46 courses with the subject HI, each shown exactly as we captured it from the college's catalog, with every element we hold. Where the wording looks broken, that is our reading of the catalog, not the college's text.
HI 1001Introductory Topics in Historical Thinking1/3
This course introduces students to the purpose and methods of historical thinking through the exploration of a specific topic situated in time, space, and theme. Through rigorous engagement with primary documents as well as secondary historical interpretations and arguments, students develop their understanding of the nature and limits of historical evidence, their ability to make persuasive claims about change over time, and their capacity to balance the complexity of perspectives and voices. Among the central historical concepts introduced are chronology, context, causation, contingency, agency, and scale. HI 1001 cannot be repeated for different topics.
An introduction to the history of the American city as an important phenomenon in itself and as a reflection of national history. The course will take an interdisciplinary approach to study the political, economic, social, and technological patterns that have shaped the growth of urbanization. In addition to reading historical approaches to the study of American urban history, students may also examine appropriate works by sociologists, economists, political scientists and city planners who provide historical perspective.
In this introductory course, we will trace the history of the United States and the world from the late nineteenth century to the present. A global approach to U.S. history offers new perspectives on international relations, war, migration, labor, race, gender, and democracy. By exploring case studies from around the world, we will also practice crucial historical skills: asking questions about change overtime, finding evidence about the contexts of decision-making, and presenting arguments in an engaging form.This course is excellent preparation for any of WPI’s international project centers.
An introduction to historical analysis through selected periods or themes in the history of America before the Civil War. A variety of readings will reflect the various ways that historians have attempted to understand the development of America.
HI 1330Introduction to the History of Science and Technology1/3
An introduction to the questions, methods and source materials that shape historical studies of science and technology. Sections vary in content and emphases; some may explore the interplay of science and technology across time, while other sections might exclusively develop themes within either the history of science or the history of technology. Students can receive credit only once for HI 1330, 1331, or 1332.
HI 1333Introduction to American Histories of Protest and Power1/3
Why do people organize and protest to change the world around them? This course takes a topical approach to introduce the historical questions, intersectional methods, and contemporary sources that shape the study of social movements on the political left and right. Balancing the exploration of the ideological, political, and economic roots of protest movements and the identities, strategies, and technologies that inspire individual and collective action, this course examines the varied responses that protest movements elicit from society and the structures of power from suppression to realization to cooptation. Although protests movements, such as abolitionist, populist, white supremist, Civil Rights, Black Power, feminist, gay liberation, anti-war, environmental, socialist, labor, and/or alt-Right movements, under consideration in this course will change, students can only receive credit for it once.
An introduction to the questions, methods, and source materials that shape historical studies of the environment. This course will explore the influence of nature (i.e., climate, topography, plants, animals, and microorganisms) on human history and the reciprocal influence of people on nature.
This course surveys the interplay of social, economic, demographic, political and cultural forces in shaping the growth, decline and occasional rebirth of urban spaces. Emphasis is placed upon building chronological narratives while attending to the themes, approaches, and sources historians use to reconstruct the tangled infrastructures, stratified economies, segregated spaces and political/ administrative structures of cities. Geographies will vary across sections and topics may include Industrializing Cities, Race and Urban Space, Post-Industrial Cities, Urban Technological Infrastructures, or Social Justice in the City. Students can receive credit only once for HI 2310.
This course surveys early American history up to the ratification of the Constitution. It considers the tragic interactions among Europeans, Indians, and Africans on the North American continent, the growth and development of English colonies, and the revolt against the Empire that culminated in the creation of the United States of America.
This course surveys American history from the Presidency of George Washington to the Civil War and its aftermath. Topics include the rise of American democracy, the emergence of middle-class culture, and the forces that pulled apart the Union and struggled to put it back together.
This course surveys the transformation of the United States into an urban and industrial nation. Topics will include changes in the organization of business and labor, immigration and the development of cities, the peripheral role of the South and West in the industrial economy, politics and government in the age of “laissez-faire,” and the diverse sources and nature of late 19th- and early 20th-century reform movements.
This course surveys the major political, social, and economic changes of American history from 1920 to the present. Emphasis will be placed on the Great Depression, the New Deal, suburbanization, McCarthyism, the persistence of poverty, the domestic effects of the Vietnam war, and recent demographic trends.
HI 2318Topics in Law, Justice and American Society1/3
This course treats law as a powerful social, economic and political phenomenon that cannot be fully understood apart from its history. Through a focus upon a particular theme and chronology, each section surveys the role of law (constitutional, statutory, regulatory and common) and legal institutions in shaping American society and culture, as well as how the law and its institutions have been shaped by individuals, advocacy groups, and broader social, cultural and political forces. Different sections of this course might explore constitutional law and social change (e.g. civil rights, abortion, and same sex marriage); criminal law and mass incarceration; law and the construction of race; law and gender; or patents, copyrights and intellectual property. This course may be repeated for different topics, and students who took HI 2317 may take HI 2318.
Subject
HI
Type
course
Repeatable
may be repeated for different topics, and students who took HI 2317 may take HI 2318.
A survey of the major developments in European history from the nineteenth century to the present. The course will focus upon those factors and events that led to the formation of modern European society: revolutions, nationalism, industrialization, world wars, the Cold War, the creation of the European Union. No prior knowledge of European history is required. Especially appropriate for students interested in WPI’s global Project Centers in Europe. Students may not receive credit for HI 2320 and HI 2322.
HI 2328History of Revolutions in the Twentieth Century and Beyond1/3
Revolutionary movements and ideologies, some violent and some non-violent, spread across much of the world in the twentieth century. This course examines the ideas that inspired revolutionaries and the conditions that led to calls for change then and now. We may consider topics such as socialist and communist ideologies, racial tensions, nationalism, feminism, the “green” revolution, and cultural revolution. No prior knowledge of the history of revolutions is expected.Offered in Academic Year 2027-2028 and in alternating years thereafter.
HI 2335Topics in the History of American Science and Technology1/3
This course surveys the interplay of science, technology and culture in American national development. Emphasis is placed upon building chronological narratives while attending to the themes, approaches, and sources historians use to explore Americans’ enthusiastic but sometimes controversial embrace of science and technology. Chronologies and themes will vary across sections covering topics such as Science, Technology and Culture in Early America; Science, Technology in Industrializing America; Science and Technology in Post-1945 America; and Technology and Culture in the Rise of Urban America. This course may be repeated for different topics. No prior coursework or background in the history of science and technology is required.
HI 2341Contemporary World Issues in Historical Perspective1/3
This course examines the historical origins of contemporary global crises and political transformations. Students keep abreast of ongoing current events through periodical literature and explore the underlying long-term causes of these events as analyzed by scholarly historical texts. Topics will vary each time the course is taught but may include such topics as the following: The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, Democratization in Africa, the Developing World and Globalization. No prior knowledge of world history is required. This course will be offered in academic years ending in even numbers.
This course surveys the major developments, research enterprise, controversies and cultural contexts of particular scientific fields while also engaging students in examining the questions, methods and sources that inform the history of science. Sections will vary in topic, focusing on the history of a subset selected from among the following fields: astronomy, cosmology, mathematics, biology, medicine, ecology, evolutionary ideas, the earth sciences, chemistry, physics, or the human sciences. This course may be repeated for different topics. No prior coursework or background in the history of science is required.
This seminar course examines topics related to gender and history. It seeks to examine gender-related theories and analytical concepts in the context of the historical periods and social movements from which contemporary ideas about gender emerge. Specific themes and topics will vary by section and instructor, and may include: gender and war, cultural history of gender, gender and intersectionality, gender and colonialism/decolonization, issues of sexuality, women’s history, and issues of masculinity, among others. No prior background is required. This course may be repeated for different topics. This course will be offered in academic years ending in even numbers.
This seminar course examines topics in the cultural, socio-economic and political history of modern Europe. Topics may vary each year among the following: sport and society, film and history, nationalism, gender and class, political economy, environmental history Readings will include primary and secondary sources. This course may be repeated for different topics. No prior background is required. Students may not receive credit for both HI 3321 and HI 2921. This course will be offered in academic years ending in odd numbers.
This seminar course actively engages students in the critical appraisal and application of urban historical methods to explore economic, demographic, political, and cultural configurations of built environments from urban cores to suburban and ex-urban sprawl. Particular attention is paid to competing urban and architectural theories, their physical manifestations on the landscape, and their historical legacies in enhancing or undermining the functioning of metropolitan areas. Geographies will vary across sections, and topics will take up Politics of Housing, Smart Growth and Urban Resiliency, the Suburban Crisis, or Urban Ecology and Environmental Justice. Students can receive credit only once for HI 3310. This course will be offered in academic years ending in even numbers.
A seminar course on analysis of selected aspects of social organization in American history, with emphasis on the composition and changing societal character of various groups over time, and their relationship to larger social, economic, and political developments. Typical topics include: communities, families, minorities, and women. This course may be repeated for different topics.
This seminar course considers the social, political, and intellectual history of the years surrounding American independence, paying particular attention to the changes in society and ideas that shaped the revolt against Great Britain, the winning of independence, and the creation of new political structures that led to the Constitution.
In this seminar course, students will explore one aspect of U.S. or global environmental history in more depth. Topics vary each year but may include environmental thought, environmental reform movements, comparative environmental movements, natural disasters, the history of ecology, built environments, environmental justice, New England environmental history, or the environmental history of South Asia or another region of the world. The course will require substantial reading and writing. This course may be repeated for different topics. This course will be offered in academic years ending in odd numbers.
HI 3331Topics in the History of European Science and Technology1/3
A seminar course on the relationships among science, technology, and society in European culture, examined through a series of case studies. Topics from which the case studies might be drawn include: global scientific expeditions, mapmaking, and European imperialism; the harnessing of science for industrial purposes; the role of the physical sciences in war and international relations; the function of the science advisor in government; the political views and activities of major scientists such as Einstein. Students will use primary sources and recently published historical scholarship to analyze the case studies. This course may be repeated for different topics. This course will be offered in academic years ending in odd numbers.
HI 3334Topics in the History of American Science and Technology1/3
This seminar will examine a particular issue or theme in the history of American science and technology. Topics will vary from year to year, but may include: technology and the built environment; science, technology and the arts; communications of science and scientific issues with the larger public; technology and scientific illustration; science in popular culture; science and the law; or close examination of episodes in the history of American science and technology such as the American Industrial Revolution; science and technology in the years between the world wars; the Manhattan Project; science and the culture of the Cold War; or science, technology and war in American history. This course will require significant reading and writing. This course may be repeated for different topics.
HI 3335Topics in the History of Non-Western Science and Technology1/3
A seminar course on the relationships among science, technology, and society from cultures outside Europe and North America, examined through a series of case studies. Topics from which the case studies might be drawn include: Chinese medicine and technology; Arabic mathematics, medicine, and astronomy; Indian science and technology (including, for example, metalworking and textile production); Mayan mathematics and astronomy; Polynesian navigation; various indigenous peoples’ sustainable subsistence technologies (e.g. African agriculture, Native American land management, aboriginal Australian dreamtime). This course may be repeated for different topics. This course will be offered in academic years ending in even numbers.
HI 3341Topics in Imperial and Postcolonial History1/3
This seminar course examines topics in the history of European imperialism, colonialism, and the postcolonial aftermath. Topics vary each year among the following: culture and imperialism, the expansion of Europe, the economics of empire, travel and exploration narratives, imperialism in literature and anthropology, decolonization in Asia and Africa, postcolonial studies. Readings will include primary and secondary sources. This course may be repeated for different topics. This course will be offered in academic years ending in odd numbers.
This course examines topics in the cultural, socio-economic, and political history of East Asia. Topics can vary each year and may include the following: nationalism, travel narratives, crosscultural contact, the role of religion and/or ideology in political history, development and the environment, film and history, China’s global footprint, and the place of minorities and women in Asian societies. This course may be repeated for different topics.
The Pacific Ocean covers a third of our earth’s surface. Home to over a thousand languages and thousands of years of rich histories, the Pacific has been and continues to be one of the most diverse regions of cultural, social, economic, and environmental interaction. The course focuses on both local connections to the Pacific, such as the New England whaling industry, and global issues, such as the impact of climate change on Pacific islanders. Other topics to be discussed include the environment, oceanic navigation, arts, colonialism, race, and migration. This course will be offered in academic years ending in odd numbers.
In this seminar course, students will explore one aspect of U.S. political history in more depth. Topics will vary each year but may include liberalism, conservatism, fascism and the far Right, left-wing traditions, transformations in the political-economic order, legal history, the party system, or protest movements. Students will have the opportunity to complete self-directed research projects. This course may be repeated for different topics. This course will be offered in academic years ending in odd numbers.
