WRTG 3030 Radical Science Writing (Long) - The History of Western Science: Getting Started

This library guide for WRTG 3030: Radical Science Writing focuses on providing an introduction to the history of western science using materials that can be found in the CU Boulder Libraries. These include rare publications and first editions of books in the history of science, unpublished documents (such as letters) relating to local science, and US government publications. Use the tabs at the top to navigate by time period. The guide also includes many images, videos, and links to digitized copies to highlight the texts and images of actual scientists.

The University of Colorado Boulder Libraries' Rare and Distinctive Collections holds a strong collection of history of science materials. Much of this is tied to CU's history, with its strong tradition of scientific activity, but has been supplemented with major important donations and targeted acquisitions. Today, we continue to build this collection through new acquisitions to support research and instruction on campus and beyond. To find additional materials held in our Rare and Distinctive Collections, search the following two databases:

Library Catalog Advanced Search

• This link takes you to a library catalog advanced search. The best way to find additional relevant books here at CU is to run this advanced search by keyword and limit the search with a date range to find historical copies of history of science books. For example, put in Newton as a keyword and limit the date range between 1680 to 1720. The second option to see only rare books is to search a keyword and limit the "Location" to Rare Books Collection.

Archives Database

• This link takes you to our archival repository. Here, you can browse finding aids to our unpublished collections. Many deal with history of science and include documents such as field notebooks, photographs, research notes, etc.