HIST-355 Bioprospecting and the Ecologies of Medicine
Bioprospecting is the process of exploration of the nonhuman natural world for new resources that have social, medical, and commercial value. Today, pharmaceutical companies search for natural products with biochemical potency to discover unknown natural products and drugs. This impulse emerges from a long tradition in which imperial powers dispatched bioprospectors to make the natural wealth of so-called “New Worlds” have value. This course follows the entangled history of medicine and the exploitation of the natural world from early modernity to the present. Students will have the opportunity to take part in the Global Pharmacopeias research collaboration between Harvard University and Hamilton College. The course is writing intensive with a focus on research methods in history, the history of science, and interdisciplinary collaboration. It is suitable for students with a background in history, pre-med, chemistry, the life-sciences, and/or environmental studies.
Writing-Intensive (18)
Credits
1
Cross Listed Courses
ENVST-355 LTAM-355 MDRST-355