Invisible.Things unseen in science
This year's topic for the Driburger Kreis (DK) can be summed up by one simple adjective: invisible.
The Cambridge (online) dictionary defines the term as follows: ‘impossible to see’ and also: ‘ignored, not noticed, or not considered’. The conference theme thus offers a wide array in which to approach the term: research that focuses on what cannot be seen with the naked eye; that which has often been overlooked; that which has been deliberately made invisible.
A quick search in a German university library catalogue (KVK) reveals how this range has been addressed in very different areas of research. For example, the keyword “invisible” brings forth a monograph on the role of mathematics in weather forecasts, a study on migration from Bulgaria to Germany, and a book on the invisible in urban planning.
The topic “Invisible” was already selected by DK participants in 2018. Since the DK's topics are chosen democratically by the previous year’s participants and are based on current issues and topics, even themes that have already been addressed in previous editions may be revisited. The repeated election of the title ‘Invisible’ shows how relevant the topic continues to be for early-career researchers in the history of science, medicine and technology. We look forward to revisiting the topic with new questions and perspectives.”
The history of science, medicine and technology has many opportunities to make the invisible visible in its research – and repeatedly demonstrated this commitment in publications. In recent years, for example, historians of science have increasingly focused on female researchers, examined colonial and National Socialist contexts of knowledge production, and drawn attention to gender and ethnic bias in medicine – thus highlighting the hidden, overlooked and marginalised aspects of this topic.
Still, the superficial dimension of the invisible, the ‘impossible to see’, has brought new challenges in recent years as well: during the COVID pandemic, scientists reached their limits in communicating the dangers of an invisible virus. Many people argued based on what they could see in their own surroundings. The discrepancy between the invisible world of research, and the visible world of their everyday lives shook many people's faith in science. And not only in the context of the pandemic, but also in many other areas, such as climate research, the authority of scientific research is being called into question again and again. So how can scientists communicate their invisible research to an increasingly divided and critical society?
The Driburger Kreis' overarching theme invites us to take a multidimensional approach to ‘invisible’ fields of research, actors, structures, and dynamics. Possible topics and questions might include the following:
- How do scientists research objects that cannot be seen with the naked eye? What developments and inventions play a role in this?
- How was and is research on the invisible communicated to society (or funders)?
- Hierarchies and gender aspects: Who was and is invisible in the scientific community?
- Bias in medicine (and other scientific fields): What data is and was used in research? And who remains invisible in the process?
- Political dimensions of science: How and why is and has research been actively made invisible?
- Where does the data that has advanced science come from? What remains invisible in this context?
Contributions beyond the main theme are welcome as well!
Luisa Vögele (University of Tübingen)
Abstracts of no more than 300 words, including a short CV (combined in a Word-compatible document), should be sent to the Driburger Kreis organization team (info@driburgerkreis.de) by April 1, 2026. A total of 30 minutes (15 min presentation, 15 min discussion) is planned for the presentation and discussion, so that there is sufficient time for feedback and questions.
If you have any questions about the topic or the event in general, please contact the organizing team (also at info@driburgerkreis.de).
Guidelines and assistance for writing abstracts, as well as further information on the presentation format, can be found at https://www.driburgerkreis.de/.
info@driburgerkreis.de
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