Tools and Modes of Representation in the Laboratory Sciences

Ursula Klein

This book provides novel insights into the practices of representing invisible objects in nineteenth-century and twentieth-century laboratory sciences. It tackles questions such as: How did scientific practitioners make sense of mathematical representations of theoretical entities, and did their understanding depend on transformations of mathematical sign systems into diagrams, graphs or other iconic modes of representation? Are modes of representation conceptually essential or merely decorative features of scientific discourse? Why did experimental scientists implement theoretically loaded sign systems, such as chemical formulas, in their practical activities, and what were the functions of such sign systems in experimental practice? The essays contained in this volume carefully follow the way scientists constructed, juxtaposed and transformed representations of invisible objects of...