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99:), contributed to the acceptance and interpretation of quantum mechanics. Forman's second thesis regards the influence of military funding on the character and course of scientific research; he argued that during
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in the 1920s involved the cross-product of the hostile intellectual atmosphere whereby many scientists rejected Weimar
Germany as an illegitimate state and in which there were intellectual revolts against
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See "The
Primacy of Science in Modernity, of Technology in Postmodernity, and of Ideology in the History of Technology," "History and Technology", Vol. 23, No. 1/2, pp. 1-152, March/June 2007
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Forman is especially known for two controversial historical theses. The first (often called "the Forman thesis") regards the influence of German culture on early interpretations of
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P. Kraft et al. "Adaptation of
Scientific Knowledge to an Intellectual Environment. Paul Forman's 'Weimar Culture, Causality, and Quantum Theory, 1918-1927': Analysis and Review,"
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from quantum mechanics, thereby opening up an entirely new and highly successful approach to physics. Forman links the emergence of quantum mechanics, and
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Forman, Paul. "Weimar culture, causality, and quantum theory: adaptation by German physicists and mathematicians to a hostile environment,"
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Forman, Paul. "Behind quantum electronics: National security as basis for physical research in the United States, 1940-1960,"
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The "Forman Thesis" has generated an intense debate for and against among historians of science. In support of Forman,
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Quantum Theory and the Flight from
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Forman (1971) argued the remarkable scientific achievements in quantum physics in
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Quantum generations: a history of physics in the twentieth century
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Historical
Studies in the Physical and Biological Sciences
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