Science History in English
Monday 1:30pm --> 3:30pm, B124, note the new time!
Thursday 8:15am --> 10:15am, B124, (classroom uncertain)
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Principal Texts
Third Thoughts by Steven Weinberg, 2018.
Kindle and (free) audio book versions available on Amazon.fr
Inward Bound by Abraham Pais.
Week One
Week Two: September 24 and 27
Assigned reading:
- Steven Weinberg, "Keeping an Eye on the Present-Whig History",
Chapter 7 of Third Thoughts.
- Aurther Silverstein, "The Whig History of Science: An exchange",
NY Review of Books, Feb 25, 2016.
- Steven Weinberg, "The Whig History of Science: An exchange",
Chapter 8 of Third Thoughts.
Also published in, NY Review of Books, Feb 25, 2016.
Assigned writing:
Please write on the
course blog ;
or prepare an oral presentation to give to the class this week.
Please chose one of the following, or create your own assignement in the spirit of these:
- Described something about the video we watched together, your impressions of the presentation, the science you learned, the ideas presented.
- Write a paragraph about the reading for this week (the Weinberg and/or Silverstein articles).
Please write your text in the
course blog
or be prepared to read it in class.
Week Three: October 1 and 4
Assigned reading:
- Abraham Pais, pp. 1 to 7 of Inward Bound, Chapter 1 "Purpose and Plan" (a) From X to Z.
- Steven Weinberg, "The Uses of Astronomy",
Chapter 1 of Third Thoughts.
Week Four: October 8 and 15
Assigned reading:
- Steven Weinberg NY Review of Books, 2013, November 7 or Third Thoughts, Chapter 5
- Steven Weinberg, "The Uses of Astronomy",
Chapter 1 of Third Thoughts.
Week Five: October 15 and/or 18
Assigned reading and listening:
- Steven Weinberg NY Review of Books, 2013, November 7 or Third Thoughts, Chapter 5
- Sagan, Hawking, Clarke interview from 1988, available on YouTube here .
- BBC 6-minute English: Find an interesting episode amoung those available here.