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Academic Travel from Cambridge University and the Formation of Centers of Knowledge, 1885–1954

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Part of the book series: Knowledge and Space ((KNAS,volume 3))

Abstract

Academic travel can be regarded as an important process in the production and exchange of scientific knowledge and the formation of scholarly networks across the globe (see, for example, Ackers, 2005; Altbach, 1989; Barnett & Phipps, 2005; Blumenthal, Goodwin, Smith, & Teichler, 1996; OECD, 1996). It may be necessary for accessing field sites, libraries, and archives when producing new scientific arguments, it may contribute to the dissemination and evaluation of scientific knowledge in different places, and it may play an important role for informal contacts, exchanges, and collaborations between distant laboratories and academics.

This chapter is an abridged version of a paper original published in the Journal of Historical Geography. It is adapted and republished within the journal’s terms and conditions. For the original article, see Jöns, H. (2008). Academic travel from Cambridge University and the formation of centres of knowledge, 1885–1954. Journal of Historical Geography, 34, 338–362.

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Acknowledgments

I wish to thank the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, the University of Nottingham, and the Cambridge University Archives for supporting this work. I am particularly grateful to Mike Heffernan for hosting my stay as a Feodor Lynen Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the School of Geography, University of Nottingham, and for providing invaluable input and encouragement at all stages of this project. Alexa Färber, Tim Freytag, Michael Hoyler, Phil Hubbard, and three anonymous referees also kindly provided thoughtful comments on earlier versions of this chapter, and Felix Driver’s careful editorial comments greatly improved the final text. This abridged version of the article originally published in the Journal of Historical Geography also benefited from David Antal’s suggestions as the technical editor of the book series. Documents from the Cambridge University Archives are reproduced with kind permission of the Syndics of Cambridge University Library.

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Jöns, H. (2010). Academic Travel from Cambridge University and the Formation of Centers of Knowledge, 1885–1954. In: Meusburger, P., Livingstone, D., Jöns, H. (eds) Geographies of Science. Knowledge and Space, vol 3. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-8611-2_5

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