Elizabeth O'Neil

This dissertation tracks the careers of several Viennese scientists as they pursued questions about how organisms, minds, machines, ecosystems, disciplines, and even whole societies might be understood as “wholes,” “systems,” or “unities.” By offering a new history of systems thinking in the 20th century, this project reframes current understandings of systems theory, cybernetics, behavioral science, and scientific internationalism in the US and Europe. Libby O’Neil is a PhD candidate at Yale University in the Program in the History of Science and Medicine.