Academia Sinica, Taiwan

September 30 – October 1, 2016

Medicine has played a crucial role in constituting modernity. The history of the establishment of modern medicine and the emergence of modernity involved not only encounters with Western medicine that were often accompanied by imperialism and colonialism but also reformed traditional practice and the recovery of medical heritage in response to the challenge of modern biomedicine. It also raises the questions regarding whether there was an ‘”alternative” modernity in the flourishing and innovative medical cultures of various Asian countries during the early modern period. The conference intends to explore this rich and complex history. We would particularly welcome papers that address the following issues:

1. The introduction of Western medicine to Asia and its relationship to trade, war, colonialism, Christian missions, and international health organizations.

2. The connection between the rise of modern medicine and the establishment of the modern state.

3. The invention of medical traditions that involves the recovery of forgotten medical heritages, reform of traditional practices, or the hybridization of Western and traditional medicine.

4. The ways in which medicine informed modern ideas and the novel experiences of gender, body, social norms, and life expectations.

5. The role of the historiography of medicine in shaping the ideas of modernity.

Guidelines for Submission: Panels and individual papers are both welcomed. Proposals (title and an English abstract of no more than 400 words) and a copy of the author/organizer’s curriculum vitae should be sent by electronic mail to the ASHM Executive Secretary by May 15, 2016. ASHM reserves the right to bring review suggestion to panel organizers. Those whose proposals are accepted will be informed by June 10, 2016, and full papers (no more than 10 pages in English) should be sent to the Executive Secretary by August 31, 2016. The Society unfortunately cannot offer travel expense due to budget constraints, while subsidies for accommodation for participants could possibly be arranged based on need and available budget. Participants are encouraged to apply for support from your home departments or institutions.

ASHM Executive Secretary, Research Group in the History of Health and Healing, Institute of History & Philology, Academia Sinica, Taipei 115-29, Taiwan. e-mail address: ashm@asihp.net Fax: 886-2-27868834 website: http://www.ihp.sinica.edu.tw/~medicine /ashm/ch_lectures.htm