Each of the Science, Technology, and Values courses listed has a cross-listing in one or another of the regular departments of the university. STV Minors may enroll in these as STV courses.

Students wishing to use STV courses to satisfy university requirements must register for them as departmental courses, not as STV courses. Students wishing to double-count a course for both a university requirement and for the STV minor should first consult withe the STV director (Greg Macklem). Please keep in mind that courses may NOT be double-counted for the STV minor and a major or another minor.

All courses listed as STV offerings are open only to students enrolled in the STV Minor until the end of the third period of registration. STV minors no longer need to register for the Gateway Course (STV 27999), but can register for classes normally.

As always, please check InsideND for the most current course information.

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The Core Course

This is the only required course for the STV minor. It is only offered in the fall, so students are recommended to take it as soon as possible.

This course introduces the interdisciplinary field of science and technology studies. Our concern will be with science and technology (including medicine) as social and historical, i.e., as human, phenomena. We shall examine the divergent roots of contemporary science and technology, and the similarities and (sometimes surprising) differences in their methods and goals. The central theme of the course will be the ways in which science and technology interact with other aspects of society, including the effects of technical and theoretical innovation in bringing about social change, and the social shaping of science and technology themselves by cultural, economic and political forces. Because science/society interactions so frequently lead to public controversy and conflict, we shall also explore what resources are available to mediate such conflicts in an avowedly democratic society.

Please Note: Students in 20556 must also register for a section of STV 22556 – Science, Technology and Society Discussion
                                                           

This is the required discussion section for STV 20556 – Science, Technology and Society.
                                                           

Human Dimensions of Science and Technology
(Note: all these course numbers are xx1xx)

An examination of the following questions: What kind of differences separate men and women? Are these differences natural or are they socially produced, and are these differences beneficial to us or are they limiting? What does equality mean for people characterized by such differences?
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This course introduces the field of medical anthropology, which examines beliefs, practices, and experiences of illness, health, and healing from a cross-cultural perspective. This course will consider the ways in which medical anthropology has historically been influenced by debates within the discipline of anthropology, as well as by broader social and political movements. Particular emphasis will be placed on the importance of viewing biomedicine as one among many culturally constructed systems of medicine.
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This course is an introduction to the new field of environmental history. While many people think "The Environment" suddenly became important with the first "Earth Day" in 1970 (or a few years earlier), environmental issues have in fact long been of central importance. In recent decades historians have begun actively to explore the past sensibilities of various groups toward their surroundings and fellow creatures. They have also increasingly paid attention to the ways environmental factors have affected history. This course will range widely, from world history to the story of a single river, from arguments about climate change to the significance of pink flamingos, and will survey a number of types of history including cultural, demographic, religious, and animal.
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This course analyzes the history of television, spanning from its roots in radio broadcasting to the latest developments in digital television. In assessing the many changes across this span, the course will cover such topics as why the American television industry developed as a commercial medium in contrast to most other national television industries; how television programming has both reflected and influenced cultural ideologies through the decades; and how historical patterns of television consumption have shifted due to new technologies and social changes. Through studying the historical development of television programs and assessing the industrial, technological, and cultural systems out of which they emerged, the course will piece together the catalysts responsible for shaping this highly influential medium.
Please Note: Students registering for STV 30161 must also register for STV 31161- History of Television Lab.
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This is the required lab section for STV 30161. During the lab times, certain television shows will be viewed for further discussion in class.
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The relationship between science and race has been going on a long time and is only getting more confusing. Science has been used in support of racial categorization; science has been used to tear down notions of race-based categories. Biology and anthropology specifically have been used to both support and refute racism. In this class, we will examine the diverse interactions between science and race from the 18th century to the present era of human genomics. We will look both at the scientific study of race and the impact of racial concepts on science, interactions that have given us Nazi medicine, eugenics, the Tuskegee airmen experiments, and modern day pharmaceutical trials in Africa. Throughout, we'll be looking at the personal stories of scientists from minority ethnic groups and questioning the racial demographics of science in the 20th and 21st centuries.
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This course is intended for non-science students who desire to begin an examination of the origins of the modern laws of physics and for science students who wish to know the actual route to the discovery and the broader implications of the formal theories with which they are already familiar. The historical background to and philosophical questions associated with major laws of physics will be discussed, in large measure by examining directly relevant excerpts from the writings of some of the creators of seminal concepts and theories in physics. The latter part of the course will concentrate on historical and philosophical issues related to relativity and especially to quantum theory and its interpretation.
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The 19th century witnessed a transformation in the understanding of the origins of criminal behavior in the United States. For many, a religious emphasis on humankind as sinful gave way to a belief in its inherent goodness. But if humans were naturally good, how could their evil actions be explained? Drawing on studies done here and abroad, American doctors, preachers, and lawyers debated whether environment, heredity, or free will determined the actions of the criminal. By the early 20th century, lawyers and doctors had largely succeeded in medicalizing criminality. Psychiatrists treated criminals as patients; judges invoked hereditary eugenics in sentencing criminals. Science, not sin, had apparently become the preferred mode of explanation for the origins of crime. But was this a better explanation than what had come before? Discussion will be the primary form of instruction.
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This course has two basic objectives. First, it examines from a lifespan and psychobiological perspective the factors that place individuals at different stages of life at risk for illness and assist them in maintaining their health. In addition, it addresses a variety of challenging psychological and social issues that physicians and other healthcare professionals must face in the practice of medicine. The course covers a range of topics dealing with health issues related to different stages of human development (childhood, adolescence, and adulthood), disabled populations, culture and gender, stress, physician-patient interactions, death and dying, professional ethics, and social policies relating to health care. The course is primarily intended for students intending to enter medical school. Most classes will involve brief formal presentations by the instructors and invited guests, followed by discussion of assigned readings pertinent to the day's topic. In addition, students will be exposed, through a limited practicum, to a variety of medical settings.
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This course focuses on social science approaches to sickness and healing. The medical encounter is examined from anthropological perspectives. The course emphasizes the difficulties traditional biomedicine has in addressing patients' expectations for care. Students serve an internship as patient ombudsman in a local hospital emergency room 4 hours per week. Students MUST have access to transportation to participate in the ER internships. Students are required to sign a waiver, to present evidence of immunizations, and to receive a TB skin test. Please note that this course is open only to juniors and seniors.
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Taking the activities of the Royal Society of London and the "birth of modern science" as our focal point, this seminar examines the profound changes in our conception of self -- of who and what we are, our place in the cosmos, and our relationship to that cosmos and to God -- that took place in the seventeenth century.
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This class will introduce induction and confirmation as philosophical problems. Bayesianism will be introduced and assessed as a candidate solution to the problems of induction and confirmation. While sufficient probability theory will be introduced, comfort with mathematics will be helpful. Some questions to be addressed include: Does induction come in many forms, or in one unique form ideal in all circumstances? When hypotheses are tested, how does one assign credit and blame among them? Can probabilistic methods complement deduction, such as by showing whether to accept a valid argument's conclusion, reject its premise(s), or suspend judgment?
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Science, Technology and Ethics
(Note: all these course numbers are xx2xx)

A discussion of ethical problems inhe medical profession in light of natural law and Christian moral principles.

Please Note: Students registering for STV 20221 must also register for a discussion section under the listing THEO 22637.
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This course examines the theological resources which can be brought to bear on the ethical issues surrounding the use of emerging weapons technologies in war. Some of the emerging technologies that will be considered are Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), robots with artificial intelligence, surveillance technologies, and the use of neuroscience technologies to enhance and/or alter the psychological, physical and emotional capabilities of the soldier on the battlefield. The course will begin by introducing students to the Christian just war tradition as a way of demonstrating how theology, law, ethics and war can be related. The course will then undertake a very brief overview of the history of weapons development in war and the Church's reaction to some of them (e.g. the crossbow, nuclear weapons).

The course will then move on to examine particular emerging technologies. Students will be asked to consider how the specific technologies impact: 1) the moral agency of individual soldiers in relation to the operation of the technology itself; 2) the relationship of soldiers to fellow allied soldiers as well as enemy combatants; 3) the relationship of individual soldiers to military, social, and political institutions; 4) the relationship of the military to other social institutions, most notably political and economic institutions; and 5) the environment. Students will be asked to consider how the just war tradition may or may not be an adequate framework with regard to thinking through the ethical issues surrounding emerging weapons technologies.

The course will conclude by asking students to consider what type of moral responsibility is required by non-military agencies or individuals with regard to their cooperation in the research, development, and funding of these weapons systems (e.g. banks, engineers, civilian corporations, lawyers, the church, the academy, etc.) Students will undertake a major group project and presentation at the end of the course in which the students will present a case study on the moral and ethical implications of a particular weapons system using the resources and material provided to them throughout the course.
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The focus of the course will be an examination of the advances in medicine over the last 30 years that have challenged traditional values and ethical norms, and the institutional processes and procedures in place that facilitate decision-making in the health care setting. It will include a sketch of the most recent advances in the various fields of medicine, followed by an examination of the clinical and ethical questions they raise and how they have affected the physician-patient relationship.
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An analysis of the ethical theories provided by contemporary philosophers to guide research and practice in biomedicine. The course will focus on analysis of contemporary public health problems created by environmental/technological pollution and will address classic cases of biomedical ethics problems.
Please Note: Students who are not pre-med, engineering, or science majors need the professor's permission to take this course.
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This course will spend the semester studying the impact the World Wide Web has had on several key areas of our society, including communications, commerce, marketing, productivity, education, collaboration, and our sense of community. Through a combination of discussion, group presentation, guest lectures, and out of class research, students will be exposed to some of the profound effects this medium has had on our culture. In spite of the bursting of the dot come bubble, the Web has left all of the above mentioned areas substantially changed, many for the long term. The positive and negative forces brought on by this technology must be recognized, studied, and dealt with if we are to truly embrace the momentous opportunities brought about by the World Wide Web.
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Science, Technology, and Public Policy
(Note: all these course numbers are xx3xx)

Discussion of basic chemical processes occurring in the environment, particularly those relating to the impact of humanity's technological enterprise.
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This course examines the responses of nations and international organizations to the environmental challenges of the present and future, including pollution, depletion of natural resources, and global warming.
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This course surveys the impact of military technologies on world history. Topics include the rise of gunpowder weaponry and the fortification revolution in the early modern period, navalism, particularly in the 19th century, the role of military technologies in European colonial expansion, and the science-based military of the 20th century, leading up to the age of nuclear weapons. The course considers also military technologies as deterrents, and issues of war and peace as stimuli to technological development.
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Demography, the science of population, is concerned with virtually everything that influences, or can be influenced by, population size, distribution, processes, structure, or characteristics. This course pays particular attention to the causes and consequences of population change. Changes in fertility, migration, mortality, technology, lifestyle and culture have dramatically affected the United States and other nations of the world. These changes have implications for a number of areas: hunger, the spread of illness and disease, environmental degradation, health services, household formation, the labor force, marriage and divorce, care for the elderly, birth control, poverty, urbanization, business marketing strategies, and political power. An understanding of these is important as business, government and individuals attempt to deal with the demands of a changing population.
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This course will survey environmental impact assessment (EIA), ecological risk assessment (ERA), and human-health risk assessment (HHRA); ethical and methodological issues related to these techniques; then apply these techniques to contemporary assessments for which state and federal governments are seeking comments by scientists and citizens.The course is hands-on, will have no tests, but will be project-based, with students working on actual assessments that they choose (about 2,500 are done in US each year). The goal will be to teach students EIA, ERA, and HHRA and how to evaluate draft analyses, particularly those used to site facilities or make environment-related decisions in which poor people, minorities, and other stakeholders are themselves unable to provide comments.Course will cover flaws in scientific method and flaws in ethics that typically appear in these assessments.
Please Note: Students who are not pre-med, engineering, or science majors need the professor's permission to take this course.
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Electives
(Note: all these courses are numbered xx4xx. Remember that the fifth course can be fulfilled by any STV course. The courses below can only count towards the fifth course requirement.)

Nuclear phenomena; nuclear fission and fusion. Nuclear weapons. Effects of blast, shock, thermal radiation, prompt and delayed nuclear radiation. Fire, fallout, ozone-layer depletion, electromagnetic pulse, "nuclear winter." Medical consequences, physical damage, effects on the individual and on society. Defensive measures and their feasibility. Scenarios for war and peace, proliferation of nuclear weapons material, recent diplomatic history. US Bishops' Pastoral Letter.
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