Astral Sciences in Trans-Regional Asia (ASTRA)
@astra-mpiwg.bsky.social
A research group at the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science (MPIWG) dedicated to studying the astral sciences in trans-regional Asia. https://www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/research/departments/max-planck-research-group-astra
📢: We are excited to announce our next High Gravity Talk by Peter Adamson (LMU) on Nov 12, 2026 entitled "Written in the Stars? The Philosophical Defense of Astrology" to be held at Betahaus in central Berlin. For more information, click the link below: www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/event/writte...
For this instalment of “10 Questions for the Historian of Science,” I spoke to Clemency Montelle about her research. Prof. Montelle delivered a public talk at the launch of the ASTRA Research Group in October 2024. www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/feature-stor... @mpiwg.bsky.social
10 Questions for the Historian of Science: Clemency Montelle | MPIWG
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
📢: Next week ASTRA Postdoctoral Fellow Ekaterina Sobkovyak kicks off the two-day workshop "Managing Astral Knowledge in Mongolian Society: Production, Transmission, and Utilization". Check the link for program and Zoom registration. 🔗: www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/event/managi... @mpiwg.bsky.social
Managing Astral Knowledge in Mongolian Society: Production, Transmission, and Utilization | MPIWG
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
2,000-year-old gold rings bearing Indian Brahmi inscription unearthed in Thailand www.indiatoday.in/world/story/...
2,000-year-old gold rings bearing Indian Brahmi inscription unearthed in Thailand
Archaeologists in Thailand have found two gold rings, including one with a Brahmi inscription, at the Don Yai Thong site. The find adds fresh evidence of Iron Age trade and cultural links between Indi...
indiatoday.in
Our former Senior Research Fellow Daniela Trinks recently published her article "Association between Go Experience and Sustained Attention in Young Adults" in the Journal of Go Studies. Check it out below! www.intergostudies.net/journal/issu... @mpiwg.bsky.social
ISGS
Association between Go Experience and Sustained Attention in Young Adults
intergostudies.net
For this session of our “10 Questions for the Historian of Science,” I talked to Alex de Voogt, who delivered the first High Gravity Talk for ASTRA in April 2025. www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/feature-stor... @mpiwg.bsky.social
10 Questions for the Historian of Science: Alex de Voogt | MPIWG
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
In the latest instalment of “10 Questions for the Historian of Science,” I asked Peter Adamson (LMU) about his research, philosophy, and the future of the history of science. Prof. Adamson will deliver our next High Gravity Talk in November 2026. Stay tuned. www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/feature-stor...
10 Questions for the Historian of Science: Peter Adamson | MPIWG
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
ASTRA Postdoctoral Scholar Jean Arzoumanov spoke to Adrija Roychowdhury about his research on Persian as the language of colonial India’s religious surveys. Read the full story in Indian Express: 🔗 indianexpress.com/article/rese... (paywall)
How Persian became the language of colonial India’s religious surveys
Historian Jean Arzoumanov’s discovery of an 18th-century Jain text in Persian reveals a forgotten era where Hindu scholars used the ‘Islamic’ lingua franca to help British officers survey India’s fait...
indianexpress.com
Max Planck Institute for the History of Science@mpiwg.bsky.social · 2mo agoIn his research, Postdoctoral Scholar Jean Arzoumanov discovered that #Persian served as the language of #Colonial India's religious surveys. Adrija Roychowdhury reports for @indianexpress.com on his work. 📖 🔗 tinyurl.com/3aunbcsv (paywall) #HistSci @astra-mpiwg.bsky.social
For our latest session of “10 Questions for the Historian of Science,” I asked Kim Plofker about her research, the field of history of science, and plans for the future. www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/feature-stor... @mpiwg.bsky.social
10 Questions for the Historian of Science: Kim Plofker | MPIWG
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
In case you missed Prof. Ichiro Tanioka's talk "The Emergence of the 19×19 Go Board: A Hypothesis Based on the Yuánjiā Calendar (元嘉曆)" a couple of weeks ago, you can now watch it on our YouTube channel. www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7s8...
youtube.com
📢: For this session of “10 Questions for the Historian of Science,” I interviewed Kenneth G. Zysk about his long career, his research, and the state of the history of science today. 🔗: www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/feature-stor... @mpiwg.bsky.social
10 Questions for the Historian of Science: Kenneth G. Zysk | MPIWG
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
📢: On 27 May 2026, Dr Ilona Kędzia-Warych (Jagiellonian University) will speak about "Alchemy in the Tamil Siddha Literature: Its Transdisciplinary and Esoteric Aspects" in the ASTRA Colloquium series “Occult Sciences in South Asia: A Non-Western History” www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/event/alchem...
Alchemy in the Tamil Siddha Literature: Its Transdisciplinary and Esoteric Aspects | MPIWG
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
Our very own Jacob Schmidt-Madsen recently spoke with Praveen Shankara of Prana Stories about South Asian board games and their Indic origins. Check out the podcast below.
Max Planck Institute for the History of Science@mpiwg.bsky.social · 3mo agoResearcher Jacob Schmidt-Madsen in conversation with Praveen Shankara for Prana Stories. They talk about his personal and academic engagement with South Asian #BoardGames and their Indic origins. ♟️ 🎲 🔗 buff.ly/ml8N68V #HistSci #AstralSciences @astra-mpiwg.bsky.social
📢 On May 13, 2026, Prof. Ichiro Tanioka will lecture on "The Emergence of the 19×19 Go Board: A Hypothesis Based on the Yuánjiā Calendar (元嘉曆)" in the ASTRA Colloquium series The Ludic Languages of Asia: Sources and Terminologies. 🔗 www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/event/emerge... @mpiwg.bsky.social
The Emergence of the 19×19 Go Board: A Hypothesis Based on the Yuánjiā Calendar (元嘉曆) | MPIWG
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
In this session of “10 Questions for the Historian of Science,” I talked to Luís Campos Ribeiro about his research and the field of history of science. www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/feature-stor... @mpiwg.bsky.social
10 Questions for the Historian of Science: Luís Campos Ribeiro | MPIWG
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
Happy birthday, Max Planck! 😊 Heute hätte unser Namensgeber Geburtstag. Ein guter Grund, sich den genialen Physiker und Nobelpreisträger genauer anzusehen: Wer war er wirklich? Und wie hat er die Welt verändert? Ein kurzes, filmisches Porträt. #OnthisDay #OTD
📢: Our Spring 2026 ASTRA colloquium series continues today with Matthew Melvin-Koushki on: "Persianate Pythagorean Computing, Early Modern AI and the Imperial Panopticon: From the Safavid World of Geomancy to the Mughal Principles of Guidance" www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/event/persia...
Persianate Pythagorean Computing, Early Modern AI and the Imperial Panopticon: From the Safavid World of Geomancy to the Mughal Principles of Guidance | MPIWG
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
Next week, two of ASTRA's researchers, Anuj Misra and Hamid Bohloul, will present their papers at the "A Global History of diagrams in Astral Sciences" conference in Paris. eida.hypotheses.org/a-global-his...
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Christina Dinh Nguyen, PhD Student at U of T's Faculty of Information, writes about working with the Old Books New Science Lab in "As a ‘book scientist’ I work with microscopes, imaging technologies and AI to preserve ancient texts" for @ca.theconversation.com. theconversation.com/as-a-book-sc...
As a ‘book scientist’ I work with microscopes, imaging technologies and AI to preserve ancient texts
Book science helps decipher and preserve fragile manuscripts, at a moment when climate change and mass digitization are reshaping cultural heritage work.
theconversation.com
For the latest installment of our “10 Questions for the Historian of Science”, I talked to Tejas Aralere about his research, methodologies, and the state of the history of science. www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/feature-stor... @mpiwg.bsky.social
10 Questions for the Historian of Science: Tejas Aralere | MPIWG
The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science comprises scholars across all Departments and Research Groups, as well as an Administration team, IT Support, Library, Digital Humanities, and Research Communication and Management team.
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
📢: NEW DATE! Due to unforeseen circumstances, our talk with Sonia Wigh "Turning Tables: Tracking Movement of Desire in Early Modern South Asia" has been re-scheduled for March 12, 2026. Click below for more information and Zoom link. 🔗: www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/event/turnin... @mpiwg.bsky.social
Turning Tables: Tracking Movement of Desire in Early Modern South Asia | MPIWG
The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science comprises scholars across all Departments and Research Groups, as well as an Administration team, IT Support, Library, Digital Humanities, and Research Communication and Management team.
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
This is the sort of thing a cashless society robs us of, the opportunity to try to get away with paying the bus fare in Carthaginian currency www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Coin used as Leeds bus fare was 2,000‑year‑old currency
The coin was handed down to Peter Edwards from his grandfather in the 1950s.
bbc.co.uk
📢: Our Visiting Postdoctoral Fellow Tejas Aralere is giving a talk entitled “Ionians, Yavanas, and Kushans: Hellenistic Legacies of Astral Science in Asia” in the ASTRA Talks series tomorrow at 3pm (CET). More information and Zoom link: www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/event/ionian... @mpiwg.bsky.social
Ionians, Yavanas, and Kushans: Hellenistic Legacies of Astral Science in Asia | MPIWG
The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science comprises scholars across all Departments and Research Groups, as well as an Administration team, IT Support, Library, Digital Humanities, and Research Communication and Management team.
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
📢: Our new ASTRA Talks series starts tomorrow! Paul Iversen will deliver a lecture entitled “Seeing Through Greek Time: The Antikythera Mechanism in 3D” followed by a hands-on demonstration of the HoloLens 3D mechanism. 🔗: www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/event/seeing... @mpiwg.bsky.social
Seeing Through Greek Time: The Antikythera Mechanism in 3D | MPIWG
The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science comprises scholars across all Departments and Research Groups, as well as an Administration team, IT Support, Library, Digital Humanities, and Research Communication and Management team.
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
📢: Our Spring 2026 ASTRA colloquium series "Occult Sciences in South Asia: A Non-Western History" kicks off tomorrow with Fabrizio Speziale's talk "Mahouts’ Secret Language: Human–Elephant Communication in Persianate South Asia" 🔗: www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/event/mahout... @mpiwg.bsky.social
Mahouts’ Secret Language: Human–Elephant Communication in Persianate South Asia | MPIWG
The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science comprises scholars across all Departments and Research Groups, as well as an Administration team, IT Support, Library, Digital Humanities, and Research Communication and Management team.
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
📢: ASTRA Research Group Leader Anuj Misra is heading off to give a keynote entitled "The Facticity of the Stars: Negotiating Astronomical Knowledge in Early Modern Mughal India" at the IIM Kolkata tomorrow. www.iimcal.ac.in/events/muf2026
Making and Unmaking Facts: Epistemologies, Power, Practice | IIM Calcutta
The Indian Institute of Management Calcutta (IIMC) was established as the first national institute for Post-Graduate studies and Research in Management by the Government of India
iimcal.ac.in
In collaboration with the Institute for the History of Knowledge in the Ancient World (Freie Universität), we are delighted to host Alfred Schmid's talk "Hatte die Horoskop-Astrologie einen Gegenstand?" today. Click the link for more details: www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/event/hatte-...
Hatte die Horoskop-Astrologie einen Gegenstand? | MPIWG
The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science comprises scholars across all Departments and Research Groups, as well as an Administration team, IT Support, Library, Digital Humanities, and Research Communication and Management team.
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
📢: Our Spring 2026 Colloquium "Occult Sciences in South Asia: A Non-Western History" starts in three weeks. On Wed 25 Feb 2026, Fabrizio Speziale will talk about "Mahouts’ Secret Language: Human–Elephant Communication in Persianate South Asia" (online). 🔗: tinyurl.com/3enrjt9t @mpiwg.bsky.social
Mahouts’ Secret Language: Human–Elephant Communication in Persianate South Asia | MPIWG
The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science comprises scholars across all Departments and Research Groups, as well as an Administration team, IT Support, Library, Digital Humanities, and Research Communication and Management team.
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
In the second installment of our “10 Questions for the Historian of Science,” I interviewed Audrey Truschke about her research, the state of the history of science, and public engagement within broader global debates. www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/feature-stor... @mpiwg.bsky.social
10 Questions for the Historian of Science: Audrey Truschke | MPIWG
The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science comprises scholars across all Departments and Research Groups, as well as an Administration team, IT Support, Library, Digital Humanities, and Research Communication and Management team.
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de
We have recently launched our "10 Questions for the Historian of Science"-interview series, in which we ask historians of science about their research, methodologies, impact, and the state of the field today. Check out our first interview with Fangyi Cheng: www.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/feature-stor...
10 Questions for the Historian of Science: Fangyi Cheng | MPIWG
The Max Planck Institute for the History of Science comprises scholars across all Departments and Research Groups, as well as an Administration team, IT Support, Library, Digital Humanities, and Research Communication and Management team.
mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de