Science History Institute

Scientists share their experiences and strategies for advancing equity and inclusion in STEM across gender-diverse communities.Join us as the Gender Minorities in the Sciences Panel brings together scientists to share their experiences and strategies for advancing equity and inclusion in STEM across gender-diverse communities.Women and gender minority scientists have made significant strides in overcoming gender bias in areas such as recruitment, promotions, publications, salaries, and funding over the past decade. Despite their growing involvement in the scientific community, they remain underrepresented and face considerable challenges across various scientific disciplines.The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University and the Science History

Discover new ways to bring the history of science into your classroom at this special evening dedicated to educators.Join us for a special evening just for educators!During this exclusive event, educators will getan up-close introduction to our exhibitionsa meet-and-greet with our Distillations podcast team, where you’ll learn how to use podcasts as a classroom toolan opportunity to talk to a librarian about resources you can use in the classrooma preview of our field trip options, including a self-guided walkthrough of our Women in Chemistry Tour and an interactive game about the periodic table of the elementslight refreshmentsIt’s a great opportunity

A private learning experience that combines a personally guided exploration of select gallery exhibits and a hands-on study of objectsTouch Tours is a recurring program taking place on the second Tuesday of every month. This touch-based tour offers guests a private learning experience that combines a personally guided exploration of select gallery exhibits and a hands-on study of objects from our collection.From Nature to Nylons begins with an introduction to natural fibers, such as wool and linen, and moves on to the development of plastics and synthetic materials like Nylon and GORE-TEX. Guest will leave with a better understanding of

A private learning experience that combines a personally guided exploration of select gallery exhibits and a hands-on study of objectsTouch Tours is a recurring program taking place on the second Tuesday of every month. This touch-based tour offers guests a private learning experience that combines a personally guided exploration of select gallery exhibits and a hands-on study of objects from our collection.From Nature to Nylons begins with an introduction to natural fibers, such as wool and linen, and moves on to the development of plastics and synthetic materials like Nylon and GORE-TEX. Guest will leave with a better understanding of

A private learning experience that combines a personally guided exploration of select gallery exhibits and a hands-on study of objects

A private learning experience that combines a personally guided exploration of select gallery exhibits and a hands-on study of objects

A private learning experience that combines a personally guided exploration of select gallery exhibits and a hands-on study of objects

The Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia (SBN) is excited to announce that it will hold the "Achieving Climate Resilience Through Urban Greening" Symposium on March 25, 2026 in Philadelphia, PA at the Science History Institute (315 Chestnut St, Philadelphia, PA 19106). The day-long conference will convene business-owners, professionals, and other interested parties that work in the urban greening fields and other issues relating to water and tree canopy management, quality, equity, and climate resilience. The symposium will include two tracks, Urban Greening Management: New Approaches, Stewardship, and Maintenance, as well as Funding & Financing Opportunities for Community Greening &

This Women’s History Month, you’re invited to a thought-provoking presentation where leading gender and science scholar Sarah S. Richardson charts the untold history of the idea that women’s health and behavior during pregnancy can have long-term effects on their children’s health and welfare. The Maternal Imprint, Richardson’s groundbreaking book, offers a critical analysis of conceptual and ethical issues—in particular, the staggering implications for maternal well-being and reproductive autonomy—provoked by the striking rise of epigenetics and fetal origins science in postgenomic biology today. Richardson examines what we might take for granted about human pregnancy, and invites us to challenge our values

Join us on First Friday as we unveil the newest exhibition in our A Closer Read series. Philadelphia was once known as the “workshop of the world” due to the abundance of factories, products, and infrastructure located within the city. From the 1800s through the 1920s, ships, yarn, paints, and more were manufactured on the banks of the Schuylkill and Delaware. This display features works originally published by some of the pioneering companies that made Philadelphia an industrial powerhouse. Guests can enjoy handling collection activities in our museum and a talk by curator Caroline Meehan, followed by a light reception.

A private learning experience that combines a personally guided exploration of select gallery exhibits and a hands-on study of objectsThis touch-based tour offers guests a private learning experience that combines a personally guided exploration of select gallery exhibits and a hands-on study of objects from our collection.The tour begins with an introduction to natural fibers, such as wool and linen, and moves on to the development of plastics and synthetic materials like Nylon and GORE-TEX. Guests will leave with a better understanding of how these fibers changed our world and how the changing world influenced our desire for high-tech textiles.This

Topics will range from medieval medicine to modern climate science.The Science History Institute is pleased to cohost the Fall 2025 meeting of the Society for the History of Alchemy and Chemistry (SHAC). Invited speakers will present papers for discussion on topics ranging from medieval medicine to modern climate science.The Society for the History of Alchemy and Chemistry (SHAC), founded in 1935, has a long-standing tradition in the fields of alchemy and chemistry, organizing colloquia, publications and promoting the interdisciplinary study of the field from its early beginnings to the present. It brings together members interested in the history of chemistry

Join the Science History Institute for opening of our new permanent exhibition featuring a collection of over 20 minerals.Across centuries and cultures, minerals have provided humans with essential raw materials. But how have we come to know and use the natural world?Join the Science History Institute as we celebrate the opening of Earthly Matters, our new permanent exhibition that explores the history and science behind a collection of more than 20 minerals. These elements, crystals, gemstones—and even a meteorite!—tell stories of human curiosity about the natural world around us. Visitors will learn about the long history of minerals and how

Sixty years ago, in Gainesville, Florida, a new drink called Gatorade was created. The idea for Gatorade was sparked by an unlikely conversation between a University of Florida nephrologist named James Robert Cade and an assistant coach for the Florida Gators, Dewayne Douglas. Dehydrated and occasionally hospitalized, players were losing their games. According to Cade’s research, they were also losing an average of 18 pounds of water and critical amounts of sodium and chloride per 3½ hour game. Cade developed a mix of replacement fluids, containing glucose, sodium, potassium, phosphate and water. It tasted awful. Liberally doctored with lemon juice

The Science History Institute invites you to an evening of music and scientific wonder with goth-folk duo Charming Disaster! Charming Disaster’s newest album, The Double, explores the world that exists behind the one we know, featuring songs inspired by nature, mortality, magic, ritual, and literary genres ranging from science fiction to Victorian horror. Through darkly whimsical songs about time travel, transformation, and the power of ritual, Charming Disaster celebrates the strange beauty of the natural world hidden world just beyond our perception—from the familiar trees in your backyard to the fantastical forests of imagination. Before the concert, join us in

Join us for a fun and interactive evening event exploring rare books, archives, and library collections.Join our curators and librarians for a fun after-hours event in the Othmer Library’s reading room where you’ll have the opportunity tosee unexpected treasures not usually on displaymake a craft to take homesupport the library by adopting collection itemsand much more!About the Othmer LibraryThe Donald F. and Mildred Topp Othmer Library of Chemical History is an independent research library encompassing the history of chemistry and related sciences and industries.The Othmer Library was founded in 1988 when Donald and Mildred Topp Othmer announced their challenge grant