Vecchie e nuove funzioni della storia della scienza

After Kuhn, the widening field of history of science has deployed a pluralistic approach, both internalist and externalist, to the context of scientific theory and practice. The deconstruction of the "enchantment" of science as progressive edification of a temple of universal truths has counted among its most prominent victims the modernist idea of scientific museum. However, particularly in the light of the recent "spatial turn", the post-modern scientific museum can benefit from the interaction with the history of science to promote a more realistic representation of scientific practice, as embodied in its specific societal and intellectual context. A major opportunity for this development is to exploit the potentialities enclosed in scientific objects.