Medicine in the Baltic Sea region since 1945: Networks, Transfers, Consequences

• Applicant: Privatdozent Dr. Nils Hansson, Ph.D.
• Subject Area: History of Science
• Term: since 2020
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 454153131

The focus of the proposed network is the systematic research into the production and spread of medical knowledge in the Baltic Sea region since 1945. Where and how did cooperations take place? How have personal relationships facilitated the transfer of knowledge? How was knowledge “translated” and modified in new contexts? Drawing on analytical research approaches such as network theory and transnational history, the network aims at exploring the development and transfers of scientific theories in northern Europe. Central for the research is a dissemination of personal relationships between researchers in Northern Europe and on the political and technological aspects of these contacts. The time period from 1945 to 2020 is of particular interest. In recent years, cultural and scientific history studies have appeared on the Scandinavian-German scientific relationships between 1933 and 1945, but also on the detached attitude towards German scientists after the Second World War. A systematic research into the resumption of the exchange has remained a desideratum, especially with regards to the fields of medicine and science. Thus, the proposed network is particularly interested in which areas the exchange was particularly intensive (and in which not)? What could be the reasons? What factors determine the intensity of the exchange - politically motivated exchange versus personal connections? Furthermore, it aims at reconstructing research trends. The network intends to bring together researchers from a wide range of scientific fields - history, medicine, geography, ethnology and literary studies. The network is designed for both national and interdisciplinary diversity in order to get a broad picture of the medical and scientific history of the region since 1945.

• DFG Programme: Scientific Networks