HISTORY · SCIENCE
Patricia Fara
atricia Fara is a historian of science at the University of Cambridge. She is a graduate of the University of Oxford and did her PhD at the University of London. She is a former Fellow of Darwin College and is currently a Fellow of Clare College where she is Senior Tutor and Tutor for graduate students. Fara is also a research associate and lecturer in the Department of History and Philosophy of Science. Fara is author of numerous popular books on the history of science and has been a guest on BBC Radio 4's science and history discussion series, In Our Time. She began her academic career as a physicist but returned to graduate studies as a mature student to specialise in History and Philosophy of Science, completing her PhD thesis at Imperial College, London in 1993. Her areas of particular academic interest include the role of portraiture and art in the history of science, science in the 18th century England during the Enlightenment and the role of women in science. She has written and co-authored a number of books for children on science. Fara is also a reviewer of books on history of science.(Source: Goodreads)
POLITICIANS CLAIM THAT all children have equal opportunities, but among professional scientists there are still far fewer women than men.
— from Scientists Anonymous, 2007
Most acclaimed
Sex, Botany and Empire
2003
"Enlightenment botany was replete with sexual symbolism - to the extent that many botanical textbooks were widely considered pornographic. Carl Linnaeus's controversial new system for classifying plants based on their sexual characteristics, as well as his use of language resonating with erotic allusions, provoked intense public debate over the morality of botanical study. And the renowned Tahitian exploits of Joseph Banks - whose trousers were reportedly stolen while he was inside the tent of Queen Oberea of Tahiti - reinforced scandalous associations with the field. Yet Linnaeus and Banks became powerful political and scientific figures who were able to promote botanical exploration alongside the exploitation of territories, peoples, and natural resources. Sex, Botany, and Empire explores the entwined destinies of these two men and how their influence served both science and imperialism."--BOOK JACKET.
Science
In Science, Patricia Fara rewrites science's past to provide new ways of understanding and questioning our modern technological society. Sweeping through the centuries from ancient Babylon right up to the latest hi-tech experiments in genetics and particle physics, Fara's book also ranges internationally, challenging notions of European superiority by emphasizing the importance of scientific projects based around the world, including revealing discussions of China and the Islamic Empire alongside the more familiar stories about Copernicus's sun-centered astronomy, Newton's gravity, and Darwin's theory of evolution. We see for instance how Muslim leaders encouraged science by building massive libraries, hospitals, and astronomical observatories and we rediscover the significance of medieval Europe-long overlooked-where, surprisingly, religious institutions ensured science's survival, as the learning preserved in monasteries was subsequently developed in new and unique institutions: universities. Instead of focussing on esoteric experiments and abstract theories, she explains how science belongs to the practical world of war, politics, and business. And rather than glorifying scientists as idealized heroes, she tells true stories about real people-men (and some women) who needed to earn their living, who made mistakes, and who trampled down their rivals.
Scientists Anonymous
2007
Why, when girls outstrip boys in exams, are there still so few women in the top levels of science? Why have women been excluded - and is there still discrimination? Acclaimed science writer and children's author Patricia Farainvesti gates science past and present to find answers. She examines how women have struggled against unequal opportunities, and shows how they succeeded despite the obstacles stacked against them. All the renowned names are here - Marie Curie, Florence Nightingale, Rosalind Franklin - but Scientists Anonymous also reveals the stories of many dedicated, brilliant women who have been forgotten. Combining history, science and biography, Fara presents female explorers, mathematicians, astronomers and chemists from all over the world - including some who disguised themselves as men. And what about the future? Fara suggests that understanding women's achievements in the past will help today's schoolgirls to become tomorrow's celebrated scientists.