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2022　History of Science B

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Academic unit or major
Humanities and social science courses
Instructor(s)
Wen Heng 
Class Format
Lecture    (Blended)
Media-enhanced courses
Day/Period(Room No.)
Mon1-2(H112)  Thr1-2(H112)  
Group
-
Course number
LAH.T202
Credits
2
Academic year
2022
Offered quarter
3Q
Syllabus updated
2022/12/19
Lecture notes updated
-
Language used
Japanese
Access Index

Course description and aims

This course focuses on the place of science in society and traces how it evolved in history.
Though science is an indisposable part of today's world, how it reached to such a position is not self-evident. By locating the origins of the conditions that shape science and following their changes, this course aims at a more comprehensive perception of science and a deeper understanding of its social aspects.

Student learning outcomes

1. To realize the social property of science, and to have a general idea of the historical process of science and society interacting with each other.
2. To be aware of the complexity and multitude of modern science in today's society, and to be able to think about how to fit in this configuration.

Keywords

history of science, philosophy of science, science and society, professionalization, institutionalization

Competencies that will be developed

✔ Specialist skills ✔ Intercultural skills Communication skills ✔ Critical thinking skills Practical and/or problem-solving skills

Class flow

（Updated on 16th Nov.）
This course is conducted through a combination of live streaming and on-demand recordings.
Nine classes (first, sixth, and eighth through fourteenth) are live streamed by means of Zoom,
while the remaining five classes (second through fifth, and seventh) are provided by means of recordings.
Regardless of the form, each class is a lecture following a predetermined topic. Videos may be shown in some classes.
The mini reports to be submitted each time are not dependent on the form either, but are considered and evaluated as feedback to the content of the lectures.
Questions are accepted on T2SCHOLA's bulletin board at any time.
The deadlines of reports, including mini reports, mid-term report, and final report, are set with abundance of time in mind. Details are announced in class.

Course schedule/Required learning

  Course schedule Required learning
Class 1 Guidance: What is "history of science" To know the different meanings of history of science for the general public, scientists, and historians of science.
Class 2 Worldview provided by knowledge To grasp how knowledge has changed people's perception of the world since the ancient Greek to this day.
Class 3 The activity of pursuing knowledge To realize that it is human that produces knowledge and that a lot of social factors are at work in this activity.
Class 4 Science in Renaissance To learn about the social conditions behind the active scientific scene in Renaissance.
Class 5 The scientific revolution and its background To grasp the social conditions underlying the scientific revolution led by Galileo and Newton's work.
Class 6 The birth of organized science To learn about the origin of the organization of science through the establishment of academic societies.
Class 7 The road of institutionalization To gain a general understanding of the early institutionalization of modern science through the establishment of academies.
Class 8 University and science To know how education and research entered university.
Class 9 Realization of the importance of science To learn about the considerations of those working in science during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries with regard to the importance of science.
Class 10 Expansion of the scientific enterprise To learn about the growth of the scale of science education and research as led by the United States in the first half of the twentieth century.
Class 11 Big science To learn about the origins and underlying conditions of large equipment-based science.
Class 12 Nation and science To learn about the background of the close association between science and the development of a nation.
Class 13 Internal social structure of science To realize that the scientific community is a smaller version of society in its own right, and to learn about its internal structures and processes.
Class 14 Characters of science in modern society To grasp the complexity and multitude of science as a social institution that interacts with all sorts of fields.

Out-of-Class Study Time (Preparation and Review)

To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.

Textbook(s)

None.

Reference books, course materials, etc.

Yasu Furukawa, Kagaku no shakaishi, Tokyo: Chikuma, 2018
Others will be introduced in class.

Assessment criteria and methods

Participation (attendance and feedback): 60%
Mid-term short paper: 20%
End-term short paper: 20%

Related courses

  • LAH.T102 ： History of Science A
  • LAH.T302 ： History of Science C
  • LAH.T103 ： History of Technology A
  • LAH.T203 ： History of Technology B
  • LAH.T303 ： History of Technology C
  • LAH.T204 ： Special Lecture: History of Universities

Prerequisites (i.e., required knowledge, skills, courses, etc.)

None.

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