Universities and Science in the Early Modern Period - Conference

In this review of Universities and Science in the Early Modern Period the reviewer finds a focused academic collection that will appeal to historians of science and higher education. Compiled from essays presented at a 1999 conference in Valencia, the volume brings together scholarship that reassesses the institutional and cultural roles of universities in early modern scientific development. The single biggest reason to buy is its concentrated, historically grounded discussion of how universities influenced scientific attitudes across different countries, making it useful for researchers seeking context rather than a popular narrative.

Key Features

• Conference-based essays: The book gathers most contributions from a 1999 Valencia conference, providing multiple scholarly perspectives on the same thematic program.
• Institutional focus: Several chapters emphasize the role of universities in shaping scientific practice, helping readers understand institutional contexts behind early modern discoveries.
• Comparative outlook: Contributors highlight differences in attitudes toward novelty and progress across countries, offering comparative material valuable for cross-national study.
• Celebratory context: The volume was part of the Five Centuries celebrations of the University of Valencia, which gives the collection a clear historical framing and local archival grounding.
• Scholarly reappraisal: The essays reflect recent decades' renewed attention to political, social, and cultural contexts of scientific activity, aiding historians rethinking traditional narratives.

Who It's For

This book is best for academic readers: graduate students, researchers, and university historians who want a scholarly collection focused on institutional and regional perspectives of early modern science. It works well as a supplemental text for seminars on the history of science, higher education, or early modern intellectual networks.

It is less suitable for casual readers or those seeking a broad popular history; the collection assumes familiarity with historiographic debates and offers focused essays rather than a single synthetic narrative. Readers needing an introductory overview should look elsewhere before tackling this conference volume.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Concentrated academic perspectives drawn from a dedicated 1999 conference provide depth on institutional roles in science.
• Comparative essays illustrate how attitudes to scientific novelty varied by country, which is useful for cross-cultural study.
• The connection to the University of Valencia celebrations gives the collection a clear archival and historical frame.

Cons

• The format is a conference proceedings collection, so coverage is uneven and not intended as a single synthesized textbook.

Specifications

Title	Universities and Science in the Early Modern Period (Archimedes, 12)
Editors / Contributors	Mordechai Feingold, Victor Navarro-Brotons
Origin	Essays presented at a 1999 conference in Valencia, Spain
Conference context	Part of the Five Centuries of the Life of the University of Valencia celebrations
Focus	Institutional, political, social, and cultural context of early modern science
Series	Archimedes, volume 12

Our Verdict

Universities and Science in the Early Modern Period is a worthwhile purchase for specialists who value conference-driven scholarship and institutional analysis of science. It is good value for researchers and graduate students seeking comparative and contextual essays on university roles in early modern scientific change, but not aimed at general readers wanting a single cohesive narrative.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this book a single-author monograph?
Answer. No, it is an edited collection of contributions presented at a 1999 conference in Valencia.

Does the volume cover multiple countries?
Answer. Yes, several essays compare attitudes toward scientific novelty across different countries.

Who edited or organized the volume?
Answer. The work is associated with Mordechai Feingold and Victor Navarro-Brotons and was part of the University of Valencia celebrations.