New WWI Photographs Discovered, Restored November 4, 2009
Posted by jdresner in doing history, military, not homework.add a comment
Hundreds of glass-plate pictures of British WWI soldiers have been discovered in France and published. The full collection can be seen here, perhaps the first time I’ve ever seen a LiveJournal account used for historical sources!
Book Context due Monday* November 4, 2009
Posted by jdresner in Schedule Change, doing history, hist 102 (Fall 2009), homework.add a comment
Under the category of “Context” the book review assignment says:
Context: What is the background of the author? Is their personal background relevant to the subject of the book? What is the historical context, the time period discussed by the book? What other books discuss the same kinds of things, and how does this book compare? Note that your textbook is an invaluable resource for comparisons and context.
Obviously, there are several different issues going on here, but they basically fall into two categories: Historical context and Historiographical context.
Historical context is about how the material in your book fits with the rest of what’s going on in the world at the time: if you’re writing about Japanese 19th century industrialization, for example (nobody is, unfortunately), you’d want to note that Japan was a late industrializer compared to other major industrial nations, that it was the age of unequal treaties, and that industrialization happened at the same time as the rise of nationalism, parliamentarianism, and imperialism.
Historiographical context, on the other hand, is about how the book fits with the rest of the books written on the same topic: what are the normal interpretations of this event and how does this book change that; who is this book arguing with, and why?
In both cases, your textbook is a good starting place, because it does look at the broader context, and because it represents a kind of “current consensus” on most issues. Sometimes the book itself will describe the context for you; sometimes you have to work at it a bit.
* Yes, the context assignment was supposed to be due Friday the 6th, but I forgot to mention it in class, so I’m pushing it back to Monday the 9th.
Historians Explain Murder? November 3, 2009
Posted by jdresner in current events, doing history, historiography, not homework.add a comment
How have historians dealt with questions of crime and punishment? Jill Lepore looks at new books on murder, with a special emphasis on explaining why the US looks different than economically and politically similar societies.
A few announcements October 21, 2009
Posted by jdresner in administrative, doing history, hist 102 (Fall 2009), homework, not homework.add a comment
Reminder: No class for either section on Friday the 23rd, due to the Presidential inauguration. Students are encouraged to attend — and see your instructors in academic regalia! — at the front of Russ Hall (or in Weede, if the weather is poor) at 2.
While I didn’t require resubmission of thesis statements that missed the mark this time, I’m adding an element to the next book review assignment, the discussion of the argument and evidence of the book: you must include a clearly marked, one sentence statement indicating what you think the thesis of the work is. This is quite important for the argument and evidence discussion: if you don’t know what the author is trying to prove, you can’t evaluate the effectiveness of the argument they make or the quality of the evidence they present.
As you try to summarize and discuss your chosen books, be careful of how you use the book and any related sources you may find. Obviously, using the actual words of a source — textbook, internet or otherwise — without quotation marks or other acknowledgement is clearly and blatantly plagiarism. Weak paraphrasing can constitute plagiarism: if you don’t thoroughly alter the language of your source, it is a form of intellectual theft. Even something fully paraphrased in your own words can be considered plagiarism if you don’t acknowledge your source(s) — this is what footnotes, endnotes and parenthetical citations with works cited pages are for. Plagiarism is academic dishonesty, theft of intellectual property, and a violation of University policy, and will not be tolerated in this course.
Finally, a little 19th century union history — the struggle between wage-earning workers and capitalist owners — in early baseball.
Food History: requires testing! October 18, 2009
Posted by jdresner in doing history, historiography, not homework.add a comment
Chris Bray passes on word of two experiences with early American food: Gingerbread cookies from Colonial Williamsburg and a pound cake taste test, pitting a modern recipe against a two-century old version which required an hour of hand-beating. See if you can figure out how “Pound Cake” got its name…
In other news, historical sea logs help climatologists.
Quick survey of the evolving uses of the term “socialism” October 15, 2009
Posted by jdresner in doing history, hist 102 (Fall 2009), not homework, resources.add a comment
At HNN, Walter Moss has a nice survey of some of the fuzzy language used by and about socialists, socialism, progressivism, etc.
History Club Meeting October 7, 2009
Posted by jdresner in doing history, not homework.add a comment
Not for extra credit — though the History Club events usually qualify — but a good group:
Greetings from the History Club here at PSU!
If you are a history major, minor, or are simply a student who is interested in learning more about history and participating in fun activities to that end, please come to our club meeting on Oct. 21st at 3pm in the History computer lab (306J Russ Hall).
We would love to see you all there! Please feel free to come and enjoy free food and drinks, as well as getting to know some of us in the club. We will be talking about upcoming events, as well as those that we would like to plan for the future.
See you on the 21st!
Also, I just got a flyer for the Pitt State Women’s Studies Club — all students welcome! — meeting Monday, October 12, 4:30pm in Grubbs 422. Again, not an extra credit opportunity in itself, but for interested folks.
A rough calculation of African Slave Trade September 18, 2009
Posted by jdresner in doing history, resources.add a comment
| Atlantic trade volume | Middle Passage mortality rate | Islamic Trade | |
| 15c-16c | ~2k/yr | ~50% | ~10k/yr |
| 17c | rising to 20k/yr | ~10k/yr | |
| 18c | 55k/yr | ~10k/yr | |
| 19c | 33k/yr (peaking early) | ~5% | ~10k/yr |
| total | 14M | ~25% | ~5M |
Sources include Bentley&Ziegler, Traditions and Transformations, McKay, et. al, and others
History of Print and Blogging in the Arab World May 7, 2009
Posted by jdresner in current events, doing history, hist 102 (Spring 2009), historiography.add a comment
I will be taking a moment in class Friday to reflect on this article by Brian Ulrich, describing the history of print and other media up to the present in the Ottoman Empire and its offshoots.
Industrial Revolution History April 16, 2009
Posted by jdresner in doing history, historiography, not homework.add a comment
I know we’re done with it, technically, but if you want a quick review of the technology, there’s a nice book review in the Wall Street Journal of a history of industrial revolution innovation. It’s a good model, actually, of how a book review is done: informative, critical, and ends up giving you a great sense of whether the book would be worth your time.
