“Stone Age,” “Iron Age,” “Silicon Valley” – these terms reflect major aspects of human civilization. From textiles to sugar, to transistors and smartphones – various products have proven critical developments in human history. What materials made them possible? What new industries did they spawn? What new problems did they create? What might come next? In this course, we’ll cover:

• • A historical view of materials, looking at how the field pervades many disciplines

  • When materials serve as “function shifters” with performance that resolves previous trade-offs

  • Identifying dilemmas that require big breakthroughs involving materials, and resource ecosystems (“technology bundles”) that drive a material’s role

Term Project: 

Investigate a material property via simulation and/or experimentation, and consider its significance in the design of relevant products/technologies

Labs: 

Skills and tools relating to metallurgy, measurement instruments, solar energy, etc.