Evolution of quasi-history of the Planck blackbody radiation equation in a physics textbook

Abstract

In physics textbooks, the emphasis is normally placed on the physics. In order to give the subject a deeper dimension, the inclusion of history and persons involved in the development has been increasing. However, the actual historical development does not always follow a linear progression, which is the way the physics is presented in textbooks. In order to study how the inclusion of “history” has influenced the presentation, a study of the development of a well-known history in different editions of a physics textbook is done. The gradual development of a quasi-history is observed and possible explanations for this are investigated.