Sci & Tech in a Global Context (HIST*1250)

Code and section: HIST*1250*01

Term: Winter 2021

Instructor: Marc-Andre Gagnon

Details

Course Format:

This course will be conducted in a remote synchronous format. (TENTATIVE) Class will meet:

• On Mondays and Wednesday for 50 minutes of lecture and discussions on Zoom;
• On Fridays for 50 minutes of live typed-discussions using the Courselink Discussion tool.

Course Synopsis:

This course is an introduction to the culturally specific ways in which science and technology have developed historically from the ancient period through the twenty-first century. Emphasis will be placed on the patterns in which scientific and technological knowledge and practices have traveled and been constructed across cultures, and the interconnected but distinct histories of science and technology.

Learning Outcomes:

Upon successful completion of this course, student will have learned to:

1. appreciate the contributions of science and technology to world history;
2. recognize that specific sciences and technologies are dependent on their social, cultural, and historical context and cannot be understood outside of them;
3. recognize the ways in which knowledge and skills have travelled and been constructed across cultures;
4. engage with the central issues, research approaches, and practices of history as a discipline;
5. develop skills in critical reading, writing, and thinking;
6. develop skills in library research and critical evaluation of information.

Prerequisites:

None.

Method of Evaluation and Weights:

Weekly Discussions on Courselink - 15%
Research Essay Proposal - 10%
Final Research Essay - 20%
Take-Home Midterm Exam - 20%
Take-Home Final Exam - 35%

Required Texts:

Patricia Fara. Science: A Four Thousand Year History. (Oxford University Press, 2010)
Daniel R. Headrick. Technology: A World History. (Oxford University Press, 2009)
Small articles and images (links available on courselink website).

*Please note: This is a preliminary website description only. The department reserves the right to change without notice any information in this description. The final, binding course outline will be distributed in the first class of the semester.