Course Schedule
  • Week 1 Introduction: Technology versus Science; redefining technology and significance; See What is Technology and How is it Related to Science?
    • Documentary: Ancient Technologies
  • Week 2 Theories of gender, technological mastery and socio-economic power: The takeover theory; inventive capability; control of means of production and correlations to so socio-economic power; Read: Introduction:Women Hold Up two Thirds of the Sky in Mothers and Daughters of Invention, pp. xvii-xxxv; "Gender Socialization," Women and the History of Technology, Marxism and Class Conflict, What Has Sex Got to do With Science?Top 5 Myths About Girls, Math and Science,
    Documentary: Rosalind Franklin: The Race for the Double Helix
  • Week 3 Women and the technologies of agriculture and horticulture: cultivation, tools, and animal husbandry; Read: "Daughters of Ceres, Songi and Corn Mother: Women Inventors and innovators in Agriculture and Related Technology," in Mothers and Daughters of Invention, pp.11-23, Gender and Agriculture
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  • Week 4 Technologies of food production and processing; inventions in the domestic arena; Read: "Daughters of Ceres, Songi and Corn Mother: Women Inventors and innovators in Agriculture and Related Technology," in Mothers and Daughters of Invention, pp.23-85, The Food Time Line, Gender and Women Chefs Technolgy and Food Politics, Out of the Kitchen, Onto the Couch:The Impact of Television and Food Preparation
  • Week 5 Gender and the technologies of healing and medicine; Read: "Daughters of Isis, Gula Hygieia, and Brigit: Women Inventors in Health and Medicine" in Mothers and Daughters of Invention, pp.88-207; Allopathic Versus Holistic Medicine, Women in Healing, Women in Medicine
  • Week 6 Gender and the technologies of health and reproduction: technologies of sex, fertility and fertility control; Read: "Daughters of Hera,Eleithyia, Prokris and Teteu Innan:Women Inventors and Innovators in Sex, Fertility and Anti-ertility technology," in Mothers and Daughters of invention,pp. 208-283,Technology and Sex A Brief History of Sex Toys, The History of Birth Control
  • Week 7 Women, tools and machines: Gender, tools, machines and the division of labor; Read: "Daughters of Athena, Semiramis, Margaret Knight, and We-Feng-ing: Women Inventors of Tools and Machines," in Mothers and Daughters of Invention,Why are There so Few Female Computer Scientists?
  • Week 8 Technologies of the Information Age;Read: Generations of Computers, "Daughters of the Enchantress of Numbers and Grandma COBOL:Women Inventors and Innovators in Computers amd Related Technology," in Mothers and Daughters of Invention; Women in AI, Women and Video Games Industry, A History of Information Technology and Systems,
  • Weeks 9 and 10 Social and Ethical Issues in the Information Age
    Reading This Will Change Your Brain:Technolgy and the Rewired Brain,
    The Ethics of AI Movie: Wall-E A Dystopian Vision of Technology Work on and completion of Inventions project.
  • Week 10 and Final Exam Day Presentations of Inventions Project
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