Making Knowledge: Objects, Images, and Practices in the History of Science

The course aims to explore the material and visual dimensions of scientific knowledge, examining how objects, images, and practices contribute to the making and circulation of knowledge across different historical contexts. It introduces students to key historiographical and methodological approaches in the history of science and technology, with particular attention to instruments, collections, visual representations, and experimental cultures.
The teaching activities are designed to foster critical reflection on the ways in which scientific knowledge is constructed, represented, and transmitted within specific social, cultural, and institutional frameworks, and to develop an awareness of the interconnections between science, art, and material culture.

At the end of the course, students will be able to:
- demonstrate an understanding of the main historiographical and methodological approaches to the study of material and visual practices in the history of science;
- identify and discuss the roles of objects, instruments, images, and spaces in the production and communication of scientific knowledge;
- apply critical and analytical tools to interpret case studies involving scientific collections, images, and experimental practices;
- use appropriate disciplinary vocabulary and concepts to describe and contextualize sources related to the material culture of science;
- develop independent critical judgment regarding the historical processes through which knowledge has been materially and visually constructed;
- communicate analyses and reflections clearly, both orally and in writing, employing appropriate scholarly language;
- acquire the methodological foundations necessary to pursue further research in the history of science, museum studies, or related fields autonomously.