The American Association for the Advancement of Science, Smithsonian, and "Lazzaroni" By the 1840s, a clique of leading US scientists began to coalesce around Bache with the goal of professionalizing their fields. They formalized with establishment of the Association of American Geologists and Naturalists in 1843 (renamed the American Association for the Advancement of Science five years later) and the Smithsonian Institution in 1846. Informally, Bache and his circle called themselves the Scientific Lazzaroni. Together, the groups created and enforced standards of intellectual merit with the goal of elevating the nation and its reputation. This meant discrediting charlatans but, at times, also denying research funding or academic appointments to others. Perhaps most important, the groups advised and even mentored politicians and army engineers. Bache would lead the AAAS until 1851 and serve on the Smithsonian's board of regents throughout his term as Coast Survey superintendent.Lillian Miller, The Lazzaroni: Science and Scientists in Mid-Nineteenth Century America (Washington, DC, 1972), pp. 2–7, 9-17.
The American Association for the Advancement of Science, Smithsonian, and "Lazzaroni" By the 1840s, a clique of leading US scientists began to coalesce around Bache with the goal of professionalizing their fields. They formalized with establishment of the Association of American Geologists and Naturalists in 1843 (renamed the American Association for the Advancement of Science five years later) and the Smithsonian Institution in 1846. Informally, Bache and his circle called themselves the Scientific Lazzaroni. Together, the groups created and enforced standards of intellectual merit with the goal of elevating the nation and its reputation. This meant discrediting charlatans but, at times, also denying research funding or academic appointments to others. Perhaps most important, the groups advised and even mentored politicians and army engineers. Bache would lead the AAAS until 1851 and serve on the Smithsonian's board of regents throughout his term as Coast Survey superintendent.Lillian Miller The Lazzaroni: Science and Scientists in Mid-Nineteenth Century America (Washington, DC 1972), pp. 2–7, 9-17