I want to
announce what I believe is a Twitter first for the digital humanities: an
academic history book written for Twitter.
This is
actually a significant revision of my NASA history book I wrote in 2006 called
Science in Flux. At the time it won the American Institute of Aeronautics and
Astronautics award for best book of the year. To find it at a library near you
visit: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/430828236.
Re-writing the
book in tweets is an attempt to compose “sound byte” aphorisms that convey the
narrative in new ways. It also invites conversation in a way that traditional
book publication cannot.
I do think that
there are very important meanings from the book related to the Cold War,
government control, and the commitment to science that are quite relevant
today.
Cyrus Mody reviewed my book in Historical Studies of the Natural Sciences. He said that my book, and four others that he reviewed, was representative of new Cold War scholarship that uncovers the “grandiose ambitions of the Cold War.” He said that Science in Flux, and other books, highlighted the “astonishing otherness of the Cold War.” You can read the review essay here: Science in Flux review
Cyrus Mody reviewed my book in Historical Studies of the Natural Sciences. He said that my book, and four others that he reviewed, was representative of new Cold War scholarship that uncovers the “grandiose ambitions of the Cold War.” He said that Science in Flux, and other books, highlighted the “astonishing otherness of the Cold War.” You can read the review essay here: Science in Flux review
I have completed
the re-write and have the story now condensed into 756 tweets. I will be starting the
tweets on September 1st and will post 3 times a day, appearing at 8:05AM,
4:05PM, and 11:55PM (EST). These will be posted on Twitter to @TheHistoryFeed
and linked to the hashtag #ScienceInFlux.
Here is a
preview of a tweet scheduled for October 30th near midnight:
10/30/2013 11:55:00 PM: Before WWII the US government
seized roughly the size of all the New England states from private
citizens. #ScienceInFlux
Along the way I
will be attaching some of the rich visual record associated with the project.
I hope you will
follow along in the narrative, and most importantly contribute your own
thoughts and ideas as we proceed through the Science in Flux journey. Spread
the news!
Inside the NASA Plum Brook nuclear reactor. |