Courses taught by Tom Ewing
Virginia History along the Appalachian Trail, 2026: The Appalachian Trail (AT) was originally proposed as a walking route that would bring city dwellers into contact with the natural world. For more than one hundred years, Virginia has been part of the Appalachian Trail, from the first conceptual mapping by Benton MacKaye to the current status as the state with the most miles of the trail. Millions of people each year spend time on the AT, including thru-hikers who walk the entire distance of more than two thousand miles, section hikers who backpack on multi-day trips, and day hikers who spend hours on accessible sections. This course examines history along the Appalachian Trail in Virginia, with particular attention to the more than one hundred miles of trail within an hour’s drive of Blacksburg. This course thus uses the route of the AT to explore more than five centuries of history that may be observed and encountered by those walking on the trail. To paraphrase MacKaye’s comment in 1971 about the purpose of the trail (quoted above): in this course, there are three things: to learn, to think, and to think about what you learn. Students will learn about history along the AT, think about the implications of this history for contemporary observers, and think about the methods involved in approaching history as a regional and public experience for visitors as well as residents. Collaborative projects include drafting, revising, recoding, and posting content for multi-media narratives in book and audio forms; designing signs, flyers, stickers, and 3D printed objects for distribution to partners; preparing posters and presentations for New River Valley community organizations and the Appalachian Regional Commission, and contributing to an exhibit on the Virginia Tech campus. Research and analytical exercises include study of community history in the New River Valley, examination of trail use data, exploration of economic impact of Appalachian Trail, and contributions to multi-media narrative of Virginia along the AT. Research exercises will mostly take place during class time, with some requiring work before or after class, and will use data from the Appalachian Trail and Virginia communities to develop quantitative and computational thinking and applied discourse skills. The final essay will provide students with an opportunity to reflect on lessons and skills learned during the semester.
Cholera in Global History, 2025: This course examines cholera in the nineteenth century world as a way to understand medical science, social determinants of health, imperial expansion, community identities, capitalist dynamics, and collective experiences. Students will read historical accounts of cholera outbreaks, conduct original research using primary sources, work collaboratively on presentations and papers, and complete exercises designed to further critical understanding of data in social context. HIST 2624 fulfills Pathways requirements for Quantitative and Computational Thinking: Advanced (5a) and Discourse: Advanced (1a). These requirements will be fulfilled through assignments exploring data collection, analysis, synthesis, visualization, and presentation in formats including written papers, class presentations, public posters, class discussions, and video recordings.
1918 Influenza 2023: This course examines mortality data in the context of the 1918 influenza epidemic in the United States. Directed individual and collaborative research activities will provide extensive opportunities for written analysis, oral presentations, and data visualizations.
Computing in the Cold War, 2022: This course examines computing in the cold war, from the most confrontational stages of US-USSR relations in the late 1940s through the populist movements of the post-Cold War era. This course examines major topics in the history of computing, including the use of large scale computers for industrial, military, and government purposes, the relationship between computers and structures of inequity, discrimination, and marginalization, and the use of computing networks in the relationship between popular organizations and political authorities. This class explores historical materials, topics, and methods in dialogue with events, issues, and debates in the present.
Work Matters: Autonomy and Automation in the History of Labor, 2021: This course examines the history of work as a tension between the automation of labor and the autonomy of identity. By focusing on the history of labor as data in social context, students will explore the priority of efficiency, the privilege of professionals, the counting of outcomes, and the politics of identities. Particular attention will be devoted to mechanization in industry, creativity in crafts, expertise in professions, and care in service as sites of struggle, forms of expression, and sources of measurable date. Students will conduct original research, engage with external partners, and prepare reports working individually and collaboratively.