COLL 148: THE HISTORY OF TECHNOLOGY
Spring 2026 · Section 001 · CRN 25859
Have you ever wondered what life would look like without your phone? Soap? Coffee? Or even toilet paper? Well, now is your chance to find out. This is not your typical history course, but will prioritize learning through the lens of lived human experience. Students will reckon with the effects of technological shifts throughout history in a hands-on manner through participation in simulations (ie, going a day without looking at a mirror), hands-on in-class activities (ie, tea tasting), and active discussions with their peers. This course explores not only why major technologies were developed, but also how they affect everything from household activities to human relationships. Additionally, students will learn about the interrelationship between technology and human cultural development. This survey class covers groundbreaking technologies from Biblical Times to the Middle Ages to the Age of the iPhone. Students will walk away from this course with proficiency in identifying the advantages and disadvantages of quintessential technologies and the ability to develop and articulate their own nuanced position on such technologies.
- Credits
- 1
- Instructors
- Jaclynn Schwander, Karis Lai