The Revival of Quantification: Reflections on Old New Histories

2021 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-25
Author(s):  
Steven Ruggles
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Social History ◽  
Economic History ◽  
Historical Analysis ◽  
The United States ◽  
First Century ◽  
Third Wave ◽  
Late Twentieth ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
Second Wave

AbstractQuantitative historical analysis in the United States surged in three distinct waves. The first quantitative wave occurred as part of the “New History” that blossomed in the early twentieth century and disappeared in the 1940s and 1950s with the rise of consensus history. The second wave thrived from the 1960s to the 1980s during the ascendance of the New Economic History, the New Political History, and the New Social History, and died out during the “cultural turn” of the late twentieth century. The third wave of historical quantification—which I call the revival of quantification—emerged in the second decade of the twenty-first century and is still underway. I describe characteristics of each wave and discuss the historiographical context of the ebb and flow of quantification in history.

scholarly journals Listening to Advisors: A Conversation About Readers’ Advisory Services, Practice, and Practicing

2019 ◽  
Vol 59 (1) ◽  
pp. 2
Author(s):  
Neal Wyatt
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Public Library ◽  
First Century ◽  
The Public ◽  
Early Twenty ◽  
Late Twentieth ◽  
Book Group ◽  
Reference Tools ◽  
Second Wave ◽  
Late Twentieth Century

As RA service has moved from its second-wave renaissance during the late twentieth century/early twenty-first century (with a steady stream of reference tools, conference programming, and think pieces) into an often underpromoted but bedrock mainstay of the public library, what do advisors continue to discuss among themselves and see as areas of need? If you could gather a handful of advisors together, over a cup of coffee one rainy morning before book group began, what would they talk about? What would they ask each other? What do they know to be foundational about the service? As important, what might they suggest we all re-think? This column invites you to eavesdrop on such a conversation. It was conducted over email between six advisors: two at the start of their careers, two helping to define the field, and two who have lead the way for librarians, for a combined eight decades. These advisors share research, hard-won and lived-in lessons, showcase the luminous nature of RA work as well as its difficulties, propose a change for RA education, and, of course, each suggests a book to read.

Bhutan

2019 ◽  
pp. 180-183
Author(s):  
Tandin Wangyal
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
First Century ◽  
Pentecostal Movement ◽  
Linguistic Barriers ◽  
Early Twenty ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Leprosy Patients ◽  
Late Twentieth ◽  
National Life ◽  
The 1960S

Bhutan is the only surviving monarchy in the Himalayas, having resisted any foreign colonial power. It is a predominantly Buddhist nation; Buddhism permeates all facets of their lives. Bhutan’s first exposure to Christianity came in 1627, with the visit of two Portuguese Jesuits, who were stymied by linguistic barriers. However, in the second half of the twentieth century Bhutan slowly opened up to medical missions that treated leprosy patients. From the 1960s Christians from Darjeeling and Kalimpong in India came to the country to work, and through their influence some Bhutanese came to faith in Christ. Late twentieth century/early twenty-first century conversions via ‘power encounters’ has led to a Pentecostal movement in Bhutan. In 2004 the Bhutan Council of Churches’ Fellowship (BCCF) was formed, in response to a need for local institutionalized unity. Translation work in the Tsanglha language began in 1989 and the New Testament was completed in 2009. A significant challenge lying ahead is the contextualisation of theology in Bhutan in relation to Buddhist culture. Work in this area can help to demonstrate that Christian Bhutanese are loyal citizens, with a valuable contribution to make to national life.

“Old” Economic History in the United States: 1939–1954

2004 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 221-239 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristel de Rouvray
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Economic History ◽  
Paradigm Shift ◽  
Scientific Revolution ◽  
The United States ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Creation ◽  
The 1960S

This paper investigates the actions of a small, yet influential group of American economists who sought to claim economic history for themselves and use it as a springboard to launch a wider transformation of economics. Their actions constitute an episode of dissent in the history of twentieth century economics, albeit an unusual one. These dissenters were not a socially or intellectually marginalized group, but rather a set of privileged scholars who were able to leverage their contacts within the profession and amongst its patrons to further their vision. Their actions could almost be described in Kuhnian terms: they consciously sought to trigger a “paradigm shift” to bring about a social science better suited, in their views, to a world in political and economic turmoil (Kuhn 1962). In spite of the Kuhnian allusion to “scientific revolution,” this paper is not about the 1960s “cliometric revolution,” but about the 1940s and '50s and the little known events that led to the creation of the Economic History Association, the Journal of Economic History, and Explorations in Entrepreneurial History (subsequently Explorations in Economic History).

Science, Play, and the Material Culture of Twentieth-Century American Boyhood

2020 ◽  
pp. 235-252
Author(s):  
Rebecca Onion
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Material Culture ◽  
Home Environment ◽  
The United States ◽  
First Century ◽  
Parental Supervision ◽  
Acceptable Risk ◽  
Early Twenty ◽  
1960S And 1970S ◽  
The 1960S

This chapter uses the example of the child’s chemistry set to explore the way that American children’s material culture has shaped, and been shaped by, changing perceptions of acceptable risk in the home environment in the twentieth century. Chemistry sets, first sold in the United States in the 1910s, changed over the twentieth century, as companies worried about lawsuits have excluded potentially dangerous elements and presumed less initiative on the part of the child chemist, while calling for enhanced parental supervision. These alterations were first welcomed by parents in the 1960s and 1970s; now, for some, the defanged chemistry set embodies the undesirable unexpected consequences of the quest for new levels of safety in children’s material environments. This chapter follows the potent symbol of the chemistry set through the century to ask how the American movement to keep children safe in the home came about and to identify key cultural explanations for the early-twenty-first-century backlash against these efforts.

The Soul of the American University Revisited

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
George M. Marsden
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Modern Society ◽  
First Century ◽  
American University ◽  
Late Twentieth ◽  
American Schools ◽  
Normative Standard ◽  
The 1960S

The Soul of the American University Revisited traces the role of Protestantism in shaping American higher education from the founding of Harvard in the 1630s to the present. It offers a critical analysis of the changing ways in which Protestantism intersected with collegiate life, intellectual inquiry, and broader cultural developments. In accounts that have been edited and somewhat abridged for this second edition, it looks at pace-setting colleges and universities as they coped with modern society, post-Darwinian science, new secular philosophies, and increasing diversity in American life. Until the mid-twentieth century most leading American schools remained nominally Protestant, but their Protestantism was typically of a liberal variety that emphasized the broad ethical ideals of the Western and Judeo-Christian heritage. After the attacks in the 1960s on the “WASP” privilege, the vestiges of that establishment in higher education were soon largely dismantled. By the late twentieth century exclusive secular viewpoints were often considered the normative standard in higher education. Originally published in 1994 as The Soul of the American University, this new edition carries the story into the twenty-first-century culture. In the disarray and diversity of the intellectual life of this arguably “postsecular” age there is increasing room in the academy for varieties of intellectually responsible religious viewpoints. Indeed, as a concluding chapter recounts, more traditionalist Christian scholars and institutions, Protestant as well as Catholic, have developed substantially in recent decades.

scholarly journals Shareholder Value In The Third Wave Of Acquisitions

2011 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Hergert
Keyword(s):  
Value Creation ◽  
Shareholder Value ◽  
Poor Performance ◽  
The United States ◽  
Third Wave ◽  
Wealth Creation ◽  
Acquiring Firms ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
Second Wave ◽  
Made In

Acquisition activity in the United States has occurred in three distinct waves. During the 1960s, acquisitions were predominantly made in areas unrelated to the acquiring firms. Later analysis of this conglomerate boom generally indicated that little or no shareholder value was created in this process. A second wave of acquisition and divestiture activity in the 1980s was characterized by the unwinding of the conglomerates and a search for synergy between the buyer and the acquired firm. The evidence on value creation for this period is somewhat more encouraging, although most studies indicate that firms did not succeed in creating profits through acquisitions. A third wave of acquisitions occurred in the late 1990s. This was an unprecedented era of merger and acquisition activity. Nearly $4 trillion worth of mergers occurred from 1998-2000. This represents a volume of activity greater than the previous 30 years put together. This study examines the returns to acquiring firms during this period and compares them to previous studies of acquisition performance. Was it different this time? This study indicates that shareholder value was generally reduced in making acquisitions, although some factors can mitigate the degree of poor performance. On average, acquiring firms lost 4-7% from making acquisitions. There is evidence to support the conventional wisdom that firms often overpay making acquisitions and that the size of the stock premium can be tied to firm performance. However, after controlling for the price premium, there is significant evidence of wealth creation (synergy) from the transaction.

Forging Aztecness: Twentieth-Century Mexican Musical Nationalism in Twenty-First Century Los Angeles

2020 ◽  
Vol 52 ◽  
pp. 127-146
Author(s):  
KRISTINA F. NIELSEN
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Los Angeles ◽  
Mexican American ◽  
Historical Analysis ◽  
The United States ◽  
First Century ◽  
Ethnographic Fieldwork ◽  
Cultural Frameworks ◽  
Music Research ◽  
Siglo Xx

Abstract (Spanish/English)Forjando el Aztecanismo: Nacionalismo Musical Mexicano del Siglo XX en el siglo XXI en Los ÁngelesHoy en día, un creciente número de músicos mexico-americanos en los Estados Unidos tocan instrumentos indígenas mesoamericanos y réplicas arqueológicas, lo que se conoce como “Música Azteca.” En este artículo, doy a conocer cómo los músicos contemporáneos de Los Ángeles, California, recurren a los legados de la investigación musical nacionalista mexicana e integran modelos antropológicos y arqueológicos aplicados. Al combinar el trabajo de campo etnográfico con el análisis histórico, sugiero que los marcos musicales y culturales que alguna vez sirvieron para unir al México pos-revolucionario han adquirido una nuevo significado para contrarrestar la desaparición del legado indígena mexicano en los Estados Unidos.Today a growing number of Mexican-American musicians in the United States perform on Indigenous Mesoamerican instruments and archaeological replicas in what is widely referred to as “Aztec music.” In this article, I explore how contemporary musicians in Los Angeles, California, draw on legacies of Mexican nationalist music research and integrate applied anthropological and archeological models. Pairing ethnographic fieldwork with historical analysis, I suggest that musical and cultural frameworks that once served to unite post-revolutionary Mexico have gained new significance in countering Mexican Indigenous erasure in the United States.

scholarly journals Evaluation of flood damage reduction throughout Japan from adaptation measures taken under a range of emissions mitigation scenarios

2021 ◽  
Vol 165 (3-4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tao Yamamoto ◽  
So Kazama ◽  
Yoshiya Touge ◽  
Hayata Yanagihara ◽  
Tsuyoshi Tada ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Flood Damage ◽  
First Century ◽  
Mitigation Measures ◽  
Damage Cost ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Inundation Depth ◽  
Late Twentieth ◽  
Twenty First Century ◽  
Late Twentieth Century

AbstractThis study aimed to evaluate the impact of climate change on flood damage and the effects of mitigation measures and combinations of multiple adaptation measures in reducing flood damage. The inundation depth was calculated using a two-dimensional unsteady flow model. The flood damage cost was estimated from the unit evaluation value set for each land use and prefectures and the calculated inundation depth distribution. To estimate the flood damage in the near future and the late twenty-first century, five global climate models were used. These models provided daily precipitation, and the change of the extreme precipitation was calculated. In addition to the assessment of the impacts of climate change, certain adaptation measures (land-use control, piloti building, and improvement of flood control level) were discussed, and their effects on flood damage cost reduction were evaluated. In the case of the representative concentration pathway (RCP) 8.5 scenario, the damage cost in the late twenty-first century will increase to 57% of that in the late twentieth century. However, if mitigation measures were to be undertaken according to RCP2.6 standards, the increase of the flood damage cost will stop, and the increase of the flood damage cost will be 28% of that in the late twentieth century. By implementing adaptation measures in combination rather than individually, it is possible to keep the damage cost in the future period even below that in the late twentieth century. By implementing both mitigation and adaptation measures, it is possible to reduce the flood damage cost in the late twenty-first century to 69% of that in the late twentieth century.

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