Benjamin Breen
Benjamin Breen | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1985 |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | University of Texas at Austin |
| Academic work | |
| Main interests | Early modern history, Portuguese history, History of medicine, Globalization, Science and technology studies |
| Notable works | The Age of Intoxication: Origins of the Global Drug Trade (2019) |
Benjamin Breen (born 1985) is an American historian of science and medicine and an Associate Professor of History at the University of California, Santa Cruz.[1] His book The Age of Intoxication (2019) was awarded the 2021 William H. Welch Medal from the American Association for the History of Medicine.[2]
His second book, Tripping on Utopia: Margaret Mead, the Cold War, and the Troubled Birth of Psychedelic Science,[3] delves into the history of psychedelic science from the 1930s through the 1970s and has garnered critical acclaim. Publications such as The New Yorker,[4] The New York Times,[5] and Publishers Weekly[6] have all provided favorable reviews. In addition, Breen's insights have reached a wider audience through his appearance on NPR's Fresh Air in an interview with Terry Gross.[7]
Education and early career
[edit]Breen received his Ph.D. in history from the University of Texas at Austin in 2015.[8] His doctoral advisor was Jorge Canizares-Esguerra.[9]
Research and writing
[edit]Breen’s work centers on the history of globalization and the long-term impacts of technological and environmental change.[1] He has written on early modern globalization;[10] the Portuguese empire;[11] Atlantic history;[12] the early modern drug trade;[13] the history of psychedelics;[14] and the eighteenth-century impostor George Psalmanazar.[10]
Between 2015 and 2017 Breen was a member of the Society of Fellows in the Humanities at Columbia University and a lecturer in Columbia's Department of History.[15]
His writing has appeared in The Atlantic,[16] The Paris Review,[17] Aeon,[18] The Public Domain Review,[19] Lapham’s Quarterly,[20] and Slate[21] and been discussed in The New Yorker,[22][23]The Washington Post,[24] Radio New Zealand,[25] and Le Point.[26]
He was a co-founder and editor of The Appendix[27] and writes the history blog Res Obscura and substack.[28][29]
Fellowships and awards
[edit]- 2021 The William H. Welch Medal of the American Association for the History of Medicine[2]
- 2021 National Endowment for the Humanities Award for Faculty.[30]
- 2014-15 Huntington Library visiting fellow of Lincoln College, Oxford.[31]
- 2011-12 Fulbright Fellowship (Portugal).[32]
Books
[edit]- The Age of Intoxication: Origins of the Global Drug Trade (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2019). LCCN 2019-32803 ISBN 978-0-8122-5178-4 hbk; Breen, Benjamin (20 December 2019). 2019 pbk edition. University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 978-0-8122-9662-4.
- Tripping on Utopia: Margaret Mead, the Cold War, and the Troubled Birth of Psychedelic Science (Grand Central Publishing, 2024).[33]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "History Faculty Directory". University of California, Santa Cruz. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
- ^ a b "Welch Medal Winners". American Association for the History of Medicine. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
- ^ Breen, Benjamin (Jan 16, 2024). Tripping on Utopia: Margaret Mead, the Cold War, and the Troubled Birth of Psychedelic Science. Grand Central Publishing. p. 384. ISBN 9781538722374. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
- ^ Talbot, Margaret (2024-01-22). "When America First Dropped Acid". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
- ^ Shane, Charlotte (2024-01-16). "Could LSD Have Achieved World Peace? Ask Margaret Mead". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
- ^ "Tripping on Utopia: Margaret Mead, the Cold War, and the Troubled Birth of Psychedelic Science by Benjamin Breen". www.publishersweekly.com. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
- ^ https://www.npr.org/2024/01/16/1197961744/fresh-air-draft-01-16-2024
- ^ "Benjamin Breen wins dissertation award, accepts Assistant Professorship at UC Santa Cruz". Consortium for History of Science, Technology and Medicine. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
- ^ Cañizares-Esguerra, Jorge. "Curriculum Vitae" (PDF). University of Texas at Austin. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
- ^ a b Breen, Benjamin (January 2013). "No Man Is an Island: Early Modern Globalization, Knowledge Networks, and George Psalmanazar's Formosa". Journal of Early Modern History. 17 (4): 391–417. doi:10.1163/15700658-12342371.
- ^ Breen, Benjamin (2018). "Semedo's sixteen secrets Tracing pharmaceutical networks in the Portuguese tropics". In Findlen, Paula (ed.). Empires of Knowledge: Scientific Networks in the Early Modern World. London: Brill. doi:10.4324/9780429461842-14. ISBN 9780429461842. S2CID 189503189.
- ^ Cañizares-Esguerra, Jorge; Breen, Benjamin (August 14, 2013). "Hybrid Atlantics: Future Directions for the History of the Atlantic World". History Compass. 11 (8): 597–609. doi:10.1111/hic3.12051.
- ^ Breen, Benjamin (2019). The Age of Intoxication: Origins of the Modern Drug Trade. University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 978-0812296624.
- ^ Breen, Benjamin (May 10, 2021). "The Failed Globalization of Psychedelic Drugs in the Early Modern World". The Historical Journal. 65: 12–29. doi:10.1017/S0018246X21000224.
- ^ "The Society of Fellows in the Humanities Announces its New Fellows for 2015-16". Columbia University. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
- ^ "All stories by Benjamin Breen". The Atlantic. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
- ^ Breen, Benjamin (October 22, 2014). "Material Objects: Lessons from Rare Book School". The Paris Review Daily.
- ^ Breen, Benjamin (April 11, 2014). "Under the Influence". Aeon.
- ^ Breen, Benjamin (February 19, 2020). ""Theire Soe Admirable Herbe": How the English Found Cannabis". The Public Domain Review.
- ^ Breen, Benjamin (March 15, 2021). "Our Strange Addiction". Lapham's Quarterly.
- ^ "Recently by Benjamin Breen". Slate. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
- ^ Fromson, Daniel (February 14, 2014). ""Weekend Reading: Tunisia's Dying Film Industry, Love and Autism, Famous Meerkats"". The New Yorker.
- ^ DenHoed, Andrea (November 1, 2013). ""Weekend Reading: A Close Call with a Serial Killer; "Human Stains"". The New Yorker.
- ^ Schwarz, Hunter (May 4, 2015). "The many times Star Wars became a part of American politics". The Washington Post.
- ^ "Snail water, beans and pies: tasting 17th century food via art". Radio New Zealand. March 25, 2018.
- ^ Beaurepaire-Hernandez, Pierre-Yves (October 14, 2020). "Pourquoi le trafic de drogue ne date pas d'hier" (in French). Le Point.
- ^ Sinn, Jessica (May 24, 2013). "The Appendix: Experimental Journal Showcases History of the Arcane". Life and Letters.
- ^ ""The Coffee Revolt of 1674"". Open Culture. April 18, 2017.
- ^ ""Res Obscura substack"". October 4, 2023.
- ^ ""UCSC awarded National Endowment for the Humanities grants to support faculty research"". UC Santa Cruz Newscenter. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
- ^ "Awarded Fellowships". Huntington Library. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
- ^ "Fulbright Grantee Directory". Institute of International Education/United States Department of State. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
- ^ "Tripping on Utopia: Margaret Mead, the Cold War, and the Troubled Birth of Psychedelic Science". Retrieved October 4, 2023.