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The History and Science concentration at Harvard is a flourishing interdisciplinary field of study. It was established in the early part of the 20th century by Harvard scientists who believed that students who combined the study of history with the study of science would become both better scientists and better citizens in a world increasingly influenced by science and technology. Most instruction in the concentration now takes place within the Department of the History of Science, which was itself created in the mid-1960s, and formal responsibility for granting undergraduate degrees is held by the department.

We are a small concentration and are able to give students careful, one-on-one instruction and supervision. Tutorial courses are aimed at sharpening students’ reading and writing abilities. By the time of graduation our concentrators know how to do advanced research, and often produce original academic work of very high quality.

The program offers students a variety of opportunities to expand their understanding of the scientific enterprise, to explore in detail how science has developed in history, and how science has shaped other human activities. Students focus on many topics and time periods -- medieval understandings of women’s bodies, ancient Chinese medicine, the emergence of the computer in the 20th-century, the scientific revolution in the time of Galileo, Boyle, and Newton, the rise of Darwinian evolution, the birth of the classical physical universe, the Einsteinian revolution, the history of modern psychiatry, the history of modern American medicine, the rise of environmental science, and much more. In their studies, they will be challenged in a range of ways to ask big questions about science, medicine, and technology, and their place in human societies across time, questions like: What are science, medicine, and technology, how do scientists come to know things about the natural world, what are some social, ethical, political and religious implications of science, how do they affect the way people in different times and places live their lives?

Beginning in the fall of 2008, the concentration is implementing a new two-track structure that will provide students with new levels of flexibility. Both of the new tracks will offer an honors and a non-honors option.

A Science and Society track is designed for students who have an interest in doing significant course work in an area of science but who also want to study how science develops and affects the world: how it relates to industry, policy, politics and the broader culture. This track may be especially attractive for students who want to pursue a career in public health, medicine, or science policy. Students can both do science and reflect about what science is. A special focus within this track, called “Medicine and Society,” allows students to fulfill many of their pre-medical school requirements while doing sustained work in the history of medicine, health policy, and medical ethics.

Another track in History of Science does not require students to take science courses beyond the level mandated by General Education (though some may choose to do so and receive concentration credit), but it does offer students the possibility of studying the history and social relations of science more broadly. By taking a combination of courses from our department and also outside of it, students can learn how sciences as diverse as theoretical physics and economics interact with other areas of culture such as literature, film, art, or government.

Every concentrator will take History of Science 100 (Knowing the World: An Introduction to the History of Science), which is offered in the fall semester. In addition, every concentrator will take one semester of sophomore tutorial and one semester of junior tutorial, taught by faculty members and teaching fellows from the Department of the History of Science.

History of Science 97, the sophomore tutorial, introduces students to important episodes in the history of science and the challenges of historical research and interpretation as they present themselves in primary, secondary, and archival materials. Students meet in small groups of six to eight with individual tutors. Weekly lectures supplement tutorial readings and written assignments.

History of Science 98, the junior tutorial, is a research seminar designed to help students come to a better understanding of the craft of historical research and writing. Students meet in small groups of eight to ten. Students who wish to write a senior thesis must meet certain standards by the end of the research seminar, and will be recommended for admission to History of Science 99, the senior tutorial.

Students choosing to write a senior thesis may be supervised by a faculty member or an advanced graduate student, and are free to pursue a diverse range of topics. Some examples of theses recently written by students in the concentration include: “On Lawrence Summers, Women, and Science: Changing Debates About the Biology of Sex Differences at Harvard Since 1969,” “The Uncivilized Camera: Television Technology and the Vietnam War,” “Not Gonna Crack? The Unlikely Story of How Lithium Broke into Modern Psychiatry,” “From Whaling to Whale Watching: Human Interaction With Whales in Coastal Massachusetts, 1820-1992,” “Population as Discourse: Medicine in Late Colonial Kenya,” “A ‘Special Relationship’?: Responsibility and the Development of Mental Health Resources at Harvard, 1900-2007,” “The Good Doctor: Placebos and Science in American Medicine, 1900-1965,” and “Wild Goose Chase: The Communal Science of Waterfowl Migration Study in North America, 1880-1940.” Many of our theses go on to win College awards, and some have even been published. Students are welcome to look through the collection of past and present senior theses that are located in the Department of the History of Science.

Our graduates frequently go on to successful careers in many areas, including medicine, law, journalism, government, business, finance, and academia. Employers are increasingly looking for graduates who are not just literate but also scientifically literate, not just technically skilled in a special subject but able to see the larger cultural, social, and policy implications and impact of scientific and technical developments. If this kind of breadth of vision appeals, our concentration may be right for you.