History of Ocean Science, Technology and Medicine
Historians of science have recently begun to examine role of the oceans themselves in human activity, not just as a pathway between places that matter, but as a place with a history of its own, with which humans have always interacted. In turning their gaze to the other two thirds of the earth's surface, scholars thus acknowledge the oceans as a changeable and changing place, affecting and affected by human activities. This "oceanic turn" is playing out in the humanities broadly, as scholars in many disciplines explore the role of the oceans in human endeavors including labor, culture, politics, industry, law, or literature. Spanning many different periods and regions around the world, this group will examine broad conceptions of oceans across history.
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Consortium Respectful Behavior Policy
Participants at Consortium activities will treat each other with respect and consideration to create a collegial, inclusive, and professional environment that is free from any form of discrimination, harassment, or retaliation.
Participants will avoid any inappropriate actions or statements based on individual characteristics such as age, race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, nationality, political affiliation, ability status, educational background, or any other characteristic protected by law. Disruptive or harassing behavior of any kind will not be tolerated. Harassment includes but is not limited to inappropriate or intimidating behavior and language, unwelcome jokes or comments, unwanted touching or attention, offensive images, photography without permission, and stalking.
Participants may send reports or concerns about violations of this policy to conduct@chstm.org.
Upcoming Meetings
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Tuesday, September 17, 2024 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm EDT
Lynn Nyhart, University of Wisconsin-Madison
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Tuesday, October 15, 2024 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm EDT
Max Chervin Bridge, Brown University
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Tuesday, November 19, 2024 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm EST
Anna Guasco, Oregon State University, "'Could do better to stick to his fish’: Knowledge, Power, and Authority in Gray Whale Science.”
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Tuesday, December 17, 2024 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm EST
DEEPMED Project, "Visualizing the 3D Mediterranean (and beyond?): A Work in Progress Session"
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Tuesday, January 21, 2025 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm EST
Katharine Anderson, York University
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Tuesday, February 18, 2025 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm EST
David McCaskey, University of California, Riverside, "Net Losses: The Failures and Successes of Trawling in French Indochina"
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Tuesday, March 18, 2025 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm EDT
Derek Nelson, Everett Community College
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Tuesday, April 15, 2025 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm EDT
Zi Yun Huang, University of Chicago
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Tuesday, May 20, 2025 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm EDT
E. M. Nielsen, Brown University
Past Meetings
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August 20, 2024
Alison Glassie, Northeastern University, "Olokun's Aquarium"
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July 16, 2024
Oceans Digital Humanities Round Table
Join us as a panel of historians shares their expertise, experiences, and insights in Digital Humanities.
Sean Fraga, USC Dornsife
Jonathan Galka, Harvard University
Anke Finger, University of Connecticut
Christine Peffer, H-Net Humanities and Social Sciences Online
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June 18, 2024
Pamela Overmann, head curator for the Naval Art Collection, United States Navy History and Heritage Command
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May 21, 2024
Jonathan Galka, Harvard University, "Mineral Dreams: Manganese Nodules & Anticolonial Worldmaking at Sea."
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April 16, 2024
Alessandra Passariello, Naples Zoological Station, "The Bay of Porto Paone: The First “Tiny Underwater Nature Reserve” in the Gulf of Naples (1960-1966)"
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March 19, 2024
Elexis Trinity Williams, Cornell University, "Seeing with Sound: Acoustic Epistemologies at Sea"
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February 20, 2024
Kimia Shahi, University of Southern California, "Charting Coastlines and Visualizing Slavery: Visibility and the Limits of Cartography in the Coast Survey’s Maps"
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January 16, 2024
Anne Ricculli, Morris Museum, "Coral Fisheries, Neglected: Peter Lund Simmonds and the Economics of Depth-Dependent Research, 1860s-1870s"
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December 21, 2023
**NOTE SPECIAL DATE AND TIME**
We're partnering with the International Commission of the History of Oceanography to host a fun and informal reading group of portions of Jamie Jones's new book, Rendered Obsolete: Energy Culture and the Afterlife of US Whaling, with the intention of bringing together scholars of ocean history across Asia and beyond (thus the special time slot!) This meeting is concerned with thinking about how intersections between energy and environmental history at sea are understood and explored in Asian oceanic contexts, but it is also about introducing ourselves to one another and making connections across shared interests among those working in and on the Asian region. Readings from the book's introduction and first chapter will be posted in advance of the meeting.
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November 21, 2023
Nancy Ko, Columbia University, "Absorbent Empire: An Ecological History of Sephardic Memory in the Global Dodecanese"
Group Conveners
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Max Bridge
I am a PhD Candidate in History at Brown University. My disseration - "Oceanic Listening" - explores the environmental and sensory history of cetaceans and underwater sound over the past 200 years, covering topics such as whaling, echolocation research, and the popular culture of whale song. I am also broadly interested in disability history and disability studies, including their intersections with environmental history.
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Penelope Hardy
Penelope K. Hardy is a historian of science, technology, and medicine and an associate professor at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. She studies the historical intersection of technology and the ocean sciences. Her current book project examines a series of nineteenth- and twentieth-century ocean-going research vessels and the cultures and practices surrounding their use. She is a vice president of the International Commission of the History of Oceanography and helped to found H-Oceans.
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Daniella McCahey
Daniella McCahey is an Assistant Professor at Texas Tech University, where she primarily teaches on British history and the history of science. She studies the relationship between science and the environment in Polar Regions, especially islands, coasts, and ice shelves. She is the co-author of Antarctica: A History in 100 Objects (Bloomsbury 2022). Her book project, Laboratories at the Bottom of the World, addresses the history of British and New Zealand science in Antarctica during the International Geophysical Year.
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