CONTEMPORARY HISTORY
Instructional goals
The course will train students to understand the main events and theories of contemporary history. Attending students will also increase their ability to critically address the main historiographical problems. Moreover, the course will increase the ability of students to understand the nexus between political history and technological development.
Intended learning outcomes
Broad understanding of historical dynamics and logical interconnections between them.
The impact of human character on his/her thinking and action in determined situations, and the short- and long-term consequences of this thought and action, until today.
The skill of putting oneself in the position of a historical actor and understand his/her action in the context and under the conditions of the time.
Comparing different interpretative approaches to a historical event and being able to critically evaluate the deeper meaning of the event in a broader context with impact on todays political and social problems. This enhances independent and critical thinking.
Public Speaking and communication skills, amidst the summary presentations and document analysis exercises in class.
Analytical Writing and communication skills amidst the written document analysis exercise.
Course Contents
This course addresses the main historical events of both global and European history from the 19th century up to the present days. Within the contemporary history course, the “contemporary history and technology” teaching will interrogate the nexus of the development of technology since WW2 and the main international trends. Technology represents a vey effective key to provide a lecture of important political and social evolutions. Furthermore in many cases technology shall be considered as a transformative factor, meaning that it is not only the description of human production within the evolution of the society but the production itself shapes the evolution of the society. Between the 20th and 21st century, the digital revolution has created a new paradigm where the relation between human and technology is changing, which leads to a new set of analysis.
Reference Books
Antony Best, Jussi Hanhimaki, Joseph A. Maiolo, Kirsten E. Schulze, International History of the Twentieth Century and Beyond, Routledge, Last edutin (2015 or following years)
Additional readings will be assigned by the instructor.
Teaching Methods
The course will integrate traditional teaching with student presentations and debates that will stimulate the participation of each students in the activities of the class.
Assessment Method
The exam consists in a final oral exam.
Thesis assignment criteria
A final course grade of at least 28/30.
Week 1 Contenuto sessioni on line e on campus
Introduction to the course.
on line
Introduction and Course Organization; methodological approach
on campus
From European history to global history
Week 2 Contenuto sessioni on line e on campus
Rise and downfall of Europe 1871-1914
online
From the concert of Europe to WWI
on campus
Ideas and ideologies in Europe 1815-1919
Week 3 Contenuto sessioni on line e on campus
From WWI to WWII
on line
The political development 1919-1939
on campus
The interwar period and the new political regimes
Week 4 Contenuto sessioni on line e on campus
Towards a globalized world
on line
Interpretations of WWII and the global transformation
on campus
The rise of a non-European world
Week 5 Contenuto sessioni on line e on campus
The Cold War
on line
One world, two empires: interpretations
on campus
The Cold War in its historical development
Week 6 Contenuto sessioni on line e on campus
History is back
on line
The end of the Cold War and its legacy
on campus
interpretations of the post-Cold War age
Week 7 Contenuto sessioni on line e on campus
History and memory
on line
Making history today: main challenges
on campus
The role of history in the current political debate
Week 8 Contenuto sessioni on line e on campus
contemporary history and technology, main issues.
On campus
Cases and examples of a technologically oriented approach to contemporary history.
Difference between the “history of science and technology” and the “contemporary history and technology” analysis. Technology shall not be considered as an autonomous field to be studied separately, but can serve the purpose to develop an integrated vision of the human society based on technological evolution. To period beginning after WW2 illustrates this trend, with a further acceleration after the “digital revolution”.
Online
The relation between technology and contemporary history raises questions about the human-machine relations, to be linked with an historical anthropology approach.
Technology as an anthropomorphic activity ?
History and technology
BULLETIN OF THE BRITISH SOCIETY FOR THE HISTORY OF SCIENCE VOL. 1 OCTOBER, 1950 No. 4 Presidential Address, The History of Ancient Technology Delivered by PROFESSOR J. R. PARTINGTON, M.B.E., on 1st May, 195
Stephen Barley, Journal of Engineering and Technology Management Volume 15, Issue 4, September 1998, Pages 237-255 What can we learn from the history of technology?
Rodrigo, Pierre. « Marx et la technique », Philosophie, vol. 133, no. 2, 2017, pp. 37-51.
Robert F. Gary, Matthias Fink, Olga Belousova, Yorgos Marinakis, Robert Tierney, Steven T. Walsh,
An introduction to the field of abundant economic thought, Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Volume 155, 2020, 119796, ISSN 0040-1625
Science , technology, policy and democracy
_Science The Endless Frontier, A Report to the President by Vannevar Bush, Director of the Office of Scientific Research and Development, July 1945 / Roosevelt Presidency
https://www.nsf.gov/od/lpa/nsf50/vbush1945.htm
_Carl Mitcham, Science policy and democracy, VANNEVAR BUSH’S SCIENCE THE ENDLESS FRONTIER
Volume 67, November 2021, 101783 Technology in Society
Cold War / Deterrence/ Industry
Industry in the Cold War Author(s): Francis Walton Source: Ordnance, Vol. 44, No. 238 (JANUARY-FEBRUARY 1960), pp. 588-591 Published by: National Defense Industrial Association Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/45365746 Accessed: 10-11-2021 14:21 UTC
Principles of Nuclear Deterrence and Strategy, Bruno Tertrais, NDC report, May 2021
Repairing credibility: Repositioning nuclear weapons knowledge after the Cold War Author(s): Benjamin Sims and Christopher R. Henke Source: Social Studies of Science , June 2012, Vol. 42, No. 3 (June 2012), pp. 324-347 Published by: Sage Publications, Ltd
Defense Research After the Cold War Author(s): Colin Norman Source: Science , Jan. 19, 1990, Vol. 247, No. 4940 (Jan. 19, 1990), pp. 272-273 Published by: American Association for the Advancement of Science
How the United States Sold Its Soul to Win the Cold War (And Now Cannot Develop a Coherent Post-Cold War Foreign Policy) Author(s): Joan Hoff Source: International Journal , Summer, 2001, Vol. 56, No. 3 (Summer, 2001), pp. 373- 392 Published by: Sage Publications, Ltd. on behalf of the Canadian International Council
Deterrence and the Cold War Author(s): Richard Ned Lebow and Janice Gross Stein Source: Political Science Quarterly, Vol. 110, No. 2 (Summer, 1995), pp. 157-181 Published by: The Academy of Political Science
Week 9 Contenuto sessioni on line e on campus
the question of a technological dominance. Defense technology
On campus
Technology and military power : some examples and a classic analysis.
Defense technology as a key feature/development for the reach of military supremacy/deterrence (development of weapons, nuclear race.)
The cold war, a technological victory ? (USA SDI)
Online
The switch between a “defense” technological push to a “civilian” technological push. A new paradigm ? to what extend ?
Additional readings
Deudney, Daniel, and G. John Ikenberry. “Who Won the Cold War?” Foreign Policy, no. 87, 1992, pp. 123–138. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/1149164. Accessed 3 July 2021.
Rasser, Martijn, and Megan Lamberth. How the United States Competed: Past Technology Strategies. Center for a New American Security, 2021, pp. 14–20, Taking the Helm: A National Technology Strategy to Meet the China Challenge, www.jstor.org/stable/resrep28655.7.
Week 10 Contenuto sessioni on line e on campus
Space policy : from a classic case (space race during the cold ward) to a transformative one (new space)
On campus
The Space race and the cold war, milestones and developments. Strategies of the main players (USA, USSR, European countries, China).
The ideological dimension of the space race : the question of an “irrational technology” persuading pure ideological goals ?
Online
Imagining the Cosmos: Utopians, Mystics, and the Popular Culture of Spaceflight in Revolutionary Russia Author(s): Asif A. Siddiqi Source: Osiris, Vol. 23, No. 1, Intelligentsia Science: The Russian Century, 1860-1960 (2008), pp. 260-288 Published by: The University of Chicago Press on behalf of The History of Science Society Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/591877
Soviets in Space Author(s): Peter M. Banks and Sally K. Ride Source: Scientific American , Vol. 260, No. 2 (FEBRUARY 1989), pp. 32-41 Published by: Scientific American, a division of Nature America, Inc. Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/24987137
Was the Race to the Moon Real? Author(s): John M. Logsdon and Alain Dupas Source: Scientific American , Vol. 270, No. 6 (JUNE 1994), pp. 36-43 Published by: Scientific American, a division of Nature America, Inc
"Why Are We Telling Lies?" The Creation of Soviet Space History Myths Author(s): SLAVA GEROVITCH Source: The Russian Review , JULY 2011, Vol. 70, No. 3 (JULY 2011), pp. 460-484 Published by
Kennedy's Romantic Moon and Its Rhetorical Legacy for Space Exploration Author(s): John W. Jordan Source: Rhetoric and Public Affairs , Summer 2003, Vol. 6, No. 2 (Summer 2003), pp. 209-231 Published by: Michigan State University Press
Competing Technologies, National(ist) Narratives, and Universal Claims: Toward a Global History of Space Exploration Author(s): ASIF A. SIDDIQI Source: Technology and Culture , April 2010, Vol. 51, No. 2 (April 2010), pp. 425-443 Published by: The Johns Hopkins University Press and the Society for the History of Technology
Space, the Final Economic Frontier Author(s): Matthew Weinzierl Source: The Journal of Economic Perspectives , Vol. 32, No. 2 (Spring 2018), pp. 173-192 Published by: American Economic Association Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/26409430
The Return of the Space Visionaries Author(s): Rand Simberg Source: The New Atlantis , No. 56 (Summer/Fall 2018), pp. 48-68 Published by: Center for the Study of Technology and Society
NASA’s Next 50 YearsAuthor(s): Robert Zubrin Source: The New Atlantis , No. 59 (Summer 2019), pp. 63-67 Published by: Center for the Study of Technology and Society Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/26760514
Gil Denis, Didier Alary, Xavier Pasco, Nathalie Pisot, Delphine Texier, Sandrine Toulza, “From new space to big space: How commercial space dream is becoming a reality”, https://www.frstrategie.org/sites/default/files/documents/publications/autres/2020/articleespace.pdf
Jean-Pierre Darnis « The New Space Economy: Consequences for Space Security in Europe », in Kai-Uwe Schrogl (ed.), Handbook of Space Security. Policies, Applications and Programs, Cham, Springer, 2019
Jean-Pierre Darnis “Space as a Key Element of Europe's Digital Sovereignty», Notes de l'Ifri, dicember 2020, 22 p https://www.ifri.org/sites/default/files/atoms/files/darnis_space_europe_digital_sovereignty_2020_.pdf
European Space Program: It's Half-Speed Ahead Author(s): Dominique Verguèse Source: Science, New Series, Vol. 179, No. 4077 (Mar. 9, 1973), pp. 984-986 Published by: American Association for the Advancement of Science Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/1735180
Week 11 Contenuto sessioni on line e on campus
Week 4 from computing/telecommunications networks to the digital age, a further shift ?
On campus
Informatic age, telecommunication development, internet protocols. Actors and trends.
Internet and the political vision of a “open” society in the 20th century.
Grid technologies transformation.
The 21st century digitalization shift : the data paradigm (main technological steps)
The question of the interpretation of this technological evolution. A new relation between human and machine
Online
Grid transformation : the case of energy production and technology
Additional readings
Rosenzweig, Roy. “Wizards, Bureaucrats, Warriors, and Hackers: Writing the History of the Internet.” The American Historical Review, vol. 103, no. 5, 1998, pp. 1530–1552. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2649970. Accessed 3 July 2021.
“Internet Histories, Narratives and the Rise of the Network Ideology.” The Internet Myth: From the Internet Imaginary to Network Ideologies, by Paolo Bory, vol. 14, University of Westminster Press, London, 2020, pp. 7–38. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv12fw7sn.6. Accessed 3 July 2021.
Brooke, Heather. “Inside the Digital Revolution.” Journal of International Affairs, vol. 70, no. 1, 2016, pp. 29–53. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/90012596. Accessed 3 July 2021.
Jerry Glowniak, History, structure, and function of the internet, Seminars in Nuclear Medicine,
Volume 28, Issue 2, 1998, Pages 135-144, (Elsevier Science Direct)
GDPR
The Untold Story of Edward Snowden’s Impact on the GDPRAuthor(s): Hallie Coyne Source: The Cyber Defense Review , Vol. 4, No. 2 (FALL 2019), pp. 65-80 Published by: Army Cyber Institute
La governance globale dei dati e la sovranità digitale europea Author(s): Carolina Polito Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI) (2021) Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep30937
The European Union and the Search for Digital Sovereignty: Building “Fortress Europe” or Preparing for a New World? Author(s): FRANCES G. BURWELL and KENNETH PROPP Atlantic Council (2020)
Transatlantic Data Transfers The Slow-Motion Crisis Author(s): Kenneth Propp Council on Foreign Relations (2021)
Le relazioni transatlantiche al tempo del digitale: la questione del trasferimento di dati Author(s): Jean-Pierre Darnis Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI) (2021)
Digital world
REALITY BYTES Author(s): Matthew Taylor and Anthony Giddens Source: RSA Journal , Vol. 161, No. 5564 (2015), pp. 26-29 Published by: Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/26204456
Inside the Digital Revolution Author(s): Heather Brooke Source: Journal of International Affairs , Vol. 70, No. 1, The Cyber Issue (Winter 2016), pp. 29-53 Published by: Journal of International Affairs Editorial Board
Week 12 Contenuto sessioni on line e on campus
The digital age, a completely data driven word?
On campus
Historical cases :
Citizenship and digital technology : Snowden Case, Max Schrems cases
Tech platforms and democracy : Facebook Cambridge Analytica case
Tech and power : The 5G question within the US/China competition.
Issues
The question of politics, sovereignty and democracy within the digital age :
A new scale of power for the states if compared with the techno giants? Does tech platforms raise issues for democracy ?
International geopolitical competition: The US/China rivalry and its technological dimension
Online
Digital agenda in international policy. The EU emerging as a regulatory power (GDPR, Digital strategy).
An emerging EU technological sovereignty concept.
Additional readings
Lamoreaux, Naomi R. “The Problem of Bigness: From Standard Oil to Google.” The Journal of Economic Perspectives, vol. 33, no. 3, 2019, pp. 94–117. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/26732323. Accessed 3 July 2021.
“THE SURVEILLANCE STATE AND ITS DISCONTENTS.” Foreign Policy, no. 203, 2013, pp. 64–74. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/24576005. Accessed 3 July 2021.
Farrell, Henry, and Abraham Newman. “The Transatlantic Data War: Europe Fights Back Against the NSA.” Foreign Affairs, vol. 95, no. 1, 2016, pp. 124–133., www.jstor.org/stable/43946632. Accessed 3 July 2021.
Allen, General John, et al. TECHNOLOGICAL LEADERSHIP. German Marshall Fund of the United States, 2020, pp. 30–33, TOGETHER OR ALONE?: Choices and Strategies for Transatlantic Relations for 2021 and Beyond, www.jstor.org/stable/resrep27629.9. Accessed 3 July 2021. https://www.frstrategie.org/en/publications/notes/european-technological-sovereignty-response-covid-19-crisis-2020 https://www.frstrategie.org/en/publications/recherches-et-documents/european-union-between-strategic-autonomy-and-technological-sovereignty-impasses-and-opportunities-2021
GDPR
The Untold Story of Edward Snowden’s Impact on the GDPRAuthor(s): Hallie Coyne Source: The Cyber Defense Review , Vol. 4, No. 2 (FALL 2019), pp. 65-80 Published by: Army Cyber Institute
La governance globale dei dati e la sovranità digitale europea Author(s): Carolina Polito Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI) (2021) Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep30937
The European Union and the Search for Digital Sovereignty: Building “Fortress Europe” or Preparing for a New World? Author(s): FRANCES G. BURWELL and KENNETH PROPP Atlantic Council (2020)
Transatlantic Data Transfers The Slow-Motion Crisis Author(s): Kenneth Propp Council on Foreign Relations (2021)
Le relazioni transatlantiche al tempo del digitale: la questione del trasferimento di dati Author(s): Jean-Pierre Darnis Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI) (2021)
Laurence NARDON, Siméon RUST, USA/Europe: Seven Digital Challenges, Potomac Paper, No. 42, July 2021, https://www.ifri.org/en/publications/notes-de-lifri/potomac-papers/usaeurope-seven-digital-challenges
Alice PANNIER, Europe in the Geopolitics of Technology: Connecting the Internal and External Dimensions, https://www.ifri.org/sites/default/files/atoms/files/pannier_europe_geopolitics_technology_2021_.pdf
Jean-Pierre Darnis “The European Union between strategic autonomy and technological sovereignty: impasses and opportunities, FRS Recherches & Documents, n°10/2021 (Avril 2021), 16 p,
Jean-Pierre Darnis, “European technological sovereignty: a response to the Covid-19 crisis?, Note de la FRS n°45/2020
https://www.frstrategie.org/sites/default/files/documents/publications/notes/2020/202045.pdf