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Popularizing Science. Nonfiction Books Between Academy and Public
Wissenschaft popularisieren. Das Sachbuch zwischen Akademie und Öffentlichkeit
Last Updated: 2026-02-05 16:02:08
Abstract
Science needs to be popularized in order to have an impact on society. Conversely, what is thought, read, and communicated outside the universities has an effect on research. The seminar deals with the history of popular knowledge focusing on the non-fiction book.
Objective
The seminar focuses on the reading and discussion of original and secondary texts on the history of the relationship between knowledge, the book market and the public. Students learn to critically engage with sources as well as research literature from the fields of literary, scientific, and book and media history. The amount of reading will be limited; what is important above all is the seminar discussion. Cooperation with actors in the literary business (authors, agents, editors, publishers) is planned. The students shall learn to prepare interviews and to write short texts in the form of non-fiction.
Content
Knowledge cannot be separated from the forms in which it is expressed. An important genre of (popular) knowledge representation is non-fiction. In this seminar we will look at how non-fiction books are actually made and how they are published and read at different times. Using examples from the history of non-fiction (Yuval N. Harari to Rachel Carson, C.W. Ceram to Charles Darwin/Ernst Haeckel), the seminar will shed light on the changing relationship between knowledge, the market, and the book format. What topics/subjects are en vogue at particular times? How do non-fiction books produce and narrate knowledge? How do they establish authority, how do they establish evidence? What notions of (scholarly) authorship, what notions of reading are associated with non-fiction books? What political, media, and cultural contexts play a role in this?
General Information
- Language
- German
- Levels
- DS , MSC
Examination
- Type
- graded semester performance
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| seminar | Wissenschaft popularisieren. Das Sachbuch zwischen Akademie und Öffentlichkeit |
|
2 h weekly |
Offered In
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Science in Perspective (In “Science in Perspective”-courses students learn to reflect on ETH’s STEM subjects from the perspective of humanities, political and social sciences. Only the courses listed below will be recognized as "Science in Perspective" courses.)
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Type A: Enhancement of Reflection Competence (SiP courses are recommended for bachelor students after their first-year examination and for all master- or doctoral students. All SiP courses are listed in Type A. Courses listed under Type B are only recommendations for enrollment for specific departments.)
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