Paleontology

Paleontology and other deep time sciences have addressed questions that are central to our perception of the world. This includes the age of the earth, the way in which life came into existence, procreated, and vanished, and certainly not least: humanity’s own origins. This is not something unique to western cultures, as is sometimes supposed. Remains of vanished life have had a profound influence all over the world.
 
Over recent years, the history of paleontology has become a burgeoning area of the history of science, with a great deal of general market appeal. The History of Paleontology Working Group expands the geographic and thematic scope of the history of paleontology, using it to contribute to wider debates and issues within the history of science. This is partly because paleontology is an ideal subject through which broader issues can be accessed. Topics as wide-ranging as the development of scientific disciplines, interdisciplinary research, the role and valorization of science, how and why science is funded, the relationship between science and commerce, the interface between science and religion, and the public perception of science, can all be seen through the lens of this single subject.