Research Seminar (395-0-28)
Topic
History with Things
Instructors
Kenneth L Alder
847/467-4038
Harris Hall 307
Ken Alder is a historian of science and technology, as well as a novelist. He was born under the sign of Sputnik in Berkeley, California, and studied physics and solar energy before turning to history and fiction. Much of his work is focused on the history of measurement—both of nature and of human beings—and the ways in which quantitative values reflect social values.
Meeting Info
Kresge Centennial Hall 2-420: Tues, Thurs 3:30PM - 4:50PM
Overview of class
This seminar guides students as they research and write the social history of an artifact of their choice. How do our histories read if we organize them around changes in the material world? Do artifacts have politics, and if so, of what sort? In this course, students learn multiple approaches to the study of material culture. We will read exemplary accounts of objects which people have designed, made, sold, bought, gifted, and/or trashed. We will study how these objects came to mediate differences among people, like gender, race, age, nation, and of course, rich and poor. The course offers a well-tested template for conducting, organizing, and writing up your own research on a topic that interests you. Try out an idea for a senior thesis. Research an artifact you love or hate, or feel ambivalent about. Develop a case history of innovation (or obsolescence). The last time the course was offered, students wrote papers on such topics as: the wiretapping of ‘70s radicals, the late nineteenth-century obsession with photographing the dead, how knitting patterns went online, the rise of the labradoodle, the gender dynamics of ‘20s fashion, how changes in intellectual property transformed ‘90s biotech, and why Admiral Grace Hopper programmed COBOL the way she did…. The goal is to illuminate our changing world by telling the history of a material being.
Learning Objectives
Research paper
Evaluation Method
Research paper and preparatory essays
Class Attributes
Historical Studies Distro Area
Enrollment Requirements
Enrollment Requirements: Freshmen may not register for this course.