History and Science

Professor Steven Shapin, Director of Undergraduate Studies

History and Science is an interdisciplinary undergraduate concentration. It was established in the early part of the 20th century by Harvard scientists who believed that students who combined the study of history with the study of science would become both better scientists and better citizens in a world increasingly influenced by science and technology. Most instruction in the concentration now takes place within the Department of the History of Science, which was itself created in the mid-1960s, and formal responsibility for granting undergraduate degrees is held by the department.

The program offers students a variety of opportunities to expand their understanding of the scientific enterprise, to explore in some detail how the past has shaped the development of science and, in turn, how science has shaped other human activities. Besides doing course work at an advanced level in science, history, and history of science, every concentrator takes three years of tutorial, taught by faculty members from the Department of the History of Science, and writes a senior thesis.

Sophomore tutorial introduces students to important episodes in the history of science and the challenges of historical research and interpretation as they present themselves in primary, secondary, and archival materials. Students meet in small groups of six to eight with individual tutors. Weekly lectures supplement tutorial readings and written assignments.

Junior concentrators take two terms of tutorial, one term of a research seminar (History of Science 98) and one term of a junior seminar (History of Science 90). The research seminar is designed to help students come to a better understanding of the craft of history research and writing. The History of Science 90 seminars cover special topics in a small group setting, and are structured so as to develop ways of thinking about material that students will be able to apply to other projects and topics.

The senior thesis is the culmination of the tutorials' integrative effort. The range of subjects is great. Some examples of theses written by students in the concentration during the past year are: "Deconstructing the Panama Canal: Management, Sovereignty, and the Making of an Imperial Project," "Systems Breakdown: The Politics of Error in American Medicine and the Evolution of the Patient Safety Movement," "Divided Designs: Separatism, Intersectionality, and Feminist Science Theory in the 1970s," "Fossil Bones, Petrified Ideas: Image Orthodoxy in Natural History Museums, 1905-1925," "Getting the Story Straight: Truth Serum and Lie Detectors in America, 1900-1940," "Rethinking the Place of Science in the Spanish Silver Age: 'Cultural Synthesis' at the Residencia de Estudiantes in Madrid, 1910-1936." Students are welcome to look through the collection of past and present senior theses that are located in the Department of the History of Science.

History and Science is a limited enrollment concentration. Students must complete an application form (available from the department) before entering the concentration.

REQUIREMENTS 15 half-courses

1. Required courses:
1. Five half-courses in history and history of science. At least three of the five courses must be in the history of science. Ordinarily, the others will be in history, but historically oriented courses in other fields may be counted towards this requirement, with the approval of the Director of Undergraduate Studies. No more than two of the five courses may be introductory, and one of the five must cover a period of time before 1750.
2. Four half-courses in science, all in one field though not necessarily in one department. No more than two may be introductory. Note: Courses may be drawn from any of the physical and biological or life sciences and, with the approval of the Director of Undergraduate Studies, certain of the social and behavioral sciences.
2. Tutorials:
1. Sophomore year: History of Science 97a and 97b (two half-courses) required, group tutorial. Letter-graded.
2. Junior year: History of Science 98 (one term) and History of Science 90 (one term) required. Letter-graded.
3. Senior year: History of Science 99 (two terms) required, primarily Senior Thesis writing. Letter-graded.
3. Thesis: Required. Usually in history of science, occasionally in a science.
4. General Examination: None.
5. Other information:
1. Pass/Fail: Two half-courses taken Pass/Fail may be counted for concentration.
2. Freshman seminars taught by department faculty may count towards concentration credit.
3. Study abroad is encouraged. The concentration will count up to two (2) approved courses out-of-residence towards concentration requirements. Please consult with the Director of Undergraduate Studies for more information.

Mind, Brain, and Behavior Track

Students interested in integrating serious study of the sciences of mind, brain, and behavior with thoughtful attention to sociocultural, philosophical and historical questions raised by those sciences may pursue a Mind, Brain, and Behavior track in History and Science, developed in collaboration with the Standing Committee on Neuroscience and the University-wide Mind, Brain, and Behavior Interfaculty Initiative. (Mind, Brain, and Behavior tracks are also available in Human Evolutionary Biology, Computer Science, Linguistics, Philosophy, and Psychology.) Requirements for this program are based on those of the History and Science concentration, except that:

At least three of the five sociocultural half-courses should be historical in nature. Up to two courses may be taken in an auxiliary area, such as: (1) Health and Science Policy, (2) Medical Anthropology, (3) Religion and Ethics, (4) Philosophy of Mind & Behavior.

The four half-courses in science must include MCB 80 (formerly Biological Sciences 80, ordinarily in the sophomore year), and three half-courses that focus in one of the following areas: (1) Cognitive Systems, (2) Psychopathology, (3) Human Evolutionary Biology, (4) Child Development and the Brain, (5) Computational Neuroscience, (6) Neurobiology. In some circumstances, courses from two areas may be combined.

Students may substitute an approved Mind, Brain, and Behavior 987 junior seminar for History of Science 90.

Students pursuing the Mind, Brain, and Behavior track are also expected to participate in the University-wide Mind, Brain, and Behavior research milieu, including a non-credit senior year seminar for Mind, Brain, and Behavior thesis writers.

HOW TO FIND OUT MORE

For more information contact the Manager of Student Programs, Alice Belser, ajbesler@fas.harvard.edu, (617) 495-3742, Science Center 355, or the Director of Undergraduate Studies, Professor Steven Shapin, shapin@fas.harvard.edu, (617) 384-7997, Science Center 451. Our website is www.fas.harvard.edu/~hsdept/.

ENROLLMENT STATISTICS

Number of Concentrators as of November