Call for Papers for a symposium at the 2026 ESHS/HSS Joint Meeting in Edinburgh, 13–16 July 2026

Shifting perspectives: diversity, geographies, and possibilities in the physical sciences

Recent scholarship in the history of science has incorporated a broader range of actors, geographies, and materialities, leading to new methodologies, questions, and lines of inquiry. These developments have also pluralized the history of the physical sciences and challenged some of its canonical narratives.

For the 2026 ESHS/HSS Joint Meeting in Edinburgh, we welcome submissions for a symposium that aims to highlight the diverse trajectories, tensions, and promising directions in the history of the physical sciences. We would like to feature the multiple ways in which the history of the physical sciences is being reexamined and contested, as well as the broad range of individuals contributing to these efforts. We are also interested in work that challenges narrative boundaries and expands the methodological and thematic scope of the field.

Authors are expected to present original, unpublished work (20min talk; in-person) at the ESHS/HSS Joint Meeting in Edinburgh (13–16 July 2026). We warmly welcome all contributions. Submissions from early career scholars are especially encouraged. We also welcome proposals in languages other than English, accompanied by an English translation.

Submissions should include the following:

• Author name, email, and affiliation

• Paper title

• Abstract of 2,000 characters or fewer (approximately 250 words)

Please send submissions and any questions via email to Joanna Behrman (job@ind.ku.dk) by 1 November at 11:59 pm PST (2 November 2025, 7:59 am UTC). All submitters will be notified of their submission status by 8 November 2025.

Symposium organizers: Joanna Behrman, Barbara Hof, Gisela Mateos

Symposium sponsored by: Inter-Union Commission for the History and Philosophy of Physics (IUCHPP), a commission of the IUPAP and the DHST/IUHPST. Co-sponsor: Commission on Science, Technology and Diplomacy (STAND), a commission of the DHST/IUHPST.