Abstract
Eighteenth century river hydraulics used both theory and measurement to address problems of flood safety, navigation and defense related to the rivers. In the late eighteenth century the Dutch overseer of the rivers, Christiaan Brunings, integrated hydraulic theory and meteorological practices, which enabled him to design a unique instrument for measuring river flow. The question is whether the unprecedented detail of measurements fits the putative empirical stance in the eighteenth century. The interactions between theory, instrument, measurement, and other knowledge practices are here assessed using experiences in similar measurement practices. I argue that Brunings had theoretical and embodied understanding of hydrodynamics, as he knew how to design an instrument for flow measurement of sufficient accuracy for his purpose in the sociopolitical context of river management.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 336-357 |
| Number of pages | 22 |
| Journal | Berichte zur Wissenschaftsgeschichte |
| Volume | 46 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| Early online date | 8 Aug 2023 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Dec 2023 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2023 The Authors. Berichte zur Wissenschaftsgeschichte published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.
Funding
I gratefully acknowledge Jip van Besouw, Mathijs Boom, and Robert-Jan Wille for discussions and comments on an earlier draft, an anonymous reviewer for pointing out where clarification was needed, and the editor Kärin Nickelsen for steer. I declare to have no conflict of interest.
Keywords
- embodied understanding
- measurement instrument
- practice of knowledge creation
- river hydraulics
- water management