History of Science Society at 100: HSS at the Movies

Perspectives on Science

Moviegoers who might never pick up a book on the history of science may nonetheless find themselves confronted with the stories, themes, and questions to which historians of science devote their careers when they go to the movies. Films and other forms of popular culture both reflect and shape public discourse about the significance of scientific discoveries and the legacies of technological achievements. For this episode, we’ve convened a film forum. HSS Secretary Matt Shindell hosts a discussion of four recent movies with fellow historians Yangyang Cheng, David Hecht, and Amit Prasad. Each of the films take on history of science subject matter in different ways; they include Christopher Nolan’s newly released biopic, Oppenheimer, Sudhir Mishra and Sachin Krishn’s satire, Serious Men, Ryan White’s documentary, Good Night Oppy, and Jianya Zhang’s heroic depiction of Qian Xuesen. Recorded on July 27, 2023. For information this topic, and other HSS@100 episodes, please see https://www.chstm.org/video/157.