The nineteenth century saw the advent of the scientist as both a word and a concept. The “natural philosopher,” whose purview had for centuries been a theoretical understanding of the world, was replaced by a different kind of expert: the scientist (a word coined in 1834), whose expertise was practical and pertinent to a world being dramatically changed by technology.
Watch our conversation with historian Anastasia Klimchynskaya to explore the emergence of the scientist. Together, we examine how nineteenth-century writers engaged with this novel figure in society and how scientists themselves conceived their new roles.
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