Centre for History and Philosophy of Science

Our research embraces many aspects of the history of science, technology, and medicine, from the 17th century to the present day.

Students wearing protective gloves handling artefacts

We are one of the foremost academic units for the subject in Britain, with ten permanent and several fixed-term staff, and a large and international body of postgraduate and postdoctoral researchers. Newcomers are always welcome, and quickly come to appreciate the combination of scholarly seriousness and collegial friendliness, along with the library, archival and object collections that support our teaching and research.

The Director of the Centre is Dr Ellen Clarke. She also maintains a lively Centre blog.

Our research

The Centre encompasses a vigorous research culture, in which both individual and collaborative projects are supported by a strong spirit of collegiality. Particularly distinctive of Leeds is the close interaction between historical and philosophical scholarship, which yields valuable critical and historiographical insights.

Our research community embraces scholars exploring a wide range of questions about science, technology and medicine, both past and present. The Centre is also at the forefront of current research in the philosophy of science, including structural realism, the nature and role of models in science, the nature of scientific representation, and integrated HPS.

The Centre for HPS regularly secures external funding for research projects.

Museum of the History of Science, Technology and Medicine

Our rich collections provide exciting opportunities for your research, and for developing the skills valued in the museum world and more generally in the workplace.

More on Museum of the History of Science, Technology and Medicine

Seminar series

Our fortnightly seminars are held during term-time and both staff and students are welcome and encouraged to attend.

Study with us

A wide range of history and philosophy of science modules and teaching are available at every level of undergraduate and Masters degrees.

Explore our undergraduate courses.

We have a large postgraduate community and teach in many research areas including important specialist topics.

Explore our Masters degrees.

Explore our PhD programme.

Our graduates have gone on to careers in various organisations, inside and out of academia, in the UK and across the world.

Events

We frequently host a diverse range of events, from small specialist seminars and workshops to large international conferences to public lectures. These are sometimes held in association with leading professional organisations, in which several staff are heavily involved.

Our main seminar series takes place fortnightly with visiting speakers from the UK and overseas. A weekly work-in-progress seminar also allows staff and postgraduates the opportunity to present and respond to current research work in a more informal setting.

At any one time, numerous informal reading groups are under way in the centre, covering various aspects of research in the history and philosophy of science, technology, and medicine.

Members of the Centre also benefit from seminars organised by the School of Philosophy, Religion and History of Science and its other research centres including: Metaphysics and Mind, Aesthetic, Moral and Political Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion, and by other groups in the University.

Centre for History and Philosophy of Science