Alistair Cameron Crombie
Encyclopedia
Alistair Cameron Crombie (4 November 1915 – 9 February 1996) was an Australia
n historian of science who began his career as a zoologist. He was noted for his contributions to research on competition between species before turning to history.
Born in Brisbane, Australia, Crombie studied at the universities of Melbourne
and Cambridge
. In the early 1950s, he taught at University College, London
. In 1953, he was given a position at Oxford
, as that school's first lecturer in the history of science
. During Crombie's tenure at Oxford, the history of science was added to the graduate level offerings of Oxford's history faculty.
During his career as a historian of science, Crombie identified thematic threads or "styles" in the development of European approaches to science. He published his ideas in 1994 in a definitive 3-volume work, entitled, Styles of Scientific Thinking in the European Tradition : The History of Argument and Explanation especially in the Mathematical and Biomedical Sciences and Arts. During his tenure he supervised several students, including Robert Fox
(Professor of the History of Science, Oxford University), David M Knight
(Professor of the History and Philosophy of Science, Durham University); German E Berrios
(Professor of the Epistemology of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge) and Trevor Levere (Professor of the History of Science, University of Toronto).
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n historian of science who began his career as a zoologist. He was noted for his contributions to research on competition between species before turning to history.
Born in Brisbane, Australia, Crombie studied at the universities of Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
and Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
. In the early 1950s, he taught at University College, London
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
. In 1953, he was given a position at Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
, as that school's first lecturer in the history of science
Historiography of science
Historiography is the study of the history and methodology of the discipline of history. The historiography of science is thus the study of the history and methodology of the sub-discipline of history, known as the history of science, including its disciplinary aspects and practices and to the...
. During Crombie's tenure at Oxford, the history of science was added to the graduate level offerings of Oxford's history faculty.
During his career as a historian of science, Crombie identified thematic threads or "styles" in the development of European approaches to science. He published his ideas in 1994 in a definitive 3-volume work, entitled, Styles of Scientific Thinking in the European Tradition : The History of Argument and Explanation especially in the Mathematical and Biomedical Sciences and Arts. During his tenure he supervised several students, including Robert Fox
Robert Fox
Robert Fox may refer to:*Robert Fox , 19th-century African-American civil rights activist*Robert Fox , Australian rules footballer*Robert Fox , defence correspondent for the Evening Standard...
(Professor of the History of Science, Oxford University), David M Knight
David M Knight
David M. Knight is Professor of the History and Philosophy of Science at Durham University.-Life:The son of the Dean of Exeter, he read chemistry at Keble College, Oxford and, after serving in the military, read a DPhil in the history of Victorian chemistry under the supervision of Alistair...
(Professor of the History and Philosophy of Science, Durham University); German E Berrios
G. E. Berrios
German E. Berrios is a Professor of Psychiatry at Cambridge University in the UK.He was born in Tacna, Peru, and studied medicine and philosophy at the University of San Marcos . Subsequently, he read psychology and philosophy at Corpus Christi College, Oxford University, where he was a scholar by...
(Professor of the Epistemology of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge) and Trevor Levere (Professor of the History of Science, University of Toronto).