English STS 200 - Fall, 2017

Class Information

Description

This graduate seminar focuses on theories and methods in science and technology studies (STS). Students will be introduced to major authors, works, and movements that have shaped the interdisciplinary field of STS, attending to intersections of the history and philosophy of science, the anthropology and sociology of science, and literary and cultural studies of science. Students will gain a strong foundation in a variety of STS approaches and concepts: constructivism; sociology of scientific knowledge (SSK); actor-network theory; gender studies of science; rhetoric and semiotics of scientific writing; scientific trading zones; experimental systems; and others. The seminar is designed for graduate students interested in adding STS methods to their scholarly toolkits. The seminar also fulfills the STS 200 requirement for the Designated Emphasis in Science and Technology Studies, but enrollment in the DE program is not required.

Grading

Requirements for the seminar include: attendance, preparation and participation in weekly seminar meetings (50%); weekly citation summaries for the assigned readings (30%); and a bibliographic research project (20%).

Texts

Leviathan and the Air-Pump, Steven Shapin and Simon Schaffer
Science in Action, Bruno Latour
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, Thomas Kuhn
The Science Studies Reader, Mario Biagioli
How We Became Posthuman, N. Katherine Hayles