Science Museum Group Journal
The new Science Museum Group Journal presents the global research community with peer-reviewed papers relevant to the wide-ranging work of the Science Museum Group. The journal freely shares the research of four national UK museums and warmly invites contributions that resonate with their collections and practice.
Current Issue 02 Autumn 2014
In this issue of the Science Museum Group Journal articles include an exploration of the use of theatre in the display of particle physics, a discussion of a research project (and exhibition) re-evaluating the search for longitude, and a description of a participatory process to co-create an electronic music exhibition. Other articles look at what the relationship between Harrison and Short can tell us about the eighteenth-century concept of ‘genius’, and delve into museum collections to unearth extraordinary images and an overlooked scrapbook.
Featured content
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Chronometers, charts, charisma: on histories of longitude
Charismatic objects provide invaluable, if challenging, resources for telling stories about the history of longitude at sea. In this article recent collaborative research and museum work is used to explore some opportunities and puzzles of the combination of object study and public exhibitions.
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'½ vol. not relevant': The scrapbook of Winifred Penn-Gaskell
Ephemera in collections of science and technology museums are often understudied and even less frequently displayed. This paper argues for a re-evaluation of the scrapbook of Winifred Penn-Gaskell as a key item in her collection of aeronautica.
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Oramics to electronica: investigating lay understandings of the history of technology through a participatory project
In this article we go behind the scenes in the production of the Science Museum’s Oramics to Electronica: Revealing Histories of Electronic Music exhibition (2011–) to examine its genesis and reflect upon its implications.
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Watt’s workshop: Craft and Philosophy in the Science Museum
A close examination of James Watt’s workshop, preserved in the Science Museum’s collections since 1924 and redisplayed in 2012, suggests a richer, more nuanced interpretation of his contribution to Britain’s Industrial Enlightenment as both philosopher and practical maker.
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On heroism
This article discusses the concept of ‘heroism’ in relation to science, medicine and technology. It unpicks the complexities of the concept and discusses its implications for historians of science and museum professionals.