ABSTRACT
In 1804, Christen Pram was sent by the Danish-Norwegian government in Copenhagen to investigate the rumours that ash from the burning of kelp along the north-western coast of Norway was causing the climate to change. The chapter follows Pram’s journey and analyses his efforts to understand what was going on. His initial determination was to rely solely on systematic observation and scientific method, but he gradually came to acknowledge the value of the locals’ situated knowledge. The chapter investigates the negotiation of different understandings of nature that ensued and explores the different temporalities intrinsic to the two different types of knowledge.
