Technology, Society, Environment Studies Committee
(Faculties of Arts and Social Sciences, Engineering and Design, Public Affairs, Science)
Technology, Society, Environment (TSES) Courses
Ecology and Culture
Cultural adaptations to the environment are set within globalization processes. New symbolic, historical and political ecologies arise out of the hubris of classical models. The advocacy role of applied ecological anthropology and the consequences of Western cultures' adaptive capacities will be examined.
Lectures three hours a week.
Ancient Science and Technology
Development of science and technology in the ancient world and their practical application. The craftsman and artisan in society; the attitude of intellectuals to science and manual labour. Effects of the institution of slavery. Suitable for students with no previous knowledge of Greece or Rome.
Prerequisite(s): second-year standing or equivalent.
Lectures two hours a week.
Technology-Society Interactions
Ethical issues in introducing technology; historical review of technology and human development; effects on society of medical and communications technologies; automation and its effects on society, especially work; impact of technology on international affairs, especially through multinational enterprises. Guest lectures.
Precludes additional credit for TSES 3000 and TSES 3500.
Prerequisite(s): at least second-year standing.
Lectures and workshops three hours per week.
Energy and Sustainability
History of energy use by humans; utilization of renewable energy sources; energy and agriculture; energy and mineral resources; options for electricity generation; nuclear energy; risks of accidents in large systems, e.g. nuclear plants, hydroelectric dams. Guest lectures.
Precludes additional credit for TSES 3000 and TSES 3500.
Prerequisite(s): at least second-year standing.
Lectures and workshops three hours per week.
Interactions in Industrial Society
Ethical issues involving technology; effects on society of automation, medical and communications technologies; technology and international affairs; energy use by humans; renewable energy sources; energy in agriculture and mineral extraction; electricity generation; nuclear energy; accidents in large systems, e.g. nuclear plants and hydroelectric dams.
Prerequisite(s): at least second-year standing.
Lectures three hours per week for both terms.
Technology and Society: Risk
Examines the complex practice of evaluating technology's impact on society and the environment; risk analysis; cost-benefit analysis; technology regulation; retrospective project assessment; necessary aspects of assessment and assessment examples. Guest lecturers.
Prerequisite(s): third-year standing or equivalent.
Lectures and workshops three hours a week.
Technology and Society: Forecasting
Methods used for forecasting technological and social change; technological and social change portrayed in literature; science fiction factors involved in such change. Guest lecturers.
Prerequisite(s): third-year standing or equivalent.
Lectures and workshops three hours a week.
Technology and Society: Innovation
Technological and social innovation, especially in Canada: historical examples; the relation of innovation to economic development; analysis of the steps involved; effect on employment; impediments and incentives. Guest lecturers.
Lectures and seminars three hours a week.
Information Technology and Society
Investigation of the human and social impacts of electronic information and communication on our working, educational, and personal lives from various disciplinary perspectives; problem issues and competing values in the creation, manipulation, dissemination, and control of information are identified; resolution initiatives encouraged. Guest lecturers.
Lectures and seminars three hours a week.
Technology and Society: Work
Explores the relationship between technology, employment and the individual; work organizations; employment restructuring; rural/urban split; the impact of information technologies; demographic impacts and globalization; Canadian issues and public policy explored. Guest lecturers.
Prerequisite(s): third-year standing or equivalent.
Lectures and workshops three hours a week.
Product Life Cycle Analysis
Life cycle analysis of products and processes, from resource extraction through design and use to waste management or recycling; social and environmental implications of product design and use; how we value material objects and the environment; consumerism; evolution of design. Guest lectures.
Prerequisite(s): third-year standing or equivalent.
Lectures and workshops three hours a week.
Environmentally Harmonious Lifestyles
Brief history of humans as part of the ecosystem; religious and ethical views; current degree of ecosystem disturbance by industrial society; innovations in products and services furthering the sustainability of the ecosystem, emphasis on the Canadian context. Guest lecturers and a major project.
Lectures and seminars three hours a week.
Special Topics
Reading course for students who wish to investigate a particular topic relevant to TSES.
Special Topics
Specific topics of current interest. Topics may vary from year to year.
Lectures three hours a week.
Technology and Society: Development
Created in collaboration with Engineers Without Borders Carleton, the course explores appropriate ways of meeting technological needs of communities. Uses Canadian and African case studies to examine how capacity building has a greater impact than simple delivery of technological goods.
Lectures three hours a week.
Science and Fiction: Creating Tomorrow
Scenarios are used to speculate about the planned future. Science fiction and speculative fiction project ideas about imagined futures. Using readings from scenarios, speculative fiction and science fiction the course explores the mutual shaping of fiction, science and technology.
Technology-Society: Time
Time is a universal human experience, but it presents some profound mysteries. It governs our behaviour on personal, societal and cultural levels. This course will bring together experts from physics, sociology , philosophy, biology, literature and psychology to illuminate our understanding.
Lectures three hours a week.
Note: Not all courses listed are offered in a given year. For an up-to-date statement of course offerings for the current session and to determine the term of offering, consult the class schedule at central.carleton.ca.
Summer session: some of the courses listed in this Calendar are offered during the summer. Hours and scheduling for summer session courses will differ significantly from those reported in the fall/winter Calendar. To determine the scheduling and hours for summer session classes, consult the class schedule at central.carleton.ca