Research & Teaching Interests
- History of Collecting & Museums
- Twentieth-Century British History
- Early Scientific Instruments
- Public Presentation of Science
- Philosophy of Science
- History of Science and Technology
Doctoral Thesis
Science collection, exhibition, and display in public museums in Britain from World War Two through the 1960s
My thesis examines the upheaval caused by World War Two and follows the subsequent developments in exhibition styles. In addition to the general changes, I examine three issues that plagued the Science Museum during the period: its educational focus, the quest for a planetarium, and the construction of additional exhibition space, as promised by the Bell Report in 1912. My thesis addresses an important gap in historical museum studies by examining the Science Museum’s role in the public presentation of science during the immediate post-War period.
Academic Resources
These are resources that I have created over the course of my research and teaching. Feel free to use them as a starting point for your own work, but as always, give credit where appropriate.
- Museums During World War Two
- Festival of Britain, 1951
- Quick 1-page Handout on how to write history (PDF)
- History of the Old Ashmolean Building
- (more to come)
Resources designed by others:
- How to give an academic talk v.3.1 (PDF) by Paul N. Edwards at the University of Michigan
Finally, if you are a student looking for your assignments, go to my teaching resources page.
BSHS Travel Guide
I am a contributor to the BSHS Travel Guide and have written a number of articles on various scientific, technological, and museological sites of interest to the historian of science, medicine, and technology.
- Andrews Geyser, Old Fort, NC
- Cantillon Brewery
- Donald W. Reynolds Center for American Art and Portraiture
- George Washington’s Distillery and Gristmill, Alexandria, VA
- Harvard’s Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments
- Museum at Poggio Antinora
- Torpedo Art Factory (and Alexandria Archaeology Museum)
Additional articles will be added to the list as they are published on the Travel Guide.
