Theory of the Object

Description

Throughout the history of science and technology, objects have been understood in many ways but rarely have they been understood to play an active role in the production of knowledge. This has led to largely anthropocentric theories and histories of science, which treat nature as passive objects viewed by independent observers. Thomas Nail approaches the theory of objects historically in order to tell a completely new story in which objects themselves are the true agents of scientific knowledge. They are processes, not things. It is the first history of science and technology, from prehistory to the present, to illuminate the agency, knowledge and mobility of objects. List of Figures Acknowledgements Introduction: A World of Objects Part I: The Kinetic Object 1. The Flow of Matter 2. The Fold of Number 3. The Field of Knowledge Part II: A History of Objects I. The Ordinal Object 4. The Centripetal Object 5. The Prehistoric Object II. The Cardinal Object 6. The Centrifugal Object 7. The Ancient Object I 8. The Ancient Object II III. The Intensive Object 9. The Tensional Object 10. The Medieval Object I 11. The Medieval Object II IV. The Potential Object 12. The Elastic Object 13. The Modern Object I 14. The Modern Object II Part III: The Contemporary Object V. The Loop Object 15. The Pedetic Object 16. The Contemporary Object I: Quantum Theory 17. The Contemporary Object II: Category Theory 18. The Contemporary Object III: Chaos Theory Conclusion Index