90061 - History, Science and Society (1) (LM)

Learning outcomes

The aims of the course is to refine the student’s analytical skills and demonstrate: the ability to interpret both the primary and secondary literature so as to contextualise the history of scientific thought in relation to the history of philosophy, intellectual and cultural history, social and political history and the institutional history of the time; to carry out archival and bibliographical research making use of databases, online catalogues, and bibliographical inventories; to contribute to class discussion with a series of coherent and properly justified comments about the assigned themes (via short presentations and class discussion); to produce a series of written outputs (reviews, reflexive notes, essays) with the appropriate scholarly apparatus (footnotes, bibliography, illustrations), particularly in view of their dissertation

Course contents

Women, Gender, and Science

 

After an introduction to society, science and technology studies (STS), in this course we investigate some controversial aspects of the interactions between gender and science in contemporary and recent times.

We will also explore the history of the relationships between women and men in science and its institutions in the last century and a half. As part of this focus we will examine in depth the life and work of geneticist Barbara McClintock (1902-1992), 1983 Nobel prize winner in physiology/medicine. The controversial case of McClintock will pave the way for comparative incursions into different ways of knowing nature and constructing knowledge developed by present-day and past scientists - men and women -, including in relation to gender issues.

We will start from the present, delving into a number of cutting-edge laboratories where the social sciences and concept of gender have contributed to launching new fields of research in medicine, genetics and neuroscience, but also primatology, advanced technologies and more. We will explore why the concept of gender has entered these laboratories, successfully guiding research, but female scientists - judging by the findings of the main international scientific agencies - still seem to struggle, a great deal and everywhere, to achieve recognition for their work. We will discuss these issues in the context of what is known as responsible research and innovation (RRI).

We will also consider:

- Why, even though it has been clear for decades that there are no "biological" reasons for women's continuing social marginality, are male and female scientists still accused of biologizing determinism in the "hearsay" circulating in the public sphere, both digital and not?

- Why is this the case, given that the concept of gender has long since been adopted in scientific laboratories even while struggling to gain ground in the humanities-social sciences and basic educational programs?

Lessons will start on 19 November (room D, via Zamboni, 34):

Tuesday 5:00-7:00 pm

Wednesday 5:00-7:00 pm

Thursday 11:00-1:00 am

 

Readings/Bibliography

The program is the same for attending and non attending students, including students of the Erasmus program.

1. Texts and PowerPoints posted (during the course) on the e-learning platform, including G. Pomata, “Risposta a Pigmalione. Le origini della storia delle donne alla London School of Economics”, in Quaderni Storici, 2, 2002, pp. 505˗544;

2. Bruno Latour, Science in Action, Harvard UP, 1988, Introduction and Chap. 1.

3. Evelyn Fox Keller, A Feeling for the Organism: The Life and Work of Barbara McClintock. Freeman, 1983.

4. P. Govoni, Che cos’è la storia della scienza, Roma, Carocci, 2019 [new enlarged ed.].

Teaching methods

An active participation is highly recommended.

Lectures will be alternated by one field trip.

1. To encourage the personal work  and the discussion, those who attend can deepen - individually or in groups of two - a topic related to the course.   With this work up to 5 points can be achieved;

2. At the end of the course, students who attended the lessons will be able to take a written pre-exam on class discussions and on the field experiences (up to a maximum of 5 points).

Assessment methods

Oral exam: this consists of two or three questions, stemming from a freely chosen topic.

Students will be tested on their knowledge of the course’s bibliography, as well as on their ability to reason in a logical, concise and personal way. The accuracy and precision of the student’s way of expression will also be taken in consideration.

For further information, please consult my teaching website and the educational guidelines here (Regolamento didattico).

Teaching tools

PowerPoint; e-learning tools; science museums.

Office hours

See the website of Paola Govoni