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David Edgerton

@davidedgerton.bsky.social
2.4K followers 488 following 125 posts

Historian, at the Centre for the History of Science, Technology and Medicine, King's College London @kingschostm.bsky.social www.davidedgerton.org

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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Burnham claims to be providing a more serious and thought- through prospectus for Britain, but believing Britain is the world's innovation nation; trusted world leader in AI; leading the next industrial revolution, is neither serious nor new.
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Rich account of the politics and history of British 'resilience' from Will Lloyd - very happy to be cited in it. @kingshistory.bsky.social @kingschostm.bsky.social giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
giftarticle.ft.com
How resilient is Britain?
As climate and geopolitical risks cast doubt on the UK’s ability to cope in a crisis, leaders are turning from ‘just in time’ to ‘just in case’ as a governing philosophy
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Launching the Chinese edition of Rise and Fall of the British Nation in Beijing! @kingshistory.bsky.social
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Chris Grey @chrisgrey.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
It would be quite 'something' if, after all the talk of leaving the EU to create CANZUK, there ends up being CANZEU without the UK
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Tribune @tribunemagazine.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
One of Britain's leading historians explains what we get wrong about the past and the present. From World War II to the New Left, nationalism to neoliberalism, empire to welfare, Thatcher to Corbyn, technology to class: prepare to test your assumptions.
youtu.be
The Myths that Rule Britain with David Edgerton
YouTube video by Tribune Magazine
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Andy Burnham becomes yet another PM who calls for an 'innovation-led economy'. The delusions live on; the circuit breaker fails to work.
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
This extraordinary essay by @anthonybarnett.bsky.social evokes an age of political cultural contestation thirty years dead yet finds signs of critical life in the debris, not least in the tellingly ignored genius of Steve McQueen's Blitz. A must-read. www.newstatesman.com/ideas/2026/0...
newstatesman.com
Moore of England
Forty years after Henry Moore's death, what is left of the country that made, celebrated, and then forgot him?
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David Pretel @davidpretel.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
📢 Conferencia del historiador David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social: “Into the Hidden Place”: Reflections on the history and historiography of production. 📆 2 de septiembre, Residencia de Estudiantes, Madrid (16:30h). 👉 ih.csic.es/es/event/key...
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Very much looking forward to this! A preview of my new book.
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Tom Kelsey @tomkelsey.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Does the Treasury deserve its reputation for holding back the British economy? My new article in The Political Quarterly uses the histories of Concorde and civil nuclear power to challenge common arguments about the Treasury, industrial strategy, and state capacity. 🧵
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Very much looking forward to attending and speaking at this workshop in Madrid! commoditiesofempire.org.uk/events/
commoditiesofempire.org.uk
Events - Commodities of Empire
For details of our past events, click here. Commodities of Empire Annual International Workshop 2-3 September 2026, Spanish National Research Council, Madrid Locating Knowledge: Science and Technology...
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King's CHoSTM @kingschostm.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
How did workers of the Swiss Post, Telegraph and Telephone Company understand the role of their labour? In his recently published article, @riccardoferrigato.bsky.social explores the case of telephone maintenance workers. Go read it in T&C ➡️ muse.jhu.edu/issue/57305 #histtech #histstm
Capture of PDF Riccardo Ferrigato's article, titled "Beyond Innovation-Speak: Swiss Telephone Workers and the Making of Technical Identity". Published in Technology and Culture, Volume 67, Number 3, July 2026, pp. 741-766, published by Johns Hopkins University Press. DOI: 10.1353/tech.2026.a996498
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
I lived on this estate for a few months in 1977 while working for ICI and wrote about it in the book reviewed here: www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
lrb.co.uk
Susan Pedersen · Worker, Hipster, Banker: Modern British Cities
Deindustrialisation was not a long, slow process but a very quick one, erasing whole occupations and transforming one...
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Delighted that my Rise and Fall of the British Nation has been published in China (as Twilight of Empire)! www.163.com/dy/article/L...
163.com
“好望角”第32本!了解20世纪英国的必读之作!
“好望角”第32本!了解20世纪英国的必读之作!,英国,美国,德国,世纪末,大英帝国
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
Reupping thoughts on Starmer’s Party and its failures to think about British defence policy. Will Burnham’s Party be any different ? www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
Labour claims to be defending Britain from new threats, but its warfare state is steeped in old thinking | David Edgerton
For every sensible proposal, there’s a failure to think through the UK’s place in the world – and a promised ‘defence dividend’ that won’t materialise, says academic and author David Edgerton
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
Reupping this - Labour claims to be defending Britain from new threats, but its warfare state is steeped in old thinking | David Edgerton
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 02/07/2026
A fascinating obituary of David Potter academic, inventor of the psion organiser, and engaged philanthropist by @anthonybarnett.bsky.social www.opendemocracy.net/obituary-dav...
opendemocracy.net
Remembering David Potter: Industrialist, physicist, philanthropist
How the Psion founder and tech titan combined scientific brilliance with fearless philanthropy to champion public good
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King's CHoSTM @kingschostm.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
Join us for a conversation about the historical background of the 2017 "Asilomar Conference on Beneficial AI". Dr David Cole explores the significance and legacy of the famed 1975 Asilomar conference on recombinant DNA and DNA cloning for contemporary efforts to shape the future of AI. #histstm
eventbrite.co.uk
Asilomar Revisited: Beneficial AI and the History of Scientific Ethics
Join us for a conversation with Dr David Cole about the legacy of Asilomar 1975 for contemporary efforts to shape the future of AI
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The Syllabus @the-syllabus.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
Framing AI as the next "Manhattan Project" functions more as PR than an analysis of technical change. As our podcast of the week argues, this rhetoric elides the issue of how material processes shape our lives. With @davidedgerton.bsky.social on @generativefutures.bsky.social buff.ly/fw1f8nk
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
Had a great conversation with Phil Bell on his podcast on how to think historically about AI and 'technology' more generally @kingschostm.bsky.social @kingshistory.bsky.social genfutures.substack.com/p/david-edge...
genfutures.substack.com
David Edgerton on Historical Analogies, Technology, and AI
Do we need a material turn?
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King's College London, History Department @kingshistory.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
A new article in the @newstatesman1913.bsky.social by our colleague @davidedgerton.bsky.social and Karel Williams today: 'The limits of Andy Burnham: Manchesterism is sounding a lot like Londonism' www.newstatesman.com/politics/lab...
newstatesman.com
The limits of Andy Burnham
Manchesterism is sounding a lot like Londonism
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King's CHoSTM @kingschostm.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
TOMORROW: a roundtable on public engagement, history, and the study of STM in history with @caitjan.bsky.social, @davidedgerton.bsky.social and @chrismanias.bsky.social 🗓️ 27 May, 15.00-16.30 📍 Strand Campus #histsci #histtech #histmed #hisstm @kingshistory.bsky.social
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The Mill @manchestermill.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
Stop looking for Burnhamism - in six years, I’ve never found. Watching the mayor up close in Manchester, I’ve seen his unusual gifts and glaring weaknesses. Would he make a good prime minister? Our weekend read - by @joshih.bsky.social manchestermill.co.uk/stop-looking...
manchestermill.co.uk
Stop looking for Burnhamism - in six years, I’ve never found it
Watching the mayor up close in Manchester, I’ve seen his unusual gifts and glaring weaknesses. Would he make a good prime minister?
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King's CHoSTM @kingschostm.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
Next in our seminar, a roundtable on public engagement, history, and the study of STM in history with @caitjan.bsky.social @davidedgerton.bsky.social and @chrismanias.bsky.social. 🗓️ 27 May, 15.00-16.30 📍 Strand Campus #histsci #histtech #histmed #hisstm @kingshistory.bsky.social
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Ewan Gibbs @ewangibbs.bsky.social · 17/05/2026
A must read excoriating analysis of Starmer’s Labour Party by @davidedgerton.bsky.social. He underlines both the decisive rejection of Labour’s mission to represent the organised working class or to meaningfully reform the economy in a social democratic direction.
newstatesman.com
The Labour Party is dead, and Starmer has killed it
Any progressive new leader will face the task of reviving a corpse
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King's CHoSTM @kingschostm.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
Next in our Seminar Series: Roundtable: Global History and the History of STM / Francisca Valenzuela, Jason Ng & David Brydan 🗓️ Thu 14 May, 15.00-16.30 📍Strand building, King's College London #histtech #histsci #histmed #histstm @kingshistory.bsky.social
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
Very happy to see my analysis of British defence policy from 1998 quoted here: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
The Guardian view on defence spending: should the UK’s security rest with Donald Trump? | Editorial
Editorial: A former Nato chief demands more cash while fixing Britain’s global role. Before billions are spent, ministers must define the purpose of its military
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Peter Mandler @petermandler.bsky.social · 10/04/2026
Worse than limited opening hours, it's the withdrawal of 2/3 of the archive for curiosity-driven research that is the real scandal for what is supposed to be a public-service organization.
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King's CHoSTM @kingschostm.bsky.social · 18/03/2026
📌 Coming up in our seminar series next week! Jieluan Huang, 'Medical Diasporas: Chinese Medicine in London and a Family Case Study' 🗓️ Wednesday 25 March 🕰️ 15.30-17.00 📍8th floor, Strand building www.kingschostm.com/seminar-series #histmed #histsci #histtech #histstm @kingshistory.bsky.social
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
This assumes, as does most commentary, that the Starmer Party leadership does roughly share the values of the Greens rather than Reform. Why assume this, and not the reverse? Why not take them at their word, even if it leads them to electoral oblivion?
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King's CHoSTM @kingschostm.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
Congratulations to @fayboundalberti.bsky.social for the publication of “The Face: A cultural history” today! You can now get it from your preferred bookshop in the UK! tinyurl.com/the-face-fba @kingshistory.bsky.social @kingsartshums.bsky.social @ctb-kcl.bsky.social #histmed #histtech #body
penguin.co.uk
The Face
What’s in a face? The face is the only part of the body where all the senses come together and, over the course of human history, has come to represent who we are as individuals. We unlock our phones...
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King's College London, History Department @kingshistory.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
Published today! The new book by our colleague @fayboundalberti.bsky.social 'The Face: A cultural History' www.penguin.co.uk/books/459227...
penguin.co.uk
The Face
What’s in a face? The face is the only part of the body where all the senses come together and, over the course of human history, has come to represent who we are as individuals. We unlock our phones...
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
Stewart Brand's How Buildings Learn was one of the inspirations for my Shock of the Old. His new book on Maintenance (prefigured in How Buildings Learn) tells some fascinating stories. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
theguardian.com
Tech legend Stewart Brand on Musk, Bezos and his extraordinary life: ‘We don’t need to passively accept our fate’
He was at the heart of 1960s counterculture, then paved the way for the libertarian mindset of Silicon Valley. At 87, Brand is still keen to ensure the world is maintained properly – not just today, b...
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King's CHoSTM @kingschostm.bsky.social · 23/02/2026
🔔 Coming up in our seminar: New Book Party! Smart: A history of intelligence by David Brydan (with comments by Professor @fayboundalberti.bsky.social and Professor Federico Turkheimer) 🗓️ Tues 3 March, 18.00-19.30 📍 8th floor, Strand building Register in Eventbrite ➡️ tinyurl.com/smart-brydan
tinyurl.com
Smart: A History of Intelligence
Venue: 8th Floor Open Space, Strand Building, King's College London
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King's CHoSTM @kingschostm.bsky.social · 20/02/2026
💡 Call for applications to our Hans Rausing scholarship is open until 17 April. Contact a prospective supervisor before applying to one of @kingshistory.bsky.social programmes. 🛎️ First round of applications to the MAs closes 9 March! www.kingschostm.com/funding-oppo... #histsci #histtech #histstm
kingschostm.com
Hans Rausing Scholarship 2026/2027 | KingsCHoSTM
Funding Opportunities within King's CHoSTM
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Metode SSJ @metodessj.bsky.social · 17/02/2026
📊Metode SSJ, Vol. 15 No. 8 (2025): «Science without a conscience. Technology at war’s service» «The British sciences and the Great War: Myths and histories» By @davidedgerton.bsky.social (@kingschostm.bsky.social) DOI: doi.org/10.7203/meto...
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 10/02/2026
Late to this warm and engaging portrait of the remarkable Anthony Barnett, a great interpreter of our times. www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk-...
newstatesman.com
Anthony Barnett: “The Sixties were a catastrophic failure”
The writer and campaigner on nationalism, the rise of the new right and how a fractured left can organise in response
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King's CHoSTM @kingschostm.bsky.social · 09/02/2026
[STUDY] Our Hans Rausing Scholarship fully funds Home and International students to study the history of science and technology at MA and PhD level. Contact a prospective supervisor ➡️ tinyurl.com/4ftpvrcj tinyurl.com/m4u52ech @kingshistory.bsky.social #histsci #histtech #histstm
jobs.ac.uk
Hans Rausing Doctoral Scholarship: PhD in the History of Science and Technology (Home/EU/Overseas) at King's College London
Explore a Hans Rausing Doctoral Scholarship: PhD in the History of Science and Technology (Home/EU/Overseas) on jobs.ac.uk. Discover more PhD opportunities and apply today!
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 08/02/2026
Remarkable admission from Keir Starmer that he was not in charge of his party: 'It’s been an honour working with Morgan McSweeney for many years. He turned our party around ...'
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Andrew Seaton @andrewseaton.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
CALL FOR PAPERS - Modern British History and the 'Environmental Turn'. A two-day workshop organised by @maxlong.bsky.social and myself at Lincoln College, Oxford, 16-17 September. Deadline for abstracts is 15 May. Details in poster below, please share.
This two-day workshop will explore several questions. How can environmental history complement or offer alternatives to existing historiographical narratives and periodisations in British history? What new actors, events, or phenomena might come to the fore? How should it foster engagements with places beyond its national borders or with other disciplines? Is environmental history different from longstanding traditions of ‘landscape’ or ‘urban’ histories of Britain? What contributions can historians make to environmental advocacy and policymaking? And how might a focus on the environment reshape teaching in British history?

To take part, participants should submit a 300 word proposal for a short ‘position paper’ (approx. 2500 words) that will be pre-circulated at the workshop. These position papers will address the place of environmental approaches and themes within modern British history (1800 to the present) from the perspective of the participant’s own research. Participants will orally summarise their papers at the workshop. The event is free to attend and includes lunch and refreshments.

Submissions are welcomed across a range of perspectives and topics, including but not limited to: energy, extraction, non-human actors, pollution, toxicity, rural and urban landscapes, everyday  environmental histories (including how they are shaped by class, gender, and race), imperialism and decolonisation, ‘green’ policy, activism, and the political economy of the natural world.

Please send proposals and a one-paragraph biography in a single PDF to andrew.seaton@manchester.ac.uk by 15 May 2026. Please also direct enquiries to this address.

This event is organised by Dr. Max Long (Oxford) and Dr. Andrew Seaton (Manchester).
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King's CHoSTM @kingschostm.bsky.social · 30/01/2026
Congratulations to our PhD Francisca Valenzuela for passing her viva this Wednesday for her thesis "A comparative history of land telegraphy in nineteenth century South America." And many thanks to her examiners, Richard Noakes and Ana María Otero.
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
Congratulations to David Bryan in this exciting new book!
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 31/01/2026
So true.
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David Edgerton @davidedgerton.bsky.social · 30/01/2026
A great event with revelatory papers on British anarchism and communism! @kingshistory.bsky.social
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The Syllabus @the-syllabus.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
Hope is not a policy, nor is “innovation” a magic trick. As our podcast of the week argues, the idea that climate salvation will come through breakthrough technologies is a myth that serves as an alibi for inaction. With @davidedgerton.bsky.social on @the-breakdown.bsky.social buff.ly/Z0I6utI
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King's CHoSTM @kingschostm.bsky.social · 27/01/2026
Viswanathan Venkataraman looks at the evolution of water filtration methods, arguing that tech change requires to consider alternatives at a global scale. 20thC Madras shows that available knowledge, politics and economics mediated the adoption of specific methods over time. ➡️ tinyurl.com/2s395c59
tinyurl.com
The globalisation of water filtration - Sabers en acció
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Livio Liechti @livliilvil.eurosky.social · 16/01/2026
Loved listening to this episode. Includes some really poignant commentary on the “impoverished position” of projecting all our hopes onto AI as a viable future-making technology.
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King's CHoSTM @kingschostm.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
Applications are open until 17 April to our Hans Rausing Scholarship to enter an MA+PhD or PhD-only to study the history of science and/or technology from October 2026. Contact a prospective supervisor and find out more about the schemes here: tinyurl.com/mw84w7py
Poster advertising the for applications to Hans Rausing Scholarship 2026/2027 at the Centre for the History of Science, Technology and Medicine at King’s College London. Indicates the call closes by 17 April 2026.
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John Merrick @johnmerrick.bsky.social · 19/01/2026
ICYMI: here's my interview with David Edgerton, the historian of technology and of modern Britain, about the politics of technology and the climate crisis, the rise of China, AI, and much more open.spotify.com/episode/4tGI...
open.spotify.com
Beyond Techno-Optimism w/ David Edgerton
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Colm Murphy @colmpm.bsky.social · 19/01/2026
I'm delighted that we can share the termcard of the IHR Britain at Home and Abroad since 1800 seminar. First up, @robertsaunders.bsky.social on 29 January to present on the history of UK democracy (specifically, the neglected Third Reform Act). Sign up in the link below!
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