History of Technology at Imperial College, London

Academic Programs HISTORY OF TECHNOLOGY AT IMPERIAL COLLEGE, LONDON N. A. F. SMITH The Department of History of Science and Technology at Imperial College was inaugurated in 1963. The permanent staff consists of Professor A. Rupert Hall and Dr. Marie Boas Hall. Norman A. F. Smith and W. N. Slatcher hold Leverhulme Research Fellowships. Smith has been working for some years on a general history of dams and their uses, and Slatcher is engaged on studies relative to the Industrial Revolution in England. Students in the department are all postgraduates and are involved in studies leading to higher degrees, either an M.Sc. or Ph.D. Candidates for admission to courses in the history of technology are, in general, required to possess a first degree in engineering, but other qualifications may also be suitable. All students must spend at least one year on the M.Sc. course, the degree being awarded on the results of a written examination at the end of each session. The M.Sc. course consists of four hours of classes each week throughout the session (October to June). The division of the course into four parts is reflected in the titles of the four examination papers: (a) “Evolution of the Crafts to about 1500”; (fi) “The Rise of Industrial Technology, 1500-1800”; (c) “The Growth of Scientific Technology since 1800”; and (d) “Technology in the Modern World.” All M.Sc. candidates take papers (fl) and (d) and can choose between (a) and (c), making three papers in all. A good performance in the M.Sc. will allow a candidate to proceed to the Ph.D. course. This requires a further period of study of at least two calendar years and is assessed by thesis and oral examination. Ph.D. students pursue their research under the supervision of the head of the department, Professor A. Rupert Hall. They are not required to attend Dr. Smith is Leverhulme Research Fellow in the history of technology at Im­ perial College. 172 History of Technology at Imperial College, London 173 any lectures or classes with the exception of one two-hour seminar per week, which provides an opportunity for Ph.D. and postdoctoral work­ ers to discuss their research. To date, three people have completed postgraduate courses in the history of technology. M. Kaufman obtained his Ph.D. in 1968 for an investigation into the history and industrial development of polyvinyl chloride. Of the two candidates who obtained the M.Sc. degree in 1968, K. Dawson has now begun a doctoral dissertation on the history of telegraphy. A particular project, in which Smith is for this year the principal investigator, is a survey of the surviving evidence of Victorian tech­ nology, which has been generously supported by the Leverhulme Trust. Readers of Technology and Culture will agree that too many relics of early engineering works, industrial buildings, machines and equipment, tools, and records disappear without trace. This survey is directed toward three objectives: (1) finding what has already been conserved; (2) finding out what else should be conserved, especially with respect to those aspects of technology where little conservation has been at­ tempted; and (3) discovering the agencies and procedures that already exist having conservation as their object. Much activity in conservation and recording is already in being in Great Britain—on the national scale by Rex Wailes, R. A. Buchanan, and others, and locally by many local societies, museum directors, and enthusiasts. Our aim is to try to gain some over-all measure of the extent of the problem of conservation and compare with that the present en­ deavors to bring it about. We hope that the many who interest them­ selves in history of technology and industrial archeology will agree that an attempt at a large-scale picture is not inappropriate. The survey is of course concerned with the problem as it exists in Great Britain. At the same time, though, there may be readers in the United States and other countries who have already had experience with what is involved and have ideas as to the sort of thing that should be done. Help, information, and advice will be warmly appreciated by Dr. Norman A. F. Smith

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