HTS 2084: Technology and Society
Spring 2010
Georgia Tech Lorraine
Instructor:
Email:
Phone:
Office Hours:
Eric Hardy
eric.hardy@gatech.edu
[TBD]
[TBD]
Course Description
This course is intended to serve as an introduction to the history of technology, a
academic discipline that explores the often complex relationships between societies and
the technologies they produce. The focus will be on technological creativity and transfer
throughout the West as it relates to agriculture, politics, industrialization, urbanization,
computing, the environment, and concepts of modernity. With this in mind, the
instructor wishes that students gain not only a better understanding of the role and
functions of “the machine” in society but also a greater appreciation for the themes and
issues that animate historical scholarship.
Readings
1. Lynn White, Jr., Medieval Technology and Social Change
2. Joel Mokyr, The Lever of Riches: Technological Creativity and Economic Progress
3. Janet Abbate, Inventing the Internet
**additional documents will be made available as needed.
Requirements
Although a significant portion of most class meetings will be devoted to lecture, students
should submit, at the beginning of each class meeting, a written question pertaining to the
assigned reading, along with a brief (1 or 2 paragraph) justification of the particular
inquiry. These questions will provide a framework for class discussions. Students are
encouraged to participate actively in class discussions and to raise questions about the
material or point of view presented in the readings or lectures. Everyone, instructor and
student alike, will benefit from an energetic and informed exchange of ideas.
Grades
90-100 = A; 80-89 = B; 70-79 = C; 60-69 = D; < 59 = F
Grading will be based on three take-home examinations that will test the students’
mastery of the prescribed material. Students will be given 48 hours to answer two of four
essay questions. Each exam will account for 30 percent of the final grade with an
assessment of attendance and participation making up the remaining 10 percent.
Reading Schedule
w/o Jan 11
Jan 18
Jan 25
Feb 1
Feb 8
Feb 15
Feb 22
Mar 1
Mar 8
Mar 15
Mar 22
Mar 29
Apr 5
Apr 12
Apr 19
Apr 26
May 3
Orientation; White: all
Mokyr: Parts 1&2
Mokyr: Part 3
Mokyr: Part 4
selected readings on American Industrial Revolution
selected readings on transportation and urban power
selected readings on urban infrastructure
selected readings on communication systems
Abbate: Chapter 1-3
Abbate: Chapter 4-6
Spring Break—no classes
film on the environment
selected readings on the environment
excerpts from James Scott, Seeing Like A State: How Certain Schemes to
Improve the Human Condition Have Failed: Parts 1&2
Scott excerpts: Part 3
Scott excerpts: Part 4
Finals Week
The syllabus and schedule are subject to change as the course evolves in response to
resources and students needs.
The Honor Code fully applies to this course. Knowing the provisions of the Honor
Code is the student’s responsibility. Violations will not be tolerated.