HPS100H1
Introduction to History and Philosophy of Science 26L, 13T
An investigation of some pivotal periods in the history of science with an emphasis on the influences of philosophy on the
scientists of the period, and the philosophical and social implications of the scientific knowledge, theory and methodology that
emerged.
This counts as a Humanities or Science course
HPS201H1
Origins of Western Technology 26L, 13T
Technology and its place in our culture from Antiquity to the beginnings of the Industrial Revolution. Relations between
technology and science, religion, the arts, social institutions, and political beliefs.
This is a Humanities course
HPS202H1
Technology in the Modern World 26L, 13T
A survey of technical change and its social implications from the Industrial Revolution to the present.
Recommended preparation: HPS201H1
This is a Humanities course
HPS210H1
Scientific Revolutions I 26L, 13T
(formerly HPS200Y1)
Case studies in the history of science from antiquity to 1800, including the revolutionary work of Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo,
Descartes, Newton, Linnaeus, Lavoisier, and Herschel. The course is designed to be accessible to science students and non-
scientists alike.
This counts as a Humanities or Science course
Exclusion: HPS200Y1
HPS211H1
Scientific Revolutions II 26L, 13T
(formerly HPS200Y1)
Case studies in the history of science from 1800 to 2000, including Volta, Lyell, Darwin, Mendel, Einstein, Schr”dinger,
Watson, and Crick. The course is designed to be accessible to science students and non-scientists alike.
This counts as a Humanities or Science course
Exclusion: HPS200Y1
HPS250H1
Introductory Philosophy of Science 26L, 13T
This course critically examines several influential models of science and ideas of objectivity, rationality, theory change,
revolution in science and the growth of scientific knowledge. (Prerequisite for HPS350H1 and
a suitable pre-cursor to PHL355H1)
This is a Humanities course
HPS275H1
Science and Technology in The Realms of Islam, 600-1600,
Part I: The Mathematical Sciences and
their Practical Applications 26L, 13S
First part of a series on the history of science and technology in the Islamic
world. History of the exact sciences, including
mathematics, astronomy, optics, and cartography.
Exclusion: NMC379H1
This counts as a Humanities or Science course
HPS276H1
Science and Technology in the Realms of Islam, 600-1600, Part II:
The Life Sciences 26L, 13S
Second part of a series on the history of science and technology in the Islamic
world. History of biological and life sciences,
including history of medicine, botany, agriculture, and alchemy.
Exclusion: NMC379H1
This counts as a Humanities or Science course
HPS299Y1
Research Opportunity Program
Credit course for supervised participation in faculty research project. See page 43 for details.
HPS300H1
Topics in History and Philosophy of Science and Technology TBA
Topics vary year to year.
This is a Humanities course
HPS306H1
Technology and War 26L, 13
An examination of the tools of war in the Western world from the Middle Ages to World War II, including not only weapons but
the means of transportation, communication, and organization used in violent conflict. The effects of war on the development of
science and technology.
Exclusion: HPS417H1
Recommended preparation: HPS201H1/HPS202H1 or any HIS course
This is a Humanities course
HPS307H1
History of Energy 26L, 13T
The history of human control of various sources of energy, including technical developments, scientific theories, and impact on
culture and society. Recent debates on fossil fuel and nuclear power examined in historical context.
Recommended preparation: HPS201H1/HPS202H1 or any HIS course
This is a Humanities course
HPS311H1
History of Physics 13S
Topics in the history of physics from antiquity to the 20th century, including Aristotelian physics, Galileo, Descartes,
electromagnestism, thermodynamics, statistical mechanics, relativity, quantum physics, and particle physics. The development
of theories in their intellectual and cultural contexts.
Prerequisite: At least one PHY course at university level
This is a Humanities or Science course
HPS312H1
History of Chemistry 13S
The emergence of the modern discipline of chemistry from 1785 to 1939. Seminar discussions focus on key papers of
important Historical analysis of the interplay between theory and practice, and of the dynamics of scientific communities
Prerequisite: At least one CHM course at university level
This counts as a Humanities or Science course
HPS318H1
History of Medicine I 26L, 13T
A survey of medical theory and practice from Antiquity to the Renaissance, with emphasis on medicine's social, cultural and
political setting.
Exclusion: HPS314Y1
This is a Humanities course
HPS319H1
History of Medicine II 26L, 13T
A survey of medical theory and practice from the 17th century to the modern welfare state, with emphasis on medicine's social,
cultural and political setting.
Exclusion: HPS314Y1;315H1
This is a Humanities course
HPS322H1
Complexity, Order, and Emergence
This course surveys recent developments in the sciences of complex adaptive systems and their implications for evolutionary
biology and cognitive science. Topics covered may include: complex systems dynamics, artificial life, order and adaptiveness,
self-organisation in biology and cognitive development, gene regulation and organismal development, genetic algorithms and
the evolution of language.
This is a Humanities course.
HPS323H1
Darwinism 26L, 13T
A close examination of the theory advanced in Darwin's Origin of Species, including historical investigation of its development
in European thought in general and in Darwin's mind in particular, and the logic and strategy of Darwin's argument.
Consideration of the effect of evolutionary ideas on science, religion and social thought in the 19th and 20th centuries,
including eugenics, the Scopes trial and sociobiology.
Exclusion: ZOO354Y1
This counts as a Humanities or Science course
HPS324H1
Natural Science and Social Issues 26L, 13T
Historical examination of the interactions of science (both as body of knowledge and as enterprise) with ideological, political
and social issues. The impact of science; attacks on and critiques of scientific expertise as background to contemporary
conflicts. Subjects may vary according to students' interests.
This is a Humanities course
HPS326H1
History of Science and Religion 13S, 13T
From its origins in the Renaissance, modern science has developed in the context of European religious beliefs and
institutions. Although cases of conflict like Galileo or the "Monkey Trial" are famous, more common are cases of scientists like
Newton or Faraday whose religious convictions were crucial to their scientific success.
This is a Humanities course
HPS328H1
Environment, Science and Crisis 13S
The environmental movement has been driven by a sense of impending disaster. This course asks how such appeals function
on a socio-political level, while also investigating the complex relationship between environmental science and environmental
movements. Using methods from science studies, we ask what tools are required for ecologically responsible action.
Recommended preparation: Background in HPS or Environmental Studies
This is a Humanities course
HPS333H1
Topics in History of Biology 26L, 13T
Classic episodes from the history of physiology, cell theory, embryology, genetics, and molecular biology, including the work of
Aristotle, Galen, Harvey, Descartes, Roux, Mendel, Morgan, Watson and Crick.
Exclusion: ZOO354Y1
This counts as a Humanities or Science course
HPS343H1
History of Pre-Electronic Computing 26L, 13T
Computing technology from Chaldean astronomy to the advent of British and U.S. mass production of electronic mainframes in
1953. Emphasis will be on uses and users, especially on great figures from Babbage through von Neumann, but hardware
descriptions will also be featured.
This counts as a Humanities or Science course.
HPS350H1
Revolution in Science 13S
A philosophical examination of a cluster of issues concerning the phenomenon of revolution in the natural sciences. Discussion
will focus on the suggestion that revolutionary ferment is seeded by novelty (a new theory, set of theorems, device,
experimental practice, etc.), which will be assessed against the background of a few canonical historical episodes.
Prerequisite: HPS250H1 or permission of the instructor
This is a Humanities course
PHL355H1
Philosophy of Science
See "Philosophy"
HPS360H1
History of Modern Cosmology 26L, 13T
Conceptions of the universe since 1800 with attention to observational sources of changing ideas. History of large telescopes,
stellar spectroscopy and radio astronomy. Relativistic conceptions of space and time, models of stellar evolution, discovery of
extra-galactic nebulae, Hubble red-shift and microwave background radiation. Philosophical and religious implications are
examined.
This counts as a Humanities or Science course
HPS390H1
History of Mathematics up to 1700 26L, 13T
A survey of ancient, medieval, and early modern mathematics with emphasis on historical issues. (Offered in alternate years)
Exclusion: 310Y1; MAT220Y1
Prerequisite: At least one full course equivalent at the 200+level from CSC/MAT/STA
This counts as a Humanities or Science course
HPS391H1
History of Mathematics after 1700 26L, 13T
A survey of the development of mathematics from 1700 to the present with emphasis on historical issues. (Offered in alternate
years)
Exclusion: 310Y1; MAT220Y1
Prerequisite: At least one full course equivalent at the 200+level from CSC/MAT/STA
This counts as a Humanities or Science course
HPS410H1
History of Mathematics 26S
An historical survey from pre-Greek to the present. Various themes are emphasized year to year, to show mathematics as
changing and evolving. A student could expect to gain an historical overview as well as a sense of the unity of the
mathematical sciences.
Prerequisite: HPS309Y1/310Y1/HPS390H1/HPS391H1/MAT220Y1 and permission of instructor
This is a Humanities course
HPS412H1
History of the Biological Sciences 26S
Advanced level survey of biological science from ancient Greece to the 20th century emphasizing primary sources analyses.
Prerequisite: HPS 200Y1/(HPS210H1 + HPS211H1)/ZOO354Y1/HPS323H1;HPS333H1 and permission of instructor
Recommended preparation: BIO150Y1/European history/Philosophy
This is a Humanities course
HPS427H1
Historical Foundations of Chemistry 26S
The development of chemistry from the Chemical Revolution of Lavoisier to the periodic table of Mendeleev: electro-chemistry,
the rise of organic chemistry, classification, valency, structural chemistry.
Prerequisite: Permission of instructor
This is a Humanities course
HPS430H1
History of Technology I 26S
An advanced survey of the history of technology from Antiquity to the Industrial Revolution.
Prerequisite: Permission of instructor
Recommended preparation: HPS201H1/HPS202H1
This is a Humanities course
HIS431H1
History of Technology II 26S
An advanced survey of the history of technology from the Industrial Revolution to modern times.
Prerequisite: Permission of instructor
Recommended preparation: HPS201H1/HPS202H1
This is a Humanities course
HPS495Y1
Individual Studies TBA
A reading and research project in some aspect of history of science and technology, supervised by a faculty member. Projects
must be approved by the Institute and are subject to availability of a faculty supervisor.
Prerequisite: Two HPS courses
This is a Humanities course
HPS496H1/497H1
Individual Studies TBA
A reading and research project in some aspect of the social, cultural or intellectual history of science and technology,
supervised by a faculty member. Projects must be approved by the Institute by the previous June for a Fall course or by
November for a Spring course, and are subject to availability of a faculty supervisor.
Prerequisite: Two HPS courses
HPS498H1/499H1
Individual Studies TBA
A reading and research project in some aspect of the development of scientific theory or practice, supervised by a faculty
member. Projects must be approved by the Institute by the previous June for a Fall course or by November for a Spring course,
and are subject to availability of a faculty supervisor.
Prerequisite: Two HPS courses
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