Science Museum Group Journal Issue 9

Science Museum Group Journal Issue 9

As guest editor Frank Trentmann notes in his introduction to this special issue of the Journal, energy is more than a physical phenomenon of watts and carbon. In a world of increasing energy consumption, depleted resources and environmental damage, energy has become a crucial topic of cultural enquiry and political concern too. The articles in Issue 09 emerged from a series of symposia on the Material Culture of Energy held at the Science Museum in 2017—18 and they present perspectives from across disciplines and countries. Articles range from research on lighting design in South America, to the impact of refrigeration on traditional Indian food preparation, and from a comparison of electrification in Canada and Japan to a study of the cultural meanings of the coal fire in post-war Britain. Articles by museum professionals indicate both a shared interest and creative diversity in tackling the challenges of displaying energy. They include a collaboration with a well-known artist in Manchester, the collection of personal stories alongside objects in Edinburgh, presenting visitors with difficult choices in Munich, and employing theatre to engage disadvantaged children in Recklinghausen. A detailed study of a 3D model of electricity demand from the 1950s shows what museum objects can contribute to research. Other articles describe the experience of working within an international research project on social responses to nuclear power and provide a detailed bibliographical essay to support further research in this fascinating field.
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    Item type:Journal article,
    Making Material and Cultural Connections: the fluid meaning of ‘Living Electrically’ in Japan and Canada 1920–1960
    (2018-04-25)
    Chappells, Heather
    ;
    Shin, Hiroki
    This article explores how material and cultural ‘connections’ to households were crucial in defining historical pathways of domestic electrification in Canada and Japan. Though relatively overlooked in the history of energy, we contend that the intricacies of household connections are important in understanding convergence and divergence in electrified ways of life. Electricity’s arrival in urban and rural homes was an uneven process in part due to geographical diversity and the variable connection policies of public or private providers. Selective insights from our two countries show that spatial irregularities in grid expansion and social inequities in the meaning of electrical service further arose out of misalignments between developers’ visions and the diverse material cultures of households. This disparity manifested in the form of disconnections between non-standard wiring and equipment, as well as in the form of consumer resistance, protests and even illicit acts as people fought to get the electrical service they desired. Instead of seeing electrification as a single, universal ideal around which all countries eventually converged, we conclude that it has always been an open-ended, negotiable and culturally fluid process.
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