History of Japanese science and technology
Proposed to be offered next in 1998
Morris Low
12 points
* 2 hours per week
* Clayton
Objectives Students taking this subject should gain an appreciation of the historical context in which Japanese science and technology has developed in Japan. They should also have a sense of the interactions which occur among persons in the world of science, the policy-making bodies which shape that world, and the education system.
Synopsis The subject focuses on the role of science, technology and education in Japan's modernisation. It begins by asking a number of historiographical questions which are examined by looking at Japanese history from the Tokugawa period to the present day. The subject considers how Western imperialist powers were able to enter Japan through the use of science, technology and education and how Western learning provided the means by which the Japanese could resist the West and eventually `modernise'. Scientific knowledge and education were seen as ways of obtaining national power. The view that knowledge is power still holds today.
Assessment Written (6000 words): 50%
* Examination (2 hours): 35%
* Seminar participation (1000 words): 15%
Preliminary reading
Storry R A history of modern Japan Penguin, 1982
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