Final Report Summary - THE COSMIC SOUL (Renaissance humanism and natural philosophy)
Research
The Marie Curie Fellowship project 'Renaissance humanism and natural philosophy' (THE COSMIC SOUL) had the following two major objectives: firstly, it examined Renaissance and early modern conceptions of the soul and of the principle of life in its cosmic dimension; and second, it evaluated the impact of philosophical debates amongst Renaissance humanists on the evolution of natural philosophy in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. Despite its intellectual and historical importance, the theme is unfairly neglected in the existing scholarship.
In the framework of this project, Dr Hirai has explored a wide range of source materials. During his research, he discovered a number of hitherto unstudied Latin sources from various European academic backgrounds, which could be shown to have exercised an intellectual influence on the evolution of scientific thought. In particular, Dr Hirai has focused on medical humanists-medical doctors who edited ancient Greek and Latin sources; or else humanist philologists who recovered and translated ancient medical texts - and on the way in which they conceptualised celestial influences on conception, generation and reproduction. A particular focus of his research was the evolution of traditional notions of celestial influence and the emergence of alternative scientific explanations. Dr Hirai has reported on his findings in books, articles, papers and seminar lectures, in Europe and elsewhere. During the concomitant exchanges of ideas with leading scholars, he refined his knowledge and sharpened his argument. At present, Dr Hirai is synthesising his various lectures and papers in a book, with which he hopes to reach a broader, non-specialised readership.
Dissemination
1. Lectures: Dr Hirai worked with extreme speed and efficiency, giving lectures all around the globe and publishing profusely. In this respect, his Fellowship was an immense success. As the list, below, documents, Dr Hirai delivered lectures at various international conferences and seminars in the Netherlands, France, the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, the United States, Canada and Japan. In most cases, he filmed his presentations and evaluated his performance after the events.
- 'Astrology, Talismans and Medicine in Jacques Gaffarel's Curiositez Inouyes (1629)', read at the annual meeting of the History of Science Society (Montreal, Canada, 4 November 2010).
- 'Averroes on Formative Power: Galen, Avicenna and Avempace', read at the conference Averroes Natural Philosophy and its European Legacy (Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands, 17 June 2011).
- 'Medicine and Astrology in the Renaissance: Some Aspects of Platonic Astral Medicine', read at the seminar Astri e simboli nel Rinascimento (University of Rome, 28 August 2011).
- 'Alchemy and Medicine in Joseph Du Chesne's De priscorum materia (1603) ', read at the conference Alchemy and Medicine from Antiquity to the Enlightenment (Cambridge University, 22 September 2011).
- 'Imagination, Maternal Desire and Signatures in the Embryology of Thomas Fienus (1567-1631)', read at the conference Médicalisation de la maternité et santé des femmes de l'Antiquité à la Renaissance (Université de Tours, France, 2 Dec. 2011).
- 'Medical Humanism and Natural Philosophy in the Sixteenth Century', read at the workshop Corps, machine et medicine à lâge classique (Lyon, France, 16 June 2012).
- 'Celestial Influences and Cosmic Bonds in Renaissance Medicine and Embryology after Pico', read at the conference Space, Knots and Bonds between Early Modern Magic and Science (Paris, 21-23 June 2012), also at the workshop 'Man and Cosmos from Copernic to Kepler' (Barcelona, 2-3 October 2012).
- 'Where does the Soul come from? The Origin of the Soul in Renaissance Medical Debates', read at the conference Medieval and Early Modern Intellectual History (Tokyo, 6-7 July 2012).
- 'Animal and Human Generation and Intellect in Fernel, Schegk and Sennert', to be read at the conference 'From Animal to man: medical and philosophical debates on human and animal intelligence and sensibility' (Humboldt-Universität Berlin, Germany, 21-22 September 2012).
- 'Mysteries of Living Corpuscles: Atomism and the Origin of Life in Sennert, Gassendi and Kircher', to be read at the conference Early Modern Medicine and Philosophy (Pittsburgh, United States, 2-4 November 2012).
2. Books: (a) During his Marie Curie Fellowship, Dr Hirai revised the manuscript of his book 'Medical Humanism and Natural Philosophy' on the basis of the referee reports sent to the editors of the book series Medieval and Early Modern Science (Brill Academic Publishers). The book was released in December 2011 and appears to meet with a highly favourable response from the academic public. (b) In addition, together with Jan Papy (University of Leuven), Dr Hirai also edited the proceedings of the conference 'Justus Lipsius and Natural Philosophy' during the autumn and winter of 2010-2011. The volume of collected articles was published by the Royal Academy of Belgium in November 2011.
3. Articles: Dr Hirai furthermore published no less than 9 articles based on his research (6 in English, 2 in Italian, 1 in Czech). These publications are listed separately on the website of the Marie Curie Fellowship.
Further Fellowship-related activities
1. Journal editing: After his arrival at Nijmegen, Dr Hirai started to assist the journal Early Science and Medicine for its book review section by recruiting reviewers and collecting their reviews. He was subsequently appointed vice editor of the journal and has been actively contributing to the editorial task through the examination of submitted articles. Closely observing the work of the editor in chief, he gained crucial skills for journal editing and management.
2. Refereeing and consulting: Dr Hirai furthermore acted as referee for journals such as Journal of the History of Philosophy and Bruniana & Campanelliana. He was also invited to evaluate various doctoral and post-doctoral research projects in early modern European intellectual history on behalf of the Flemish Science Foundation (FWO), the Czech Science Foundation (GACR) and Radboud University Nijmegen.
3. Teaching and supervision: Dr Hirai taught two International Research Master Seminars 'Animate / Inanimate in Natural Philosophy from Antiquity to the Renaissance' (2010-11) and 'Leibniz and the Philosophy of Life before the Rise of Modern Biology' (2011-12). He gained the first-hand experience in constructing a Master course, in animating and leading student discussions and inciting them to further reflection. This teaching experience was new for Dr Hirai and helped a lot to fill a lacuna in his curriculum vitae. Dr Hirai furthermore accepted an invited lectureship at Saint Pauls University (Tokyo) in July 2012. Finally, he also carried out the supervision of two doctoral students, one as a co-supervisor of Adam Takahashis Ph.D. dissertation project: 'The Cosmology of Albertus Magnus (ca. 1200-1280)' (Radboud University Nijmegen, 2009-present) and the other as an informal advisor of Kuni Sakamoto's PhD. dissertation project: 'The Natural Philosophy of Julius Caesar Scaliger (1484-1558)' (University of Tokyo, 2008-2012).
International distinctions
For the overall achievement of his research career, the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) awarded Dr Hirai the 'JSPS Prize' of 2012.
Future prospects
Dr Hirai's accomplishments in the two years of his Marie Curie Fellowship have considerably helped him to augment his international visibility as a scholar and to amplify the number of academic skills (editing, teaching, supervision). The positive effects of these accomplishments can be measured by a number of factors: the invitations he receives to lecture at home and abroad; as well as his great chances to be appointed lead investigator in a prestigious national research project in the Netherlands.
The Marie Curie Fellowship project 'Renaissance humanism and natural philosophy' (THE COSMIC SOUL) had the following two major objectives: firstly, it examined Renaissance and early modern conceptions of the soul and of the principle of life in its cosmic dimension; and second, it evaluated the impact of philosophical debates amongst Renaissance humanists on the evolution of natural philosophy in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. Despite its intellectual and historical importance, the theme is unfairly neglected in the existing scholarship.
In the framework of this project, Dr Hirai has explored a wide range of source materials. During his research, he discovered a number of hitherto unstudied Latin sources from various European academic backgrounds, which could be shown to have exercised an intellectual influence on the evolution of scientific thought. In particular, Dr Hirai has focused on medical humanists-medical doctors who edited ancient Greek and Latin sources; or else humanist philologists who recovered and translated ancient medical texts - and on the way in which they conceptualised celestial influences on conception, generation and reproduction. A particular focus of his research was the evolution of traditional notions of celestial influence and the emergence of alternative scientific explanations. Dr Hirai has reported on his findings in books, articles, papers and seminar lectures, in Europe and elsewhere. During the concomitant exchanges of ideas with leading scholars, he refined his knowledge and sharpened his argument. At present, Dr Hirai is synthesising his various lectures and papers in a book, with which he hopes to reach a broader, non-specialised readership.
Dissemination
1. Lectures: Dr Hirai worked with extreme speed and efficiency, giving lectures all around the globe and publishing profusely. In this respect, his Fellowship was an immense success. As the list, below, documents, Dr Hirai delivered lectures at various international conferences and seminars in the Netherlands, France, the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, the United States, Canada and Japan. In most cases, he filmed his presentations and evaluated his performance after the events.
- 'Astrology, Talismans and Medicine in Jacques Gaffarel's Curiositez Inouyes (1629)', read at the annual meeting of the History of Science Society (Montreal, Canada, 4 November 2010).
- 'Averroes on Formative Power: Galen, Avicenna and Avempace', read at the conference Averroes Natural Philosophy and its European Legacy (Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands, 17 June 2011).
- 'Medicine and Astrology in the Renaissance: Some Aspects of Platonic Astral Medicine', read at the seminar Astri e simboli nel Rinascimento (University of Rome, 28 August 2011).
- 'Alchemy and Medicine in Joseph Du Chesne's De priscorum materia (1603) ', read at the conference Alchemy and Medicine from Antiquity to the Enlightenment (Cambridge University, 22 September 2011).
- 'Imagination, Maternal Desire and Signatures in the Embryology of Thomas Fienus (1567-1631)', read at the conference Médicalisation de la maternité et santé des femmes de l'Antiquité à la Renaissance (Université de Tours, France, 2 Dec. 2011).
- 'Medical Humanism and Natural Philosophy in the Sixteenth Century', read at the workshop Corps, machine et medicine à lâge classique (Lyon, France, 16 June 2012).
- 'Celestial Influences and Cosmic Bonds in Renaissance Medicine and Embryology after Pico', read at the conference Space, Knots and Bonds between Early Modern Magic and Science (Paris, 21-23 June 2012), also at the workshop 'Man and Cosmos from Copernic to Kepler' (Barcelona, 2-3 October 2012).
- 'Where does the Soul come from? The Origin of the Soul in Renaissance Medical Debates', read at the conference Medieval and Early Modern Intellectual History (Tokyo, 6-7 July 2012).
- 'Animal and Human Generation and Intellect in Fernel, Schegk and Sennert', to be read at the conference 'From Animal to man: medical and philosophical debates on human and animal intelligence and sensibility' (Humboldt-Universität Berlin, Germany, 21-22 September 2012).
- 'Mysteries of Living Corpuscles: Atomism and the Origin of Life in Sennert, Gassendi and Kircher', to be read at the conference Early Modern Medicine and Philosophy (Pittsburgh, United States, 2-4 November 2012).
2. Books: (a) During his Marie Curie Fellowship, Dr Hirai revised the manuscript of his book 'Medical Humanism and Natural Philosophy' on the basis of the referee reports sent to the editors of the book series Medieval and Early Modern Science (Brill Academic Publishers). The book was released in December 2011 and appears to meet with a highly favourable response from the academic public. (b) In addition, together with Jan Papy (University of Leuven), Dr Hirai also edited the proceedings of the conference 'Justus Lipsius and Natural Philosophy' during the autumn and winter of 2010-2011. The volume of collected articles was published by the Royal Academy of Belgium in November 2011.
3. Articles: Dr Hirai furthermore published no less than 9 articles based on his research (6 in English, 2 in Italian, 1 in Czech). These publications are listed separately on the website of the Marie Curie Fellowship.
Further Fellowship-related activities
1. Journal editing: After his arrival at Nijmegen, Dr Hirai started to assist the journal Early Science and Medicine for its book review section by recruiting reviewers and collecting their reviews. He was subsequently appointed vice editor of the journal and has been actively contributing to the editorial task through the examination of submitted articles. Closely observing the work of the editor in chief, he gained crucial skills for journal editing and management.
2. Refereeing and consulting: Dr Hirai furthermore acted as referee for journals such as Journal of the History of Philosophy and Bruniana & Campanelliana. He was also invited to evaluate various doctoral and post-doctoral research projects in early modern European intellectual history on behalf of the Flemish Science Foundation (FWO), the Czech Science Foundation (GACR) and Radboud University Nijmegen.
3. Teaching and supervision: Dr Hirai taught two International Research Master Seminars 'Animate / Inanimate in Natural Philosophy from Antiquity to the Renaissance' (2010-11) and 'Leibniz and the Philosophy of Life before the Rise of Modern Biology' (2011-12). He gained the first-hand experience in constructing a Master course, in animating and leading student discussions and inciting them to further reflection. This teaching experience was new for Dr Hirai and helped a lot to fill a lacuna in his curriculum vitae. Dr Hirai furthermore accepted an invited lectureship at Saint Pauls University (Tokyo) in July 2012. Finally, he also carried out the supervision of two doctoral students, one as a co-supervisor of Adam Takahashis Ph.D. dissertation project: 'The Cosmology of Albertus Magnus (ca. 1200-1280)' (Radboud University Nijmegen, 2009-present) and the other as an informal advisor of Kuni Sakamoto's PhD. dissertation project: 'The Natural Philosophy of Julius Caesar Scaliger (1484-1558)' (University of Tokyo, 2008-2012).
International distinctions
For the overall achievement of his research career, the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) awarded Dr Hirai the 'JSPS Prize' of 2012.
Future prospects
Dr Hirai's accomplishments in the two years of his Marie Curie Fellowship have considerably helped him to augment his international visibility as a scholar and to amplify the number of academic skills (editing, teaching, supervision). The positive effects of these accomplishments can be measured by a number of factors: the invitations he receives to lecture at home and abroad; as well as his great chances to be appointed lead investigator in a prestigious national research project in the Netherlands.