James Poskett is Associate Professor in the History of Science and Technology at the University of Warwick. He completed his PhD at the University of Cambridge where he also held the Adrian Research Fellowship at Darwin College. Poskett has written for the Guardian, Nature and BBC History Magazine, among others. In 2013 he was shortlisted for the BBC New Generation Thinker Award and in 2012 he was awarded the Best Newcomer Prize by the Association of British Science Writers. Horizons is his first book for a general readership.
Superb . . . Poskett rightly highlights the shamefully overlooked
contributions of Indian, Chinese and Japanese scientists
*Sunday Times*
A fundamental retelling of the story of science . . . Poskett
deftly blends the achievements of little-known figures into the
wider history of science . . . brims with clarity
*Financial Times*
An honest conversation about the history of science is therefore
not just of moral importance - it is part of what makes discovery
possible
*New Statesman*
I've been really impressed by Horizons: A Global History of Science
by James Poskett. The book is exactly what it says on the cover:
it's a way of looking at the world of science and the development
of technology from a genuinely global perspective. The narrative
starts with the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan [on the site of
modern-day Mexico City] and the engineering marvels that were
present there, built long before the Spanish turned up during their
conquest in the early modern era. Poskett also discusses Arab
science, Chinese science and the story of science in the west,
which is better known. So it's a truly global and really
well-written and engaging account
*BBC History Magazine, Books of the Year 2022*
A lively story of global collaboration in the study of nature from
1500 to the present day . . . rich and lucid
*Literary Review*
European scientists for centuries served the political goals of
empire building, which was based on slave trading, military power,
oppression and violence . . . Poskett hopes for a future where the
historic truth about how scientific progress has been made is
universally accepted, where all cultures are valued, and where
global scientific collaboration unleashes the creativity to solve
problems such as climate change
*Irish Times*
Horizons shows that the story of science has always been a
planetary one: a non-linear process of cross-fertilisation,
competition, cooperation and conflict . . . What makes the book so
engrossing is that Poskett's grasp of historical contexts is as
firm as his scientific knowledge
*Tortoise*
Generation after generation, people in western countries have been
educated to believe that the history of modern science began
primarily in the 17th century in western Europe. In a book of
breathtaking range and high quality, Poskett dismantles that narrow
version of events and produces a genuinely global history
*Financial Times*
This treasure trove of a book puts the case persuasively and
compellingly that modern science did not develop solely in Europe.
Hugely important
*Jim Al-Khalili, author of Paradox*
Brilliant . . . In this revolutionary and revelatory book, James
Poskett not only gives us a truly worldwide history of science, but
explains how international connections have stimulated scientific
advances through time
*Alice Roberts, author of Ancestors*
Science's internationalism is well recognized. But scientists tend
to regard it as a recent phenomenon that arose from the 'big
science' of the twentieth century, rather than one with a history
of more than 500 years going back to the Islamic science that
inspired astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus, and beyond, observes
historian James Poskett. His revisionary "global history" boldly
rebuts this
*Nature*
Poskett's book is invaluable, an important and timely reminder that
the world we live in has never been small or unknown, but that
sharing knowledge, as well as credit, and working together, is the
key to a better future
*History Hit*
From palatial Aztec botanic gardens to Qing Dynasty evolutionary
theories, Horizons upends traditional accounts of the history of
science, showing how curiosity and intellectual exploration was,
and is, a global phenomenon
*Rebecca Wragg Sykes, author of Kindred*
Remarkable. Challenges almost everything we know about science in
the West
*Jerry Brotton, author of A History of the World in 12 Maps*
This perspective-shattering book challenges our Eurocentric
narrative by spotlighting the work of historically neglected
scientists
*The Bookseller, 'Editor's Choice'*
A useful corrective that brings us closer to a more accurate
history of Western science - one which recognises Europe, not as
exceptional, but as learning from the world
*Angela Saini, author of Superior*
The righting of the historical record makes Horizons a deeply
satisfying read. We learn about a fascinating group of people
engaged in scientific inquiry all over the world. Even more
satisfyingly, Horizons demonstrates that the most famous scientists
- Copernicus, Darwin and Einstein among them - couldn't have made
their discoveries without the help of their global contacts
*Valerie Hansen, author of The Year 1000*
A provocative examination of major contributions to science made
outside Europe and the USA, from ancient to modern times, explained
in relation to global historical events. I particularly enjoyed the
stories of individuals whose work tends to be omitted from standard
histories of science
*Ian Stewart, author of Significant Figures*
A wonderful, timely reminder that scientific advancement is, and
has always been, a global endeavour
*Patrick Roberts, author of Jungle*
This is the kind of history we need: it opens our eyes to the ways
in which what we know today has been uncovered thanks to a
worldwide team effort
*Michael Scott, author of Ancient Worlds*
An important milestone
*British Journal for the History of Science, on Materials of the
Mind*
The freshest history of the strangest science
*Alison Bashford, author of Global Population, on Materials of the
Mind*
Ambitious, riveting, Poskett tracks the global in so many senses .
. . vital reading on some of the most urgent concerns facing the
world history of science
*Sujit Sivasundaram, University of Cambridge, on Materials of the
Mind*
Terrific . . . [Makes] a substantial contribution to understanding
the universalizing properties of science and technology in
history
*Janet Browne, Harvard University, on Materials of the Mind*
Horizons forces me to think outside my Eurocentric box and puts
science at the centre of world history
*New Statesman, Books of the Year 2022*
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