Science and the Public 367PATTERNS OF SCIENCE
The nineteenth century is a particularly important period in the history of
science, as during this era many distinguishing characteristics of contem-
porary science began to take shape. A number of key theories were incor-
porated into science, such as evolutionary theory and thermodynamics,
which transformed both the life sciences and the physical sciences. It
was a time when scientists changed the way they did science and where
they did it, as the use of precision instruments in laboratory experiments
became the defi ning scientifi c activity, and the work of collecting, nam-
ing, describing, and classifying in the fi eld became secondary. The titles
used to describe scientifi c disciplines refl ected this shift, as terms such as
“biologist,” “physicist,” and “scientist” became more widely used, edging
out the older labels “natural history” and “natural philosophy.” As sci-
ence became more professionalized, some believed that the privilege of
making knowledge should be restricted to those with the proper training
and expertise. It was also a time when scientists gained unprecedented
cultural authority at the expense of the Christian clergy, as science came
to be seen as providing a model for obtaining truth. Those deemed the
legitimate interpreters of science could determine its implications for the
religious, social, and political issues of the day. Driven by the twin engines
of empire and industrialization, science became a cultural and social force
to be reckoned with. Exotic fl ora and fauna from around the world and
technological breakthroughs based on scientifi c know- how fascinated the
public, who fl ocked to see them on display at the London Zoo, Kew Gar-
dens, the Great Exhibition of 1851, the Royal Institution, and the British
Museum (Natural History), which fi rst opened in 1881. Popular science
also thrived in print form, as the revolution in communications provided
the conditions for the development of a vast cadre of professional science
journalists whose writings fi lled the pages of new popular science jour-
nals and books. Science was the “in” thing for much of the second half
of the nineteenth century. It was a “hot property,” and everyone wanted
a piece of it. Exactly who “owned” science was vigorously disputed and
there were those who were fi rmly opposed to the entire metamorphosis
of science.
The story of the contested meanings of mid- and late- Victorian science
began with the London- based scientifi c naturalists and their attempt to
reform and then control the scientifi c scene. But as we move from the
scientifi c naturalists to other groups, seemingly from the center of the
scientifi c community to the periphery, we discover intense opposition to
Huxley and his allies. By fanning out to another group of reform minded,