Selected lecture notes are provided below.
| LEC # | TOPICS | FILES |
|---|---|---|
| Unit 1: Humankind as a History-making Species | ||
| 1 | Introduction to class and key concepts | |
| 2 | What is technology? What is history (and prehistory)? (Visitor: Prof. Leo Marx) |
Notes (PDF) Slides (PDF) |
| 3 | Technology in prehistory: cave art |
Notes (PDF) Slides ( |
| 4 | Technology in "prehistory" |
Notes (PDF) Slides (PDF) |
| 5 | Historical Analogies | |
| Unit 2: Civilizations Based on Agriculture | ||
| 6 | The Neolithic Revolution |
Notes (PDF) Glossary (PDF) |
| 7 | Introduction to MIT's 150th anniversary: class visit to MIT archives | |
| 8 | Discuss visit to Archives | Notes (PDF) |
| 9 | Civilizations and Empires (part two) |
Lubbock, Tom. "Uffington White Horse (c.1000BC)." The Independent (UK), Great Art Series. 30 March 2007. |
| 10 | Technohistorical Revolutions (part one) | |
| 11 | Technohistorical Revolutions (part two) | |
| 12 | Agrarian Civilizations (part one): megalithic agrarian civilizations | Notes (PDF) |
| 13 | Agrarian Civilizations (part two): the Roman Empire as an agrarian civilization | |
| Unit 3: Civilizations Based on Fossil Fuels | ||
| 14 | The Industrial Revolution |
Notes (PDF) Slides (PDF - 4.7MB) |
| 15 | Visit to MIT Museum | |
| 16 | The Second Industrial Revolution (part one) |
Notes (PDF) Slides (PDF - 2.5MB) |
| 17 | The Second Industrial Revolution (part two) | |
| Unit 4: Human Empire | ||
| 18 | The Second Industrial Revolution (part three) | |
| 19 | The Second Industrial Revolution (part four) | |
| 20 |
From Industry to Battlefield Chemical Engineering at MIT |
Notes (PDF) Slides ( |
| 21 | Ground Zero (part one) | Notes (PDF) |
| 22 | Ground Zero (part two) | |
| 23 | Looking Back and Beyond: General review of MIT 150 | |
| 24 | Looking Back and Beyond: Presentations and discussion on "what is the role of technology in history?" | |
| 25 | Looking Back and Beyond: Presentations and discussion on "what is the role of technology in history?" (cont.) | (PDF) (Courtesy of MIT student. Used with permission.) |
