The sidney prize is awarded each year to an individual or organization that has demonstrated a commitment to the advancement of scholarship in the history of technology. The award is named in honor of Sidney Hook, a renowned American philosopher who contributed greatly to the cause of academic freedom.

In addition to the annual sidney prize, SHOT offers several other prizes for outstanding work in the field. These include the Samuel Edelstein and Rose Tartakow Levinson Prize, recognizing an unpublished essay that contributes to future scholarship in the history of technology; the Bernard S. Finn IEEE History Prize, which recognizes the best article in the history of electrotechnology–power, electronics, telecommunications, and computer science; the Dibner Award for Excellence in Museum Exhibits; and the Martha Trescott Prize, which is given to an individual or institution for publishing a reference work that supports future scholarship on women in technology (even numbered years) or the social responsibility of engineers in history (odd numbered years).

New York Times columnist David Brooks annually names his selections for what he calls the Sidney Awards, which highlight the year’s finest long-form essays. He usually chooses pieces that take on some of society’s more thorny issues. Among his 2015 picks was Peter Wood’s Weekly Standard cover story on the long-term harms of hook-up culture.

SHOT’s other prizes are the following:
The Neilma Sidney Short Story Prize is awarded to a piece of original short fiction that explores themes of travel or exploration. This year, the judges, Andre Dao and Jennifer Downs, shortlisted ten stories, and chose one to win first place, along with two runners-up and a highly commended. The winning story will be published in Overland’s autumn 2024 edition, with the runners-up and the highly commended also being published online.

The prize is open to anyone, including non-subscribers. However, we ask that you declare in the text of your entry if your story takes up the voice or experience of a marginalised or vulnerable identity. This is to help the judges understand the context of your writing and ensure they are judging it fairly.