Vetenskapshistoria – History of Science

Application deadline prolonged to 29 October!

Course name: Vetenskapshistoria – History of Science

ECTS/HP: 7.5 hp

Course code: ETKS014

Educational level: third-cycle course.

Eligibility requirements: The course is open for students admitted to third-cycle studies at Luleå University of Technology.

Entry requirements: None, other than the eligibility requirements.

Course content:
The course aims to deepen the knowledge of PhD students at Luleå University of Technology in the history of science and to enhance their understanding of how long-term historical trends have shaped today’s research community. It highlights the roots of scientific knowledge both within and beyond Europe, and how the Scientific Revolution transformed the scientific community by introducing systematic and empirical methods, along with new norms for knowledge production and evaluation. The course also includes perspectives from Science and Technology Studies (STS) on the relationship between science and society.

The course further addresses difficult legacies of science, such as the justification of colonialism, racism, gender- and class-based exclusion, and environmental damage. It explores how contemporary approaches seek to confront and overcome these legacies by promoting just and sustainable practices and ethical reflection

Throughout the course, PhD students will engage in discussions with fellow students and instructors from various disciplines, reflecting on their own research within a historical, ethical and sustainability-oriented context related to their dissertation work. The course concludes with a written assignment in which students reflect on how the lessons learned can be applied to their own research.

Learning outcomes:

After completing the course the students should be able to:

• Demonstrate comprehensive knowledge of the key developments and turning points in the history of science.
• Demonstrate an understanding of both European and non-European origins of science.
• Critically analyze the concept of scientific revolutions and the influence of paradigms on the development of scientific knowledge.
• Give examples of challenging legacies of science and of contemporary scientific approaches.
• Demonstrate an understanding of Science and Technology Studies (STS) and apply these frameworks to analyze the societal impact of science and technology.
• Place their own research within the broader historical context of scientific development, supported by a clear motivation.
• Communicate complex concepts from the history of science across disciplinary boundaries.
• Utilise ethical and responsibility issues from the history of science and relate them to ethical considerations in their own research.

The course contributes to several national outcomes for the Degree of Doctor as defined in the Higher Education Ordinance, Annex 2.

• Knowledge and understanding: Students gain knowledge of key developments in the history of science, including European and non-European origins, and of Science and Technology Studies (STS). This supports the outcome that doctoral students demonstrate familiarity with the research front and deep knowledge of the historical foundations of their field.

• Competence and skills: Through seminars, interdisciplinary discussions, and a written assignment, students practice analyzing and communicating complex concepts across disciplinary boundaries and relating them to their own dissertation work.
• Judgement and approach: The course addresses legacies of science such as colonialism, racism, gender- and class-based exclusion, and environmental degradation. By reflecting on these issues and on ethical aspects of their own research, students advance their scientific integrity and ethical judgement.

Regarding gender mainstreaming, the course includes gender perspectives as part of its broader treatment of science’s legacies, especially gender-based exclusion, thereby raising awareness of gender issues in science and technology.

Course methods:

The education in this course consists of lectures, seminars, and a final written assignment. The course builds on the active participation of the doctoral students, who are expected to relate their own dissertation work to the history of science and the course literature.

Examination form:

The assessment is based on active participation in seminars and the final written assignment.

Grading scale: Pass/Fail.

Course literature:

Agar, Jon (2012). Science in the Twentieth Century and Beyond. Cambridge: Polity, 614 pp

Beiser, Frederick C. (2019). Hermenetics and Positivism, in: The Cambridge Companion to Hermeunetics, eds. Michael N. Forster & Kristin Gjesdal, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 133-157.

Bergwik, Staffan & Linn Holmberg (2020). “Standing on whose shoulders? A critical comment on the history of knowledge” in Johan Östling, David Larsson Heidenblad & Anna Nilsson Hammar (eds.) Forms of Knowledge: Developing the history of knowledge. Lund: Nordic Academic Press, pp. 283–299.

Bowler, Peter & Iwan Rhys Morus (2020). Making Modern Science: A Historical Survey. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, pp. 1-21.

Comfort, Nathaniel (2015). Can we cure genetic diseases without slipping into eugenics? In Osagie K. Obasogie & Marcy Darnovsky (eds.) Beyond Bioethics: Toward a New Biopolitics. Oakland, CA: University of California Press, pp. 175–185.

Farr, James (1983), ”Popper’s hermeneutics”, Philosophy of the Social Sciences, 13 (2), pp. 157-176.

Hobson, John M. (2004). The Eastern Origins of Western Civilisation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 376 pp, selected parts.

Kohler, Robert E. (2005). Focus: The generalist vision in the history of science. Isis 2005, vol. 96, no. 2, pp. 224–243.

Kuhn, Thomas S. (2012). The Structure of Scientific Revolutions.50th Anniversary Edition; with an introductory essay by Ian Hacking Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 217 pp.

McClellan, James E. (2010). Colonialism and Science: Saint Domingue and the Old Regime. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, selected parts

Nyhart, Lynn K. (2016). “Historiography of the History of Science”, in Bernard Lightman (ed.) A companion to the history of science, Chichester, UK; John Wiley & Sons, pp. 7–22.

Oreskes, Naomi (2020). What is the social responsibility of climate scientists? Dædalus, the Journal of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, vol. 149, no. 4, pp. 33–45.

Paul, Diane B. (2014). What Was Wrong with Eugenics? Conflicting Narratives and Disputed Interpretations, Science & Education, vol. 23, pp. 259–271.

Shapin, Steven (1996). The Scientific Revolution. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, selected parts.

Sismondo, Sergio (2010). An introduction to science and technology studies. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons, 244 pp.

Sörlin, Sverker (2013). Reconfiguring environmental expertise. Environmental Science and Policy, vol. 28, pp. 14–24.

Education cycle:
25-11-03 – 25-12-18.

Course is given periodically:
Yes. The next course offering will take place in study period 4, 2026.

Send application to: Per-Olof Grönberg, per-olof.gronberg@ltu.se
Doctoral student enter name, civic registration number, e-mail, Division and Department in the application.

Deadline for application: 25-10-29

Course open for application by doctoral students admitted to other universities than LTU: No

Limited number of students: No

Tuition:
The course is free of charge for doctoral students admitted at LTU.

Contact person:
Per-Olof Grönberg, per-olof.gronberg@ltu.se, +46920491094

Examiner:
Per-Olof Grönberg

Course syllabus decided by:
Åsa Wallström

Date of decision:
25-08-29