WesMaps - Wesleyan University Catalog 2014-2015       Summer Session       Winter Session       Home       Archive       Search
CS92PROD
Water's Past--Water's Future: A History and Archaeology of Water Use and Management

ENVS 274
Spring 2015
Section: 01  
Crosslisting: ARCP 274, ARHA 274
Certificates: Environmental Studies

Our world uses water as if this life-giving resource had no limits and does so in the face of mounting scientific evidence that our planet is facing a long period of water shortage. This course will look critically at the ways in which people have used and managed water in the past, from the ancient world up to the Industrial Revolution, with the aim of assessing the relationship of past uses of water to present and future ones. Beginning with irrigation agriculture, we will consider ways in which water has been used for food production, for generating power, for hygiene, for recreation, and for symbolic purposes. We will also consider water use technologically by looking at hydraulic infrastructures (aqueducts, canals, cisterns, dams, fountains, and sewers) in relation to water use and control and its impact on the environment. Finally, we will consider streams, rivers, and lakes as natural components incorporated into man-made water systems as well as matters of drainage and flood control.
Credit: 1 Gen Ed Area Dept: SBS ENVS
Course Format: SeminarGrading Mode: Graded
Level: UGRD Prerequisites: None
Fulfills a Requirement for: (ARCP)(ENVS)
Past Enrollment Probability: 90% or above

Last Updated on NOV-10-2024
Contact wesmaps@wesleyan.edu to submit comments or suggestions. Please include a url, course title, faculty name or other page reference in your email ? Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, 06459