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Dr. Hale speaking with graduate students Emily Laiben and Goutham Sukumaran

Hyetographic or Rain Map of the World

Photo of the book titled "A New Theory of the Earth" by William Whiston. The left-hand leaf shows a schematic drawing of the solar system with two comets and the orbits of the planets marked out with the sun in the center. All of the orbits, comet paths, and sun are labelled in Latin. On the right-hand leaf are the English words "of the Earth, from its Original, to the Consummation of all Things. Wherein the Creation of the World in Six Days, The Universal Deluge, and the General Conflagration, As laid down in the Holy Scriptures, Are shewn to be perfectly agreeable to Reason and Philosophy. With a large Introductory Discourse concerning the Genuine Nature, Stile, and Extent of the Mosaick History of the Creation. by William Whiston, M.A."

Photo of Professor Soppelsa discussing an early 20th century French postcard image on the large screen to his right

Photo of Professor Pandora talking with a student in the Western History Collections.

Photo of an exhibit of student work. The photo includes a mask that seems like a realistic, partial human face with glasses and a mustache. In the background are two photos, one labeled "Before" of a young man with part of his face disfigured; the other is the same young man wearing the mask. The explanatory text beneath the two photos is: "World War I Facial Prosthetic During World War I, explosions caused by shells led to deadly shrapnel. This fallout resulted in an estimated 20,000 facial injuries. When groundbreaking plastic surgery techniques did not work, facial sculptors stepped in. Anna Coleman Ladd devoted her time during WWI to sculpt facial prosthetics for disfigured soldiers. The prosthetic was created and painted by hand to match each individual person and injury. The mask would cover the facial damage and was attached with small ties around the ears, or more commonly with glasses. Facial hair was also added using real human hair or small strips of tinfoil. This allowed for survivors of war to have a sense of a restored face, close to the one they had before World War I."

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Flyer with an hand drawn image of a machine and a blueprint. The Department of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine Colloquium Series Fall 2024 September 12, 2024 Hunter Heyck (OU), Suzanne Moon (OU), Peter Soppelsa (OU), Rebecca Huskey (OU) “Intellectual and Cultural History of AI” 12-1:30 pm, Kelly Damphousse Community Room, 906 Dale Hall Tower Humanities Forum Roundtable; September 18, 2024 Ken Taylor (OU HSTM), Ezio Vaccari (University of Insubria), and Silvia Figueiroa (Unicamp University) "Tikhomirov Award Roundtable: A Fascination for Geology’s Past —Three Historians Reflect on their Work” 3:00-4:00 pm, Harlow Room, Bizzell Memorial Library, 5th floor, Tikhomirov Award Presentation and reception to follow; September 26, 2024, Taylor-Wei Distinguished Lecture in the History of Meteorology Katharine Anderson (York University). “The Weather Ship: Networks, Disasters, and the Ocean-Atmosphere, 1900-1955” 7:00-8:30 pm, National Weather Center 1313 Reception for attendees, 6:30-7:00 pm in the NWC Atrium; October 8, 2024 Tanya Sheehan (Colby College) “Public Art, Public Health: Jacob Lawrence and the Murals of Harlem Hospital” 3:00-4:15 pm, Nielsen Hall 170 Co-sponsored event with the OU School of Visual Arts; October 18, 2024 Liba Taub (University of Cambridge) “Vitruvius and the History of Science” 3:30-5:00 pm Harlow Room, Bizzell Library, 5th Floor; Oct 25, 2024 Ted Davis (Messiah University) “Science and Religion, Chicago Style: The Protestant Modernist Encounter with Science” 3:30-5:00 pm, Harlow Room, Bizzell Library, 5th floor; November 15, 2024 Andrew Denning (University of Kansas) “Automotive Empire: How Cars and Roads Fueled European Colonialism in Africa” 3:30-5:00 pm, Harlow Room, Bizzell Library, 5th floor

Fall 2024 HSTM Colloquium Series Poster
The Department of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine Colloquium Series Poster, Fall 2024.

Welcome to HSTM!

We are a vibrant and active community of scholars. Interdisciplinary by nature, we bring a vital humanistic and historical perspective to bear in understanding the role of science, technology, and medicine in our complex world.

Our faculty are known internationally through their prolific publications, the extensive editorial work for the discipline’s flagship journals, and their participation in global collaborative projects and committees. Collectively our faculty has expertise ranging across the three fields of the history of science, technology, and medicine. Exciting recent research includes the history of AI, the history of the pregnant body, and evolution in Victorian Britain. We have particular strengths in science and religion, colonial and postcolonial histories of science, medicine, and technology, the history of meteorology and climate science, and the intersection of technology, infrastructure, and the environment.

We are pioneers in innovative teaching methods and provide our students with practical training alongside deep intellectual engagement. Our undergraduate classes encourage students to explore and develop diverse writing and communication skills from the standard long-form capstone paper to blogs, website engagement, and the production of physical and online exhibits. Our students leave our majors well prepared for diverse careers. Many of our students use our majors as launching pads for further study in medicine and allied disciplines. Our graduate programs provide students with rigorous study in the historical understanding of science, technology, and medicine. Our graduates have a successful record of obtaining jobs in the academy, in libraries, and in museums.

The University of Oklahoma is also host to the History of Science Collections and the Isis Bibliography in the History of Science, two important resources for the discipline worldwide.

News

Ted Davis Presents "Science and Religion, Chicago Style: The Protestant Modernist Encounter with Science" / Ted Davis of Messiah University presents “Science and Religion, Chicago Style: The Protestant Modernist Encounter with Science” October 25, 2024, 3:30-5:00pm, Harlow Room, Bizzell Library, 5th floor
Testa and Hale co-edit Evolution Before Darwin / PhD Candidate Caden Testa and Dr. Piers Hale recently co-edited a volume of primary sources, titled Evolution Before Darwin, published by Routledge this month.
Student Spotlight: Caden Testa / This Student Spotlight features PhD Candidate Caden Testa, who has won multiple awards for his work on Lamarckian theory and the politics of evolution.
Piers Hale Co-authors Paper Published in npj Biodiversity / Professor Piers J. Hale is co-author on a paper published September 10th in the Nature journal, npj Biodiversity titled “Marine mammals as indictors of Anthropocene Ocean Health.”
Hunter Heyck Announced as Inaugural Director of OU Center for Creativity and Authenticity in AI Cultural Production / Dr. Hunter Heyck of HSTM will be the inaugural director of the OU Center for Creativity and Authenticity in AI Cultural Production, one of five centers nationwide created through the NEH’s new program supporting humanities perspectives on AI.

Full News & Events

HSTM/HMS Friday Morning Coffee and Conversation Flyer. 9:00 A.M. to 11:00 A.M. (ish) during regular academic year. Physical Science Center, 6th Floor Room 626 (Overflow in room 628). Everyone welcome; bring a friend. Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences Department of History of Science, Technology, and Medicine. The University of Oklahoma. Welcome.

HSTM Friday Morning Coffee and Conversation, 9 AM to 11 AM during the regular academic year