Consortium for the History of Technology and Science

The Consortium for the History of Technology and Science was established by the ISU Department of History in 1986 as the Center for the History of Technology and Science. It brings together ISU faculty, graduate students, and others to support esearch, study, and teaching in the history of technology and science, broadly defined. The Consortium is a natural fit for Iowa State as a university that has traditionally emphasized and excelled in the development of technology and science. The group has promoted interdisciplinary work, hosted speakers on campus, organized and ran seminars funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, expedited the development of manuscript collections for ISU, and provided funding to graduate students concentrating in the history of technology and science.

Core Consortium Faculty:

  • Amy Bix – director, Consortium for History of Technology and Science; professor, History Department, ISU
  • James Andrews – professor, History Department, ISU
  • Simon Cordery – chair and professor, History Department, ISU
  • Michael Christopher Low – assistant professor, History Department, ISU
  • Tim Wolters – associate professor, History Department, ISU

Current Initiatives:

  • The Consortium is a co-sponsor of the 2018 Society for the History of Technology (SHOT) Conference, meeting in St. Louis on October 11-14, 2018.
  • The Consortium is collaborating with the University Museum staff to develop an exhibit on STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) that will be mounted in spring, 2019, in ISU’s University Museum.
  • The Consortium will be organizing and hosting a colloquium on the ISU campus in Spring 2019 on the history of Midwestern technology and science, with follow-up work to publish those scholarly papers.