouraging meetings, preferably interdisciplinary, open to anyone who is interested in the history of physics and brings to it a valuable contribution.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
After a period of decline, the last decade has seen a steady increase in interest in the history of science in general and in the history of physics in particular. The reasons for this are varied and not yet clear. However, we can say with certainty that the history of physics, like the history of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","school_field":[31],"class_list":["post-1530","school","type-school","status-publish","hentry","school_field-physics"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n