Descriptif
This course provides a general introduction to the history of science. Rather than offering a chronological overview of the history of science, it is structured around ten major scientific discoveries, from Antiquity to the present day.
Each session will focus on one of these discoveries in the form of a case study. Each case study will address a fundamental question about how scientific knowledge is produced, validated, challenged and transformed into technological innovations.
Each session will also examine: the historical context (both intellectual and social); the key scientific figure(s) involved in this discovery; the methods used to establish these new findings; their broader implications for both science and society.
Objectifs pédagogiques
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- place the major milestones in the history of science in their chronological and geographical context, from Antiquity to the present day;
- identify some key figures who played a major role in the development of scientific knowledge (Copernicus, Newton, Pasteur, Einstein, etc.)
- develop critical thinking about scientific methods and reasoning;
- understand and explain the link between major scientific discoveries and technological development.
effectifs minimal / maximal:
1/32Diplôme(s) concerné(s)
Pour les étudiants du diplôme Bachelor of Science de l'Ecole polytechnique
None
Pour les étudiants du diplôme Bachelor of Science de l'Ecole polytechnique
Vos modalités d'acquisition :
- Assessment #1: Midterm exam (questions on course material and document analysis), in class (50%)
- Assessment #2: Final exam (questions on course material and document analysis), in class (50%)
- Make-up assignment: 15-minute oral interview via videoconference.
Programme détaillé
1. Eratosthenes: measuring the circumference of the Earth
2. The Copernican Revolution
3. Galileo: observing and experimenting
4. Newton: the discovery of universal gravitation
5. Assessment #1
6. Lavoisier: the conservation of mass & the chemical revolution
7. Faraday and Maxwell: the concept of the electromagnetic field
8. Pasteur: the emergence of microbiology
9. Einstein: challenging common sense
10. DNA: the rise of interdisciplinary science
11. Quantum mechanics and the transistor
12. Assessment #2
Méthodes pédagogiques
lecturesSupport pédagogique multimédia