Republic of Letters, Academies and Scientific Societies in the 18th Century: Leiden jar and science in teaching

Abstract

In this paper, the panorama that underpins the construction of the first electric condenser, known as the Leiden Jar, will be presented. Besides, the themes about the construction of science which are relevant to be discussed in Physics classes that concerns the development of this apparatus will be pointed. For this purpose, a historical narrative was constructed from primary and secondary sources, and it was inspired by the historiographical strand called Cultural History of Science. Thus, we seek to emphasize how ways of spreading knowledge in the context of Scientific Academies, Scientific Societies and what has been called Republic of Letters in the eighteenth century, constitute substantial extra-laboratory scientific practices for an understanding of the development of the Leiden Jar. Finally, in accordance with results from researches in the area of Science Teaching, we present some thoughts upon which elements of this narrative could be taken to the classroom.

Keywords

• história cultural da ciência
• práticas científicas
• garrafa de leiden
• eletricidade
• regra de dufay
• ensino de física