Course Readings

Abrams, Nancy and Joel Primack. "Cosmology and 21st-Century Culture." Science. September 7, 2001. http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/293/5536/1769

Appleman, Philip, ed. Darwin. 3rd ed. New York: W.W.Norton, 2001.

Carr, Nicholas. "Is Google Making Us Stupid?" The Atlantic. 2007. http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200807/google

Davies, Norman. Europe: A History. New York: HarperPerennial, 1998

Dennis, Rutledge M. “Social Darwinism, Scientific Racism, and the Metaphysics of Race.”
Journal of Negro Education. Summer 1995. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3626/is_199507/ai_n8730395

Gombrich, E.H. The Story of Art. New York: Phaidon Press, 2007

Kalb, Claudia. “In Our Blood.” Newsweek. February 6, 2006. http://www.newsweek.com/id/57201/

Linden, David J. The Accidental Mind. Cambridge, MA: Belknap, 2007.

Matthews, Michael R., ed. The Scientific Background to Modern Philosophy. Indianapolis: Hackett Pub, 1989

Mason, Michael. "How to Teach Science to the Pope." Discover Magazine. August 18, 2008. http://discovermagazine.com/2008/sep/18-how-to-teach-science-to-the-pope

Ptolemy. "Saving the Appearances" as it appears in Brian Baigrie's Scientific Revolutions: Primary Texts in the History of Science. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2004.

Sagan, Carl. "Can We Know The Universe?" originally published in Broca's Brain, 1979. http://www.stephenjaygould.org/ctrl/sagan_science.html

Seed Media Group. Revolutionary Minds. Seed Magazine.com 2008. http://revminds.seedmagazine.com/

Shapin, Steven. The Scientific Revolution. Chicago: The University of Chicago press, 1996.

Watts, Ruth. "Gender, science and modernity in seventeenth-century England." Paedagogica Historica. 2005. 41, 1, 79-93. ISSN: 0030-9230.

Important Instructions

In order to receive course credit for your blog postings, be sure to follow these instructions:

1. Include YOUR FULL NAME IN THE LABELS for your post. This is how I will keep track of your postings. If your name does not appear, your post will not count.
2. Include ONE OF THE FOLLOWING FIVE BLOG DESCRIPTIONS IN THE LABELS for your required posts so that I know which ones you have completed: Reading Connections #1, Reading Connections #2, Abstract, Darwin Revelation, or What's New(s) in Science. If your blog is not descriptively so labeled, it will not count.
3. Each post MUST INCLUDE a link to outside content: an article, a blog post, video, music, etc. The content is up to you but if you do not include a link, your post will not count.
4. Each post MUST INCLUDE proper citations for any content that is not uniquely your own.If you refer directly to course readings, you should not only indicate author and page numbers, but also include a link to the course readings post so viewers can see the full citation.
5. Each required post MUST FULFILL ALL THE CRITERIA outlined for that post, as described in Required Postings.
   

Getting Started

I will send an email to your Champlain address "inviting" you to blogger as an author on our class blog. Once you sign up, you are ready to go.

If you need help posting, blogger can offer plenty of assistance. The general help page is found here. Information on how to post is located here. You can also find details on adding links or videos, and even directions on how to post a video from YouTube.

Welcome to the 2008 Class Blog for Core 210-05

Throughout this semester, our class studying Scientific Revolutions will create posts that elaborate upon course content and connect to other materials through links to outside sources such as articles and videos.

Your contribution will consist of a minimum of 5 posts, as outlined below, plus comments on other student postings as appropriate. (Of course, you are welcome and encouraged to blog more frequently if you wish!) Although it is a required course component, I hope you will approach this blog as an opportunity to show your unique perspective on the material we read and discuss, to be creative, and to personalize what we are doing in class in a way that interests and excites you.

REQUIRED POSTINGS:

1. Reading Connections #1: This posting must be made during course weeks 2-5. Create a blog post with links to articles, video, or other content of your choosing that extend concepts we are covering in class during these weeks. You must provide a clear explanation of how your link(s) connect to and expand upon class content, and you must specifically refer to and cite class texts when developing your explanations.
2. Reading Connections #2: This posting is just like the first, only it must be made during course weeks 6-8 and it must deal connect to course content covered during that same period.
3. Abstract: This posting must be done during course week 9. Together with your project partner, post your project abstract and provide a minimum of two links to follow for readers interested in learning more.
4. Darwin Revelation: This posting must be made during course weeks 13-15 (prior to final exam period). Identify a revelation you had after reading about and studying Darwin, and embed a YouTube video that represents the revelation. Your revelation must be clearly explained and supported through specific references to in-class readings, and the connection between your revelation and your chosen video must be thoroughly articulated. (You will also present and explain your revelation to the class during our Final Exam period.)
5. What’s New(s) in Science?: This posting must be completed within 1 week of your in-class What's New(s) Presentation. Create a blog posting that mirrors your in-class presentation, including links to outside content and explanations of their relevance.
   

Have fun, and remember, you are literally writing for the whole world to read!