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Spring, 2008 Courses
History 346. Twentieth-Century ChinaChina began the twentieth century with a Manchu emperor and ended it with a communist party committed to “market socialism.” The course will begin with several weeks devoted to the basic historical narrative that explains this enormous transformation. We will then focus on key readings that illustrate such important themes as nationalism, socialism, globalization, and struggles for democracy and labor reform. Requirements include one short test, several short papers, and a final project in which students use a topic of their own choosing (for example, sex, sports, science…) as a “window” into the main themes of twentieth-century Chinese history. Satisfies history major requirements for nonwestern history and STPEC requirements for study of the nonwestern world. Syllabus. Students, please use course website on SPARK.
History 497P/697P. The History of Popular Science
Undergraduate/graduate seminar. This class will investigate familiar issues like environmental activism, along with less familiar ones like mesmerism and "grassroots geology," through a historical study of popular science. How have scientists and others sought to communicate scientific ideas to the public, and how have these ideas shaped history? How have non-scientists participated in the production of knowledge, and how has such participation challenged scientists' privileged positions as conveyors of scientific truth? In addition to examining primary source documents and watching films, we will read historical scholarship on a range of times and places including Victorian England, the Soviet Union, communist China, post-War Japan, and contemporary U.S. and U.K. Requirements will include regular short written assignments and one in-depth project tailored to students' individual interests and goals. Syllabus. Students, please use course website on SPARK.