Nersessian, N. J. (1994). Opening the black box: Cognitive science and the history of science. In Thackray, A. (ed.) Constructing Knowledge in the History of Science. Osiris 10, 1995.

@Article{,
  author = 	 {Nancy J. Nersessian},
  title = 	 {Opening the black box: Cognitive science and the
history of science},
  journal = 	 {Osiris},
  year = 	 {1995},
  OPTvolume = 	 {10},
  OPTpages = 	 {},
}

Author of the summary: Jim Davies, 2001, jim@jimdavies.org

Cite this paper for:

• Cognitive History focuses on the creation, change, and communication of representations of nature.
• Maxwell calls it "the method of physical analogy." [p17]
• Structural model: spatial, causal and temporal relations between entities and events that enable simulation. Need not be visual. Used in dynamic mental modeling.[p20]

Outline:

Cognitive History is finding a place among the other disciplines as a field of cognitive science.[p2] Cognitive History focuses on the creation, change, and communication of representations of nature.

The sources of data for cognitive history are things like: diaries, notebooks, publications, correspondence, equipment, drawings, diagrams, and pedagogical notes. [p3]

Tweney in Mynatt et al. 1978: Found that the confirmation first bias happend not only in Wason card tasks but with Faraday. [p13]

Evidence for visual reasoning:
• Maxwell calls it "the method of physical analogy." [p17]
• "the visual representation of the lines of force played a significant role in Faraday's thinking about electromagnetism. . ." (Berkson 1974; Gooding 1985; Nersessian 1984, 1985, 1988; Williams 1965). [p18-19]
• "the image of interlocking curves figured prominently in his final analysis. . ."
• Visual representations "played a central role in Maxwell's mathematization of the field concept.. . ." (Nersessian 1992a; Wise 1979).
• Maxwell used the analogy pedagogically in the paper.
• There is evidence that other scientists (Faraday, geologists) use visual representations to "abstract and represent salient features of the phenomena under discussion." We know Faraday did it because he overused the visual representation: he counted number of lines cut rather than thinking of it as a continuous field. This is a result of the visualization of lines.[p19]
• Larkin and Simon (1987, Larkin 1989): making diagrams can enable problem solving and understanding in science, because perceptual inferences are easier than more abstract reasoning.

Thought experimentation is simulation by running a mental model for hypothesis testing.

Summary author's notes:

• Page numbers are taken from Georgia Institue of Technology Cognitive Science Technical Report GIT-COGSCI-94/23.
• Perceptual inferences are easier than abstact reasoning. Perception happens at both the symbolic (propositional) and depictive levels), but presumably only with visual information.