::  Foreword

Historiography has recently acknowledged that circulation of ideas and techniques plays a central role in the understanding of their evolution. Given that science and technology are international achievements, their dissemination could be the most distinctive element in their construction. Circulation is not a simple change of geographical place; it carries with it epistemological and philosophical changes as a result of the crossing of cultural and political boundaries. Networks cover a wide range of local settings, actors, institutions and interests, both in the production of new science and technology, and in the reception and appropriation of known science and technology. The conference should stimulate studies and debates about the dissemination of science and technology: first, the circulation of ideas, theories, methods and practices; second, of objects, instruments, machines, artefacts, seeds, plants, minerals, drawings, illustrations, inscriptions, paintings…; third, of texts: manuscripts, printed books, textbooks, journals, letters, book notes; fourth, of scientists and technicians around the world in “grand tours”, trips for leisure, lecturing, business and industrial espionage; and fifth, of information about institutional organization, transmission of knowledge and the influence of local contexts, among others.       Publication of Proceedings Full texts of all papers will be issued in an Electronic fom on CD. These Electronic proceedings will be available to the participants free of charge. They will also be put online at an address to be announced later. A necessary condition for publication is that the manuscript reaches the Organizing Committee in electronic form no later than April 30, 2011. Its maximum length shouldn’t exceed 4.000 words. Please note that we will be unable to do any proofreading or correcting of English. Please send your manuscripts, in DOC or PDF format to: 4eshs@iec.cat 14/02/2022