Natural history

A defining feature of any collection, whether it be of curiosities, natural specimens, art works, or other objects, is the presence of an underlying system of thought — an episteme — that shapes the way in which a collection grows and evolves. Differences in these epistemes can vary widely across the centuries, and the present paper will discuss the differences between two genres of cabinets: the Wunderkammern, or “cabinet of wonders”, of the 16th century during the Renaissance; and the “cabinets of natural history” from the 17th and 18th century, as described by the great Enlightenment thinker Denis Diderot. Both of these cabinets aim to present a version of the world, a microcosm. However, the differences in object selection, organization,…

Natural Histories by Pliny talks about how the environmental theory combined with astrological signs can describe groups of people in order to classify them. Environmental theory describes how the environment plays a major role in the appearances of groups of people. The environmental theory claims that people are shaped due to the environment. According to Pliny “for those who live in the cold, their humors are drawn into the higher regions of their bodies; for those who live in the heat, it is…

The use of technology during the late twentieth and early twentieth-first centuries, has ushered in the Digital Age in our history. Nowadays, most of the world has access to computers, phones, the internet and other types of electronics which allows us share all forms information and knowledge between each other at an alarming rate. Using technology is essential for living in an industrialized society and I believe that there is no doubt that museums are using many different types of technology…

correct due to the ability to prove that it is true. In comparison, stories are narratives of what has happened in the past, or hypothesized ideas. For the purpose of this essay, knowledge is defined as “true belief”, or statements that have been accepted to be the truth and thus it cannot take the form of a combination of both story and fact due to the fictional aspect that storytelling involves. However, it is arguable that facts are found through the existence of stories and accounts of past…

The diversity of the human experience is stupendous and has been described, recorded, cataloged and represented by a number of anthropologists working in natural history museums. For many anthropologists, natural history museums provide an outlet for presenting their research, in which this institutionalized and multidimensional space acts as a nexus for the reconstruction and understanding of life in a variety of time periods across the global landscape. More specifically through the displays…

Part two concerns Austerity’s intellectual and natural histories. First we are introduced to Locke, Hume and Smith whose opinions are shared through the words of Mark Blyth. Blyth also explains to us in detail of their contributions to the economy over time. We are taken on a journey from the early 20th Century to the beginning of the 21st Century, and we are told about Britain’s New Liberalism, American liquidationism, and the ordo liberalism that took place in Germany after World War 2. Blyth…

The Roman civil wars, the assassination of Caesar, and the rise of Octavian’s empire led to hostilities and discords among the Roman Republic. The consequential political oppression brought by the Augustan Principate encouraged writers to utilize different literary devices to express their political ideologies about current events and the future of Rome. In this paper I will discuss how Augustan writers, Virgil and Ovid, utilized animal anthropomorphism as means of political expression in order…

others of course, but still the major difference to me was the design and layout of the sites. It made me realize that if I were just browsing the internet and checking out different websites and was in a hurry, the lack of appeal to some of the sites may have encouraged me to just quickly move on the next site. If it was not for this essay assignment I would have never paid such close attention to the content of the sites that didn’t catch my attention and I could easily overlook a museum that…

and family the wonderful collections of history. The importance of museums serve as a way to expand curiosity and open opportunities to experience new possibilities and explore the world around us. While most people think of natural history museums as places of public entertainment, the importance of the national museums of history featuring a collection of documented historical events, provides the greatest impact for our people and our nation. Visiting history museums like the Smithsonian’s…

technology with a 1908 look, it cannot modernize everything. We have come a long way since 1908 and it shows. The museum conveys its information mostly with its use of the storage exhibits along the wall and modern cases that display in an 1908 fashion. While this tactic for displaying may not be the most efficient in showing off the artifacts, it does convey its own history of how natural history museums used to operate. A museum on the museum. There are many natural history museums, there are…