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UID:5868-486@www.smg-ssm.ch
CLASS: PUBLIC
SUMMARY:A Substance without Qualities? Paraffin and Its Many Stories
DESCRIPTION:Viktoria Tkaczyk (HU Berlin)\n\nThis talk explores the material
  biography of paraffin in the modern era from two complementary perspective
 s. First, it traces paraffin’s trajectory within the history-of-science, fr
 om early chemical definitions and industrial production—derived from wood t
 ar, coal, and petroleum—to its diverse applications from the mid-eighteenth
  century onwards. Focusing on paraffin wax as an embedding medium in histol
 ogy and a material for crafting moulage casts in dermatology, the talk high
 lights its role as a seemingly inert yet resilient substance in the life sc
 iences around 1900.\n\nChallenging this notion of inertness, the second par
 t of the talk turns to recent ecological research that reveals paraffin’s e
 nvironmental persistence and toxicity. Poorly biodegradable, paraffin accum
 ulates harmful compounds and enters rivers, lakes, and oceans through sewag
 e systems, posing significant ecological threat. To address paraffin’s dura
 bility and agency, the talk juxtaposes the history-of-science account with 
 an experimental counter-narrative that gives voice to paraffin’s long-term 
 drift through the world’s oceans today and retells its story from the mater
 ial’s own point of view.\n\nDiese Veranstaltung findet in Kooperation mit d
 er Graduate School of the Arts and Humanities (GSAH) und dem Doktoratsprogr
 amm Interdisciplinary Cultural Studies (ICS) statt.
LOCATION:Hörraum F005, Unitobler
DTSTAMP:20260217T101418Z
DTSTART:20260505T161500Z
DTEND:20260505T161500Z
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