Director, Associate Professor James Fleming

Advisory Committee: Professors Murray Campbell (Physics and Astronomy), Daniel Cohen (Philosophy), F. Russell Cole (Biology), Elizabeth DeSombre (Government and Environmental Studies), Frank Fekete (Biology), Fleming (Science, Technology, and Society), Henry Gemery (Economics), Jonathan Hallstrom (Music), Homer Hayslett (Mathematics), Paul Josephson (History), Thomas Longstaff (Religious Studies), Robert McArthur (Philosophy), Leonard Reich (Administrative Science and Science, Technology, and Society), Dale Skrien (Mathematics and Computer Science), Ted Underwood (English)

Science and technology have become increasingly important components of our world, changing the ways we live, work, and think. The well being of individuals, nations, and, ultimately, our Earth depends in part on technoscientific developments that are part of the process shaping both the social fabric and the natural environment.

By choosing from a variety of electives, students in the Science, Technology, and Society Program are introduced to critical and interdisciplinary perspectives on the interactions of science, technology, and society. Students gain an understanding of the historical and social dimensions of science and technology; they also become better-informed citizens of our high-tech society.

Science, Technology, and Society (STS) is the "minor for all majors"—no special technical expertise is required. Students may also propose an independent major in science, technology, and society.

Requirements for the Minor in Science Technology and Society
Seven courses—a minimum of 22 credits—are required for the minor. No more than one independent study or field experience may be included as an elective, and it must be taken for at least three credit hours. Students may petition to include elective courses not listed below. Students with advanced standing may substitute a science, technology, and society elective for ST 112. In ST 485 and 486, seniors complete a year-long research project of their own design.

Required Science, Technology, and Society courses

112	Science, Technology, and Society
485	The Craft of Research I
486	The Craft of Research II

Science, Technology, and Society electives (choose at least two)

212	Native Natural Knowledge
215	Global Change: Environmental Science and Society
250	Industry, Technology, and Society, 1750-1915
251	Industry, Technology, and Society since 1900
281	Global Environmental History
297	Technology and the Millennium
393	Technology, War, and Society
398	Computers and Computing Since 1945

Additional electives (choose up to two)

American Studies	213	Medicine in 19th- and 20th-Century America: Women As Pioneer Healers
Anthropology	252	Hunger, Poverty, and Population: The Anthropology of Development
	256	Land, Food, Culture, and Power
Biology	115	Biology of Women
	133	Microorganisms and Society
	271	Introduction to Ecology
	319	Conservation Biology
	493	Problems in Environmental Science
Chemistry	112	Chemistry for Citizens
	118	Chemistry of Life
	217	Environmental Chemistry
Computer Science	113	Great Ideas in Computer Science
	232	Computer Organization
	353	Artificial Intelligence
Economics	231	Environmental and Natural Resource Economics
	493	Senior Seminar (when appropriate)
Environmental Studies	118	Environment and Society
Geology	131	Introduction to Environmental Geology
	171	Oceanography
	177	Wetlands and Wetland Science
	494	Environmental Geology
Government	235	Sustainable Development
History	295	Internship in History (where appropriate)
	398	Luddite Rantings: Historical Critique of Big Technology
	481	Ecological Change in World History
	497	From the Periodic Table to Sputnick
Mathematics	376	History of Mathematics
Music	213	Introduction to Computer Music
Philosophy	317	Philosophy of Science
Physics	111	From Galileo to Einstein
	113	The Elements
	114	The Physics of Everything
	115	The Shadow of the Bomb
	254	Essential Electronics
Psychology	233	Physiological Psychology
	374	Human Neuropsychology
	477	History and Systems of Psychology
Sociology	256	Health and Illness

COURSE OFFERINGS

112s    Science, Technology, and Society    Critical perspectives on the social aspects of science and technology in our lives, in the world around us, and throughout history. Issues include gender, communications, war, and the environment. Four credit hours.  S.    REICH

[115]    The Shadow of the Bomb    Listed as Physics 115 (q.v.). Three credit hours.    

[118]    Environment and Society    Listed as Environmental Studies 118 (q.v.). Four credit hours.    

[129]    Sailing    Explores the many aspects of sailing as a human experience: sailing as history, science, engineering, technique, competition, exploration, philosophy, psychology, business, craft, and song. Readings, lectures, videos, outside speakers, visits to a sailmaker and boatbuilder. Three credit hours.    

[212]    Native Natural Knowledge    An introduction to systems of natural knowledge in the non-Western world. The focus is on living traditions in Africa, Australia, China, Japan, and native North and South America. Emphasis is on diversity with a view to articulating both a personal philosophy and a global environmental synthesis. Four credit hours.  H, D.    

215s    Global Change: Environmental Science and Society    A comprehensive introduction to the science of global change and its social dimensions. Topics include the composition, structure, and circulation of the Earth's atmosphere and oceans; air pollution, ozone depletion, El Niño, and climate change. Offered with Biology 298 as an integrated cluster; may be elected separately. Four credit hours.  N.    FLEMING

[250]    Industry, Technology, and Society, 1750-1915    An examination of the processes by which rapid technological developments took place in America, including the stimuli and constraints on inventors, engineers, entrepreneurs, and corporations; attempts by government to control technology; and the impact that evolving technology and industry had on social values. Also listed as Administrative Science 250. Four credit hours.  H.    

251f    Industry, Technology, and Society since 1900    An examination of developments in American technology and industry during the course of this century. Major topics include the rise of the auto, electrical, computer, and communications industries; the importance of research, development, and marketing to the growth and diversification of the economy; environmental and agricultural issues; and atomic energy. Also listed as Administrative Science 251. Four credit hours.  H.    REICH

271f    History of Science in America    A survey of the social, intellectual, and institutional development of science in America from colonial times to the present. Topics include scientists' roles in government, education, and industry; science in war; women in science; and the emergence of America as a leading scientific nation. Four credit hours.  H.    FLEMING

281s    Global Environmental History    Perspectives from the Southern and Northern Hemispheres. A seminar examining the history of environmental issues from the different perspectives of the South and the North. The course will meet on occasion in the video conferencing center for discussions with international experts from the Southern Hemisphere. Readings and discussion will emphasize responses to past environmental changes through the historical lenses of gender, race, class, privilege, and other differences. Four credit hours.  H.    FLEMING

297f    Technology and the Millennium    The role of technology in shaping both religious and secular hopes and expectations, including the Faustian quest for ultimate knowledge, power, and control. Topics include technological enthusiasm since the Middle Ages, in early American history, and as manifested by atomic weapons, space travel, robotics, artificial intelligence, and genetic engineering. Seminar format will emphasize reading and discussion of primary sources. Three credit hours.    FLEMING

298As    Medical Technology, Ethics, and Society    A seminar on the development of modern medicine and the role of professional bodies in setting ethical guidelines for their members in light of the increasing complexity of modern medicine and technology. Topics will include reproductive technology and genetic information; donation of organs, xenotransplantation, and euthanasia; research and clinical trials; medical negligence and risk management; dilemmas in the treatment of psychiatric patients or those with a mental disability. Four credit hours.    MADDEN

298Bs    Luddite Rantings: A Historical Critique of Big Technology    Listed as History 298D (q.v.). Four credit hours.  H.    JOSEPHSON

298Cs    Dilemmas in Health Care    Listed as AD298 (q.v.) Four credit hours.    MADDEN

298Ds    Global Change: Life Science and Society    Listed as BI298 (q.v.) Prerequisite:  Four credit hours.    NYHUS

[393]    Technology, War, and Society    A seminar on the role of technology in warfare and the military's broader influence on society from antiquity to the end of the Cold War. Topics include causes of war, military research and development, the rise of the national security state, high-tech warfare, and the future of war. Four credit hours.  H.    

398s    Computers and Computing Since 1945    The development of electronic digital computers from their earliest days to the present. Topics include computer use by business and government; programming languages and software; time sharing and user interfaces; hardware developments; and the computer-communications revolution of the 1990s. Emphasis will be placed on computer industry dynamics and on the effects of innovative computer uses. Four credit hours.    REICH

485f    The Craft of Research I    Readings and seminar discussions to prepare students for independent research. Students will identify a research topic, conduct a literature review, and write a formal proposal for a final integrative project. Open to all seniors. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor. Three credit hours.    FLEMING

486s    The Craft of Research II    The second part of a year-long "capstone" research experience. Students will complete a final integrative project and present a public seminar. Prerequisite: Science, Technology, and Society 485. Three credit hours.    FLEMING

491f, 492s    Independent Study    Independent study in areas in which the student has demonstrated the interest and competence necessary for independent work. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor and the program director. One to four credit hours.    FACULTY