STS.014
Embodied Education: Past, Present, Future
Explores the untapped capacities of the human body as a medium for teaching and learning in an era of technology-centered educational innovation. Readings survey cognitive science, exercise science, studies of embodied learning, and research on the history of education. Lab exercises demonstrate how physical activity can enhance academic instruction and invite students to create future curricula. Students who enroll may receive both HASS-S credit and may enroll to earn two Physical Education and Wellness (PE&W) points. Limited enrollment.
Spring 2006 · Principles and Practice of Science Communication
Topics
- Why Bother with Science Communication?
- How Do Scientists Communicate with Each Other?
- How is Science Communicated to the Public?
- Class Visit to the MIT Museum
- Who’s on the Receiving End of Popular Science?
- Science Essay Writing
- Making Science Shows for Radio
- No Lecture
- Case Study 1: The Cambridge Recombinant DNA Controversy
- Second MIT Museum Visit
- Case Study 2: The GM Food Debate in the UK, 1994-2004
- Case Study 3: Science, Communication and Celebrity: The Implosion of Korean Human Stem Cell Research
- Case Study 4: The Debate over ‘Intelligent Design’
Readings
- Several assigned readings are from the course textbook:
- [Gregory] = Gregory, J., and S. Miller. Science in Public: Communication Culture and Credibility . New York, NY: Plenum Press, 1998. ISBN: 9780306458606.
- Gregory. Chapter 1.
- Watson, J. D. The Double Helix: A Personal Account of the Discovery of the Structure of DNA . Riverside, NJ: Simon & Schuster, 2001. ISBN: 9780743216302.
- Ziman, J. M. “Community and Communications.” Chapter 6 in Public Knowledge: An Essay Concerning the Social Dimension of Science . London, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1968. ISBN: 9780521095198.
- Gregory. Chapter 4.
- Hilgartner, S. “The Dominant View of Popularization: Conceptual Problems, Political Uses.” Social Studies of Science 20, no. 3 (1990): 519-539.
- Durant, J. R., et al. “The Public Understanding of Science.” Nature 340 (July 6, 1989): 11-14.
- Wynne, B. “Public Understanding of Science.” In Handbook of Science and Technology Studies . Edited by S. Jasanoff, G. E. Markle, J. C. Petersen, and T. Pinch. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 1994. ISBN: 9780803940215.
- Stocking, H. “How Journalists Deal With Scientific Uncertainty.” Chapter 2 in Communicating Uncertainty: Media Coverage of New and Controversial Science . Edited by S. M. Friedman, S. Dunwoody, and C. L. Rogers. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc., 1999. ISBN: 9780805827286.
- Einsiedel and Thorne. “Public Responses to Uncertainty.” Chapter 3 in Communicating Uncertainty .
- Rogers, C. “The Importance of Understanding Audiences.” Chapter 11 in Communicating Uncertainty.
- LEC #: 7 · TOPICS: Science Essay Writing · READINGS: Lightman, A. “Smile,” and “If birds can fly, why oh why can’t I?” In Dance for Two: Essays . New York, NY: Knopf, 1996. ISBN: 9780679758778.
- Silverstone, R. Framing Science: The Making of a BBC Documentary . London, UK: BFI Publishing, 1985, chapters 1, 4, and 5. ISBN: 9780851701653.
- LEC #: 9 · TOPICS: Making Science Shows for Radio · READINGS: Talk of the Nation: Science Friday , March 31, 2006 segments. Hour One: Avian Flu Vaccine / Sleep and Teens and Hour Two: SpaceX Setback / Prescription Drug Ads.
- LEC #: 11 · TOPICS: No Lecture · READINGS: One-on-one mentoring sessions with students on their practical projects.
- Weiner, C. “The Recombinant DNA Controversy: Archival and Oral History Resources.” Science, Technology & Human Values 4, no. 26 (Winter 1979): 17-19.
- ———. “Historical perspectives on the recombinant DNA controversy.” In Recombinant DNA and Genetic Experimentation: Proceedings . Edited by J. Morgan and W. Whelan. Kidlington, UK: Pergamon Press, 1979. ISBN: 9780080244273.
- Wright, S. “Recombinant DNA Technology and Its Social Transformation, 1972-1982.” Osiris 2 (1986): 303-360. (2nd series.)
- Goodell, R. S. “Public Involvement in the DNA Controversy: The Case of Cambridge, Massachusetts.” Science, Technology & Human Values 4, no. 27 (Spring 1979): 36-43.
- Kolata, G. “Scandal for Cloning Embryos: ‘A Tragic Turn’ for Science.” New York Times , December 16, 2005.
- Wade, N., and Choe Sang-Hun. “Korean Research Was All Faked, Koreans Report.” New York Times , January 10, 2006.
- Wade, N. “Lowering Expectations at Science’s Frontier.” New York Times , January 15, 2006.
Prerequisites & course information
Prereq: None U (Spring) 2-1-9 units. HASS-S
Sources
- Course catalogue ↗2026–2027
- MIT OpenCourseWare ↗Spring 2006
- MIT OCW calendar ↗
- MIT OCW readings ↗
- MIT OCW syllabus ↗
- Historical MIT OpenCourseWare offering. Named reading entries and schedule topics are automatically extracted from the linked source pages.