Graduate Lecture in Science, Technology and Society F1B

Academic unit or major

Graduate major in Social and Human Sciences

Instructor(s)

Yakup Bektas

Class Format

Lecture

Media-enhanced courses

-

Day of week/Period
(Classrooms)

Class

-

Course Code

SHS.S444

Number of credits

100

Course offered

2025

Offered quarter

4Q

Syllabus updated

Mar 19, 2025

Language

English

Syllabus

Course overview and goals

Science, Technology, and the Environment since the mid-20th Century
DESCRIPTION:
This course explores the relationship between technology and the environment, focusing on industrial expansion and chemical pollution since 1950. We will follow the damage to the natural world and to public health caused by corporations after WWII, a time when public environmental awareness hardly yet existed. Likewise protective regulations were few and limited, and governments gave priority to economic growth over environmental protection.

Discussions will cover the debates about serious environmental issues that have shaped global consciousness. Major topics will include the Minamata disease and chemical pollution in Japan, Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring, and the birth of the environmental movement. We will discuss Lynn White’s “Our Ecologic Crisis,” James Lovelock’s Gaia theory, global warming, and nuclear disasters. We will also analyze the concepts of “control of nature,” “balance of nature,” and "ecology."

Additionally, we will discuss the Anthropocene, the proposed new geological epoch, and the implications of its name for popular awareness of the threats that our planet faces.

AIMS: Raise students' awareness of environmental problems and their connections to science, technology, economic growth, governmental policies and corporate practices. Provide opportunities for students to explore and evaluate these issues.

Course description and aims

Intended Outcomes: Increase awareness of environmental issues and their links to science, technology, government, and business. Develop an understanding of the history of environmental issues and skills to engage in public and academic debates about them. Foster a respectful and appreciative attitude towards nature.

Student learning outcomes

実務経験と講義内容との関連 (又は実践的教育内容)

Has been running this and similar courses for many years.

Keywords

Technology, the Environment, Ecology, Balance of Nature, Control of Nature, Industrial Development, Environmental Degradation, Ecologic Crisis, Environmentalism, Chemical pollution, Minamata, DDT, Silent Spring, Gaia, Anthropocene

Competencies

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

Class flow

Conducted in lecture format, occasionally, when needed, in seminar format. Class participation is required and participation in discussions is essential. Students are expected to: 1) read the assigned reading prior to the class, 2) participate in classroom discussions, 3) write short papers, and 4) attend a field trip (to the Daigo Fukuryu Maru) (negotiable).

Course schedule/Objectives

Study advice (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)

No textbooks

Reference books, course materials, etc.

Main Readings:Jun Ui (ed.), Industrial Pollution in Japan, 1992; Rachel Carson, Silent Spring, 1962; Lynn White, jr., “Historical Roots of Our Ecologic Crisis,” Science 155 (1967); Keibo Oiwa & Masato Ogata, Rowing the Eternal Sea: the Story of a Minamata Fisherman, 2001; Akio Mishima, Bitter Sea: The Human Cost of Minamata Disease (1992); Masanori Kaji, "Role of experts and public participation in pollution control: the case of itai-itai disease in Japan, " Ethics in Science and Environmental Politics, 12 (2012): 99-111; Sharon B. McGrayne, Prometheans in the Lab, 2001; James Lovelock, The Revenge of Gaia, 2006.
Audio-visual teaching materials include: Endangered Planet 1950-95 (1999); Rachel Carson's Silent Spring [Neil Goodwin, 1999); Al Gore, Inconvenient Truth (2006); Into Eternity (Michael Madson, 2010); Inside Japan’s Nuclear Meltdown (PBS Frontline, 2012)

Evaluation methods and criteria

Grading will be based on class participation and writing assignments (short essays). Class participation will account for 80% of the grade, and writing assignments will account for 20%. Students are encouraged to actively engage in discussions and activities, asking or responding to questions directly in class, or indirectly through questions and comments on reaction slips. Submission of reaction slips is required each time as proof of class participation.

Related courses

• To be suggested later

Prerequisites

None

Contact information (e-mail and phone) Notice : Please replace from ”[at]” to ”@”(half-width character).

Bektas Yakup : bektas.y.aa[at]m.titech.ac.jp

Office hours

One hour after each class. Other times by appointment.