The Foundation and the First Decades of the Activity of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences in the Works of Russian and Foreign Historians of Science. Part 2

The article is devoted to the critical analysis of the foreign historiography of the foundation of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. The authors focus on German and Anglo-American historiographic traditions. The authors analyze the works of M. Posselt, V. Stieda, A. Vucinich, S. Werrett, M. Gordin and others. The article shows the the development of approaches to the highlighting of the problem of the foundation of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. The Western historiography was initially dominated by German historians of science who were mostly interested in the role of foreigners (primarily Germans) in the history of the foundation of the Academy of Sciences. The authors of the article show that German historians followed the approach developed in Russian pre-revolutionary historiography. However, both British and American historians of science worked within this approach in the 1950–1970s. In this regard, the authors of the article draw attention to the interpretation of the history of Russian science by A. Vucinich and show its relations to the positivist historiography. An important result of the study concerns the identification of the fact that transformation in the Western historiography of the foundation of the Academy of Sciences was associated with new posmodern methodological strategies in cultural studies and in sociology. Theauthors show that contemporary Anglo-American historians tend to use the social analysis of M. Foucault, N. Elias and other influential contemporary sociologists, which significantly enriches the historiography of the foundation of the Academy of Sciences.

The Foundation and the First Decades of the Activity of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences in the Works of Russian and Foreign Historians of Science. Part I.

The article is devoted to a critical review of historiography on the problem of the founding and the first decades of the activity of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences. The article covers the works of Russian historians of science written from the 18th century to the beginning of the XXIth centuries. The article gives an analysis of the early historiography of the history of the Academy of Sciences (the works of G. F. Miller, I. D. Schumacher), the works of historians of the XIX century (A. A. Kunik, P. P. Pekarsky and others), as well as the works of the Soviet historians of science. Highlighting the works by Yu. Kh. Kopelevich, the authors emphasize the importance of the Soviet historiography of the foundation of the Academy of Sciences. It is shown that Soviet researchers in many respects continue the approaches outlined in the pre-revolutionary period. The article shows that in the historiography of the XIX-XXth centuries emphasize the importance of nationality in understanding the history of the foundation of the Academy of Sciences. In the XIXth century, the idea of Russification of the Academy of Sciences was formed as a basis for the understanding its early history. In Soviet historiography, this idea further developed under the influence of the ideological campaigns of late Stalinist times, although it acquired distorted forms. The authors of the article show thatalthough the post-Soviet Russian historiography of the foundation of the Academy of Sciences continues the Soviet one, in many ways, it offers not only new approaches to understanding of the history of the foundation of the Academy of Sciences, but also new research topics. Research into the founding of the Academy of Sciences became more specialized.

Applications of Mössbauer Spectroscopy in Meteoritical and Planetary Science, Part II: Differentiated Meteorites, Moon, and Mars

Mössbauer (nuclear γ-resonance) spectroscopy is a powerful technique which is actively used in various fields from physics and chemistry to biology and medicine. Rudolf L. Mössbauer, who observed nuclear γ-resonance and published his results in 1958, got a Nobel Prize in physics in 1961 for this discovery. 57Fe is the most widely used nucleus in Mössbauer spectroscopy. Therefore, a large variety of compounds containing iron can be studied by Mössbauer spectroscopy. It is well known that planetary matter contains various iron-bearing phases and minerals. Therefore, the extraterrestrial material from different meteorites, asteroids, and planets can be studied using 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy as an additional powerful technique. Two parts of this review consider the results of more than 50 years of experience of Mössbauer spectroscopy applied for the studies of various meteorites, soils, and rocks from the Moon and a recent investigation of the Martian surface using two rovers equipped with miniaturized Mössbauer spectrometers. Part I considered the results of Mössbauer spectroscopy of undifferentiated meteorites. Part II discusses the results of Mössbauer spectroscopy of differentiated meteorites formed in asteroids and protoplanets due to matter differentiation, as well as Lunar and Martian matter.

Applications of Mössbauer Spectroscopy in Meteoritical and Planetary Science, Part I: Undifferentiated Meteorites

Mössbauer (nuclear γ-resonance) spectroscopy is a powerful technique that is actively used in various fields, from physics and chemistry to biology and medicine. Rudolf L. Mössbauer, who observed nuclear γ-resonance and published his results in 1958, received a Nobel Prize in physics in 1961 for this discovery. The 57Fe is the most widely used nucleus in Mössbauer spectroscopy. Therefore, a large variety of compounds containing iron can be studied by Mössbauer spectroscopy. It is well known that planetary matter contains various iron-bearing phases and minerals. Therefore, the extraterrestrial material from different meteorites, asteroids, and planets can be studied using 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy as additional powerful technique. Two parts of this review consider the results of more than 50 years of experience of Mössbauer spectroscopy applied for the studies of various meteorites, soils, and rocks from the Moon and recent investigation of the Mars surface using two rovers equipped with miniaturized Mössbauer spectrometers. Part I will discuss known results on Mössbauer spectroscopy of undifferentiated meteorites, which are the most primitive and formed with the solar system.

The Epistemology of Fake News

This volume consists of a series of essays on the epistemology of fake news, written by leading philosophers. The epistemology of fake news is a branch of applied epistemology, and an exercise in non-ideal epistemology. It provides insight into the nature and spread of misinformation, fake news, conspiratorial thinking, echo chambers, epistemic pathologies in the formation of public opinion, and the relation between epistemic ideals and fake news. The volume is arranged into three parts. The chapters in Part I are concerned with the meaning of ‘fake news’ and related notions such as ‘conspiracy theory’ as well as with the novelty of the phenomenon of fake news. This part also addresses the question whether ‘fake news’ and related notions can be properly used within science. Part II discusses various practices that generate fake news, promote its spread, or are purported to do so. These practices include science denialism, Google algorithms, democratic ideals, vice in experts, and unreliable echo chambers. Part III explores potential therapies for fake news. Authors’ proposals include developing the virtue of epistemic trustworthiness, abstaining from news, and developing good epistemic practices.