Editor's note: This is one in an occasional
series of articles dropping in on interesting classes
throughout the university's eight academic
divisions.
The course: Disaster! Learning from Engineering
Catastrophes. An exploration into how engineering
catastrophes, from the sinking of the Titanic to the
meltdown at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and more,
influence successful design changes. Students investigate
man-made disasters in fields such as space exploration,
transportation and public works projects, and consider the
consequences of engineering mistakes. They seek to answer
the question, How do engineers define and respond to
disaster? Undergraduate course; limited to 15 students. 3
credits.
History of
Science and Technology, Krieger School of Arts and
Sciences.
Meeting time: 9 to 11:30 a.m., Mondays, Wednesdays
and Fridays, summer 2004.
The instructor: Allison C. Marsh, doctoral candidate
in the Department of History of Science and Technology, who
was recognized with a Smithsonian Graduate Research
Fellowship from June to August 2004. She developed the
course as part of the field requirements for her Ph.D.
Syllabus: By examining man-made disasters in fields
such as nuclear power, space exploration, transportation,
infrastructure and public works projects, this broad-based
course on the history of technology is aimed at encouraging
students to think about the consequences of engineering
mistakes. Questions raised include, How do different groups
define a "disaster"? Do government agencies and private
engineers define the term differently? What effects do
disasters have on our understanding of engineering?
In each class, students compare older historic
disasters with more recent project failures (for instance,
the Johnstown Flood with the Three Gorges Dam construction)
in an effort to analyze the circumstances surrounding each
and to explore and analyze how the engineers and others
involved learned from their mistakes. Readings on disasters
— both historical and more recent — are
augmented by videos of news reports and group
discussions.
Course work: Requirements include two five- to
10-page papers. The first paper asked students to watch a
"disaster" movie — preferably one based upon an
actual event — and then to analyze the film's
scientific and technological accuracy. Students grappled
with the question, Can Hollywood make a popular movie that
is historically, scientifically and technologically
accurate? In their second paper, students researched a
disaster that occurred in the last five years and placed it
in historical context, addressing such questions as, What
was the root cause of this disaster? Was there a precedent?
What can we learn from failure?
Required reading: Photocopied selections from books
and articles including Silent Spring by Johns
Hopkins alumna Rachel Carson, St. Clair: A 19th-Century
Coal Town's Experience with a Disaster-Prone Industry
by Anthony Wallace, The Johnstown Flood by David
McCullough and Titanic Ships, Titanic Disasters: An
Analysis of Early Cunard and White Star Superliners by
William H. Garzke Jr. and John B. Woodward.
Overheard in class: "How do you define what is a
real disaster and what isn't? Is it loss of human life? The
loss of money or funding? Does that answer depend on the
political and social context, too?"
Students say: "I have been extremely satisfied
with this class. The excellent group dynamics combined with
the extremely varied people in the class and the excellent
leadership of Professor Marsh provide an exciting
environment in which I love to defend my point of view, and
am able to learn from others. I would recommend the class
to anyone with a combined interest in history and
engineering and a desire to participate in class
discussions."
— Nikolai Begg, 17, of Wellesley, Mass.
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