Contemporary (1950 CE - Present)
Short Teaching Module: Science, Technology, and the U.S. Military-Industrial Complex during the Cold War
For decades, the relationship between science and the U.S. government during the early Cold War years was understood largely as a story of a militaristic state persecuting and co-opting scientists and scientific institutions to serve national security interests.
Harvard Physics Department asserts that investigations threaten national security, 1950
This document is the response of the Harvard University Physics Department to a proposed Congressional amendment in 1950 requiring that the FBI investigate scientists’ “loyalty” before they could receive government contracts.
National Academy of Sciences objects to political persecution of Condon, 1948
This document from 1948 expresses concern by members of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) over the political persecution of Edward Condon, a physicist and director of the Bureau of Standards.
AAAS Defends Edward Condon from HUAC, 1948
This document from 1948 circulates to members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS) the organization’s position on the political persecution of Edward Condon, a physicist and director of the Bureau of Standards.
Short Teaching Module: Portraying Women Workers: Beyond Norma Rae
Starting at the turn of the twentieth century, U.S. and insular government offices and textile and garment businesses incorporated women of the New South and Puerto Rico into manufacturing in distinct yet interrelated ways.
Analyzing Travel Records
In a way, all historical thinking and all historical writing deal with travel accounts.
"Strange Fruit" by Billie Holiday (1939)
Based on a poem by Abel Meeropol published in January 1937, “Strange Fruit” was a song protesting the lynching of African America
Kasai Velvet, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Despite its name, Kasai velvet, or velours du kasai, is not actually a velvet.
Analyzing Primary Sources on Women in World History
Traditionally, historical writing focused on elites and often rendered women invisible unless they were queens or empresses.
"Resolutely support the just struggle of the American Blacks!" Propaganda Poster, 1963
The title of this Chinese propaganda poster is “Resolutely support the just struggle of the American Blacks!” (Jianjue zhichi Meiguo heirende zhengyi douzheng!).