HISTSCI 1840: Science, Technology, and Medicine in South Asia

Science is big in South Asia, and it has been for a long time. Today, the Constitution of India speaks of the duty of citizens to develop a “scientific temper” and of the responsibility of the government to finance “scientific or technical education.” Medicine, mathematics, astronomy, and other practical sciences have lengthy histories in the region, and these disciplines were used to theorize society and belonging in colonial and nationalist thought. This undergraduate seminar explores the changing and contested understandings of science, technology and medicine in South Asia from the precolonial to the present. No prerequisites or specialized knowledge required.

Thursdays at 3:00-5:45 PM with Professor Eric Gurevitch