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Other Courses |
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Other Courses |
The Science and Humanities Program seeks to examine topic that highlight the ways in which science has influenced society, also those topics which are beneficially studied from both science and a humanities perspective. The Science, Humanities and Society seminar seeks to provide an interdisciplinary approach to the study of such topics, and an introduction to interdisciplinary work in general. Each time it is offered, it will most likely be taught by a different faculty member and have a different focus.
Many nations of the Pacific have recently moved to the forefront of world attention, particularly because of their technological and economic prowess. This situation has given scholars the opportunity to study the Pacific as an identifiable region. Such studies are intriguing and challenging (and follow upon several historiographical traditions), especially given the fact that the Pacific covers fully one third of the earth’s surface.
The proliferation of interest is also fostering the creation of many groups, programs and international efforts designed to address issues relative to the burgeoning activities throughout the region. In our study, we will pull together the threads of cariety of nations, ethnic groups and historical experiences of the region as a means of understanding it and its significance in our contemporary world.
The phenomenon of European expansion - - with all of its positive and negative aspects -- has been one of the most significant developments in world history. As the so-called “Vasco de Gama” era appears to be coming to an end, in at least its most flagrant political sense, it is fitting to look back and make an assessment. We will look at the societies who conquered, those that were conquered, and those which resulted from the process, as well as the religious, scientific, and economic components of the expansion. Our primary goal is to look at the expansion as a unity and a world phenomenon, rather than a fragmentary and episodic one. It has provided one of the most important characteristics of the modern world, and is frequently overlooked due to its obviousness.
The general purpose of this course is to engage in detailed discussion of a farily narrowly focuses topic in the history of science or technology. We will consider the Scientif Revolution of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries
The Scientific Revolution, beginning with Copernicus’ description of a heliocentric universe in De Revolutionibus and culminating in Newton’s Principia Mathematica, might be said to be the definitive event in modern intellectual history, if not in modern history as a whole. While such a view is quite enthusisactic and perhaps a bit reductionist, let us note that the Scientiic Revolution has brough t us numerous key aspects of modernity: the preponderance of secular thinking, the scientific method, and, still not stretching the point too far, industrialization, econmic theory, European influence world-wide.
Proper knowledge of the Scientific Revolution has traditionally been lacking. Antiquarian interests among scientists have proven insufficient to understanding the Revolution it its full context and particulars; scientific interest among humanist scholars had typically shied away from a sound grasp of scientific information. More recently, study of the topic has been undertaken with increased care. The achievement of full appreciation of the matter in society or even academia may not have been fully realized as yet, but progress is on-going, ant the desire for a true understanding has been ably justified and the effort just as ably undertaken.
As a historical phenomenon, historical aspects of the Revolution will take pride o f place. Some attention to the science is essential, however, in order to appreciate the true nature of the achievement. Be prepared for considerable attention to both components of the topic.
The phenomenon of the Renaissance, and the coming of the Reformation, Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment mark the appearance of intellectual modernity in the west. The modern outlook embodies a profound change from its precursors, and can be held accountable for many aspects of modern life.
The beginnings of this momentous event occurred during the late Middle Ages and Renaissance. Christian-Aristolelian metaphysics was held to be sterile by many thinkers; the Church and its orthodoxies became vulnerable to criticism; increasingly Europeans made contact with the more sophisticated civilizations to their south and east; early practitioners of science sought respectability for their endeavors by achieving a break from the strangleholds of tradition and distinction from the more unsavory aspects of magic and alchemy. The new spirit of the time saw science emerge in accordance with several particular developments: high interest in magic and occult knowledge, the willingness and eagerness to explore nonwestern paradigms, the return to primacy of Platonism, and the pride of place given to mathematics.
We will examine these (primarily) pre-Scientific Revolution developments to identify and assess the origins of intellectual modernity. We will look at theology, religious practice, medicine, philosophy, occult pursuits, and alternative systems of knowledge, as they created a maelstrom from which modern thinking emerged.
The eighteenth century saw a profusion of innovative political ideologies, some of which were put into practice with telling effect. The innovations with the most lasting results, one might argue, occurred in Britain and in the Americas. At the same time, reforms instituted in a host of other countries were largely negated by the end of the century. Portugal and Spain played a unique role in the dissemination of the so-called enlightened political ideologies. Numerous innovations were readily employed, based on ideas often imported from Britain or France (few examples of actual reform came from France). During this period, the Iberian kingdoms saw quite a number of pioneering and successful innovations, despite the on-going activity of their inquisitions. We will concentrate on those aspects of Spanish and Portuguese (and colonial) history in which the new ideas were most pointedly employed.
Through comparative method, the student is able to gain a greater understanding of a phenomenon by contrasting various incarnations of it under differing circumstances, such as those provided by temporal or geographic distance. We will consider the Portuguese and Dutch colonial experiences, comparing their motives, goals achievements, institutions, relations with indigenous peoples and legacies.
