Making Science History - by Arnold Thackray (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

The history of science from 1945 to 2020, told from the perspective of Arnold Thackray, a pioneering expert in the field

In this fascinating personal account of what he calls the "American century," Arnold Thackray, noted historian of the development of science, relates his life's story, beginning in post-war Manchester, England, to his time as an undergraduate at Bristol University, followed by his years at Cambridge University, where he earned a Ph.D. in the newly created field of science history. This subject turned out to be his life's passion and, lured by the new opportunities in academia in the United States, he joined the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, where he founded the Department of the History and Sociology of Science. He went on to found the Chemical Heritage Foundation (later to become the Science History Institute) in Philadelphia.

In this book, Thackray views his long career through the lens of the United States' rise and fall as a global power, from the testing of the first atomic bomb at Alamogordo in 1945, to the ignominious retreat of American forces in Afghanistan in 2020, coinciding with the rise of artificial intelligence--a technology whose benefits, and perils, have yet to be fully realized. An absorbing read for anyone with an interest in the technological developments of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, Making Science History is at once a memoir as well as a thoughtful examination of the achievements, and limitations, of human scientific thought.

Review Quotes

"Making Science History combines a compelling memoir with a perceptive history of our evolving understanding of the cultural meanings of natural knowledge in the postwar world. Tracing his own pioneering career as an historian of science and successful academic entrepreneur from mid-century Manchester through institution-building in Philadelphia in the 1970s and 1980s to new opportunities in Silicon Valley in this century, Arnold Thackray helps make sense of the world in which we live, learn, work, and play. Written in his characteristically lively style, Professor Thackray's thoughtful and provocative narrative is highly recommended."--Jeffrey Sturchio, Chairman, Friends of the Global Fight Against AIDS, TB, and Malaria

"Arnold Thackray has carved out a long, very distinguished career building institutions at the intersection of science and history. In his wonderful memoir he reveals many of his secrets to working successfully at this difficult but worthwhile endeavor. Thackray has filled this book with insight, wisdom, humor, and often disarming candor. Making Science History should be required reading for CEOs, historians, board directors, and fundraisers everywhere. It's a treasure of personal, thoughtful reflection at its best."--John C. Hollar, Former CEO, Computer History Museum

"Arnold Thackray narrates the rise of history of science within American academia with verve and an insider's insight. His memoir is an homage not only to his field but to his longtime home of Philadelphia, where institutions, ideas, and (not inconsequentially) money enabled him--and history of science--to flourish."--Angela N. H. Creager, Thomas M. Siebel Professor in the History of Science, Princeton University

"In Making Science History, the superb storyteller Arnold Thackray presents a vivid account of his life as one of the great institution-builders in the field of science history. He captures the clash of academic egos, the rules of donor courtship rituals, and the pettiness that can sometimes prevail in scholarly worlds, all with an insider's understanding and high enthusiasm for his subject matter. Surprisingly open about both his successes and his challenges, Thackray illuminates the rise of a new discipline and the culture of twentieth-century academic life."--M. Susan Lindee, Professor, History and Sociology of Science, University of Pennsylvania

"In Making Science History, Arnold Thackray recounts a fascinating life building institutions and helping launch the new field of social studies of science. Raised by a mother whose own intellectual aspirations were frustrated by a lack of opportunities for career advancement, and educated during the rise of meritocratic ideology in the UK, he became a leading entrepreneur in higher education during the American Century. A wonderful read for anyone interested in the history of science."--Babak Ashrafi, Consortium for History of Science, Technology and Medicine

"How did the contemporary techno- and medical sciences become crucial subjects for historians of modernity? Arnold Thackray's Making Science History is an original answer, presented in a clear and vivid prose style, by a scholar and entrepreneur who had a knack for being where the historical action is. His eyewitness stories of the varied people who conceived of scientific modernity are both insightful and entertaining. You don't have to be a professional historian to love this book: it's a really good read."--Robert Kohler, Professor Emeritus, History and Sociology of Science, University of Pennsylvania

About the Author

Arnold Thackray's many roles in the public life of scholarship include founding and building both the Science History Institute and the University of Pennsylvania's Department of History and Sociology of Science. Earlier, he was central to the creation of what would become the Churchill Archives Centre (the largest repository of Winston Churchill's papers) at Churchill College, University of Cambridge. He also served as treasurer of the American Council of Learned Societies for over a decade. Thackray has written or edited many books on the modern technosciences, from Atoms and Powers: An Essay on Newtonian Matter-Theory and the Development of Chemistry to Moore's Law: The Life of Gordon Moore, Silicon Valley's Quiet Revolutionary.