The Civil War and the Emergence of Modern America, 1861-1890
STS.427 · History, Science, Technology, and Society · Graduate · Spring 2015
Prof. Merritt Roe Smith
Using the American Civil War as a baseline, the course considers what it means to become “modern” by exploring the war’s material and manpower needs, associated key technologies, and how both influenced the United States’ entrance into the age of “Big Business.” Readings include material on steam transportation, telegraphic communications, arms production, naval innovation, food processing, medicine, public health, management methods, and the mass production of everything from underwear to unif…
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Prof. Merritt Roe Smith. STS.427 The Civil War and the Emergence of Modern America, 1861-1890. Spring 2015. Massachusetts Institute of Technology: MIT OpenCourseWare, https://ocw.mit.edu. License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.
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