Graduate Students

Ryan T. Austin

raustin@iastate.edu
Ph.D. Candidate, HOTS Program

Education:
M.A. History of Science and Technology (Iowa State University) 2008
A.B.D. status reached in Feb 2008
Ph.D. graduation in History set for May 2009
Employment:
Lecturer, HIST 222 (Spring 2008 and Spring 2009)
Teaching Assistant, HIST 221 and 222 (6 semesters, 2005-current)
State of Iowa Teaching License (5-12) in US History and World History (2008-2010)
Publications:
"City Building through Technology: the Commitment to Community Development through Municipal Services"(86 pages, Iowa State University Master’s Research Essay, 2008)
Author of the "History of the name Jayhawk" for United States Army Reserve Unit "Task Force Jayhawk" (326th Area Support Group) Company History under the commission of COL Thomas Hardy (July 2008)
Conference Papers:
Presented "A Commitment to Public Ownership: Ames Municipal Electric Utility, 1890-1940"at the 50th Anniversary Midwest JUNTO Conference (April 2007).
Grants and Awards:
Winner of the 2007 Matterson Best Graduate Paper Award (Iowa State University) for "Talking through the Wall: the Introduction of the Telephone in Ames, Iowa"
Winner of the 2008 Hoover Presidential Library Association Herbert Hoover Travel Grant
Winner of the 2008 Teaching Excellence Award from Iowa State University
Dissertation Title:
"A Piratical State Organization for Benevolence: Herbert Hoover and World War I Relief in Europe"Dissertation Summary/Subject Matter:
Herbert Hoover and the Commission for Relief in Belgium, 1914-1919.

 

Cynthia D. Bennet

cdbennet@iastate.edu
Ph.D. student, HOTS program

Education:
M.A.(2001) Iowa State University, History
B.S. (1998) History major, with honors/English minor
Areas of interest:
19th and 20th century American technology; history of women and work, and rescue technology\
Other Research interests:
Completed papers on ventilation reform as part of the public health movement in New York City during the 19th century, also a paper on virginity as a cultural ideal and how that ideal creates a market for sexual reconstructive surgeries that replicate the virgin state.
Dissertation title:
Science Service and the American Public (working title)
Dissertation summary:
Science Service was an organization founded shortly after WWI with the goal of fostering and encouraging the public's interest in science. Through publications, science clubs, demonstration kits, training science writers, and facilitating communication between scientists and journalists, Science Service helped the public experience science primarily through the resulting technologies.
Advisor: Dr. Amy Bix
Conference papers:
"Photo Finish: Death and Photography in the Nineteenth Century" Mid-Atlantic Popular/ American Culture Association Conference, Baltimore, MD, October 2006
"Bridging the Gap: Scientists and the Public in Twentieth-Century America"
Midwest Junto for the History of Science, Ames, IA, April 2007
"Photo Finish: Postmortem Photography in 19th Century America" Society for the History of Technology, Lisbon, Portugal, October 2008
"Bridging the Gap: Science Service, Scientists, and the Press" History of Science Society, Pittsburgh, PA, November 2008
Grants and awards:
Best Graduate Paper, Phi Alpha Theta Regional Conference, 2001 for "Photo Finish: The Memorialization of Death Through Photography in Nineteenth-Century America"
Other information:
Taught American history survey courses as an adjunct at Des Moines Area Community College for three years.
Did legal history research for a private history company.
Was the first employee of the Ames Historical Society, and then was on the Society board where my special area of activity was an oral history project on the Ames homefront during WWII.
Was the Society for the History of Technology's (SHOT) Administrative Manager and assistant to the Executive Secretary for five years (ending 2008).

Gary Cameron

gcameron@iastate.edu
Status: Ph.D. Student, HOTS program (since 2006)
Education:
BS (1986) History, Iowa State University
MA (1999) History, Iowa State University
Areas of Interest:

• History of astronomy, astrophysics, and the physical sciences (19th & 20th century)
• History of scientific instruments and related technology (particularly telescopes, optics, and surveying instruments)
• History of science education
• Modern Europe (1600 – Present)
• Military history
• Popular culture in the 19th & 20th centuries

Research Interests:
My research focuses in particular on amateur astronomy and science popularization in the late 19th and early 20th century. This period saw an increase in volume and diversity in terms of popular media (magazines and books for the lay-person) and popular education in astronomy (public observatories and planetariums). In addition, I am interested in the changes in technology of instruments during this period: not only was there a shift among professional astronomers from refracting (lens) telescopes to much larger reflecting (mirror) telescopes, there was also a shift among amateur astronomers from expensive factory-made telescopes to home-built telescopes and it was partly this that made astronomy as a hobby more accessible and ‘egalitarian’.
Advisor: Dr. Amy Bix
Dissertation Title: "Open to the Public: Astronomy Popularization, 1910 – 1960" (provisional title)
Conference Papers:

• "The Maksutov Club: The Amateur in Science" – 1998 Annual Meeting of the Antique Telescope Society (Harvard University)
• "A New Way of Looking: the Amateur Telescope Making Movement in 1920’s America" – 2006 Junto for the History of Science (University of Wisconsin, Madison)
• "Stars for Sale: Commercial Telescope Manufactures and the Popularization of Astronomy in America, 1910 – 1960" – 2007 Junto for the History of Science (Iowa State University, Ames)
• "Survival of Astronomical Observatories in America: Professionals and the Public" – 2008 Junto for the History of Science (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis)

Publications:

• "William Augustus Norton", "Alvan Clark & Sons", "George Willis Ritchey", and "James Gilbert Baker" articles for the Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomy,  (Springer, 2007)

Teaching:
I have had experience teaching both European and American history as well as other subjects at the college level.

• History 280, "History of Science, I" (Iowa State University); Fall 2008
• History 201 & 202, "Western Civilization" (Iowa State University); Spring & Fall 2007, Spring 2008. Served/serving as TA.
• History 311, "Topics in American History: The American Frontier" (Buena Vista University); 2002. Adjunct professor/lecturer.
• Astronomy 120 & 125L, "Introduction to Solar System Astronomy", "Introduction to Astronomy Lab" (Iowa State University); Fall 1998 – Fall 2006. Served as TA/lecturer.
• General Science 110, "Astronomy" (Buena Vista University); 2003 – present. Adjunct professor/lecturer.

Interests:
I am originally from Des Moines, Iowa where I became interested in both astronomy and history by frequent visits to the Drake Municipal Observatory. After getting my MA degree, I became administrator for the Marshall County Historical Museum (1999 – 2005). I also have been an adjunct instructor for Iowa State University and Buena Vista University in both astronomy and history. Personal interests include: astronomy, historical reenacting (I do American War of 1812 and have gotten pretty good at tailoring my own uniforms), and collecting and restoring antique telescopes and related technology. Memberships include: Phi Alpha Theta, Kappa Iota Chapter (Iowa State University – currently serving as vice-president), History of Science Society, Historical Astronomy Division of the American Astronomical Society, the Antique Telescope Society, & The Iowa Conservation and Preservation Consortium (member of the board since 2003).

Lynda Pinney Domino

ldomino@iastate.edu
HOTS Ph.D. candidate
Education:
B.S. History with Secondary Ed. certification Iowa State University (1998)
M.A. History Iowa State University (2003)
Master's Thesis: He Kept Her the Space of a Year: Celtic secular marriage in late medieval Scotland.
Major Professor: Kenneth G. Madison
Areas of interest:
19th c. American history/American technology; 19th c. military technology and military medicine; American military history
Research interests:
Civil War military history - specifically, weapons technology and tactics - and Civil War medicine, including the courts-martial of Civil War surgeons. Other areas of research include cavalry and equine technology. I like to keep a finger in other areas of military history, as well. Most recently, I researched the weapons technology and tactics of the Battle of Flodden Field (1513) between England and Scotland.
Dissertation title:
Weapons, Wounds, and Warfare: 1861-1865 [working title]
Dissertation summary:
I am researching the ways in which Civil War soldiers were wounded by following specific regiments and companies into battle, studying the weapons and tactical movements used by those units during the battle, and then going with the wounded men into the field hospitals to see what kinds of wounds they
received and why. How did advances in weapons technology affect the type and character of the wounds that Civil War soldiers received? What role did tactics play? In particular, what were the differences between pre-1864 tactics and post-1864 tactics and how did these differences affect the wounding of soldiers? Finally, how did the change in the type and character of wounds affect the way that surgeons were treating them? Civil War medicine is a comparatively young field of study in American Civil War history and, as such, there has been relatively little work done on the role of changing tactics and advances in weaponry with respect to wounds and their treatment. To clearly understand the roles played by weapons technology and tactics in the Civil War, we must complete the picture by following the soldier not just onto the battlefield, but also into the field hospitals and beyond.
Advisor: Dr. Amy Bix
Conference papers:
"Warfare in Sixteenth-century Scotland." Paper presented at the Sixteenth-century Society Conference in Toronto, Canada. (November 2004)
"Celtic Secular Marriage in Late Medieval Scotland." Paper presented at the International Congress on Medieval Studies, Kalamazoo, MI. (May 2002). "Marriage Practices in Medieval Scotland." Paper presented at the International Congress on Medieval Studies, Kalamazoo, MI. (May 2001).
Commentator on the session "Public Controversy, Historical Debates and Historical Inquiry," at the regional meeting of the Organization for American Historians. (August 2000).
Grants and awards:
Spring 2004 Matterson Award for Best Graduate Student Paper, Iowa State University Department of History.
2004-05 Research Assistantship, Science Education inter-disciplinary project; Supervising professor: David Wilson.
Other information:
Lecturer/Adjunct Instructor, History of Western Civilization survey, Simpson College, Indianola, Iowa (May 2004-current).

Wade Franck

gwfranck@iastate.edu
Ph.D. candidate

Education:
MA, History of Technology and Science, August 2003-December 2005, Iowa State University, Ames
BA, Majors in History and Political Science, August 1993-May 1997, University of Iowa, Iowa City
Areas of interest:
I am mainly interested in the changes taking place in the United States during the 19th and 20th centuries; specifically, technological changes in the American military, the mechanization of agricultural and their impact on the role of that the United States plays in the world. I also have a keen interest in communication, transportation, engineering, and entertainment of those time periods.
Research interests:
My research has mainly been in the area of the mechanization of American agriculture starting in the 1830s. Specifically, I have chosen to focus on the mechanization of grain production. My research has included studying the development of the grain reaper and then its improvement into the twine binder before the combine superseded it. In doing so, I have also become interested in the company histories of the McCormick Mowing and Reaping Company and the International Harvester Company. My Master's thesis was on the reaper centennial that International Harvester celebrated in 1931.
Advisor: Dr. Amy Bix
Publications:
"Leadville," in Encyclopedia of Immigration and Migration in the American West, edited by Gordon Morris Bakken, 2006
Conference papers:
Invited to give a paper entitled, "'To do Honor to Grandfather,' The Myth Building and Centennial Celebration of Cyrus McCormick and the Grain Reaper," Annual Meeting of the Society of the History of Technology, Las Vegas, October 12-16, 2006
"Marketing Agricultural Machinery Across the Atlantic: International Harvester in Europe, 1902-1939," First Annual Meeting of the Agricultural History Society, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, June 15-17, 2006
"'Bringing in the Sheaves': The Invention of the Twine Binder Attachment," Midwest Junto for the History of Science, 49th Annual Meeting, University of Wisconsin-Madison, April 28 -30, 2006
"What really sunk the Maine? The Spanish-American War and Naval Technology," Guest Lunch-time Lecturer, Technology and Policy Program, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, June 2005
"Father of the Reaper: The Myth Building of Cyrus McCormick," Midwest Junto for the History of Science, 48th Annual Meeting, Truman State University, April 1-3, 2005
Grants and awards:
Awarded a SHOT Travel Grant from the Society of the History of Technology to attend their Annual Meeting in Las Vegas, October 12-16, 2006.
Other information:
In whatever free time I may have, I enjoy going to film festivals, listening to music, collecting and using technology from the 19th and early 20th centuries and working on, fixing up and riding bicycles of all sorts.

Cai Guise-Richardson

caiguise@iastate.edu
Ph.D. student
Education:
M.S. (1999) Iowa State University, Textiles and Clothing
B.I.S. (1994) University of Waterloo
B.A. (1993) University of Toronto, History and Politics
Areas of interest:
19th and 20th century of mental science and psychopharmacology, Gilded age science, history of sex/gender/reproduction, 19th century technology, U.S. and the Middle East
Research interests: I have recently completed papers on naturalists' explanations of separate spheres in the Gilded Age, and another discussing how vulcanization was reconceptualized by Charles Goodyear and his compatriots in order to maintain control over a nascent industry. In the 2006-2007 term I plan to write papers discussing core theories underlying psychiatry and psychology between 1920 and 1940, different theories between 1940 and 1960, as well as how animal models of mental illness helped shape concepts of normal and abnormal behavior in humans.
Dissertation title: Mother's Little Helper; or, The Tax Deductible Martini: Gender, Dependence, and Independence in the History of Valium.
Dissertation summary: My dissertation focuses on the anti-anxiety drug diazepam (Valium) and how the history of its development, use, and regulation reflects changing concepts of what it meant to be an individual in the mid and late-20th century. I hope to investigate the relationship between dependence and independence, how it changes, and how it is related to the status of women.
Advisors: Dr. Amy Bix and Dr. Alan Marcus
Conference papers:
Patent Lawsuits and Technological Innovation: Early Machine-Made Lace. Midwest Junto for the History of Science (Ames, IA, April, 1997).
Patterns of Patterns: A Symmetry Analysis of 19th and 20th Century Machine-Made Lace Designs. Ars Textrina (Stillwater, OK, June, 1997).
Chrome Tanning: Invention, Re-invention, and Adoption. Midwest Junto for the History of Science (Minneapolis, MN, April 1998).
Chrome Tanning: Its Introduction and Effects on the Evolution of Footwear. Costume Society of America, National Meeting (Pasadena, CA, May 1998).
Early Twist-Net Lace: Relating Method of Production to Final Product. Ars Textrina (Madison, WI, June 1998).
Shaping History: Two Faces of Charles Goodyear. OAH, Midwest Regional Conference (Ames, IA, August 2000)
Developing the Myth of Charles Goodyear: Patent Law and the Independent Inventor. Society for the History of Technology (Munich, Germany, August 2000)
Grants and awards:
Costume History for Youth
Cai Guise-Richardson & Dr. Janis Stone (Project Funds Allocation, College of Family and Consumer Sciences, Extension Service, Iowa State University, Fall 1996)
Resulting publication (A Look in the Attic Closet, 4-H Video and Workbook, 2001)
Juried poster presentation (International Textile and Apparel Association, Extension Pre-Conference, Knoxville, TN, Nov. 1997)
Video presentation (Costume Society of America, National Meeting, Pasadena, CA, May 1998)
Video available through Iowa Extension offices or Iowa 4-H
Iowa Museums Outreach Survey
Cai Guise-Richardson & Dr. Janis Stone (Helen LeBaron Hilton Fund, College of Family and Consumer Sciences, Iowa State University, Fall 1998)
Charles Goodyear: A Reassessment
Cai Guise-Richardson & Dr. Alan Marcus (Science, Technology, and Society Grant, Iowa State University, Spring 1999
Garst Fellow- 2001-2002
Thesis titles:
(graduate) American Tanning 1850 -1920: The Rise of Chrome Tanning and It's Effect On Footwear (Unpublished thesis, Iowa State University, 1999)
(undergraduate) The Evolution of Patterning Mechanisms in Lace Machines to 1865 and its Viability for the Study of Lace Artifacts (Unpublished thesis, University of Waterloo, 1994)

Robert Hinrichs

Rdh@iastate.edu
M.A. Student
Education:
Iowa State University (2005) B.A. History
Areas of interest:
History of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland
Research interests:
Military Small Arms Technological Development in the 19th and 20th Centuries

Matthew Kennedy

mkennedy@iastate.edu
M.A. Student
Areas of interest:
History of military technology

Larissa Pires

lapires@iastate.edu
Ph.D. Candidate, HOTS program
Education:
B.A. International Relations - Catholic University of Brasilia, Brazil
MBA Foreign Trade - Catholic University of Brasilia, Brazil
Previous Research Areas
B.A. thesis: Commercial relations between Brazil and European Union from 1992 -2002
MBA thesis: Diplomatic and Commercial relations between People's Republic of China and Brazil - impact of diplomacy on commerce between both countries
Current Research interests:
Scientific and technological developments in Latin America, special focus on technology and Brazil Latin American history and role of women in shaping latin american society European history, focus on France and Soviet Union/Russia
Conference Papers:
Rubber and Plastics in the Polymer Age - Midwest Junto (Minneapolis, 2008)
Publications
International commercial opportunities for Brasilia's private sector - focus on foreign trade;
Impact of academic research in Catholic University of Brasilia's International Relations course and curriculum;
What are hieroglyphs? (Encyclopedic contribution in press);
What are stereoscopes? (Encyclopedic contribution in press)

Bryan Riddle

bjriddle@iastate.edu
M.A. Student
Education:
Michigan Technological University (2007) B.A. History
Areas of Interest
U.S History 19th century

Madhumita Saha

msaha@iastate.edu
Ph.D. Candidate, HOTS

Education:
Fulbright Doctoral Fellow History of Sc. & Tech. Iowa State University Fall 2006 - Spring 2007
M.A. History Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India 1999-2001
B.A. History Presidency College, Kolkata, India 1996-1999
Research Interests:
History of Science and Technology;
Relationship among Post-colonial State, Science and Technology;
History and Politics of Development in the Developing Countries;
History of Agriculture in the Developing Countries;
Presently working on State Policy, Agricultural Research and Transformation of Indian Agriculture, with special reference to Basic Food Crops, 1947-1985
Honors and Achievements:
Fulbright Doctoral Fellowship, 2006-2007;
Second Indian to win the S. Athar Ali Memorial Prize for the best paper in all sections of 2006 Indian History Congress for the paper "Created in Their Own Image";
First Indian to win the I.G Khan Memorial Prize for the best paper in the section dealing with history of science, technology and environment in the 65th Indian History Congress, 2004;
Qualified on the National Eligibility Test (NET) for university lecturers, India, December 2002;
Qualified on the State Level Eligibility Test (SLET) for university lecturers,West Bengal, India, December 2002;
Aruna Mukherjee Memorial Prize for the highest proficiency in humanities in 1996 Higher Secondary Examination in West Bengal, India;
Publications:
"Transfer of Technology and the Question of Institution Building: An Indo-American Case Study", accepted for The Journal of Science, Technology and Society to be published by The Centre for Studies in Science Policy, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India;
"Created in Their Own Image", 67th Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, 2007. Winner of the S.Athar Ali Memorial Prize for the best paper in all sections of 2006 Indian History Congress;
"From Swadeshis to M.K. Gandhi", Journal of Indian History and Culture, Volume 4, November 2006, published from Chennai, India;
"In Search of Modern India: The Perceived Role of Techno-Science in the Post-Colonial Period", Journal of Social Science and Humanities, August 2006, Vol 3, published from Kolkata, India;
"Aims and Objectives of Agricultural Science in Indo-American Relation", 20th. Annual Conference of The West Bengal History Association, January 2006;
"Empowered Nationalism and Science", 66th Proceeding of The Indian History Congress, 2005, Bareilly, India. Winner of I.G Khan Memorial Prize for the best paper in history of science.
Professional Experience:
Teaching Assistant, Department of History, Iowa State University:
Hist 281 History of Science Instructor, Spring 2008
Hist 280 History of Science Instructor, Fall 2007
Lecturer, Department of History, R.K.S.M.V College, Kolkata, India Mar 2005-Aug 2006
Visiting Lecturer, Department of History, Vidyasagar University, West Bengal, India Mar 2005-Aug 2006
Visiting Lecturer, Department of History, Calcutta University, West Bengal, India Jan 2005-Aug 2006
Visiting Lecturer, Department of History, Gokhale Memorial Girls' College, Kolkata, India Aug 2003-Feb 2005
Conference papers (selected):
"In Pursuit of The Ideal Rice: The History of Rice Breeding in India, 1947-65," Midwest Junto, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 2008;
"A New Approach to Abundance: Green Revolution Technology and The History of Wheat Research in India (1966-76)," Agricultural History Society Conference, Reno, Nevada, 2008;
"In Search of Indian Modernity", 106th seminar of "Samaj O Chinta", Kolkata, India, March 2006; "Research and Development: The History of Rice Research in Bangladesh", 3rd International Conference, Jagannath University, Dacca, Bangladesh, March 2006"
Leadership Activities:
Member of the Student Council, Jadavpur University, 2000-2001;
Member of the Departmental Student-Teacher Body, Jadavpur University, 1999-2001;
Member of the University Library Committee, Jadavpur University, 1999-2001;
Member of the Student Council, Presidency College, 1996-1999

Michael Severs

mdsevers@iastate.edu
Ph.D. Candidate, HOTS Program
Education:
B.A. from the University of Minnesota-Duluth 2005
Areas of interest:
History of American science; History of geology
Research interests:
I recently finished my Master's Research Essay on State Geological Surveys in the Midwest.
Advisor: Dr. Hamilton Cravens
Conference paper:
Applied vs Pure Science: State Geological Surveys in the Midwest (Midwest Junto, Spring 08

 

Kaya Tolon

ktolon@iastate.edu
Ph.D. candidate

Education:
M.S. (2005) Iowa State University, Interdisciplinary Graduate Studies (Industrial Technology, Electrical Engineering, Statistics and Philosophy)
B.S. (2001) Iowa State University, (Industrial Engineering)
Areas of interest:
History of 20th century technology
History of forecasting technologies
History of alternative energy technologies
Research interests:
I am interested in the pros and cons of different forecasting techniques and their utilization over time, and how they serve as both a social process and a societal force.
Advisor: Dr. Amy Bix
Publications:
Thesis (2005). Investigating expert bias toward statistical group feedback in the Delphi Technique. Iowa State University
Tolon, K. (2004). Forecasting Wind Power Growth in Iowa (2004-2025). Energy Matters Summer 2004 Vol. 13.2. p 6
Conference papers:
Tolon, M., Demirel N., Gürler S., & Tolon K. (2005). An analysis of seasonality and possible effects of fasting on traffic accidents in Turkey between 1984-2004. Paper presented at the World Congress for Social Sciences & Health. August 21, 2005. Yeditepe University Istanbul-Turkey
Other information:
Studying philosophical, historical, and statistical aspects of forecasting technologies during my masters program has been my main motivation for pursuing the HOTS program at Iowa State.