| 摘要: |
| 紫射线治疗仪是风靡于20世纪上半叶的一款仪器,它宣称能够治疗已知的几乎所有疾病,在当时的西方社会中掀起一股巨大的浪潮,围绕紫射线治疗仪形成了十分完整且庞大的商业体系与大众文化。清华大学科学博物馆便藏有一款BRANSTON公司生产的5B型紫射线治疗仪,本文以这台仪器为基础展开物质文化研究,揭示了紫射线治疗仪的浪潮是如何在“科学背书”与“通灵推荐”的双重效应下兴起,并进一步被BRANSTON公司为代表的诸多制造商推动,而后在科学界和医学界的质疑以及政府相关部门的抵制行动下慢慢平息的。这段历史还揭示了商业社会如何以科学与医学的名义精心构建现代形式的新兴神话的运作机制。博物馆通过展示这一历史遗物,不仅促使公众对历史上的伪科学现象进行深刻反思,还培养了公众的批判性思维,鼓励理性审视新兴技术。 |
| 关键词: 科学物质文化研究 伪科学仪器 电磁医疗 紫射线治疗仪 博物馆教育 The Craze of the Violet Ray Machine in the First Half of the 20th Century: A Historical and Cultural Analysis of a Pseudoscientific Device Huang Xin |
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| The Craze of the Violet Ray Machine in the First Half of the 20th Century: A Historical and Cultural Analysis of a Pseudoscientific Device |
| Huang Xin |
| () |
| Abstract: |
| The violet ray machine was a popular device in the first half of the 20th century, claiming to cure nearly all known diseases and sparking a massive craze in Western society. A complete and extensive commercial system and popular culture emerged around the violet ray machine. The Tsinghua University Science Museum has collected a 5B model violet ray machine produced by the BRANSTON Company, which serves as the basis for this study in material culture. This paper reveals how the craze for the violet ray machine emerged under the dual influences of “scientific endorsement” and “spiritual recommendation”, further driven by numerous manufacturers represented by the BRANSTON Company, and gradually subsided amid skepticism from the scientific and medical communities and resistance from government authorities. This history exposes how commercial society constructs emerging modern myths under the guise of science and medicine. Through the display of this historical artifact, the museum not only prompts the public to reflect deeply on historical pseudoscience but also cultivates critical thinking and encourages rational examination of emerging technologies. |
| Key words: scientific material culture research, pseudoscientific device, electromagnetic therapy, violet ray machine, museum education |
