AP/HIST 4799 6.00

Selected Topics in African History: FW23-24 Topic - Science, Technology, and the Environment

In 2023-24, the selected topics for this seminar are science, technology, and the environment, three of the least studied themes in African history. The geographical coverage is Sub-Saharan Africa (i.e., the regions of the African continent south of the Saharan Desert), while the temporal scope is from the precolonial times to the present day. Drawing from online mass-media archives, documentaries, films, and multidisciplinary secondary sources (especially from Archaeology, Anthropology, and Science & Technology Studies), we will examine the environmental, sociocultural, economic, and political factors that influenced the development of indigenous and Western scientific and technological knowledge and practices across various regions of Africa.