| 1. |
- Af Geijerstam, Jan, 1951-
(författare)
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Landscapes of Technology Transfer : Swedish Ironmakers in India 1860–1864
- 2004
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- In the early 1860s three Swedes, Nils Wilhelm Mitander,Julius Ramsay and Gustaf Wittenström, were engaged by theBritish to build and run charcoal-based ironworks in India.These works, the Burwai Iron Works of the British Government inthe case of Mitander and the privately owned Kumaon Iron Worksin the case of Ramsay and Wittenström, were both to bebased on the most modern European technology. The projects werepioneering in Indian ironmaking. The ambitions were high andstakes big, but after only a few years the projects were closedand the Swedes returned home.Landscapes of Technology Transferpresents a detailedstudy of the Kumaon and Burwai Iron Works, from their firstconception to their final closure. The investigation isbasically empirical and a fundamental question is: Why were theworks never brought into full and continuous production?The ironworks projects should be considered as processes oftechnology transfer rather than fully fledged and completedtransfers. In spite of this lack of success, or maybe becauseof it, the history of the ironworks and the Swedes also forms afruitful case to put other questions of wide relevance. Itexposes workings and effects of colonialism and offers anexplanation of the late development of India's iron and steelindustry and analyses of the complex totality forming theprerequisites for a successful transfer of technology. The longtraditions of bloomery ironmaking in India and ismarginalisation is also discussed.Landscapes of Technology Transferis a comprehensiveempirical study. From a local and individual perspective ittraces lines of connection across boundaries of time andgeography. The historical landscapes of technology transfer aredescribed in their cultural, social, economic and politicaldimensions and the thesis underlines the importance of a closeacquaintance with local settings and conditions, where historyis manifested in a physical presence. The remains of theironworks and theirlocal landscapes in present-day India areused as a central source for writing their histories. There isalso a strong emphasis on the use of photographs and drawingsas sources.The outcome of the projects was the result of the interplaybetween the local and the global, between a diversity ofconcrete factors influencing the construction of the works andtheir running and their colonial character. The studyemphasises the importance of technological systems andnetworks, both on a micro and a macro level. On a local leveldemanding logistics, a sometimes adverse climate, theprocurement of charcoal and iron ore in sufficient quantitiesand the build up of knowledge of ironmaking posed serious butnot insurmountable difficulties. Most obstacles were overcomealready during the first few years of the 1860s, the period ofthe Swedes, but to put the works into full and continuousproduction would have needed perseverance and purposefulefforts to support and protect the iron production, at leastduring an initial period. In the end the position of India as acolonial dependency, subjected to the primacy of Britishinterests, set the limits of the projects.Key words:History of technology, industrial heritagestudies, industrial archaeology, technology transfer,diffusion, technological systems, landscapes of technology,iron and steel, charcoal iron, direct and indirect ironmaking,bloomeries, 19th century, industrial history,industrialisation, de-industrialisation, underdevelopment,colonialism, India, Sweden, Great Britain, global history,annales.
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| 2. |
- Andreasson, Ulf, 1967-
(författare)
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Arbetslösa i rörelse : Organisationssträvanden och politisk kamp inom arbetslöshetsrörelsen i Sverige, 1920-34
- 2008
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This doctoral thesis sets out to analyse the development of the unemployed movement in Sweden during the period 1920–34. The study is divided into two parts. The first is empirical and descriptive while the second is interpretive and explanatory, and seeks to examine why this phenomenon developed in the way it did. Mass unemployment in Sweden between the World Wars did not cause the same social tensions as in many other countries. This relative peace endured despite high and consistent unemployment and hard living conditions for the unemployed. These conditions served as sources for tensions present in the unemployed movement, and which some actors sought to take advantage of and even exacerbate. Andréasson argues that a major reason that society did not take a more radical turn in the period was that the reformist labour movement actively moderated these tensions. This was done by the Social Democratic Party (SAP) changing the environment of the unemployed organisations, for example by using local unemployment policy to polish off the rough edges of the national unemployment policy. More important was the crisis politics in the early 1930s that helped narrow the socio-economic gap between those who had and those who did not have a job. The Swedish Trade Union Confederation (LO) neutralised the movement of the unemployed by introducing changes within the unemployed movement itself, involving a variety of strategies. After 1933, the LO and SAP dominated and were able to direct the activities of most of the organisations that existed. Gaining control over the unemployed was as important for the LO and SAP as being able to exert control over other forces that might threaten to weaken their long-term strategies and aims. There was a conviction within the unemployed movement that mass unemployment was largely a consequence of technological developments in production. This argument had roots dating back to the early stages of industrialism in England when Luddites had attacked production machinery. The coalition of organisations of unemployed workers in Sweden during the 1920s and 1930s did not seriously consider engaging in machine-breaking activities. The movement’s criticism of technology did not extend into the Swedish model which envisioned the development of machinery as a way to prevent rising unemployment.
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| 3. |
- Avango, Dag, 1965-
(författare)
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Sveagruvan : svensk gruvhantering mellan industri, diplomati och geovetenskap 1910-1934
- 2005
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The purpose of this thesis is to analyse the development of a mining industry in Spitsbergen and its relationship to Swedish scientific polar research. The empirical focus is the history of Swedish coal mining on Spitsbergen between 1910 and 1934 and the mining activities at Sveagruvan 1917-1925. The aim of the thesis is to explain why this coal-mining project was started, why it was developed and why it was terminated. It critically examines a linear model that has been used to explain the development of this mining project, i.e. the idea that scientific research leads on to technological development and industrial activities in a linear sequence.A theoretical and methodological framework called Actor Network Theory (ANT) is used to describe and analyse the Swedish coal-mining project. In the construction of an actor network human as well as non-human actors are involved, shaping the project and influencing its results. If an industrial project shall be successful, the project leadership must maintain control over both the local and global parts of the network and maintain a flow of resources between them.The actors that initiated the Swedish coal-mining project on Spitsbergen in 1910 wanted it to fulfil both economic and political needs. Investors from the iron- and steel industry wanted Swedish coal for the production of coke for blast furnaces. At the same time the Swedish government wanted to stop Norwegian attempts to take control over Spitsbergen – at the time a no-mans land. By opening up Swedish coalfields on Spitsbergen, Sweden would strengthen its position in future international negotiations on the legal status of this Arctic Archipelago.Over time, the motives for the project were changed. This was a result of shifting economic and political priorities. The quality of the coal resources was not suitable for coke production, but good enough for steam production. There was also a shift in focus from foreign policy to the politics of energy after the Svalbard treaty was signed in 1920.With the use of the theoretical model of the thesis, an attempt is made to prove that the project failed for three main reasons. First, the actors financing the project did not deliver the necessary resources to maintain the industrial activities. Second, the Swedish coalmine Sveagruvan did not deliver enough resources to maintain the support of the politicians and the private investors. Third, the project managers failed to maintain their control over the project.In the thesis it is shown that the linear model can be questioned, in this case with regard to the idea that the coal-mining project was a product of Swedish polar science. No doubt the input of geo-scientific knowledge from Swedish polar scientists was important, but so were other forms of knowledge and other actors. The linear model was a useful instrument, however, in the construction of history – a history valuable as a tool to enrol investors and to defeat political enemies. In the last-mentioned sense, the model was used to create a prestigious Swedish history of Spitsbergen – a history that gave Swedish citizens credit for the industrial development of the Arctic Archipelago.
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| 4. |
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| 5. |
- Beckman, Jenny
(författare)
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Naturens palats
- 2000
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This study considers the institutional identities of theSwedish Museum of Natural History (SMNH) from a spatialperspective. The focus is on the decision, in 1904, to move themuseum from its old inner-city building in Stockholm to a newsite in Frescati, north-east of the city. During the debatessurrounding the relocation of the museum, different ideas werearticulated about its precise role as an institution ofresearch, of education, and of entertainment. It becamepossible to redefine the position of the museum, at a time whenits national, scientific, educational, and geographicalcontexts were changing.Depending on the perspective, the relocation of the SMNH canbe seen either as a success or as a failure. It was successfulin the sense that the museum was granted large sums of moneyand considerable Crown lands for the new, monumental buildings.It was a failure in terms of its increased geographical andsocial distance from colleagues and visitors. Through a studyof the relocation project on three different spatial levels,different aspects of the institutional identity of the SMNHcome to light. On a national level, funding and appointmentpolicies reflect the position of the museum withinnineteenth-century cultural politics as well as within academicresearch. Perspectives from human geography and architecturaltheory are used to investigatethe function of the museum on amunicipal and an architectural level. The new location of theSMNH outside central Stockholm is indicative of its status asan academic institution, where visitors were less importantthan research. The struggle surrounding the design of themuseum building reflects different ideas of the function of themuseum. Finally, the design of the exhibitions themselvesidentifies the role of the SMNH in the Swedish system ofeducation.Key words:history of science, history of ideas, historyof biology, history of architecture, museums, education, urbanplanning, Naturhistoriska riksmuseet, 19th century, 20thcentury.
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| 6. |
- Bruzelius, Nils
(författare)
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"near friendly or neutral shores" : the deployment of the fleet ballistic missile submarines and US policy towrads Scandinavia, 1957-1963
- 2007
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The Polaris submarine, USS George Washington, went on her first deterrent patrol in November 1960. By that, the US Navy had acquired the capability to deliver a retaliatory attack upon Moscow and other cities in the Soviet Union by means of submarine launched ballistic missiles.The basic idea of this dissertation, namely the main thesis, is that there is a connection between the US attention to the defence of Scandinavia and operational needs of the Polaris submarines. A unilateral security guarantee given to Sweden and the Norwegian ship construction programme are two distinct examples of this US attention.The Polaris A-1 missile had many technical limitations or “reverse salients” that were corrected in later versions of the missile. Before the engineers could correct the reverse salients, the submarine commanders had to use “tactical adaptations” to make the system work. The first and most obvious of these adaptations was to navigate the submarine to an area from where it was possible to reach the target. The range of the Polaris A-1 missile was 1109 nautical miles. The most suitable launching area from where Moscow, the prime target, and also the five largest cities in the Soviet Union, were within reach was Skagerrak outside the west coast of Sweden.The relatively low yield of the warhead, 400 kilotons, necessitated accurate navigation of the submarine. Even such a small miscalculation as one nautical mile in launching position would reduce the effect of an attack significantly. Likewise, all movements of the submarine would increase the divergence of the warheads at the target and because of that reduce system efficiency. Preparing the missile for launch was an elaborate process that took many hours. To keep the submarine hovering at a fixed launching position during long time was difficult. One tactical adaptation that nullified all these problems was to put the submarine at rest on the seabed. Inside Swedish territorial waters, several suitable resting areas could be found.The short range of the Polaris missile made its theatre of operations predictable and relatively small. If the Russians were prepared to invest in an airborne patrol, which could engage in hunter-killer missions in conjunction with a Soviet first strike, it might be possible to locate and destroy the submarine after only one of two missiles had, been launched. Such a prospect would reduce the efficacy of Polaris as a deterrent and action to preserve its invulnerability was needed.The security guarantee for Sweden was discussed at the National Security Council meeting on April 1, 1960. No motive was given as to why the US should grant Sweden such a guarantee. The Secretary of State, Christian Herter, objected strongly to the suggested guarantee. Later, after he had been informed about the need to protect the Polaris’ safe haven in Skagerrak, Herter concurred to grant Sweden a security guarantee. The existence of a guarantee was unknown to Sweden but it conferred great benefits on the country. The co-operation between Sweden and the US increased.In 1960, the Norwegian Parliament decided that a new fleet should be built. The new navy was a US initiative and the US paid half the cost of building fifty new ships. The new fleet was an Anti-Submarine Warfare fleet with a high order of readiness. It was well-suited to protect the Northern entrance to Skagerrak. In the Military Assistance Programme, no authorization existed for any US authority to enter into a costly deal with Norway. NATO Headquarters in Europe had other and lower ambitions for the Norwegian fleet. The dissertation demonstrates one way the US Navy could get the necessary authorization and cover the expenditure for the new fleet.The military bureaucracy in Sweden was aware of the Polaris development but paid little attention to it. The intelligence focus was on the Warsaw Pact in the East. The Swedish defence attaché office in Washington never received any questions from Stockholm concerning Polaris submarines and made no inquiries on its own. The only Swedish person that asked questions about Polaris, to my knowledge, was the King and he did so during a luncheon with Admiral Burke. When told detailed information about the deployment of the Polaris submarines on the west coast of Sweden by the spy Stig Wennerström during de-briefing, the military did not believe him. Even the larger question, that the Polaris deployment made Sweden and the Swedish Air Force a target for Soviet counterattacks, was overlooked by Swedish intelligence.
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| 7. |
- Dahlström, Eva
(författare)
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Verkstadsmiljöer under 1800-talet
- 1999
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The study is concerned with the establishment of Swedishengineering industry during the 19th century, with particularattention given to industrial plants and the formation of thebuilt up environment. The primary aim is to discuss theinfluence of older forms of manufacture and the transfer of newforeign technology. The analysis is carried out by using theconcepts proto-industry and paternalism. Another aim is toexamine how and in what respect an examination of buildings andmachinery can contribute to a better understanding of theindustrial past.The thesis presents a comprehensive study at national levelof the growth and expansion of the engineering industry between1850 and 1880, which is followed by three case studies of threedifferent types of enterprise. The firms were set up at thesame time, the 1850s, but they formed part of different kindsof societies. The first firm was founded in Överum, aniron-works in the countryside, while Ludvigsberg was located inStockholm and the third enterprise, Köpings mekaniskaverkstad, was in the small town of Köping. The owners'backgrounds were also different in terms of family traditions,education and networks.Both from the national overview, as well as from the casestudies, it is apparent that the engineering sector wasinfluenced in various ways by older forms of manufacture.Occasionally there was a direct connection but in most cases itwas a more indirect relation, which consisted mainly ofknowledge being transferred from the older forms of manufactureto the new branch. Neither the use of modern forms ofproduction nor paternalism was connected to the size of thelocation.The architectural form reveals to what extendt the workshopswere seen as manifestations of the firms importance. The changeof production, different products, new machines and differentorganisation of work, left discernible traces in the buildingsof the three enterprises.Key words: industrial archaeology, history ofarchitecture, economic history, history of technology,proto-industry, paternalism, engineering industry, Överumsbruk, Köpings mekaniska verkstad, Ludvigsbergs mekaniskaverkstad, 19th century.
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| 8. |
- Dussauge, Isabelle, 1978-
(författare)
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Technomedical Visions : Magnetic Resonance Imaging in 1980s Sweden
- 2008
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The medical imaging technology called MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) stems from a blind measurement technology which was further developed in research and practice to enable seeing into the inner body. Vision with MRI was open-ended, and it was developed and tamed in a context of fragmented medical perspectives on the body and on technology. "Technomedical Visions" addresses the formation of MRI’s specific visualities in the first decade of its introduction in Sweden. The purpose of this dissertation is to explore how vision with MRI has been constructed in practice in relation to existing ways of knowing the body within medicine. Dussauge investigates first the early decisions that led to a national evaluation of MRI technology in the mid-1980s in Sweden. Then she addresses the shaping of MRI’s quantitative visuality in the practices of radiology, psychiatry and the laboratory, with focus on microhistories at St. Göran’s Hospital, Karolinska Institutet, Uppsala University Hospital, and Lund University. Dussauge shows that whereas authorities’ early decisions momentarily defined MRI as a radiological tool for immediate clinical use and evaluation, a crucial part of MRI’s introduction was the work conducted by MRI-users. These researchers from a range of scientific and medical disciplines performed, over time, a multitude of shapings of MRI’s vision. This studies shows how MRI was made congruent with existing technomedical gazes. The novel MRI gaze was made intelligible within cross-referential networks, and researchers reproduced technomedicine’s existing gazes both in the production, optimization and interpretation of MRI representations. Technomedical time frames, epistemologies and definitions of the normal and the pathological were reproduced and sometimes, re-cast, in the shaping of MRI in practice. This study also demonstrates that anatomy recurrently worked as an underlying frame for the exploration and production of MRI visions. Anatomy’s material visuality provided a site for the production of novel facts at the intersection of existing gazes. Through the practices of shaping MRI gazes, anatomy was systematically remediated, reproduced and reconfigured.
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