Nicolas "Nic" Rasmussen (born 1962) is a historian of modern

life sciences This list of life sciences comprises the branches of science that involve the scientific study of life – such as microorganisms, plants, and animals including human beings. This science is one of the two major branches of natural science, ...

, and a professor in the School of Humanities and Languages at the

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW) is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was established in 1949. The university comprises seven faculties, through which it offers bachelor's, master's and docto ...

. With major interests in the history of amphetamines, the history of drug abuse, and the history of clinical trials, he has higher degrees in history and philosophy of science,

developmental biology Developmental biology is the study of the process by which animals and plants grow and develop. Developmental biology also encompasses the biology of Regeneration (biology), regeneration, asexual reproduction, metamorphosis, and the growth and di ...

, and

public health Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the de ...

Early life

Nicolas Rasmussen was born in Paris in 1962 to American parents, computer scientist Norman L. Rasmussen (1928—2003), later director of IBM's Cambridge Scientific Center and an important contributor to the development of time-sharing operating systems; and Laura Sootin Rasmussen (1933—), later an organiser and officer of the

National Organization for Women The National Organization for Women (NOW) is an American feminist organization. Founded in 1966, it is legally a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization. The organization consists of 550 chapters in all 50 U.S. states and in Washington, D.C. It ...

in New England. He attended the Roxbury Latin School near Boston, Massachusetts.

Education

Having worked in biology research labs since his early teens, Rasmussen's undergraduate exposure to art history and theory spurred an interest in history and philosophy of science. He enrolled in a PhD program in Philosophy at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

working with William Wimsatt for two years. After receiving a master's degree, he studied the history of biology with Nick Jardine in the M.Phil. program in History and Philosophy of Science at

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

. In 1987 he took up a PhD scholarship in Biological Sciences at

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

and, while pursuing doctoral research in plant developmental biology under Paul B. Green, he continued working in history of science with Tim Lenoir. In 2007, to allow him to become more involved in health policy scholarship, he took a master's degree in Public Health at University of Sydney Medical School.

Career

After postdoctoral training in history of science at Stanford and

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

and short stints teaching in the latter field at Princeton and

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

, he taught the history and philosophy of science at Sydney University (1994—1997) and then at the

in Sydney, where he is now a Professor. In 2019 he was elected a fellow of the

Australian Academy of the Humanities The Australian Academy of the Humanities was established by Royal Charter in 1969 to advance scholarship and public interest in the humanities in Australia. It operates as an independent not-for-profit organisation partly funded by the Australi ...

Research

His research has dealt with the role of

instrumentation Instrumentation is a collective term for measuring instruments, used for indicating, measuring, and recording physical quantities. It is also a field of study about the art and science about making measurement instruments, involving the related ...

in shaping scientific knowledge; the

history of biotechnology Biotechnology is the application of scientific and engineering principles to the processing of materials by biological agents to provide goods and services. From its inception, biotechnology has maintained a close relationship with society. Altho ...

molecular biology Molecular biology is a branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecule, molecular basis of biological activity in and between Cell (biology), cells, including biomolecule, biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactio ...

and its cultural and intellectual history; the history of

drug abuse Substance misuse, also known as drug misuse or, in older vernacular, substance abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods that are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder, differing definitions ...

and

pharmaceuticals Medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal product, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy ( pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the ...

in the United States since 1900; and the influence of industry sponsorship on biomedical research. He is best known for his focus on the ways in which experimental methods and technology can shape research disciplines, sociologically and intellectually, and on the related role of patronage in shaping scientific fields in the mid-20th century USA. He has been principal investigator on several

National Science Foundation The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is an Independent agencies of the United States government#Examples of independent agencies, independent agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that su ...

(US) and Australian Research Council grants.

Works

His first book, ''Picture Control: The Electron Microscope and the Transformation of Biology in America, 1940–1960 (1998)'', won both the '' Paul Bunge Prize for 1999'', and the ''Forum for the History of Science in America's Book Prize for 2000''. His second book, ''On Speed: The Many Lives of Amphetamine (2008)'', is a widely cited history of the

amphetamines Substituted amphetamines, or simply amphetamines, are a chemical class, class of compounds based upon the amphetamine structure; it includes all derivative (chemistry), derivative compounds which are formed by replacing, or substitution reacti ...

in medicine and American culture. His third book, ''Gene Jockeys: Life Science and the Rise of Biotech Enterprise (2014)'', was shortlisted in the "basis of medicine category" of the 2015

British Medical Association The British Medical Association (BMA) is a registered trade union and professional body for physician, doctors in the United Kingdom. It does not regulate or certify doctors, a responsibility which lies with the General Medical Council. The BMA ...

's Medical Book Awards, and was highly commended by the judging panel.British Medical Association 2015 Book Awards: List of Medical Book Award Winners by Category (3 September 2015).

Footnotes

References

Cohen, P. and Rasmussen, N. (2013), "A Nation of Kids on Speed: Six million children in the U.S. have already been diagnosed with ADHD. Plenty more will follow", ''The Wall Street Journal'', (16 June 2013).
* Parr, J. and Rasmussen, N. (2012), "Making Addicts of the Fat: Obesity, Psychiatry and the ‘Fatties Anonymous’ Model of Self-Help Weight Loss in the Post-War United States", pp. 181–200 in Netherland, J. (ed.), ''Critical Perspectives on Addiction (Advances in Medical Sociology, Volume 14)'', Emerald Group Publishing Limited, (Bingley), 2012
doi=10.1108/S1057-6290(2012)0000014012
* Rasmussen, N. (1997)
The Mid-Century Biophysics Bubble: Hiroshima and the Biological Revolution in America, Revisited", ''History of Science'', Vol.35, No.3, (September 1997), pp.245–293.
* Rasmussen, N. (1998), ''Picture Control: The Electron Microscope and the Transformation of Biology in America, 1940–1960'', Stanford University Press, (Stanford, CA), 1998. * Rasmussen, N. (2001)
"Plant Hormones in War and Peace: Science, Industry, and Government in the Development of Herbicides in 1940s America", ''Isis'', Vol.92, No.2 (June 2001), pp.291–316.
* Rasmussen, N. (2002)
"Steroids in Arms: Science, Government, Industry, and the Hormones of the Adrenal Cortex in the United States, 1930–1950", ''Medical History'', Vol.46, No.3, (July 2002), pp.299–234.
* Rasmussen, N. (2004), "The Moral Economy of the Drug Company-Medical Scientist Collaboration in Interwar America", ''Social Studies of Science'', Vol.34, No.2, (April 2004), pp. 161–185
doi=10.1177/0306312704042623
* Rasmussen, N. (2005)
"The Drug Industry and Clinical Research in Interwar America: Three Types of Physician Collaborator", ''Bulletin of the History of Medicine'', Vol.79, No.1, (Spring 2005), pp. 50–80.
* Rasmussen, N. (2006)
"Making The First Anti-Depressant: Amphetamine In American Medicine, 1929—1950: A Quantitative and Qualitative Retrospective With Implications for the Present", ''Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences'', Vol.61, No.3, (July 2006), pp.288–323.
* Rasmussen, N. (2008), ''On Speed: The Many Lives of Amphetamine'', New York University Press, (New York, NY), 2008. * Rasmussen, N. (2008)
"America's First Amphetamine Epidemic 1929–1971: A Quantitative and Qualitative Retrospective with Implications for the Present", ''American Journal of Public Health'', Vol.98, No.6, (June 2008), pp.974–985.
* Rasmussen, N. (2011), "Medical Science and the Military: The Allies' use of Amphetamine during World War II", ''Journal of Interdisciplinary History'', Vol.42, No.2, (Autumn 2011), pp. 205–233
doi=10.1162/JINH_a_00212
* Rasmussen, N. (2102), "Weight Stigma, Addiction, Science, and the Medication of Fatness in Mid-Twentieth Century America", ''Sociology of Health & Illness'', Vol.34, No.6, (July 2012), pp. 880–895
doi=10.1111/j.1467-9566.2011.01444.x
* Rasmussen, N. (2013), "On Slicing an Obvious Salami Thinly: Science, Patent Case Law, and the Fate of the Early Biotech Sector in the Making of EPO", ''Perspectives in Biology and Medicine'', Vol.56, No.2, (Spring 2013), pp. 198–22
doi=10.1353/pbm.2013.0016
* Rasmussen, N. (2013)
"Looking back on the chequered past of drug trials", ''The Conversation'', (7 October 2013).
* Rasmussen, N. (2014), ''Gene Jockeys: Life Science and the Rise of Biotech Enterprise'', Johns Hopkins University Press (Baltimore, MD), 2014. * Rasmussen, N. (2015), "Stigma and the Addiction Paradigm for Obesity: Lessons from 1950s America", ''Addiction'', Vol.110, No.2, (February 2015), pp. 217–225
doi=10.1111/add.12774
* Rasmussen, N. (2015), "Amphetamine-Type Stimulants: The Early History of Their Medical and Non-Medical Uses", ''International Review of Neurobiology'', Vol.120, (2015), pp. 9–25
doi=10.1016/bs.irn.2015.02.001
* Rasmussen, N., Lee, K., and Bero, L. (2009)
of Trial Registration with the Results and Conclusions of Published Trials of New Oncology Drugs", ''Trials'', (16 December 2009).
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rasmussen, Nicolas 1962 births Historians of science Australian medical historians Historians of technology University of Chicago alumni Alumni of the University of Cambridge Stanford University alumni University of Sydney alumni Academic staff of the University of New South Wales Naturalised citizens of Australia Living people Roxbury Latin School alumni Fellows of the Australian Academy of the Humanities