Centre for Science Studies
Image: Markus Scholz for the Leopoldina
The Centre for Science Studies initiates and organises independent research projects at the Leopoldina and provides all necessary infrastructure. It supports the Academy as a research location with regard to its current tasks and in the unbiased and critical examination of its history. It is the central point of contact for fundamental communication processes and reflexive approaches within the sciences, thus anchoring science research institutionally at the Academy.
In science studies, the sciences themselves become the object of research. Understanding them as historical, social, epistemic and cultural practices is the task of the Centre for Science Studies. Science studies is an interdisciplinary research field examining the sciences through methods and theories rooted in the humanities, social sciences and cultural studies.
The Centre for Science Studies is situated in the immediate vicinity of the archives and library at the traditional location of the Leopoldina and constitutes its central research infrastructure. All research results attained are made accessible through publications, symposia and lectures, thus enabling societal participation in scientific discourse. At the same time, the Centre for Science Studies provides scope for a free exchange between researchers within and outside the academy and among national and international academies.
